A bill has been introduced in the U.S. House designed to improve the federal government’s response to wildfires in the West.
Burn scars can create flooding and mudslide dangers to communities and cause significant property damage.
But state and local governments must often bear the expenses of post-fire impacts.
“As we enter another dangerous fire season under historic drought conditions, it’s more important than ever that the federal government supports our communities as they respond to and recover from disasters,” said sponsor Arizona Democratic Rep. Greg Stanton in a statement.
The bipartisan Wildfire Response Improvement Act directs the Federal Emergency Management Agency to improve wildfire mitigation and assist with debris removal, emergency protective measures and impacts to drinking water.
The 2022 Pipeline Fire near Flagstaff resulted in devastating flooding that impacted neighborhoods and required flood mitigation costing tens of millions of dollars.