Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) is introducing the Slip-On Tanks for Tribes Act, legislation to make sure that Tribes in Nevada have the resources they need to fight wildfires, as the West continues to face the devasting impacts of climate change. The U.S. Department of the Interior recently launched a grant program to help rural communities better respond to wildfires by providing funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to convert vehicles into flexible, early-response fire engines. Cortez Masto’s bill would ensure that Tribes are eligible for this funding. Senator Cortez Masto has led efforts to support Nevada firefighters and combat the wildfire crisis in the West, and she’s secured billions in funding to support wildfire risk reduction.
“Wildfires are becoming increasingly dangerous, and we must ensure rural Tribal communities have access to the resources they need to combat them,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “My bill help ensure that tribes in Nevada can access funding to purchase slip-on tanks – a vital piece of firefighting equipment that will help keep communities safe.”
By expanding eligibility to the pilot program, tribal communities with a population of 25,000 or fewer will be able to apply for funding to help to purchase slip-on tanker units to quickly convert trucks and other vehicles into early-response fire engines.
Senator Cortez Masto has been a strong advocate on behalf of Tribes in Nevada and across the country. She passed the bipartisan Not Invisible Act and Savanna’s Act, which were signed into law to protect Native women and girls, and has repeatedly advocated for additional federal funding to help Tribal communities combat violence. She is also leading bipartisan legislation to make it easier for the Indian Health Services (IHS) to recruit and retain physicians, which would help improve our health care workforce’s response to the rise of fentanyl addictions across the country, and she is pushing bipartisan legislation to help recruit and retain Tribal officers by improving their benefits.
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