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Fire division details aviation use, investigation expansion and small home‑hardening grants
Summary
The Division of Fire Prevention & Control outlined aviation usage (more than 1,000,000 gallons delivered this year across fixed wing and rotor wing), a $2.7 million hangar purchase, and a small statutory home‑hardening grant that yielded $46,000 in reimbursements; the division noted complex fund accounting and continuing capacity-building work.
Chief Mike Morgan told the Joint Budget Committee the Division of Fire Prevention and Control has expanded investigative and aviation capacity in recent years and is continuing work to manage cash‑fund balances and program growth.
Morgan said the department spent about $2,700,000 to purchase an existing hangar and that the state now operates aircraft including multi‑mission fixed wing planes, exclusive‑use single‑engine air tankers, a large air tanker on season contracts, two state‑owned Type‑2 helicopters, and two year‑round Type‑1 Firehawks. Morgan said fixed‑wing and rotor operations together have delivered more than 1,000,000 gallons of water or retardant this calendar year.
He described the fire investigation program’s regional teams, canine deployments and more than 344 structural/wildland/industrial investigations supported to date, producing 15 arrests and training hundreds of local investigators. Morgan said the program fills a gap when a local jurisdiction requests technical assistance.
On home hardening, the division implemented a statutory home‑hardening grant with $100,000 available in the fiscal year; 35 recipients were identified at up to $3,000 each but because the program operated as reimbursement and timelines were tight, the division expended about $46,000 and left approximately $54,000 available for repurposing.
Morgan told the committee that wildfire mitigation and response are part of a cohesive strategy (healthy forests, resilient communities, safe and effective response) and that the division is coordinating fuels treatments, mutual‑aid dispatch, and grant programs across state and federal partners. He recommended continued investment while acknowledging operational and funding complexity.
No committee votes were taken; members asked for additional detail on fund coding and on federal/state coordination for fuels treatments and mitigation.
