S 1107, the MATCH Act of 2025, allows states, local governments, and federally recognized tribes to pay for urgent emergency watershed protection measures (like flood prevention after disasters) before formally agreeing with the federal government. It requires the Secretary of Agriculture to identify eligible emergency measures and create a state-level process for sponsors to request these upfront costs within 180 days of the bill's enactment. If an agreement is later made, these pre-agreement costs count toward the sponsor’s required contribution. However, sponsors bear the full risk of incurring these costs if no agreement is reached. The bill does not guarantee federal funding but streamlines cost-sharing for immediate disaster response.
The FIREWALL Act creates a refundable tax credit allowing homeowners to claim 50% of eligible expenses for disaster mitigation improvements made to their primary residence, up to $25,000 annually. Eligible improvements include fire-resistant roofing, flood barriers, storm shelters, and vegetation management, but only for homes located in areas affected by federal disaster declarations within the last decade. The credit phases out for taxpayers with adjusted gross income over $200,000 and excludes costs reimbursed by insurance or government programs. This policy applies to tax years beginning after December 31, 2024, aiming to encourage property resilience against natural disasters like wildfires and floods.
This bill funds research at land-grant universities to study how grazing by hoofed animals (like cattle or deer) can reduce wildfire risks on public and private lands. It directs grants for developing grazing techniques that lower fire fuels, aid post-fire recovery, and protect soil, water, and native plants - while avoiding invasive species spread or erosion. Key research areas include rotational grazing, managed stocking rates, and water point management. The findings will be shared through educational materials and outreach to help landowners and managers adopt these practices. The bill focuses on research, not direct land management changes.
This bill creates a National Resilience and Recovery Fund financed by specific taxes on crude oil and natural gas production. The fund will be supported by taxes from Gulf of Mexico offshore oil production, environmental taxes on crude oil, and a new windfall profits tax on large crude oil producers exceeding 300,000 barrels per day in 2023. The money will directly support four existing federal disaster resilience programs: Hazard Mitigation Grants, Building Resilient Infrastructure, Safeguarding Tomorrow Revolving Loans, and Flood Mitigation Assistance. The bill also clarifies that certain oil types (including oil from tar sands and oil shale) will be subject to these taxes, with the windfall tax applying to producers exceeding specified production thresholds.
The Community Protection and Wildfire Resilience Act (S 3609) establishes a federal grant program to help communities reduce wildfire risks. It provides up to $1 billion annually (2025-2029) for eligible entities - like states, tribes, local governments, and fire departments - to develop or implement community wildfire resilience plans. These plans must include strategies for early detection, infrastructure hardening (like making homes ember-resistant), protecting vulnerable populations, and coordinating with local agencies. Grants fund specific projects (up to $10 million per project) or plan development (up to $250,000), requiring a 25% non-federal cost share, with priority for high-risk areas identified by federal maps.
The Fire Weather Development Act of 2025 establishes a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) program to improve wildfire forecasting, detection, and communication systems. The program will develop better tools for predicting wildfire spread, smoke dispersion, and fire behavior through collaboration with federal agencies, state and local emergency officials, and stakeholders. It authorizes $5 million for fiscal year 2026 to fund research on new technologies like unmanned aircraft systems, advanced satellite detection, and improved communication systems. The bill also creates an Interagency Coordinating Committee on Wildfires and a National Advisory Committee to coordinate wildfire response efforts and provide recommendations to enhance preparedness and response capabilities.
The VA Flood Preparedness Act allows the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide funding to local authorities for projects that reduce flood risks near VA medical facilities, including risks from rising sea levels. This directly affects VA medical facilities nationwide and the local governments managing flood infrastructure adjacent to those sites. The bill requires the VA Secretary to submit a report within two years assessing flood risks at each facility and determining if additional resources are needed for mitigation.
The National Prescribed Fire Act of 2025 aims to increase the use of prescribed fire (deliberately set fires to manage wildland fuels) on federal lands. It requires the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture to increase prescribed fire acreage by 10% annually on federal lands, and establishes a Collaborative Prescribed Fire Program to fund projects meeting specific ecological and collaborative criteria. The bill also addresses liability for prescribed fire managers, streamlines environmental reviews, and creates a national education program to improve public understanding of prescribed fire. It requires annual reporting on prescribed fire activities and landscape-scale prescribed fire plans for national forests and Bureau of Land Management districts.
Community Protection and Wildfire Resilience Act This bill establishes a wildfire resilience grant program within the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA), expands an existing U.S. Forest Service (USFS) wildfire risk reduction grant program, and requires the USFA and Government Accountability Office (GAO) to produce various reports and resources relating to wildfire resilience. Specifically, the bill requires the USFA to award grants to state or local governments, tribes, volunteer fire departments, or groups thereof for developing a community protection and wildfire resilience plan or carrying out projects that support strategies described in such a plan. Also, under current law, the USFS’s Community Wildfire Defense Grant program provides grants to at-risk communities for implementing wildfire risk reduction, including reducing hazardous fuels and restoring fire-adapted ecosystems, but excluding activities such as construction and home hardening (e.g., roof upgrades, fire-resistant siding). The bill expands the eligible project types to include construction or modification of a structure to increase fire-resistance and modification of a structure or the adjacent area to reduce exposure to contact with wildfire. Additionally, the bill requires the USFA to develop and publish a map depicting communities at risk from wildfire. The USFA must also provide a report evaluating and ensuring public entities have radio communication capabilities adequate for wildfire management. The bill also requires the GAO to publish a study on potential certification for community protection and wildfire resilience plans, and a report assessing impediments for federal wildfire resilience programs.
The MATCH Act of 2025 creates a new emergency watershed program allowing state, local, or tribal governments to incur costs for urgent cleanup work after natural disasters *before* formally agreeing with the federal government. It requires the Secretary to identify eligible emergency measures and establish a state-level process for sponsors to request reimbursement for these preagreement costs within 180 days. Sponsors assuming these costs bear the financial risk, but if a formal agreement is later signed, those preagreement costs count toward the sponsor’s required contribution. The bill does not obligate the federal government to enter agreements, focusing solely on enabling reimbursement for specific, pre-approved emergency actions.
