I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3108 
To reform and enhance the pay and benefits of Federal wildland firefighters, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 5, 2023 
Mr. NEGUSE (for himself and Ms. PORTER) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, 
and in addition to the Committees on Natural Resources, and Agri-
culture, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 
each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic-
tion of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To reform and enhance the pay and benefits of Federal 
wildland firefighters, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; DEFINITIONS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Tim Hart Wildland Firefighter Classification and Pay 
Parity Act’’ or ‘‘Tim’s Act’’. 
(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 
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(1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 
the Director of the Office of Personnel Management. 
(2) FEDERAL
WILDLAND
FIREFIGHTER.—The 
term ‘‘Federal wildland firefighter’’ means any tem-
porary, seasonal, or permanent position at the De-
partment of Agriculture or the Department of the 
Interior, and Tribal Firefighters, that maintains 
group, emergency incident management, or fire 
qualifications, as established annually by the Stand-
ards for Wildland Fire Position Qualifications pub-
lished by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group, 
and primarily engages in or supports wildland fire 
management activities, including forestry and range-
land technicians and positions concerning aviation, 
engineering heavy equipment operations, dispatch, or 
fire and fuels management. 
(3) SECRETARIES.—The term ‘‘Secretaries’’ 
means the Secretary of Agriculture and the Sec-
retary of the Interior. 
SEC. 2. SPECIAL BASE PAY RATES FOR WILDLAND FIRE-
FIGHTERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title 5, United States Code, is 
amended by inserting after section 5332 the following: 
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‘‘§ 5332a. Special base rates of pay for wildland fire-
fighters 
‘‘(a) In this section— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘firefighter’ means an employee 
who— 
‘‘(A) is a firefighter within the meaning of 
section 8331(21) or section 8401(14); 
‘‘(B) in the case of an employee who holds 
a supervisory or administrative position and is 
subject to subchapter III of chapter 83, but 
who does not qualify to be considered a fire-
fighter within the meaning of section 8331(21), 
would otherwise qualify if the employee had 
transferred directly to such position after serv-
ing as a firefighter within the meaning of that 
section; 
‘‘(C) in the case of an employee who holds 
a supervisory or administrative position and is 
subject to chapter 84, but who does not qualify 
to be considered a firefighter within the mean-
ing of section 8401(14), would otherwise qualify 
if the employee had transferred directly to such 
position after performing duties described in 
section 8401(14)(A) for at least 3 years; and 
‘‘(D) in the case of an employee who is not 
subject to subchapter III of chapter 83 or chap-
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ter 84, holds a position that the Office of Per-
sonnel Management determines would satisfy 
subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) if the employee 
were subject to subchapter III of chapter 83 or 
chapter 84; 
‘‘(2) the term ‘General Schedule base rate’ 
means an annual rate of basic pay established under 
section 5332, before any additions such as a locality- 
based comparability payment under section 5304 or 
5304a or a special rate supplement under section 
5305; 
‘‘(3) the term ‘special base rate’ means an an-
nual rate of basic pay payable to a wildland fire-
fighter, before any additions or reductions, that re-
places the General Schedule base rate otherwise ap-
plicable to the wildland firefighter and that is ad-
ministered in the same manner as General Schedule 
base rates; and 
‘‘(4) the term ‘wildland firefighter’ means any 
temporary, seasonal, or permanent position at the 
Department of Agriculture or the Department of the 
Interior, or Tribal Firefighters, that maintains 
group, emergency incident management, or fire 
qualifications, as established annually by the Stand-
ards for Wildland Fire Position Qualifications pub-
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lished by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group, 
and primarily engages in or supports wildland fire 
management activities, including forestry and range-
land technicians and positions concerning aviation, 
engineering heavy equipment operations, dispatch, 
training, development and technology, or fire and 
fuels management. 
‘‘(b)(1) Notwithstanding section 5332, a wildland 
firefighter is entitled to a special base rate of pay at 
grades 1 through 15 of the General Schedule, as pre-
scribed by this subsection. This special base rate shall re-
place the otherwise applicable General Schedule base rate 
and shall be basic pay for all purposes, including the pur-
pose of computing a locality-based comparability payment 
under section 5304 or 5304a. Such special base rates shall 
be computed as described in paragraphs (2) and (3) and 
adjusted at the time of adjustments in the General Sched-
ule. 
‘‘(2) The minimum rate of basic pay for any wildland 
firefighter in levels 1 through 5 of the General Schedule 
shall— 
‘‘(A) be not less than the rate of pay for step 
3 of GS–6, as adjusted by the pay locality des-
ignated as ‘Rest of U.S.’ under section 5304; and 
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‘‘(B) not be greater than the minimum rate of 
basic pay provided to GS–6 under paragraph (3). 
‘‘(3) The special base rates for a wildland firefighter 
in levels 6 through 15 of the General Schedule shall be 
derived by increasing the otherwise applicable General 
Schedule base rate on the date of enactment of this Act 
by the applicable percentage for the wildland firefighter’s 
grade as shown below and rounding the result to the near-
est whole dollar: 
‘‘GS–6, 27 percent. 
‘‘GS–7, 24 percent. 
‘‘GS–8, 21 percent. 
‘‘GS–9, 18 percent. 
‘‘GS–10, 15 percent. 
‘‘GS–11, 12 percent. 
‘‘GS–12, 9 percent. 
‘‘GS–13, 6 percent. 
‘‘GS–14, 3 percent. 
‘‘GS–15, 1.5 percent. 
‘‘(4) When the special base rate is expressed as an 
hourly, daily, weekly, or biweekly rate, the rate is com-
puted from the appropriate annual rate of basic pay de-
rived under paragraph (2) or (3) in accordance with the 
rules prescribed by section 5504(b).’’. 
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(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
subsections (a) and (d) shall be effective on the first day 
of the first applicable pay period beginning on or after 
October 1, 2023. 
(c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 
for chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code, is amended 
by inserting after the item relating to section 5332 the 
following: 
‘‘5332a. Special base rates of pay for wildland firefighters.’’. 
(d) PREVAILING RATE EMPLOYEES.—Section 5343 
of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at 
the end the following: 
‘‘(g) For prevailing rate employees described in sec-
tion 5342(a)(2)(A) who qualify as a ‘wildland firefighter’ 
based on the definitions of ‘firefighter’ and ‘wildland fire-
fighter’ in section 5332a(a), the Secretary of Agriculture 
or the Secretary of the Interior (as applicable) shall in-
crease the wage rates of such employees by amounts (de-
termined at the sole and exclusive discretion of the appli-
cable Secretary after consultation with the other Sec-
retary) that are generally consistent with the percentage 
increases given to wildland firefighters in the General 
Schedule under section 5332a. Such an increased wage 
rate shall be basic pay for the same purposes as the wage 
rate otherwise established under this section. An increase 
under this subsection may not cause an employee’s wage 
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rate to increase beyond a rate that would produce an 
annualized rate in excess of the annual rate for level IV 
of the Executive Schedule.’’. 
SEC. 3. WILDLAND FIRE INCIDENT STANDBY PREMIUM PAY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title 5, United States Code, is 
amended by inserting after section 5545b the following: 
‘‘§ 5545c. Incident standby premium pay for employ-
ees engaged in wildland firefighting 
‘‘(a) In this section— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘covered employee’ means an em-
ployee of the Forest Service or the Department of 
the Interior who— 
‘‘(A) qualifies as a wildland firefighter 
based on the definitions of ‘firefighter’ and 
‘wildland firefighter’ in section 5332a(a); or 
‘‘(B) is certified by the applicable agency 
to perform wildland fire incident related duties 
during the period such employee is assigned to 
a qualifying incident; 
‘‘(2) the term ‘designated sleep and rest period’ 
means the hours during an incident deployment that 
a covered employee is deemed to be in sleep or rest 
status for pay computation purposes, regardless of 
actual hours spent in that status; 
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‘‘(3) the term ‘incident standby premium pay’ 
means pay to which a covered employee is entitled 
under subsection (c); 
‘‘(4) the term ‘prescribed fire incident’ means a 
wildland fire originating from a planned ignition in 
accordance with applicable laws, policies, and regula-
tions to meet specific objectives; 
‘‘(5) the term ‘qualifying incident’ means a 
wildfire incident, a prescribed fire incident, or a se-
verity incident, but excludes an initial response inci-
dent involving a single operational period of less 
than 36 hours (unless a longer period is approved by 
an authorized agency official due to exceptional cir-
cumstances) if the employee is in continual work 
status with no designated sleep and rest period es-
tablished by the agency; 
‘‘(6) the term ‘severity incident’ means an inci-
dent in which a covered employee is pre-positioned 
in an area where conditions indicate there is a high 
risk of wildfires; and 
‘‘(7) the term ‘wildfire incident’ means a 
wildland fire originating from an unplanned ignition, 
such as lightning, volcanos, unauthorized and acci-
dental human-caused fires, and prescribed fires that 
are declared wildfires. 
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‘‘(b) A covered employee is eligible for incident stand-
by premium pay under this section when meeting all of 
the following conditions: 
‘‘(1) The employee is deployed to the field by 
the employing agency to respond to a qualifying inci-
dent. 
‘‘(2) The employee is placed by the employing 
agency in continuous duty status during the incident 
deployment. 
‘‘(3) Any periods of sleeping and resting occur 
in a field location associated with the duty assign-
ment. 
‘‘(c) A covered employee who meets the conditions in 
subsection (b) is entitled to incident standby premium pay 
for designated sleep and rest periods, and such pay shall 
be the only compensation payable to the employee for 
those periods, notwithstanding any other law. Such pre-
mium pay shall be paid at an hourly rate equal to 50 per-
cent of the employee’s hourly rate of basic pay, rounded 
to the nearest whole cent. In determining an employee’s 
minimum wage and overtime pay entitlements under the 
Fair Labor Standards Act, incident standby premium pay 
and associated hours shall be disregarded. 
‘‘(d) A covered employee’s designated sleep and rest 
periods shall be fixed at 9 hours for every 24-hour duty 
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period associated with a qualifying incident, including nec-
essary travel time. If the hours of an incident deployment 
are not an exact multiple of 24-hour periods, the ratio of 
9/24 shall be multiplied by hours for the less-than-24- 
hours period of duty to derive the designated sleep and 
rest period for that duty period, with the result rounded 
to the nearest fractional increment established by the 
agency in tracking hours of work. 
‘‘(e) Incident standby premium pay under this sec-
tion— 
‘‘(1) is not considered part of the basic pay of 
an employee for any purpose; 
‘‘(2) may not be considered in determining an 
employee’s lump-sum payment for accumulated and 
accrued annual leave under section 5551 or section 
5552; 
‘‘(3) may not be used in determining pay under 
section 8114 (related to workers’ compensation); and 
‘‘(4) may not be considered in determining pay 
for hours of paid leave or other paid time off during 
which the premium pay is not payable.’’. 
(b) OTHER EMPLOYEES.—Title 5, United States 
Code, is further amended— 
(1) in section 5544, by— 
(A) adding the following: 
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‘‘(d) A prevailing rate employee described in section 
5342(a)(2)(a) shall receive incident standby premium pay 
under the same terms and conditions that apply to a cov-
ered employee under section 5545c if such employee is em-
ployed by the Forest Service or the Department of the 
Interior and— 
‘‘(1) qualifies as a wildland firefighter based on 
the definitions of ‘firefighter’ and ‘wildland fire-
fighter’ in section 5332a(a); or 
‘‘(2) is certified by the applicable agency to per-
form wildland fire incident related duties during the 
period such employee is assigned to a qualifying inci-
dent (as defined in section 5545c(a)(5)).’’; and 
(B) amending the section heading to read: 
‘‘Wage-board overtime, Sunday rates, 
and other premium pay’’; 
(2) in section 5545, by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(e) For an employee of the Forest Service or the 
Department of the Interior who is temporarily deployed 
to perform wildland fire incident related duties, subsection 
(c)(2) shall not apply to hours during such temporary de-
ployment notwithstanding any other provision of law.’’; 
(3) in section 5545a, by adding at the end the 
following: 
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‘‘(l) For an employee of the Forest Service or the De-
partment of the Interior who is temporarily deployed to 
perform wildland fire incident related duties, subsection 
(c)(2) shall not apply to hours during such temporary de-
ployment notwithstanding any other provision of law.’’; 
and 
(4) in section 5547(a), by inserting ‘‘5545c,’’ 
after ‘‘5545a,’’. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall be effective on the first day of the first 
applicable pay period beginning on or after October 1, 
2023. 
(d) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of sections 
for chapter 55 of title 5, United States Code, is amended 
by— 
(1) amending the item relating to section 5544 
to read as follows: 
‘‘5544. Wage-board overtime, Sunday rates, and other premium pay.’’; 
and 
(2) inserting after the item relating to section 
5545b the following new item: 
‘‘5545c. Incident standby premium pay for employees engaged in wildland fire-
fighting.’’. 
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SEC. 4. SPECIAL LIMITATIONS ON PAY FOR WILDLAND 
FIREFIGHTERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title 5, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) by inserting after section 5547 the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘§ 5547a. Special limitations on premium pay for em-
ployees engaged in wildland firefighting 
‘‘(a) In this section— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘covered employee’ means an em-
ployee of the Forest Service or the Department of 
the Interior who— 
‘‘(A) qualifies as a wildland firefighter 
based on the definitions of ‘firefighter’ and 
‘wildland firefighter’ in section 5332a(a); or 
‘‘(B) is certified by the applicable agency 
to perform wildland fire incident related duties 
during the period such employee is assigned to 
a qualifying incident; 
‘‘(2) the term ‘covered services’ means services 
performed by an employee that are determined by 
the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Ag-
riculture, as applicable, to primarily involve emer-
gency wildfire suppression activities, including any 
periods of duty when the employee is sleeping or 
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resting during an extended period of deployment to 
engage in those activities; 
‘‘(3) the term ‘emergency wildland fire suppres-
sion activities’ means initial-response and extended- 
response activities that directly relate to suppression 
of a wildfire, including activities associated with a 
severity incident but excluding activities associated 
with a prescribed fire incident (as those terms are 
defined section 5545c); and 
‘‘(4) the term ‘premium pay’ means the pre-
mium pay paid under the provisions of law cited in 
section 5547(a), except as otherwise provided in sub-
section (h). 
‘‘(b) Any premium pay earned by a covered employee 
for covered services shall be disregarded in calculating the 
aggregate of such employee’s basic pay and premium pay 
for purposes of applying a limitation under section 5547. 
‘‘(c) Any premium pay that is disregarded under sub-
section (b) shall be disregarded in calculating such em-
ployee’s aggregate pay for purposes of applying the limita-
tion in section 5307. 
‘‘(d) Pay that is disregarded under subsection (b) 
may not be paid to the extent it would cause the aggregate 
of the employee’s basic pay, premium pay, and hazard pay 
under section 5545(d) payable in the applicable calendar 
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year to exceed the rate of basic pay payable for a position 
at level II of the Executive Schedule under section 5313, 
as in effect at the end of such calendar year. Any premium 
pay that is subject to a biweekly limitation under section 
5547(c) must be paid first before other premium pay in 
applying the level II limitation. 
‘‘(e) Application of the limit in subsection (d) or sub-
section (h) to a covered employee may be waived at the 
sole and exclusive discretion of the Secretary of the Inte-
rior or the Secretary of Agriculture, as applicable. Before 
authorizing such a waiver for employees of their respective 
agencies, each Secretary, after consulting with the other 
Secretary, shall prescribe criteria that will be applied in 
making a determination to grant a waiver. 
‘‘(f) Any additional pay resulting from application of 
this section may not be used in computing a lump-sum 
payment for accumulated and accrued annual leave under 
section 5551 or section 5552. 
‘‘(g) The Departments of the Interior and Agri-
culture shall maintain records that document uses of the 
authority provided by this section. 
‘‘(h)(1) For prevailing rate employees described in 
section 5342(a)(2)(A) who meet the requirements in sub-
section (a)(l) to qualify as a covered employee, premium 
pay may not be paid to the extent it would cause the ag-
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gregate of the employee’s basic pay and premium pay in 
the applicable calendar year to exceed the rate of basic 
pay payable for a position at level II of the Executive 
Schedule under section 5313, as in effect at the end of 
such calendar year. 
‘‘(2) For the purposes of this subsection, the term 
‘basic pay’ means wages, environmental differential pay, 
and night shift differential pay, and the term ‘premium 
pay’ means overtime pay, Sunday premium pay, and holi-
day premium pay.’’; and 
(2) in section 5541(2)(xi), by inserting ‘‘, sec-
tion 5547a(h),’’ after ‘‘section 5544’’. 
(b) CALENDAR YEAR 2023.—For the purpose of ap-
plying section 5547 and section 1701 of division B of Pub-
lic Law 117–43 (5 U.S.C. 5547 note) in calendar year 
2023, incident standby premium pay shall be included in 
premium pay that is subject to the limits established in 
those sections. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
subsection (a) shall take effect on the first day of the first 
pay period that has a payment date in January 2024. Sub-
section (b) shall be effective on the first day of the first 
applicable pay period beginning on or after October 1, 
2023. 
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(d) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 
for chapter 55 of title 5, United States Code, is further 
amended by inserting after the item for section 5547 the 
following new item: 
‘‘5547a. Special limitations on premium pay for employees engaged in wildland 
firefighting.’’. 
SEC. 5. REST AND RECUPERATION LEAVE FOR EMPLOYEES 
ENGAGED IN WILDLAND FIREFIGHTING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title 5, United States Code, is 
amended by inserting after section 6329d the following: 
‘‘§ 6329e. Rest and recuperation leave for employees 
engaged in wildland firefighting 
‘‘(a) In this section— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘applicable Secretary’ means the 
Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the In-
terior; 
‘‘(2) the term ‘covered employee’ means an em-
ployee of the Forest Service or the Department of 
the Interior who— 
‘‘(A) qualifies as a ‘wildland firefighter’ 
based on the definitions of ‘firefighter’ and 
‘wildland firefighter’ in section 5332a(a) (apply-
ing the definition of ‘employee’ in section 
6301(2) in lieu of the definition of ‘employee’ in 
section 5331(a)); or 
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‘‘(B) is certified by the applicable agency 
to perform wildland fire incident related duties 
during the period such employee is assigned to 
a qualifying incident; and 
‘‘(3) the term ‘qualifying incident’ has the 
meaning given that term in section 5545c(a)(5). 
‘‘(b) A covered employee may receive paid rest and 
recuperation leave following the completion of service 
under a qualifying incident, subject to policies established 
at the sole and exclusive discretion of the Secretary of the 
Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior, as applicable. 
Each Secretary shall prescribe such policies after con-
sulting with the other Secretary. 
‘‘(c) Rest and recuperation leave granted under this 
section shall be used during scheduled hours within the 
covered employee’s tour of duty established for leave- 
charging purposes and shall be paid in the same manner 
as annual leave. Rest and recuperation leave must be used 
immediately after a qualifying incident and may not be 
set aside for later use. A covered employee may not receive 
any payment for unused rest and recuperation leave. 
‘‘(d) A covered employee with an intermittent work 
schedule shall be excused from duty during the same pe-
riod of time that other covered employees in the same cir-
cumstances are entitled to rest and recuperation leave and 
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shall receive a payment as if the covered employee with 
an intermittent work schedule were entitled to rest and 
recuperation leave under subsections (b) and (c).’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
subsection (a) shall be effective on the first day of the 
first applicable pay period beginning on or after October 
1, 2023. 
(c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 
for subchapter II of chapter 63 of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to 
section 6329d the following new item: 
‘‘6329e. Rest and recuperation leave for employees engaged in wildland fire-
fighting.’’. 
SEC. 6. HEALTH PROVISIONS. 
(a) DATABASE; RECOMMENDATIONS.—Not later than 
one year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secre-
taries shall— 
(1) establish and maintain a publicly accessible, 
searchable database on a website, to be called the 
‘‘Federal Wildland Firefighter Cancer and Cardio-
vascular Disease Database’’, to track chronic disease 
caused by on-the-job environmental exposure over 
the lifetimes of current and former Federal wildland 
firefighters; 
(2) update such database not less than on a 
yearly basis; and 
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(3) develop and adhere to recommendations on 
mitigation strategies to minimize exposure to envi-
ronmental hazards for Federal wildland firefighters. 
(b) MENTAL HEALTH.— 
(1) MENTAL
HEALTH
PROGRAM.—Not later 
than January 1, 2024, the Secretaries shall establish 
and carry out a program for Federal wildland fire-
fighters for mental health awareness and support. 
Such program shall include the following: 
(A) A mental health awareness campaign. 
(B) A mental health education and train-
ing program that includes an on-boarding cur-
riculum. 
(C) An extensive peer-to-peer mental 
health support network for Federal wildland 
firefighters and their immediate family. 
(D) Expansion of the Critical Incident 
Stress Management Program, to develop and 
retain a larger pool of qualified mental health 
professionals who are familiar with the experi-
ences of the emergency response workforce. The 
Program shall monitor and track mental health 
in the profession to better understand the scope 
of the issue and provide ongoing assistance and 
professional long term care to patients. 
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(E) Establish and carry out a new and dis-
tinct mental health support service specific to 
Federal wildland firefighters and their imme-
diate family, with culturally relevant and trau-
ma informed mental health professionals who 
are readily available, and not subject to any 
limit on the number of sessions or service pro-
vided. 
(2) MENTAL
HEALTH
LEAVE.—Each Federal 
wildland firefighter shall be entitled to 7 consecutive 
days of leave, without loss or reduction in pay, dur-
ing any calendar year. Leave provided under this 
paragraph shall not— 
(A) accumulate for use in succeeding 
years; and 
(B) be considered to be annual or vacation 
leave for purposes of section 5551 or 5552 of 
title 5, United States Code, or for any other 
purpose. 
(c) COORDINATION.—In carrying out subsections (a) 
and (b), the Secretaries may enter into partnerships or 
cooperative agreements with other Federal agencies, uni-
versities, or non-profit institutions. 
(d) OWCP.—The Office of Workers’ Compensation 
Programs within the Department of Labor shall— 
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(1) recognize post-traumatic stress disorder and 
psychological stress-related injuries or illnesses cor-
related to fire protection, suppression, and incident 
support activities, and ensure long term coverage for 
the duration of the illnesses; and 
(2) expand the Special Claims Unit to ensure 
adequate unit staffing levels are sufficient to expe-
dite the claims process and shorten response times 
to wildland firefighter and incident support per-
sonnel injured or effected on the job in order to al-
leviate the psychological and financial burdens 
placed on the patient and their families. 
SEC. 7. RETIREMENT FOR FIREFIGHTERS. 
(a) DEPOSIT SERVICE.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, any service performed by an individual 
as a Federal wildland firefighter on or after January 1, 
1989, for which retirement deductions under chapter 84 
of title 5, United States Code, have not been made shall 
be creditable under such chapter, but only if such fire-
fighter— 
(1) submits a written election to the Director; 
and 
(2) the deposit requirements of section 8411(f) 
of such title had been met with respect to such serv-
ice. 
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(b) DISABILITY ANNUITY.—Beginning on the date of 
enactment of this Act, any Federal wildland firefighter 
who suffers from a disease described in section 
8143b(b)(2) of title 5, United States Code, due to environ-
mental job-related exposure, including smoke inhalation, 
silicate inhalation, and firefighting toxic exposure, shall be 
considered to be disabled for purposes of section 8451 of 
such title. Such section 8451 shall be applied to any such 
firefighter by substituting ‘‘12 months’’ for ‘‘18 months’’. 
(c) INCLUDING OVERTIME AS BASIC PAY.—Section 
8331(3) of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (H), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 
the end; 
(2) in subparagraph (I), by inserting ‘‘and’’ 
after the semicolon; 
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (I) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(J) with respect to a Federal wildland 
firefighter (as that term is defined in section 
1(b) of the Tim Hart Wildland Firefighter 
Classification and Pay Parity Act), overtime 
pay received on or after the date of enactment 
of this subparagraph;’’; and 
(4) in the undesignated matter following sub-
paragraph (J) (as added by paragraph (3)), by strik-
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ing ‘‘subparagraphs (B) through (I) of this para-
graph’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraphs (B) through 
(J) of this paragraph,’’. 
(d) SEPARATE NORMAL-COST PERCENTAGE.—Sec-
tion 8423(a)(1)(B)(i) of title 5, United States Code, is 
amended by inserting after ‘‘firefighters,’’ the following: 
‘‘Federal wildland firefighter (as that term is defined in 
section 1 of the Tim Hart Wildland Firefighter Classifica-
tion and Pay Parity Act),’’. 
SEC. 8. PAY PARITY FOR FEDERAL STRUCTURAL FIRE-
FIGHTERS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 
date of enactment of this Act, any pay, benefits, and bo-
nuses provided to any Federal structural firefighter shall 
be comparable with the pay, benefits, and bonuses pro-
vided for Federal wildland firefighters under this Act and 
the amendments made by this Act. Not later than 1 year 
after the date the pay scale is established under section 
5332a of title 5, United States Code, as added by section 
2 of this Act, the Director shall submit a report to Con-
gress on whether pay for such Federal structural fire-
fighters is competitive with Federal wildland firefighters. 
(b) FEDERAL
STRUCTURAL
FIREFIGHTER
DE-
FINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘Federal structural fire-
fighter’’— 
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(1) has the meaning given the term ‘‘fire-
fighter’’ in section 8401 of chapter 84 of title 5, 
United States Code; and 
(2) does not include any Federal wildland fire-
fighter. 
SEC. 9. OTHER MATTERS. 
(a) ANNUAL ADJUSTMENTS.—Notwithstanding any 
other provision of law, beginning in the first pay period 
beginning on or after the date that the pay scale is estab-
lished under section 5332a of title 5, United States Code, 
as added by section 2 of this Act, and annually thereafter, 
the basic rate of pay for each Federal wildland firefighter 
occupying a position within such pay scale shall be in-
creased by not less than the percentage equal to the per-
cent change in the Consumer Price Index (all items— 
United States city average), published monthly by the Bu-
reau of Labor Statistics, for December of the preceding 
year over such Consumer Price Index for the December 
of the year prior to the preceding year, adjusted to the 
nearest one-tenth of 1 percent. 
(b) COMPENSATION COMPARABLE TO NON-FEDERAL 
FIREFIGHTERS.—Not later than 1 year after the date the 
pay scale is established under section 5332a of title 5, 
United States Code, as added by section 2 of this Act, 
the Secretaries shall submit a report to Congress on 
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whether pay, benefits, and bonuses provided to Federal 
wildland firefighters are comparable to the pay, benefits, 
and bonuses provided for non-Federal firefighters in the 
State or locality where Federal wildland firefighters are 
based. 
(c) HAZARDOUS DUTY PAY.—Each Federal wildland 
firefighter carrying out work completed during prescribed 
fire, parachuting, tree climbing over 20 feet, hazard tree 
removal, and other hazardous work as identified by the 
Secretaries, shall be entitled to be paid the appropriate 
differential under section 5545(d) of title 5, United States 
Code, as if such employee was covered by such section. 
The Director may prescribe regulations to carry out this 
subsection. 
(d) OTHER MATTERS.— 
(1) UNPAID LEAVE TO CARE FOR FAMILY MEM-
BER.—A Federal wildland firefighter not covered by 
the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 or sub-
chapter V of chapter 63 of title 5, United States 
Code, shall be allowed a period of unpaid leave, dur-
ing each calendar year, not to exceed 180 days in 
order to care for the spouse, or a son, daughter, or 
parent, of the employee, if such spouse, son, daugh-
ter, or parent has a serious health condition. Leave 
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provided under this paragraph shall not accumulate 
for use in subsequent years. 
(2) RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION BONUS.— 
In order to promote the recruitment and retention of 
Federal wildland firefighters, the Director, in coordi-
nation with the Secretaries, shall establish a pro-
gram under which a recruitment or retention bonus 
of not less than $1,000 may be paid to a Federal 
wildland firefighter in an amount as determined ap-
propriate by the Director and the Secretaries. The 
minimum amount of such bonus in the previous sen-
tence shall be increased each year by the Consumer 
Price Index in the manner prescribed under sub-
section (a)(2). Any bonus under this subsection— 
(A) shall be paid to any primary or sec-
ondary Federal wildland firefighter upon the 
date that such firefighter successfully completes 
a work capacity test; and 
(B) may not be paid to any such fire-
fighter more than once per calendar year. 
(3) HOUSING
ALLOWANCE.—The Secretaries 
shall provide a housing allowance to any Federal 
wildland firefighter deployed to a location more than 
50 miles from their primary residence. Such allow-
ance shall be in an amount determined appropriate 
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by the Secretaries and adjusted based on the cost of 
housing in the area of deployment. 
(4) CAREER TRANSITION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year 
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec-
retaries shall establish, maintain, coordinate, 
and operate a voluntary tuition assistance pro-
gram for Federal wildland firefighters occu-
pying a permanent position that encompass a 
broad range of educational experiences (either 
in-person or through distance-learning), includ-
ing academic skills development, vocational pro-
grams, career and technical programs, and pro-
grams leading to the award of undergraduate 
and graduate degrees. 
(B) AMOUNT.—The program under sub-
paragraph (A) shall provide, not more than 
once during each calendar year, a payment of 
not less than $4,000 to each Federal wildland 
firefighter who elects to participate in the pro-
gram. 
(C) REVIEW.—The Secretaries shall con-
duct an annual review of whether the amount 
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provided under subparagraph (B) is adequate, 
in consideration of inflation and other effects. 
Æ 
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