Under the law signed Thursday, the Idaho Dept. of Lands can offer differential pay similar to what other states and federal agencies offer.
BOISE, Idaho — Gov. Brad Little on Thursday signed into law a bill authorizing hazard pay for wildland firefighters during the time they're working in dangerous conditions.
House Bill 588 had broad support among Idaho lawmakers, winning unanimous approval Monday in the Senate, and passing in the House by a vote of 49-19-2 on Feb. 25. Now that the governor has signed it, it goes into effect immediately.
The Idaho Department of Lands put forward the legislation. In the bill's statement of purpose, Scott Phillips with the IDL said it will enable Idaho's wildland firefighters to receive competitive compensation on par with their peers employed by federal agencies and and other western states when working on an uncontrolled fire or at an active fire helibase.
Phillips wrote that other jurisdictions have provided an additional 25% of hourly pay for the time firefighters are engaged in fire suppression activities. Now, with the new law, firefighters employed by the Idaho Dept. of Lands will also earn differential pay of up to 25% of their regular hourly rate; for example, a firefighter paid a regular hourly wage of $15 could receive up to $3.75 of additional pay for every hour they're actively engaged in fire suppression work. New IDL firefighters now earn a starting wage of $15 an hour.
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