Funding Comes From The Inflation Reduction Act And The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law That Both Senators Helped Pass
RENO, NV – Today, U.S. Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) announced that more than $27.6 million in federal funding is being delivered to help prevent wildfires, including in Washoe, White Pine, Douglas, Lyon, Mineral, and Elko Counties, helping to reduce wildfire risk for communities in the region and protect power lines and watersheds. The funding comes from the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, both of which Senators Cortez Masto and Rosen helped pass.
“We need an all-of-the-above approach to combating increasingly dangerous wildfires, and that means investing in recovery, suppression, and prevention,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “This funding I secured will protect businesses and families in areas at high risk for wildfires and help ensure Nevada has the support it needs to keep our communities safe.”
“Nevada continues to experience severe storms and extreme drought from the changing climate, increasing the frequency of catastrophic wildfires and posing major risks to communities across our state,” said Senator Rosen. “The millions of dollars in funding I helped secure will allow us to conduct critical wildfire mitigation activities and better prepare and protect communities across Northern Nevada.”
Senators Cortez Masto and Rosen have been leading the efforts to reduce wildfire risk and protect Nevada communities. They recently helped introduce bipartisan legislation to permanently raise the overtime pay cap for wildland firefighters. Senator Rosen also led her colleagues in requesting that the Air Force and the Air National Guard select Reno as a location to receive C-130J aircraft, a newer and more capable plane that the Nevada Air National Guard can use to fight wildland fires. Additionally, Senators Rosen and Cortez Masto introduced the National Wildland Fire Risk Reduction Program Act to improve sensing technologies for wildfires and standardize data collection to enhance our national response to these disasters. Senator Cortez Masto also has introduced comprehensive legislation to prevent wildfires and help communities recover.
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