Idaho Department of Lands seeks more fire program funding; governor recommends large transfers and some bonuses

The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee reviewed the Idaho Department of Lands FY2026 budget request, hearing extended testimony about wildfire funding, Timber Protective Association (TPA) payments, the Good Neighbor Authority program and abandoned mines work.

Janet Jessup of the Legislative Services Office summarized the agencys budget structure and noted the department administers six program areas, including trust land management and fire and range protection. Dustin Miller, director of the Idaho Department of Lands, and deputies Bill Hoganson and Michelle Anderson appeared to answer questions.

Fire suppression deficiency fund: The department said the fire suppression deficiency fund is continuously appropriated and has historically required prefunding by the Legislature. Jessup and Miller detailed recent fund activity and warned that without supplemental transfers the agency projects the suppression account could decline sharply. "If we do not receive the additional funds that's being asked for by the governor in our budget, that fund could drop down to about $13,000,000," Director Dustin Miller told the committee, citing the departments internal projections for FY2026.

Governor recommendations: The governors budget recommended two notable transfers to the fire suppression deficiency fund: a $60 million supplemental for the current year and a separate $40 million transfer from the general fund (two items referenced separately in testimony). The governor also recommended a $1 million firefighter bonus package for Department of Lands employees; the proposed bonus pool did not extend to TPA employees.

Timber Protective Associations and CEC: Timber Protective Associations are quasi-public organizations that receive assessments and other timber-related receipts administered through the Department of Lands. Jessup said the department requested roughly $5.7 million in enhancements related to TPAs; about 79% of that request was one-time funding. The governor recommended applying a 5% cost-of-living/compensation equivalent (CEC) to the TPAs to provide parity with state firefighters. Representative questions clarified that TPA employees are not state employees and thus did not automatically receive the statewide CEC passed for state staff; the enhancement would give TPAs an equivalent personnel increase.

Bonuses for TPA firefighters: TPAs asked the committee to consider an additional $250,000 to ensure TPA firefighters would receive bonuses comparable to state-employed firefighters; the governors proposed $1 million bonus pool covered only Department of Lands employees.

Good Neighbor Authority (GNA): Director Miller described the Good Neighbor Authority as a large, revenue-generating partnership with the U.S. Forest Service to increase pace and scale of active forest management on federal lands. Miller said the program has generated about $40 million to date. He provided a rough breakdown of how receipts have been used: departmental personnel and operating costs, payments back to the Forest Service for timber receipts, and restoration contracts and NEPA/planning costs. Miller said GNA work has put about 24% of the Forest Services Idaho volume into the sale pipeline in the last year.

Staffing and operational requests: The Department of Lands requested several new positions tied to its fire program modernization, including a fire emergency support program manager, fire aviation section manager, statewide forest assessment program manager, assistant fire warden (Ponderosa area), a fiscal/financial specialist and a forest program position. Jessups budget review showed some of those requests as ongoing and some one-time; the governors recommendation accepted some items and did not recommend others (testimony used a red/green chart to indicate administrative differences).

Abandoned mines: Committee members raised concerns about the abandoned mine lands (AML) program. Miller said Idaho has nearly 9,000 abandoned mine sites to inventory or close and that AML funding (a portion of the mine license tax) has not kept pace with the work. He told the committee the department relies heavily on the Idaho Geological Survey for mapping and prioritization and welcomed conversations with industry and counties about additional funding options.

Timing of reimbursements: Members asked whether federal reimbursements and partner invoicing have changed. Miller said the timing process for cross-agency reimbursements remains multi-year and variable; the departments recent investment in an electronic fire business billing system should help speed invoicing and reconciliation.

Outcome and next steps: The committee did not take final appropriations action during the hearing. Members sought additional detail on reimbursements, the bottom-level projection for suppression funds, and specific line-item breakdowns for the governors recommended transfers and TPA parity adjustments.

Why it matters: Wildfire suppression spending and the structure of continuously appropriated funds affect the state's ability to respond to multi-year disaster costs and the long-term fiscal stability of fire programs. TPAs and private landowners play a significant role in Idahos fire protection network; how the state finances parity for those partners was a central issue in testimony.

The committee moved to the next agenda item after concluding questions of Director Miller and his staff.