Title: Wildfire Defense Act
Policy area: Emergency Management

Summary:
Wildfire Defense Act
This bill directs the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to establish a community wildfire defense grant program and requires other actions by FEMA, the Government Accountability Office (GAO), and the Forest Service with respect to wildfires.
In awarding grants, FEMA must give priority to state and local governments, Indian tribes, and joint authorities that will carry out projects or plans supporting a low-income community in a fire-hazard area or a severe disaster impacted community in a fire-hazard area.
The GAO shall publish (1) a report on authorities and programs that are available to protect communities from wildfires; and (2) a study on the potential for a community wildfire defense plan to qualify for a certification identifying a level of wildfire survivability and resilience, and how to incentivize insurance companies to accept the certification.
The Forest Service shall develop and publish a map depicting at-risk communities.
FEMA shall prepare a report relating to insufficient radio frequencies, barriers to interoperability of radio frequencies, and available products and technologies for overcoming barriers to interoperability for wildland fire management.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5091 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5091

To establish a community wildfire defense grant program, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 14, 2019

 Mr. Huffman introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in addition to the 
 Committees on Natural Resources, and Agriculture, 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 establish a community wildfire defense grant program, 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 ``Wildfire Defense Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
            (2) Chief.--The term ``Chief'' means the Chief of the 
        Forest Service.
            (3) Community wildfire defense plan.--The term ``community 
        wildfire defense plan'' means a plan that--
                    (A) is developed by an eligible entity in 
                coordination with--
                            (i) the local community and government;
                            (ii) local law enforcement, firefighters, 
                        first responders, fire managers, and utilities; 
                        and
                            (iii) State agencies responsible for 
                        emergency response and forest management;
                    (B) includes strategies and activities relating 
                to--
                            (i) improving evacuations and access for 
                        first responders;
                            (ii) addressing vulnerable populations, 
                        including the elderly, those with disabilities, 
                        and the homeless;
                            (iii) hardening and increasing the 
                        resiliency of critical infrastructure and 
                        homes, including through incentive programs;
                            (iv) applying community-scale defensible 
                        space projects across contiguous areas;
                            (v) building local capacity to implement 
                        and oversee the plan;
                            (vi) implementing strategic land use 
                        planning;
                            (vii) deploying distributed energy 
                        resources that do not increase dependence on 
                        fossil fuels;
                            (viii) educating community members;
                            (ix) coordinating any existing wildfire 
                        plans such as a community wildfire protection 
                        plan or a community emergency evacuation plan; 
                        and
                            (x) incorporating information from a map 
                        generated pursuant to section 210(a) of 
                        division O of the Consolidated Appropriations 
                        Act, 2018 (16 U.S.C. 6501 note; Public Law 115-
                        141); and
                    (C) may consist of existing plans or other efforts, 
                provided that the plan complies with subparagraphs (A) 
                and (B).
            (4) Critical infrastructure.--The term ``critical 
        infrastructure'' means any public safety, health, education, 
        transportation, communications, or water or power utility 
        infrastructure or any private infrastructure necessary to 
        preserve community safety or resilience to a wildfire threat.
            (5) Defensible space project.--The term ``defensible space 
        project''--
                    (A) means a project that is conducted within a 
                radius of not more than 100 feet around homes, 
                businesses, and administrative facilities, and is 
                comprised of vegetation pruning, such as annual removal 
                of tree seedlings and saplings, lower limbs of mature 
                trees, cutting of grasses and reducing density and 
                continuity of shrubs, and removal of most small twigs 
                and leaves; or
                    (B) at the discretion of the Administrator, if a 
                project funded under the program is being carried out 
                in a State that has established by law a more 
                restrictive definition of the term, has the meaning 
                given the term in State law.
            (6) Distributed energy resource.--The term ``distributed 
        energy resource'' means a technology that, collectively or 
        individually, increases local energy resilience, such as 
        microgrids, batteries, thermal storage, combined heat and 
        power, fuel cells, electric vehicles, demand response, energy 
        efficiency, smart inverters, and geothermal heat pumps.
            (7) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
                    (A) a State or unit of general local or regional 
                government;
                    (B) an Indian Tribe; or
                    (C) a joint powers authority formed by not less 
                than 2 entities described in subparagraph (A) or (B).
            (8) Low-income community.--The term ``low-income 
        community'' means a census tract, as determined by the 
        Administrator based on objective criteria, where a substantial 
        population or percentage of population of low-income 
        individuals reside, an inadequate access to capital exists, or 
        other indication of economic distress exist.
            (9) Program.--The term ``program'' means the grant program 
        established under section 3(a).
            (10) Severe disaster impacted community.--The term ``severe 
        disaster impacted community'' means a unit of local government 
        or an Indian Tribe located in an area for which the President 
        declared a major disaster under section 401 of the Robert T. 
        Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 
        U.S.C. 5170) during the preceding 5-year period.

SEC. 3. COMMUNITY WILDFIRE DEFENSE GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall establish a program, 
which shall be separate from the program established under section 203 
of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act 
(42 U.S.C. 5133), under which the Administrator, in coordination with 
the Chief, shall award grants to eligible entities to--
            (1) in the case of an eligible entity that has a community 
        wildfire defense plan, carry out projects described in the 
        community wildfire defense plan of the eligible entity in 
        accordance with subsection (c); or
            (2) in the case of an eligible entity that does not have a 
        community wildfire defense plan, develop a community wildfire 
        defense plan in accordance with subsection (d).
    (b) Criteria for Grants.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Administrator, in coordination with 
        the Chief, shall establish criteria to award grants under the 
        program.
            (2) Communities.--Amounts provided under the program shall 
        be used to conduct projects and activities only in communities 
        in existence on the date of enactment of this Act.
            (3) Priority.--In awarding grants under the program, the 
        Administrator shall give priority to eligible entities that 
        will carry out projects or plans supporting--
                    (A) a low-income community in a fire-hazard area, 
                as identified by a State wildfire hazard map or the 
                most recent wildfire hazard potential map from the 
                Secretary of Agriculture; or
                    (B) a severe disaster impacted community in a fire-
                hazard area, as identified by a State wildfire hazard 
                map or the most recent wildfire hazard potential map 
                from the Secretary of Agriculture.
    (c) Community Wildfire Defense Grants.--
            (1) Use of grant funds.--An eligible entity that receives a 
        grant under the program must use grant funds to carry out 
        projects that support a diverse portfolio of community wildfire 
        defense strategies described in the community wildfire defense 
        plan of the eligible entity.
            (2) Grant amounts.--An award under this subsection shall be 
        for not more than $10,000,000.
    (d) Community Wildfire Defense Plan Development Grants.--
            (1) Use of grant funds.--An eligible entity that receives a 
        grant under the program may use grant funds to develop a 
        community wildfire defense plan for the eligible entity.
            (2) Grant amounts.--An award under this subsection shall be 
        for not more than $250,000.
    (e) Preference for Local Contractors and Labor.--In carrying out a 
project using a grant awarded under the program, the grant recipient 
shall, to the maximum extent practicable, give preference to 
contracting with entities, and hiring individuals, from the area in 
which the project is being carried out, including by partnering with 
local corps groups such as AmeriCorps or a conservation corps.
    (f) Cost-Sharing Requirement.--The non-Federal share of the cost 
(including the administrative cost) of carrying out a project using 
funds from a grant awarded under the program--
            (1)(A) shall be not less than 25 percent for a grant 
        described in subsection (c); and
            (B) shall be 0 percent for a grant described in subsection 
        (d);
            (2) may be provided by--
                    (A) a State, a unit of local government, an Indian 
                Tribe, a nonprofit organization, private industry, or a 
                combination of those entities; or
                    (B) volunteer hours and in-kind donations; and
            (3) may, in the case of a project that serves a low-income 
        community, be in the form of a low-interest Federal loan to the 
        eligible entity carrying out the project through the Community 
        Disaster Loan program authorized under section 417 of the 
        Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act 
        (42 U.S.C. 5184).
    (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out the program $1,000,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2021 through 2025.

SEC. 4. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE REPORT.

    Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Government Accountability Office shall publish a report--
            (1) on authorities and programs across the Federal 
        Government that are available to protect communities from 
        wildfires; and
            (2) that assesses impediments to implementation of those 
        programs and gaps in funding.

SEC. 5. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE STUDY.

    Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Government Accountability Office shall publish a study--
            (1) on the potential for a community wildfire defense plan 
        to qualify for a certification identifying a level of wildfire 
        survivability and resilience;
            (2) that assesses what metrics might provide insurance 
        companies assurance that a community has wildfire resilience 
        measures; and
            (3) how to incentivize insurance companies to accept the 
        certification.

SEC. 6. UPDATING LIST OF AT-RISK COMMUNITIES.

    (a) In General.--Section 101(1)(A) of the Healthy Forests 
Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6511(1)(A)) is amended by striking 
``comprised of'' in the matter preceding clause (i) and all that 
follows through ``a group'' in clause (ii) and inserting ``comprised of 
a group''.
    (b) Maps.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act, and every 5 years thereafter, the Chief shall develop and 
publish a map depicting at-risk communities (as defined in section 101 
of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6511)), 
including Tribal at-risk communities.

SEC. 7. REPORT ON RADIO COMMUNICATIONS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Administrator shall prepare a report relating to 
insufficient radio frequencies, barriers to interoperability of radio 
frequencies, and available products and technologies for overcoming 
barriers to interoperability for wildland fire management.
    (b) Cooperation.--In preparing the report under subsection (a), the 
Administrator shall cooperate with--
            (1) the Secretary of Agriculture;
            (2) agencies responsible for the management of Federal 
        land;
            (3) State fire and emergency response agencies; and
            (4) municipal fire departments and volunteer fire 
        departments in relevant communities.
    (c) Compatibility; Additional Frequencies.--The report under 
subsection (a) shall include--
            (1) a determination on whether the organizations identified 
        in the report have an existing ability to communicate by way of 
        radio during a potential fire suppression effort for a large 
        fire;
            (2) a determination on whether--
                    (A) the reserved radio frequencies are sufficient 
                for wildland fire management; or
                    (B) additional frequencies, listed by type and 
                location, are recommended to be reserved or obtained;
            (3) an analysis of commercially available technology and 
        products to enable radios from multiple agencies operating on 
        different radio frequencies to be interoperable; and
            (4) if the Secretary determines under paragraph (1) that 
        the organizations do not have an existing ability to 
        communicate, a plan for ensuring organizations would be able to 
        communicate adequately during a fire suppression effort for a 
        large fire.
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