Wyoming forester proposes expanding suppression account and four regional firefighting modules

Wyoming State Forester Kelly Norris told the Joint Appropriations Committee that she is recommending a change to the Emergency Fire Suppression Account (EFSA) so the account can pay suppression costs for “all state administered lands.” She said the edit would “help prompt and clean up and really marry up what the state forester now has an authority and and then to marry up that EFSA account.”

Norris described a practical problem the change is meant to fix: some state lands other than trust lands (for example state park or Game and Fish holdings) do not clearly fit the EFSA definition now, creating operational confusion when fires occur on those properties. She said the change is proposed to align the statute with recent changes to the state forester’s duties enacted last year.

Campbell…