OLYMPIA, Wash. – Concerns are rising as the Washington State Legislature decided to cut the wildfire prevention budget in half, a move that has sparked criticism from the Department of Lands.
The Department of Lands has expressed that the budget cut is short-sighted. They emphasized that it will ultimately cost more to clean up preventable fires after they occur.
“To cut off this core, basic government funding that’s critical to public safety and prevent these kinds of disasters in the first place is really unwise,” Commissioner of Public Lands Dave Upthegrove (D-WA) said.
The issue has been exacerbated by uncertainty at the federal level, including recent layoffs at the U.S. Forest Service.
The upcoming two-year state budget, which will be in effect until July 1, has already been heavily utilized in preparation for the upcoming summer. Commissioner Upthegrove anticipates the Department of Lands will be fully prepared the 2025 calendar year.
However, the reduced budget for the next fiscal year could pose significant challenges starting in 2026.
In 2022, the Department of Natural Resources received $130 million for their new bolstered wildfire prevention program. This amount decreased to $115 million in 2024 and is set to drop further to $60 million for the next two years.
“If the legislature doesn’t come back and fill that hole, we’re going to be in real trouble next year,” Commissioner Upthegrove said. “If we can stop one catastrophic wildfire, this pays for itself, not only in taxpayer dollars, but also in homes and lives.”
The Department of Lands is concerned about the potential consequences of waiting too long for funding. They fear that a lack of preparation could lead to a devastating situation, especially if a fire starts on the west slope of the Cascades with strong easterly winds.
“What happened in Southern California could happen on the west side of the Cascades,” Commissioner Upthegrove said. “And we’re fooling ourselves if we think that we can just leave it to chance and not invest in the prevention and preparation work.”
