H.R. 2996: To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to establish wildfire on Federal lands as a major disaster.

114th Congress · introduced 2015-07-09 · Emergency Management · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management.

federal

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Where it came from: introduced 2015-07-09 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Hardy, Cresent [R-NV-4] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to establish wildfire on Federal lands as a major disaster.

Plain summary

Amends the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to define a "major disaster for wildfire on federal lands" as any wildfire that, in the determination of the President, warrants assistance under this Act to supplement the efforts and resources of the Department of the Interior or the Department of Agriculture: (1) on federal lands, or (2) on non-federal lands pursuant to a fire protection agreement or cooperative agreement. Authorizes the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture to submit a request to the President for a declaration that such a major disaster exists. Requires such a request to: certify that the amount appropriated in the current fiscal year for wildfire suppression operations of the federal land management agencies under the jurisdiction of the respective Secretary, net of any concurrently enacted rescissions of wildfire suppression funds, increases the total unobligated balance of amounts available for wildfire suppression by an amount equal to or greater than the average total costs incurred by such agencies per year for wildfire suppression operations over the previous 10 fiscal years; certify that the amount available for wildfire suppression operations of the federal land management agencies under the jurisdiction of the respective Secretary will be obligated not later than 30 days after such Secretary notifies the President that wildfire suppression funds will be exhausted to fund ongoing and anticipated wildfire suppression operations related to the wildfire on which such request is based; and specify the amount required in the current fiscal year to fund wildfire suppression operations related to the wildfire on which such request is based. Authorizes the President to: (1) declare that such a major disaster exists based on such a request, (2) establish a specific account for assistance pursuant to such a declaration, and (3) transfer funds from such account to the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct wildfire suppression operations on such lands. Requires the respective Secretary to secure reimbursement of transferred amounts used for wildfire suppression operations on non-federal land.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

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What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to establish wildfire on Federal lands as a major disaster.

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Hardy, Cresent [R-NV-4] · 0 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (4)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Fiscal year: The 12-month period a government uses for its budget. The federal fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30 and is named for the calendar year in which it ends. Most states use July 1 to June 30.
Jurisdiction: The area or the matters a government or court has authority over.
Obligation: A binding promise by a government agency to pay money, for example by signing a contract or awarding a grant. Spending data such as USAspending.gov counts money when it is obligated, which can be before it is actually paid out.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-114hr2996.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/114/hr>

Record fed-us-cong114-hr2996 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong114 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong114