United States HRES 467: Designating May 2025 as "National Wildfire Preparedness Month".

Bill Text

IV
119TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. RES. 467
Designating May 2025 as ‘‘National Wildfire Preparedness Month’’.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 3, 2025
Mrs. TORRES of California (for herself, Mr. VALADAO, Mr. LAMALFA, and Mr.
OBERNOLTE) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to
the Committee on Natural Resources
RESOLUTION
Designating May 2025 as ‘‘National Wildfire Preparedness
Month’’.
Whereas wildfires across the contiguous United States, Alas-
ka, Hawaii, and the United States territories have in-
creased in scale, complexity, and severity, fire seasons
have lengthened in many parts of the United States to
encompass the entire year, and wildfire has become a
threat in regions of the United States that have little or
no history of wildfire;
Whereas, in the United States from 2015 to 2024, an aver-
age of 62,435 wildfires burned, consuming on average a
total of 7,553,704 acres, which is 705,612 acres above
the previous 10-year average;
Whereas, in the United States from January 1 to May 2,
2025, 22,759 wildfires burned 988,319 acres, which is
VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:55 Jun 04, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR467.IH HR467ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS

2
•HRES 467 IH
above both the 10-year average occurrence of 15,639
wildfires and the average 10-year burned area of 951,468
acres;
Whereas, from May 2025 to August 2025, over 60 percent
of States in the United States are predicted to be at risk
for significant wildfire events, and over 50 percent of
States are expected to face above-normal risks for signifi-
cant wildfire events;
Whereas nearly 85 percent of wildland fires in the United
States are caused by humans;
Whereas Federal wildfire suppression efforts cost over
$2,500,000,000 per year, and the total cost of wildfire
damage across the United States is estimated to be tens
to hundreds of billions of dollars per year;
Whereas significant investments in proactive planning, miti-
gation, and risk reduction are necessary for the United
States to counteract increasingly severe wildfire risk,
damage, and loss;
Whereas firefighters are on the front lines and are at an in-
creased risk of developing cancer and respiratory diseases
because they are exposed to smoke and hazardous chemi-
cals in the line of duty;
Whereas the effects of long-term exposure to wildfire smoke
will harm more people, as particulate pollution triggers
asthma attacks, heart attacks, and strokes, and can kill;
Whereas preventative measures exist to help individuals and
communities increase their fire resilience through—
(1) reducing the risk of home ignition by using fire-
resistant construction materials and maintaining yard
vegetation;
VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:55 Jun 04, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR467.IH HR467ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS

3
•HRES 467 IH
(2) community planning that reduces home wildfire
exposure and increases access for firefighters;
(3) evacuation planning and assistance for people
and their animals;
(4) vegetation and forest management; and
(5) limited use of combustibles during high heat or
drier seasons, including fireworks, exhaust, and open
flames; and
Whereas a nationally designated Wildfire Preparedness
Month—
(1) increases awareness of the threat of wildfires
and knowledge of lifesaving and fire mitigation practices;
and
(2) promotes educational initiatives, encourages
community programming, and increases overall knowl-
edge and preparedness: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1
(1) expresses support for the designation of 2
‘‘National Wildfire Preparedness Month’’; 3
(2) encourages increased awareness of, and pre-4
paredness for, the threat of wildfires and subsequent 5
suppression efforts at the Federal, State, local, and 6
Tribal levels of government, including Alaska Native 7
and Native Hawaiian communities, and by non-8
governmental organizations and communities; and 9
(3) supports resources and educational initia-10
tives that communicate how communities at risk of 11
exposure to wildfire hazards can take preventative 12
measures, including, home hardening, land manage-13
VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:55 Jun 04, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\HR467.IH HR467ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS

4
•HRES 467 IH
ment practices that reduce or remove highly flam-1
mable grasses and shrubs, instituting or enhancing 2
early warning systems, reducing unplanned human 3
ignitions, reducing adverse health impacts from 4
smoke and fire exposure, and safely and efficiently 5
evacuating people and their animals. 6
Æ
VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:55 Jun 04, 2025 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR467.IH HR467ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS