Senate advances wildfire resilience measure directing state forester to coordinate local response plans

Senator Vickers presented Senate Bill 56 as a continuation of the state's catastrophic wildland fire work and described it as 'phase 2' directing the state forester and the Division of Forestry to create a policy focused on restoring and maintaining landscapes and ensuring communities and infrastructure can better withstand wildfire. "The goal is ... to restore and maintain landscapes, ensuring landscapes across the state are resilient to wildfire related disturbances," he said.

Vickers said the policy requires coordination with local communities and clarified that payment‑sharing questions will be addressed in later legislation; he noted about $2,000,000 in fuels‑treatment projects had been put on the ground with prior appropriations and touted strong early results in reducing risk. The Senate proceeded to read the bill for a third time and the clerk reported it had received the votes to move forward.