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Nevada Division of Forestry seeks $11 million advance as wildfire bills age; officials warn reimbursement timing uncertain
Summary
The Nevada Division of Forestry requested and the Interim Finance Committee approved a general‑fund advance to cover fire invoices. Officials said about $23.1 million in invoices were in the system and that federal reimbursements can take months; the division described steps to modernize billing and improve transparency.
The Nevada Division of Forestry (NDF) told the Interim Finance Committee it needed an advance from the state's general fund to pay wildfire and emergency response invoices, and the committee approved the request.
What agencies asked for: The division requested approximately $11,000,000 as an advance to cover invoices submitted for state and interagency firefighting work, current and past. "We are here today asking for a little over $11,000,000 in advance of the general fund to pay for fire bills, current and past," said Casey Casey, State Forester and Fire Warden.
Scope of the problem: NDF reported $23.1 million of invoices in its system as of the briefing; the agency said $18.2 million are bills still to pay and roughly $23.0 million were invoiced for reimbursement at that time. Casey Casey warned the $11 million would not cover the entire backlog if fire season activity increases. "I don't anticipate that this will cover all of the costs," Casey told the committee.
Federal and interagency reimbursement complexity: Committee members and the forester discussed how Nevada bills federal partners and other states after providing mutual aid. Casey said some out‑of‑state responses are processed under state‑to‑state agreements and can be billed directly to the requesting state; other bills pass through federal regional offices (e.g., Albuquerque) where larger volumes of invoices may create processing delays. NDF staff said they have been in frequent contact with federal partners, including FEMA, the U.S. Forest Service and BLM, but cautioned that FEMA Fire Management Assistance Grants (FMAG) processes can be slow.
Audit and process reforms: The division reported it moved from a paper billing system to a new online invoicing system to increase transparency and track aging invoices. Committee members asked for a detailed breakdown of who Nevada owes and who owes the state; Casey Casey said the new system can produce those reports and that the division would provide them to the committee.
Committee action: A motion to approve the Division of Forestry's request (item I94) was made and carried; the motion recorded that the committee approved the advance. Committee members cautioned that timing for federal reimbursement is uncertain and that invoice processing at federal regional offices can take months.
