Department: This column lists the federal executive department responsible for overseeing the program.
Agency: This column identifies the federal agency in charge of managing the program.
Office: This column specifies the office within the federal agency or department that oversees the program.
Program Name: This column provides the name of the program or appropriations line item.
Wildfire-Specific: This column indicates whether the program or appropriations line item exclusively funds wildfire-related activities. “Yes” means the funding is solely for wildfire-related activities, while “No” means the funding may include, but is not limited to, wildfire activities.
Example “Yes” - U.S. Forest Service Wildland Fire Management Suppression. This account is the primary funding source for wildfire suppression operations and immediate post-fire damage control, including burned area rehabilitation.
Example “No” - Community Development Block Grants – Mitigation (CDBG-MIT). These grants are available for pre-disaster mitigation assistance, which may include wildfire mitigation but could also address other types of natural disasters.
Wildfire Activity Funded: This column lists the type of wildfire activity funded through the program or appropriations line item, as categorized by Taxpayers for Common Sense. The six categories are Mitigation, Preparedness, Research & Development (R&D), Recovery, Response, or Other.
Mitigation: Activities that are intended to reduce the future risk or impacts of wildfires, such as creating fuel breaks or strengthening community resilience.
Preparedness: Activities done in advance of a wildfire event to assist with immediate response, including training, education, and infrastructure development.
Research & Development: Activities aimed at gaining new knowledge or developing technologies related to wildfire management, such as wildfire detection research.
Recovery: Activities that address the short- and long-term impacts of wildfires, including support for individuals, infrastructure repairs, or ecosystem restoration.
Response: Activities carried out during a wildfire event, such as coordinating aerial suppression efforts.
Other: Programs or line items that support wildfire activities generally or do not fall in a specific category.
Regular Appropriations FY15-24: These columns list the total funds appropriated to the program or line item through annual appropriations bills from FY2015 to FY2024. A blank cell indicates that funding information is missing or unavailable for any year. More detailed breakdowns are provided on individual program pages.
Supplemental Appropriations FY15-24: These columns show the total funds appropriated to the program or line item through supplemental or emergency appropriations bills signed into law between FY2015 and FY2024, including appropriations for FY2025 and FY2026 under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA, P.L. 117-58). More detailed funding breakdowns are available on each program page.
Additional Information on Program Pages:
U.S.C.: U.S. Code Reference
Authorization: Refers to legislation that authorizes the federal government to appropriate funds and/or carry out specific activities.
Description: This column lists a brief description of the program or appropriations line item.
IIJA Funding: Indicates whether the program or line item received appropriations in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA, P.L. 117-58). “Yes-New” means the IIJA created and funded a new program or line item. “Yes-Existing” means a pre-existing program or line item received funding under the IIJA. “No” indicates the program or line item did not receive IIJA funding.
IRA Funding: Indicates whether the program or line item received appropriations in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA, P.L. 117-169). “Yes-New” means the IRA created and funded a new program or line item, while “Yes-Existing” means a pre-existing program or line item received funding under the IRA. “No” indicates the program or line item did not receive IRA funding.
Notes on Program: This column provides additional information on the program or line item, which may include, but is not limited to:
Relevant facts about the program or line item, offering historical and current context for users. Ex) Joint Fire Science Program – “The FY2019 President's Budget Request sought to eliminate the program entirely, but Congress continued to provide funding.”
Insights from Taxpayers for Common Sense. Ex) Restoration Byproducts – “Subsidies to address the lack of commercial viability of forest and wood products under the guise of reducing “hazardous fuel” might create perverse incentives that undercut forest health objectives and can increase the risk of fire.”
Recommendations for reform from Taxpayers for Common Sense. Ex) Wildfire Suppression Operations Reserve Fund – “Requiring online reporting of the Reserve Fund on a regular basis (e.g., semi-annually) would be beneficial for the public and policymakers.”
Appropriated Within an Already Listed Line Item: Indicates if the program or line item receives appropriations from a larger fund included elsewhere in the database. For example, the Community Wood Energy and Wood Innovation Program is funded through the National Forest System Hazardous Fuels budget line item. The purpose of this column is to prevent users from double-counting appropriations.
Regular Appropriations, FY2015-2024: These columns list any funds appropriated to the program or line item in annual appropriations bills. A dash indicates that the program or line item did not exist in that year. “Not Available” indicates that appropriations information is missing or unavailable for that year.
Supplemental Appropriations, FY2015-2024: These columns list the total funds appropriated to the program or line item in supplemental or emergency appropriations bills.
Supplemental Appropriations (IIJA), FY2022-2026: These columns list any funds appropriated to the program or line item under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA, P.L. 117-58).
Supplemental Appropriations (IRA), FY2022: This column lists any funds appropriated to the program or line item under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA, P.L. 117-169).
Notes on Appropriations Data: This column provides additional information on the appropriations information in the database, such as the source of the information, explanations for excluded appropriations, or cases where other types of spending data (e.g., actual outlays, contract authority, net budget authority) are listed instead of appropriations. Notably, this column highlights cases where appropriations information for a program or line item is unavailable and when possible, offers context on the funding level.
Ex) Legacy Resource Management Program – “There is limited appropriations information available on this program. Explanatory statements accompanying appropriations bills occasionally identify the increase in appropriations over the DOD's request (e.g. the FY2024 explanatory text and FY2023 explanatory text both indicate a program increase of $5 million over the budget request for the Legacy Resource Management Program), but do not specify the requested amount or total appropriations for the line item. According to DOD, ‘peak funding levels approached $50 million in the late 1990s, and annual funding is currently less than $3 million.’”
Additional TCS Resources: This column includes links to materials published by Taxpayers for Common Sense related to the program or line item.
