Josephine County authorizes extension of state wildfire mitigation grant; roughly $240,000 remains

The Josephine County Board of Commissioners voted to authorize the county to sign an extension of the Oregon State Community Wildfire Risk Reduction Grant, preserving roughly $240,000 for on-the-ground fuel-mitigation work.

Michael McLaughlin of Firewise told the board the grant was awarded in 2023 and was originally set to expire March 31, 2026; the state has extended the grant through December 31, 2026. McLaughlin said the program reimburses qualifying contractor work, with the county administering payments and then seeking reimbursement from the state. He told commissioners that Legal Counsel has reviewed and approved the agreement.

Commissioner Colene Martin moved to authorize signing the extension; Commissioner Gary Richardson seconded. On roll call the commissioners voted yes (Richardson—yes, Martin—yes, Smith—yes), and the motion carried 3–0.

The grant extension preserves remaining funds intended for fuel reduction in high-risk areas across the county. Human Resources staff also presented a request (previously approved through the supplemental budget) to add a Firewise Communities Coordinator position within Emergency Management to support increased wildfire-mitigation workload; that personnel action was presented for review in the meeting record but no roll-call approval is recorded in the transcript.

Next steps cited in the presentation included staff planning and coordinating contractor work to use the remaining funds and completing projects prior to the grant’s new December 2026 expiration.