Update from Senator Brad Hawkins

Senator advocates for adequate wildfire funding

information and graphics released, Zach Fuecker photo

Friends and Neighbors: In recent years, the communities in North Central Washington have sadly experienced a significant impact from catastrophic wildfire. Our district has endured many devastating fires, including back-to-back years of the state’s largest wildfires, in 2014 and 2015. In 2020, the state Department of Natural Resources responded to nearly 1,640 fires, including the Cold Springs and Pearl Hill fires in Okanogan and Douglas counties. This past year, wildfires continued to impact our region. Included among them were Wenatchee’s Red Apple Fire and the Cedar Creek and Cub Creek fires in the Methow Valley.

Our risk of wildfire has been increasing, which is why proactive measures for forest management and fire response are necessary. These two areas will continue to be important priorities for me as I advocate for our district and adequate wildfire funding.

This map, provided by DNR, shows the regions of Washington at risk of wildfires.

A stronger, more comprehensive approach

Washington state has been working toward a stronger, more comprehensive approach to reducing our risk of wildfires. That’s why I’m encouraged by the Wildland Fire Protection 10-Year Strategic Plan by Public Lands Commissioner Hilary Franz. I’ve worked closely with Commissioner Franz and DNR staff over recent years and am very proud of the bill we passed together in 2017, Senate Bill 5546, to direct the state DNR to set up a framework for assessing and treating fire-prone lands. The law sets a specific goal of assessing and treating 1 million acres over 16 years, most likely through prescribed fire and strategic thinning. This process is now underway, but it will likely take several years of aggressive thinning and responsible prescribed fire in order to minimize our risk of catastrophic fires. As we’ve learned from the Era of Megafires discussions that originated in Wenatchee, we must take a proactive approach with wildfires in all neighborhoods and at every level of government. This includes responsible thinning and prescribed burning on state and federal forestlands, along with taking aggressive steps to create defensible space around your homes and neighborhoods through the Firewise Program. We must also ensure the state’s firefighting capability is as effective and efficient as possible.

In July 2021, the Red Apple Fire burned over 12,000 acres and caused evacuations of nearly 1,500 homes in Wenatchee’s Sunnyslope area. Five outbuildings were destroyed, but fortunately no homes were lost in the fire. I am grateful to all of the firefighters and first responders who prevented significant damage to Sunnyslope homes and families.

Increasing state support for wildfires

For the 2021-23 biennium, the state budget significantly increased its support for forest health and wildfire response. Positioning additional resources in strategic locations across the state has shortened the response time when new blazes are spotted and has helped us put out fires soon after they start rather than just “managing” the fires once they begin burning. The state has recently converted to year-round wildfire staff, funded more seasonal staff, acquired additional firefighting air assets, and has contracted for priority private aircraft response. The Legislature also approved House Bill 1168 to direct investments of $500 million over the next eight years for wildfire response, forest restoration, and community resilience.

I was proud to join my legislative colleagues in supporting this bill last session. Passing this expanded policy was a multi-year effort by Commissioner Hilary Franz and her DNR staff. I was very proud to support this effort. To learn more about this new law, please click here. These new investments are important because the state has already spent hundreds of millions in recent years reimbursing the costs of wildfires. And that does not even factor in the negative long-term economic impact that wildfires have had on communities in our district, including the impact on our all-important tourism or recreational opportunities. There are also emotional costs and losses that cannot be quantified, as courageous firefighters from our area, sadly, have lost their lives or been severely injured battling these blazes. Finally, there is a quality-of-life impact caused by wildfires, as smoke can blanket a region, making it dangerous for people to be outdoors and difficult for many to breathe.

In July 2021, the Cedar Creek and Cub Creek 2 fires burned in the Methow Valley, during its peak outdoor recreation and tourism season. The fires resulted in home evacuations, closure of the North Cascades Highway, and air quality impacts.

Legislature approved my Senate Bill 5158

After the Electric Utilities Wildland Fire Prevention Task Force released its recommendations to the Legislature, I began partnering with Chelan PUD and DNR to boost funding for the group and help implement its recommendations. My Senate Bill 5158, signed into law by the governor in 2021, directs Commissioner Franz to work with a Utility Wildland Fire Prevention Advisory Committee to implement recommendations issued in this report. These recommendations involve ways to prevent utility-caused wildfires, including model agreements to remove dangerous trees, developing communications protocols, and considering investigation recommendations. The group’s work would be maintained and periodically updated on DNR’s website to benefit utilities and our state. This work is very important to many of our local utilities, especially considering the 12^th District’s recent history of catastrophic wildfires.

Local firefighters supporting each other during the 2015 Chelan Complex fires. Wildfires across the western United States are stretching our air and land resources.

History of my sponsored wildfire bills

During my years of work in the Senate, I have developed a strong partnership with my legislative colleagues and the DNR. During my first term as 12^th District senator, three of my bills related to forest health or wildfire prevention were passed by the Legislature and signed into law, and last year, my first year of my second term, I sponsored and helped pass Senate Bill 5158. Commissioner Franz and her DNR staff worked diligently alongside me for each effort. Below is a summary of these four approved bills:

Senate Bill 5158 (approved, 2021) establishes the Utility Wildland Fire Prevention Advisory Committee to implement recommendations issued in this report. The group’s work includes establishing model agreements to remove dangerous trees, finalizing communications protocols and investigation recommendations. This work is very important to many of our local utilities.
SB 6211 (approved, 2018) provides DNR authority to handle revenue and authorize spending under the Good Neighbor Authority agreement signed by DNR and the U.S. Forest Service in 2017. The Good Neighbor Authority is a partnership between governments to streamline management of national forestlands.
Senate Bill 6032, Sec. 303 (approved, 2018) directs funds to the Washington State Parks, at the request of the Forest Ridge Wildfire Coalition, for forest management activities at the Squilchuck State Park in Chelan County.
Senate Bill 5546 (approved, 2017) directs DNR to set up a framework for assessing the health of fire-prone lands and treating them. It sets a specific goal of assessing and treating 1 million acres over 16 years, most likely through prescribed fire and mechanical thinning. The bill also includes a stakeholder process and biennial progress reviews to the Legislature.
Senate Bill 5270 (approved, 2017) was passed unanimously by both legislative chambers and signed into law by the governor to remove the “temporary” label from the contract-timber harvest program operated by DNR. The program allows the agency to hire someone to harvest timber and sort the logs, after which DNR can sell them. It began in 2003 and was expanded by lawmakers in 2009.

Our region has suffered many wildfires, including the 2021 Twentyfive Mile Fire in Chelan. This photo was taken by firefighter Zach Fuecker.

Looking ahead on wildfire issues

The state wildfire season is unfortunately growing longer. It is not even a wildfire “season” anymore because fires are occurring as early as April and some aren’t totally extinguished until a heavy rain or snowfall late in the year. Wildfires are no longer just impacting areas in central or eastern Washington. We’re seeing wildfires west of the Cascades, also. This is having a significant and growing impact on our state budget and local communities. The Legislature has taken positive steps forward recently on wildfire policy with my bills and others. One bill of particular interest this session is Senate Bill 5803, sponsored by Sen. Christine Rolfes, directing utilities to develop wildfire mitigation plans. As part of this process, the Utility Wildfire Advisory Committee associated with Senate Bill 5158 would have input in the planning. Each session going forward, there likely will be one or more wildfire bills of interest. As we move ahead identifying state priorities, the issue of wildfires and wildfire suppression should continue to be high on our list. In addition to state efforts, the federal government is also stepping up funding for wildfire prevention, which is expected to complement the state’s strategy. To read more about recent decision’s related to the federal investment in wildfire, click on the article below:

Billions of federal dollars to Western forests to manage fires (Crosscut, 2/11/22)

Message from Commissioner Hilary Franz

“It has been a privilege to serve as your Commissioner of Public Lands alongside leaders like Senator Hawkins. During our time in office, we have worked in partnership to confront the wildfire crisis that your community knows all too well, including passing the historic House Bill 1168 last year. As we move closer to wildfire season, we are doing everything in our power to prevent the devastation we’ve seen in years past. This includes tapping into the power of prevention and an ‘all hands, all lands’ strategy with our partners at the federal, state, tribal, and local levels to not only fight fires, but keep them from starting in the first place. We are dedicated to helping the 12th District become more resilient to wildfire, as well as working year-round to make our forests healthier, so that we can redefine this crisis not just in the short-term, but for future generations.”

Hilary Franz, Commissioner of Public Lands

Listen to my recent local radio interviews

Throughout the legislative session, I call our local radio stations weekly to participate in live interviews about legislative issues. If you’d like to hear my most recent interviews, click on these links for KOHO and KOZI. Yesterday I participated in a 30-minute interview on KPQ’s “The Agenda” with Dave Bernstein. We discussed a variety of topics, including the Senate operating budget plan released this week, the status of the Confluence Parkway project, and the emergency powers bill passed by the Senate. Click on this link to listen to my Full KPQ Interview. If you have any questions, please contact me anytime.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve as your state senator.

Sincerely,