For the second season in a row, wildland firefighters face the possibility of dramatic pay cuts at the end of September if Congress fails to act.
Without action, the federal government could shut down after Sept. 30. Along with that, federal wildland firefighters would see the end of temporary raises as large as $20,000.
Idaho Republican Congressman Mike Simpson is the chair of a subcommittee that has taken on the pay issue. It approved a Fiscal Year 2025 Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Act earlier this summer with permanent pay raises for wildland firefighters that was later approved by the full House of Representatives.
On Saturday, Sept. 14, he told the Mountain West News Bureau that there are a lot of differences between the House and Senate versions of the measure, and not a lot of time to resolve them.
“We've only got two weeks back in Congress,” he said. “So we'll do a continuing resolution. The debate right now is, ‘How long will it last?’”
Simpson said he’d like to see the continuing resolution — a temporary funding measure — go just until December so Congress has to pass a budget before the Biden administration ends. He said further delay could put the next president and Congress in a tough spot.
“Whether it's Harris or Trump, you're putting them behind the eight ball if the first thing they've got to deal with for three months is last year's appropriation bill,” he said.
This Wednesday, the House shot down a stopgap measure that would have extended current funding through March.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
