(D) the extent to which the proposal is 
likely to achieve reductions in long-term wildfire 
risk and increased protection of high-value re-
sources; 
(E) the extent to which an appropriate 
level of non-Federal investment would be lever-
aged in carrying out the proposed project; and 
(F) 
ensuring 
geographic 
diversity 
of 
projects implemented under this section. 
(3) LIMITATION.—The Secretary concerned 
may select not more than— 
(A) 20 proposals under paragraph (1) to 
be funded during any fiscal year; and 
(B) the number of proposals under para-
graph (1) that the Secretary concerned deter-
mines are likely to receive adequate funding. 
(e) REPORTING.— 
(1) PROJECT
REPORTING.—A recipient of fi-
nancial assistance to carry out a project under the 
program shall annually submit to the Secretary con-
cerned a report summarizing, at a minimum, with 
respect to the year covered by the report— 
(A) the number of acres of land treated 
with prescribed fire by the recipient under the 
program; and 
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(B) the amount of Federal and non-Fed-
eral funds used by the recipient under the pro-
gram. 
(2) PROGRAM REPORT.—Not later than 5 years 
after the first fiscal year in which funding is made 
available to carry out projects under the program, 
and every 5 years thereafter, the Secretary con-
cerned shall submit to the congressional committees 
a report describing the program, including an as-
sessment of whether, and to what extent, the pro-
gram is fulfilling the purposes of this section. 
(f) LIMITATIONS.— 
(1) TOTAL FUNDING.—The Secretary concerned 
shall not provide more than $20,000,000 in total 
funding for projects under the program in any fiscal 
year. 
(2) PROJECT SIZE LIMITATION.—The Secretary 
concerned shall not provide more than $1,000,000 
for any 1 project under the program in any fiscal 
year. 
(3) PROJECT
SUNSET.—The Secretary con-
cerned shall not provide funding for a project under 
the program for a period of more than 10 fiscal 
years. 
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(4) PROJECT
CANCELLATION.—The Secretary 
concerned shall cease funding any project under the 
program that, for 3 consecutive years, fails to meet 
the annual accomplishment targets set under sub-
section (b)(3)(F). 
(g) FUNDING.—Of the amounts made available under 
section 102(a), the Secretary concerned may use to carry 
out this section not more than $10,000,000 for each of 
fiscal years 2025 through 2034. 
TITLE II—FACILITATING IMPLE-
MENTATION AND OUTREACH 
SEC. 201. COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS AND CONTRACTS. 
(a) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this sec-
tion, the term ‘‘eligible entity’’ means— 
(1) a State; 
(2) an Indian Tribe; 
(3) a county or municipal government; 
(4) a fire district; 
(5) a nongovernmental organization; and 
(6) a private entity. 
(b) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary concerned may 
enter into a cooperative agreement or contract with an eli-
gible entity to authorize the eligible entity to coordinate, 
plan, or conduct a prescribed fire on Federal land in ac-
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cordance with other applicable laws, regulations, and land 
management plans. 
(c) SUBCONTRACTS.—The Secretary concerned may 
authorize a State, an Indian Tribe, or a county that enters 
into a cooperative agreement or contract under subsection 
(b) to enter into a subcontract to conduct a prescribed 
fire on Federal land pursuant to that cooperative agree-
ment or contract, subject to any other terms and condi-
tions that the Secretary concerned determines to be appro-
priate. 
(d) LONG-TERM CONTRACTS.—A cooperative agree-
ment or contract with an eligible entity under subsection 
(b) may authorize the eligible entity to conduct a series 
of prescribed fires on Federal land for a period of not 
longer than 10 years. 
SEC. 202. HUMAN RESOURCES. 
(a) PRESCRIBED FIRE WORKFORCE.— 
(1) INCREASING WORKFORCE RETENTION.— 
(A) HAZARD PAY.— 
(i) IN GENERAL.—Each Federal em-
ployee in any classification series, as iden-
tified by the Secretaries, shall be entitled 
to be paid the appropriate differential 
under subsection (d) of section 5545 of 
title 5, United States Code, as if such em-
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ployee was covered by such subsection, 
when such employee carries out work di-
rectly related to the ignition, management, 
and control of a prescribed fire. 
(ii) REGULATIONS.—The Director of 
the Office of Personnel Management shall 
prescribe regulations to carry out this sub-
paragraph. 
(B) INCENTIVE PAYMENTS FOR FUELS AS-
SIGNMENTS.—The Secretaries shall submit to 
the congressional committees a joint report de-
scribing mechanisms to attract and retain a 
skilled fuels workforce, including pay incentives 
that would account for and offset the more 
competitive pay options offered through wildfire 
suppression assignments. 
(2) 
DEDICATED
PRESCRIBED
FIRE
TASK 
FORCES.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretaries shall— 
(i) not later than 180 days after the 
date of enactment of this Act, establish at 
least 1 multiparty task force of Federal 
employees and non-Federal entities within 
each Geographic Area Coordination Center 
to plan, lead, and support prescribed fire 
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across ownership boundaries that are pri-
orities at the landscape, region, State, or 
Federal level; and 
(ii) support each task force estab-
lished under clause (i) by assigning a dedi-
cated Federal employee— 
(I) to aid necessary administra-
tive functions relating to partnership 
agreements; and 
(II) to coordinate prescribed fire 
across ownership boundaries. 
(B) 
COOPERATIVE
AGREEMENTS.—The 
Secretaries may enter into 1 or more coopera-
tive agreements to carry out this paragraph. 
(3) CONVERSION OF SEASONAL FIREFIGHTERS 
TO PERMANENT EMPLOYEES.—The Secretaries may 
noncompetitively convert a Federal seasonal em-
ployee to a Federal permanent employee if— 
(A) the listed job duties of the employee 
include wildland firefighting; 
(B) the employee received a rating of at 
least ‘‘Fully Successful’’ in each of the perform-
ance appraisals of the employee for the 3 most 
recent seasons of Federal employment of the 
employee; and 
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(C) the job duties and performance stand-
ards of the position into which the permanent 
employee converts emphasize implementing pre-
scribed fires. 
(4) EMPLOYMENT
OF
FORMERLY
INCARCER-
ATED INDIVIDUALS.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretaries, in 
consultation with the Attorney General and 
State departments of corrections, shall seek to 
provide career pathways, training, and wrap-
around support services, including through 
partnerships with the Corps Network, to indi-
viduals described in subparagraph (B) to work 
as prescribed fire practitioners. 
(B) INDIVIDUALS
DESCRIBED.—An indi-
vidual referred to in subparagraph (A) is an in-
dividual that— 
(i) has been convicted in any court of 
a criminal offense, other than arson or a 
violent crime (as defined by the Secre-
taries, in consultation with the Attorney 
General and State departments of correc-
tions), and was sentenced to a term of im-
prisonment for that offense; and 
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(ii) during the term of imprisonment 
described in clause (i), served on a 
wildland firefighting crew or received other 
comparable training. 
(5) UNDERUTILIZED EMPLOYEES.—The Secre-
taries shall support the recruitment, development, 
and participation of underutilized employees, as de-
termined by the Secretaries, in the wildland fire 
workforce, including by fostering leadership opportu-
nities, mentorship networks, and training. 
(6) VETERANS CREWS.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretaries, in 
consultation with the Secretary of Veterans Af-
fairs, shall seek— 
(i) to provide a career pathway to in-
dividuals described in subparagraph (B) to 
work as prescribed fire practitioners; and 
(ii) to establish crews composed pre-
dominantly of veterans to conduct pre-
scribed fires. 
(B) INDIVIDUALS
DESCRIBED.—An indi-
vidual referred to in subparagraph (A) is an in-
dividual who— 
(i) served in the active military, naval, 
or air service; and 
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(ii) was discharged or released under 
conditions other than dishonorable. 
(b) ADDITIONAL TRAINING CENTERS.—Subject to 
the availability of appropriations, not later than 2 years 
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in 
cooperation with the Secretary of Agriculture (and the 
Secretary of Defense in the case of a center located on 
a military installation), shall— 
(1) establish, operate, and facilitate a pre-
scribed fire training program or center that offers 
training in prescribed fire within each Geographic 
Area Coordination Center region where such a pro-
gram or center does not exist on the date of enact-
ment of this Act; and 
(2) support the establishment of an Indigenous- 
led prescribed fire and cultural burning training cen-
ter operated by an Indian Tribe or partnership of 
Indian Tribes. 
(c) COMPETENCIES FOR FIREFIGHTERS.—The Secre-
taries, in coordination with the Fire Executive Council, 
shall task the National Wildfire Coordinating Group with 
the duty to adjust training requirements to obtain a cer-
tification to serve in a supervisory role for a prescribed 
fire and any other positions determined to be necessary 
by the Secretaries— 
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(1) in order to reduce the time required to ob-
tain such a certification; and 
(2) such that significant experience, gained ex-
clusively during a prescribed fire, is required to ob-
tain such a certification. 
(d) ENHANCING INTEROPERABILITY BETWEEN FED-
ERAL AND NON-FEDERAL PRACTITIONERS.— 
(1) QUALIFICATION DATABASES AND DISPATCH 
SYSTEMS.—The Secretaries shall establish a collabo-
rative process to create mechanisms for non-Federal- 
agency fire practitioners to be included in prescribed 
fire and wildfire resource ordering and reimburse-
ment processes. 
(2) PARTNERSHIP
AGREEMENTS.—The Secre-
taries shall— 
(A) develop partnership agreements for 
prescribed fire with all relevant State, Federal, 
Tribal, university, and nongovernmental entities 
that choose to be included in resource ordering 
and reimbursement processes under paragraph 
(1); 
(B) create agreements and structures nec-
essary to include non-Federal-agency and other 
nontraditional partners in direct work with 
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Federal agencies to address prescribed fires; 
and 
(C) treat any prescribed fire practitioner 
meeting applicable National Wildfire Coordi-
nating Group standards as eligible to be in-
cluded in statewide participating agreements. 
SEC. 203. LIABILITY OF PRESCRIBED FIRE MANAGERS. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) COVERED
ACTIVITY.—The term ‘‘covered 
activity’’ means an activity carried out on Federal 
land directly related to a wildland fire, prescribed 
fire, or prescribed fire with cultural objectives in the 
course of executing a Federal action. 
(2) COVERED ENTITY.—The term ‘‘covered en-
tity’’ means a non-Federal entity engaged in a cov-
ered activity, if that non-Federal entity is acting— 
(A) under the direct supervision of a Fed-
eral employee; and 
(B) within the scope of a contract or 
agreement in carrying out that covered activity. 
(b) INDEMNITY OF FEDERAL AND TRIBAL EMPLOY-
EES.—The Secretaries, in coordination with the Attorney 
General, shall develop, for employees involved in covered 
activities, a voluntary training course describing— 
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