I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 167 

To provide for adjustments to discretionary spending under section 251(b)(2) 

of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 

to support wildfire suppression operations, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 6, 2015 

Mr. SIMPSON (for himself and Mr. SCHRADER) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on the Budget, and in addition to 

the Committees on Agriculture and Natural Resources, for a period to 

be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 

concerned 

A BILL 

To provide for adjustments to discretionary spending under 

section 251(b)(2) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 to support wildfire 

suppression operations, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Wildfire Disaster 

5 Funding Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. WILDFIRE DISASTER FUNDING AUTHORITY. 

2 (a) ADJUSTMENTS TO DISCRETIONARY SPENDING

3 LIMITS.—Section 251(b)(2) of the Balanced Budget and 

4 Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 

5 901(b)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(E) FLAME WILDFIRE SUPPRESSION.—(i) 

7 If a bill or joint resolution making appropria8 tions for a fiscal year is enacted that specifies 

9 an amount for wildfire suppression operations 

10 in the Wildland Fire Management accounts at 

11 the Department of Agriculture or the Depart12 ment of the Interior, then the adjustments for 

13 that fiscal year shall be the amount of addi14 tional new budget authority provided in that 

15 Act for wildfire suppression operations for that 

16 fiscal year, but shall not exceed $2,689,000,000 

17 in additional new budget authority in each of 

18 fiscal years 2015 through 2022. 

19 ‘‘(ii) If the Secretary of the Interior or the 

20 Secretary of Agriculture determines that sup21 plemental appropriations are necessary for a 

22 fiscal year for wildfire suppression operations, 

23 such Secretary shall promptly submit to Con24 gress— 

25 ‘‘(I) a request for such supplemental 

26 appropriations; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) a plan detailing the manner in 

2 which such Secretary intends to obligate 

3 the supplemental appropriations within 30 

4 days after the date on which such supple5 mental appropriations are made available. 

6 ‘‘(iii) The average costs for wildfire sup7 pression operations over the previous 10 years 

8 shall be calculated annually and reported in the 

9 President’s budget submission under section 

10 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, for 

11 each fiscal year. 

12 ‘‘(iv) As used in this subparagraph— 

13 ‘‘(I) the term ‘additional new budget 

14 authority’ means the amount provided for 

15 a fiscal year, in excess of 70 percent of the 

16 average costs for wildfire suppression oper17 ations over the previous 10 years, in an 

18 appropriation Act and specified to pay for 

19 the costs of wildfire suppression oper20 ations; and 

21 ‘‘(II) the term ‘wildfire suppression 

22 operations’ means the emergency and un23 predictable aspects of wildland firefighting 

24 including support, response, and emer25 gency stabilization activities, other emerVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:48 Jan 11, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H167.IH H167

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1 gency management activities, and funds 

2 necessary to repay any transfers needed 

3 for these costs.’’. 

4 (b) DISASTER FUNDING.—Section 251(b)(2)(D) of 

5 the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act 

6 of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 901(b)(2)(D)) is amended— 

7 (1) in clause (i)— 

8 (A) in subclause (I), by striking ‘‘and’’ and 

9 inserting ‘‘plus’’; 

10 (B) in subclause (II), by striking the pe11 riod and inserting ‘‘; less’’; and 

12 (C) by adding the following: 

13 ‘‘(III) the additional new budget 

14 authority provided in an appropriation 

15 Act for wildfire suppression operations 

16 pursuant to subparagraph (E) for the 

17 preceding fiscal year.’’; and 

18 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(v) Beginning in fiscal year 2017 

20 and in subsequent fiscal years, the calcula21 tion of the ‘average funding provided for 

22 disaster relief over the previous 10 years’ 

23 under clause (i)(I) shall include any addi24 tional new budget authority provided in an 

25 appropriation Act for wildfire suppression 


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1 operations pursuant to subparagraph 

2 (E).’’. 

Æ 


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