Wildland Firefighter Fair Pay Act
Bill: H.R.4274 | Sponsor: Rep. Lofgren, Zoe (D-CA)
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Wildland Firefighter Fair Pay Act
This bill exempts federal wildland firefighters in the Department of the Interior, the Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Department of Commerce from certain premium pay limitations for work relating to wildfire emergencies.
The bill applies retroactively to January 1, 2020.
Interior and USDA must each separately submit a report to specified congressional committees on the resources, policies, personnel or structural changes, and other investments necessary to support an expanded full-time, year-round firefighting workforce.

To waive limitations on overtime and premium pay for wildland 
                 firefighters, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Wildland Firefighter Fair Pay Act''.

SEC. 2. WAIVER OF PREMIUM PAY LIMITATIONS FOR DEPARTMENT OF 
              AGRICULTURE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, AND DEPARTMENT 
              OF COMMERCE EMPLOYEES ENGAGED IN EMERGENCY WILDLAND FIRE 
              SUPPRESSION ACTIVITIES.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Covered employee.--The term ``covered employee'' means 
        an employee of the Department of Agriculture, the Department of 
        the Interior, or the Department of Commerce.
            (2) Covered services.--The term ``covered services'' means 
        services performed by a covered employee that are determined by 
        the Secretary concerned to be primarily relating to emergency 
        wildland fire suppression activities.
            (3) Premium pay.--The term ``premium pay'' means the 
        premium pay paid under the provisions of law described in 
        section 5547(a) of title 5, United States Code.
            (4) Secretary concerned.--The term ``Secretary concerned'' 
        means--
                    (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, with respect to 
                an employee of the Department of Agriculture;
                    (B) the Secretary of the Interior, with respect to 
                an employee of the Department of the Interior; and
                    (C) the Secretary of Commerce, with respect to an 
                employee of the Department of Commerce.
    (b) Waiver of Premium Pay Period Limitation.--Any premium pay for 
covered services shall be disregarded in calculating the aggregate of 
the basic pay and premium pay for the applicable covered employee for 
purposes of a pay period limitation under section 5547(a) of title 5, 
United States Code, or under any other provision of law.
    (c) Waiver of Annual Premium Pay Limitation.--Any premium pay for 
covered services shall be disregarded in calculating any annual 
limitation on the amount of overtime pay payable in a calendar year or 
fiscal year under section 5547(b) of title 5, United States Code.
    (d) Pay Limitation.--A covered employee may not be paid premium pay 
if, or to the extent that, the aggregate amount of the basic pay and 
premium pay (including premium pay for covered services) of the covered 
employee for a calendar year would exceed the rate of basic pay payable 
for a position at level II of the Executive Schedule under section 5313 
of title 5, United States Code, as in effect at the end of that 
calendar year.
    (e) Treatment of Additional Premium Pay.--If the application of 
this section results in the payment of additional premium pay to a 
covered employee of a type that is normally creditable as basic pay for 
retirement or any other purpose, that additional premium pay shall not 
be--
            (1) considered to be basic pay of the covered employee for 
        any purpose; or
            (2) used in computing a lump-sum payment to the covered 
        employee for accumulated and accrued annual leave under section 
        5551 or 5552 of title 5, United States Code.
    (f) Overtime Rates.--Section 5542(a)(5) of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ``the United States Forest Service in''.
    (g) Effective Date.--This section and the amendment made by this 
section shall take effect as if enacted on January 1, 2020.

SEC. 3. REPORTS ON OPPORTUNITIES AND COSTS OF AN EXPANDED, YEAR-ROUND 
              FIREFIGHTING WORKFORCE.

    Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall 
each separately submit to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and 
Forestry and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Agriculture, the Committee 
on Natural Resources, and the Committee on Oversight and Reform of the 
House of Representatives, a report on the resources, policies, 
personnel or structural changes, and other investments necessary to 
support an expanded full-time, year-round firefighting workforce, 
including--
            (1) an assessment of the scope of resources and personnel 
        required to meet the current and future needs of the wildland 
        firefighting workforce of the relevant Department;
            (2) how such an expanded workforce could increase 
        suppression capacity and be utilized during periods of low 
        wildfire activity in support of additional hazardous fuels 
        reduction, including prescribed burns or managed wildfires, to 
        reduce risks to vulnerable communities, critical 
        infrastructure, and natural and cultural resources;
            (3) an assessment of how the composition and funding for 
        both the firefighting and non-firefighting workforce of the 
        relevant Department has changed over time;
            (4) a cost-benefit analysis regarding the use of prescribed 
        or managed fire as compared to mechanical thinning, logging, 
        and other forest management activities;
            (5) how such an expanded workforce could support meeting 
        additional agency objectives, resource management needs, and 
        forest resilience; and
            (6) an analysis, conducted in coordination with the Office 
        of Personnel Management, of a possible new position 
        classification series and pay system for Federal wildland 
        firefighters that more accurately reflects the duties performed 
        by such employees and that contains a list of policy changes 
        necessary to implement such a new position classification 
        series and pay system.
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