The wildfire season in Montana may be winding down, but when it comes to firefighter protections, it’s the eleventh hour. U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., is racing against the clock to help pass the Wildland Firefighter Paycheck Protection Act before existing safeguards reach their sunset date on Sept. 30.
The proposed bipartisan legislation would permanently codify base pay increases and take steps to address the significant physical and mental burnout among federal wildland firefighters. This measure, sponsored by Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., also has support from Montana’s Republican U.S. Sen. Steve Daines. It comes as the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Department of the Interior grapple with an increasing number of resignations among service members.
“When you talk wildland, those are high-intense situations, and stress when you’re working 16 [or] 18-hour days on a fire,” George Richards, president of the Montana State Firefighters Association and the Montana State Council of Firefighters, said. “When I got hired, you used to see guys do 36, 34, 30 years on the job. Now, you’re lucky to make it to 20.”
Hundreds of federal wildland firefighters serve the state of Montana. They’re responsible for fire suppression, management and control on public lands, often in brutal conditions with limited escape options. Across the country, the fire season has lengthened and intensified as wildland fires become more formidable to battle, putting increased pressure on an already...
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