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Kotek requests wildfire reserves, mitigation funds and federal grant wins for resilience and clean energy
Summary
The governor highlighted federal awards for habitat and clean-energy projects and proposed state reserves and biennial funding for wildfire readiness and mitigation.
Gov. Tina Kotek, governor of Oregon, used the State of the State address to highlight federal grant awards to Oregon and to propose state-level funds for wildfire reserves and mitigation.
Kotek said state agencies submitted or collaborated on 23 federal applications and that Oregon received more than $43 million for habitat restoration, wildfire mitigation, water management and species conservation. She said Oregon also received nearly $90 million to expand solar access, approximately $200 million from the Environmental Protection Agency for resilient communities and clean energy transition work, and $52 million through the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program to build a network of fast chargers on key highway corridors.
On wildfires, Kotek noted the 2024 season burned about 1.9 million acres and cost about $350 million in suppression — figures she described as historic — and proposed placing $150,000,000 from ending fund balance into reserves to manage future suppression costs and asked for at least $130,000,000 every two years for hazard reduction, firefighting resources and readiness following guidance from the Wildfire Programs Advisory Council.
Why it matters: Kotek framed these proposals as investments in preparedness and resilience, tying federal funding wins to state priorities and asking the legislature to set aside reserves and recurring funding to reduce future risk.
Next steps: The governor said she looks forward to revenue recommendations from the wildfire funding work group and urged collaboration to secure ongoing resources for community resiliency.
