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Arizona forester describes growth in staff, inmate crews and mitigation acres
Summary
Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management Director Tom Torres told Wyoming legislators Arizona has rapidly expanded staff and mitigation work, using inmate crews and a mix of contracted and federal aviation resources to fight and reduce wildfire risk.
Tom Torres, director of the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management, told the Wyoming committee Arizona manages wildfire across complex ownerships and has expanded staff and mitigation capacity through state investment, inmate crews and contracts.
Torres said the state forester’s office has grown from 88 employees in 2020 to an authorized ~286 positions — roughly 260 currently on the payroll — after several years of state investment. He said Arizona is statutorily responsible for vegetation management and wildland fire suppression on roughly 22 million acres of state trust and unincorporated private lands, with the U.S. Forest Service and tribal lands comprising most of the remaining at‑risk acreage.
Torres described a wide set of tools: 12 inmate crews of 20 people for firefighting, plus 8 additional 20‑person inmate crews for mitigation; air attack, single‑engine air tankers on exclusive‑use leases, and arrangements with federal partners for VLATs and helicopters. He reported about 2,160 fires in 2024 that burned roughly 280,000 acres and cost Arizona about $21 million in state spend that year; he also emphasized the year‑to‑year variability that complicates budgeting.
On mitigation, Torres said Arizona treated more than 30,000 acres in the most recent year and aims for 40,000 acres in 2026 and sustained multi‑year capacity thereafter. He highlighted the Good Neighbor Authority and contractor partnerships as essential to scaling mitigation work on federal and non‑state lands.
Ending: Torres said Arizona is expanding contracting capacity with private industry to meet mitigation goals and is exploring code and Firewise outreach to improve preparedness in the wildland‑urban interface.
