# Military Support for Fighting Wildfires Act

When wildfires strike, the military has resources that could help—helicopters, aircraft, satellite technology, and trained personnel. Right now, using these resources is complicated and expensive, with states often footing the bill. This bill makes it easier and cheaper for the military to support wildfire fighting efforts across the country.

The bill has several key changes. First, it requires the Department of Defense to reimburse states for wildfire-fighting costs instead of just having the option to do so. This is important because states like California have spent enormous amounts battling massive fires, and now they'll have a clearer path to getting federal money back. Second, it creates something called the FireGuard Program, which uses National Guard members and satellite technology to detect and monitor wildfires in real time, helping emergency responders spot fires earlier and respond faster. Third, it makes it easier for the military to transfer unused aircraft to agencies that fight wildfires, removing bureaucratic barriers that previously slowed down these transfers.

The bill also addresses some technical barriers that have prevented faster military response. It eliminates certain reimbursement requirements that made federal agencies hesitant to ask for military help during disasters, and it allows the National Guard to use unmanned drones for emergency response and search-and-rescue operations with the same flexibility they have with other aircraft. Additionally, it requires the military to work more closely with the National Interagency Fire Center—the organization that coordinates wildfire response—when training National Guard personnel in firefighting techniques.

For everyday people, this means faster emergency response during wildfires, better early detection of fires through improved satellite monitoring, and reduced costs to states that can now get federal reimbursement more easily. The bill essentially removes red tape so that military resources can be deployed more quickly and efficiently when communities face wildfire emergencies.

Military Support for Fighting Wildfires Act

Garamendi, John

Military Support for Fighting Wildfires Act This bill addresses the role of the Department of Defense (DOD) in wildfire emergency response, including by authorizing DOD to implement the FireGuard Program to aggregate, analyze, and assess multi-source remote sensing information for interagency partnerships in the detection and monitoring of wildfires.