National Fire and Aviation Executive Board 

July 6, 2005 

To: Fire Management Officers and Human Resource Management Officers 

From: The National Fire and Aviation Executive Board 

Subject: Clarification on IFPM Qualification Determinations 

As with any new workforce development program, there are some implementation issues 

to resolve. We want to clear up some misunderstandings about the Interagency Fire 

Program Management Qualification Standards and Guide (IFPM Standard). 

Some employees in positions that have been identified as one of the 14 key fire 

management positions have been notified by their Human Resources office that they do 

not presently meet all of the IFPM minimum qualification standards. 

The wording on the employee notification was revised on March 14, 2005 to eliminate 

the “Qualified/Non-Qualified” notation. Those employees who received the earlier 

(Qualified/Non-Qualified) Incumbent Memo can request a March 14, 2005 version of this 

memorandum from their Human Resources Office. The earlier memorandum has caused 

concern and misunderstanding for some employees and supervisors who have understood 

this to mean that they are “unqualified” to be in their present position, or that they are 

“unqualified” to be placed into one of the standard interagency key fire management 

position descriptions. 

Neither of these concerns is valid. Employees are qualified for their present positions 

because they were required to meet the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) 

qualification standards at the time they were placed into their current position. The 

Incumbent Memo states that an employee may need additional training and development 

opportunities to meet the requirements for the IFPM Standard and has until October 1, 

2009 to meet these requirements. 

Standard interagency position descriptions have been developed for most of the IFPM 

key fire management positions. The Forest Service and the Department of Interior will 

soon issue a policy whereby employees will be placed in one of the standard interagency 

key fire management position descriptions which best describes their duties and for 

which they meet the Office of Personnel Management qualification standards. These 
employees have until October 1, 2009 to meet the NWCG Incident Management 

Qualifications and the Additional Required Training for their positions. 

Another misunderstanding concerns qualifications for incident command system (ICS) 

positions. Employees are qualified for the ICS command system positions for which they 

are red carded. Qualifications for these incident management positions are determined by 

the Wildland and Prescribed Fire Qualification System Guide, PMS 310-1 and the Fire 

and Aviation Management Qualifications Handbook (FSH 5109.17). 

If you are in one of the 14 key fire management positions, you may have been notified by 

your supervisor that additional training or development opportunities may be required for 

the position by October 1, 2009. Your supervisor will be working with you to develop an 

Individual Development Plan (IDP), discuss recommended training and development and 

to schedule those activities over the next several years. 

We remind you that employees who are in positions which have been identified as one of 

the 14 key fire management positions have until October 1, 2009 to meet the IFPM 

minimum qualifications standards. 

Human Resources offices are reminded that they need to provide a completed 

Notification of Qualification Status to all affected employees, if they have not already 

done so. 

If you have any questions on IFPM issues, please contact your IFPM fire management 

representative or your human resources management representative. 

_/s/ Alice Forbes __________ _/s/ Brian McManus ________ 

For Tom Harbour For Phil Street 

USDA-FS Director of Fire USFWS Fire Director 

and Aviation Management 

_/s/ Lyle Carlisle___________ _/s/ Larry Hamilton_________ 

Lyle Carlile Larry Hamilton 

BIA Fire Director BLM Fire and Aviation, Director 

_/s/ Mike Wallace __________ _/s/ Don Artley____________

For Edy Williams-Rhodes Don Artley 

NPS Chief, Division of Fire NASF Fire Director 

and Aviation Management