• The Black Hills National Forest is a tremendous asset for South Dakota, but it also faces unprecedented challenges from the risk of wildfire and pine beetles.   Managing our national forests and grasslands has become dramatically more difficult over the last decade, in large part because the increasing cost of fighting large wildfires nationwide is sapping limited resources from other programs that promote healthy forests.  The federal government has an important role in responding to wildfires to protect both private property and the public resources important to our livelihoods, our water supplies, and our recreational activities.  I believe that we need to pay for this responsibility in a different way than we do now that helps ensure we are not undercutting activities that are critical to the economy and quality of life in the Black Hills.
• Under the current approach, annual wildfire suppression funding is based on an average of fire suppression costs over the previous 10 years.  In active fire years, this funding level is inadequate, and land management agencies end up transferring funds from other agency programs to cover the additional costs.  For example, in 2013 the Forest Service and other land management agencies transferred more than $630 million from other programs to respond to wildfire.  In fact, these transfers for firefighting have been necessary in eight of the last ten years!  This "fire borrowing" hurts vital activities, including hazardous fuels treatment that protect against fire

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