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USFS: 50 fire starts this season and national preparedness at level 5; sheriff explains new OHV decal rule
Summary
U.S. Forest Service reported 50 fire starts in the region and a $1 billion deficit in the 2025 budget; Sheriff’s Lt. Lahti explained SB1567 requires watching a safety video to receive an OHV decal, said enforcement will occur, and clarified rules for USFS roads and trails.
Jeremy Plain of the U.S. Forest Service told the community that the region has experienced 50 fire starts so far this season, most caused by lightning, and that low rainfall means the fire season remains active. “Nationally, we are at level 5 of preparedness, which is the highest level with the least number of resources,” Plain said, and he warned the USFS 2025 budget picture is poor: the agency faces roughly a one-billion-dollar deficit that will limit hiring and infrastructure spending.
Plain said brush pits will be burned once sufficient rain arrives and noted the county is assisting him with a grant application to build an ADA-compliant dock at the lake. He also said the new USFS LEO is still in training and will be working actively in May 2025.
On off-highway vehicle regulation, a resident flagged SB1567; Lt. Lahti of the Gila County Sheriff’s Department clarified the law’s local enforcement implications. He said owners must have an OHV decal tied to completion of a safety video ("you will have to watch a video in order to receive an OHV decal"), that there is no additional cost for the decal, and that owners can be cited for allowing an unlicensed driver to operate a Quad/ATV. Lahti explained that horizontal signs indicate a maintained road and that on U.S. Forest Service roads a driver is required to have a license and insurance; he directed residents to the Arizona Game and Fish Department website for more information and stated the sheriff’s department will enforce SB1567.
Plain’s and Lahti’s remarks underscore continuing wildfire and public-safety pressures heading into the cooler months and explain how new OHV rules will be applied locally.
