Forestry Commission asks for wildfire-response and IT funding after record fire season
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Summary
The South Carolina Forestry Commission described a difficult wildfire season, highlighted a fleet upgrade to enclosed-cab units, and requested recurring and one-time funding for meteorologist staff, hand-crew contracts, airtanker support and IT modernization.
The South Carolina Forestry Commission told a legislative subcommittee that last year's wildfire season strained resources and prompted new budget requests aimed at preparedness and response. "In 2025, we had over, nearly 1,600 wildfires in the state — 1,562 wildfires that burned over 32,000 acres," the commission's lead presenter said.
Why it matters: The commission argued that increased fire complexity — more homes intermixed with wildland — requires new staffing, surge capacity contracts, aircraft funding, and modernized dispatch and tracking to protect people and property.
What was requested: The packet provided to the committee lists a package of priorities (a total packet figure of about $27,685,000 was cited in the presentation). Top requests included $420,000 recurring and $5,500,000 nonrecurring to strengthen wildfire response, funding for a meteorologist with fire-behavior expertise, an exclusive-use contract for type-2 hand crews, and $5,000,000 to sustain single-engine air tanker contracts. The agency also asked for $260,000 recurring and $560,000 nonrecurring to modernize IT (SD-WAN, automatic vehicle location and dispatch systems) and $75,000 recurring to preserve conservation education programs serving K–12 students.
Operational milestones and events: The commission announced that 100% of frontline firefighting units will be enclosed-cab tractors this fire season and invited the committee to a March 3 equipment demonstration at Owens Field. The presenter cited major incidents such as the Table Rock complex (~15,000 acres) and other simultaneous fires that stressed hand-crew availability.
Funding for conservation capacity and contingency: The commission requested $370,000 recurring and $20,000,000 nonrecurring to bolster forest-land conservation capacity and one new FTE to manage projects. Officials also asked to increase a prior emergency proviso from $3,000,000 to $5,000,000 to ensure cashflow for wildfire response while federal reimbursements are pending.
Next steps: The Forestry Commission's requests will be considered during budget negotiations. Lawmakers asked clarifying questions about project specifics, matching strategy for federal grants, and timing for acquisitions and procurements.