Here is the actual poison pill. The house majority party has inserted this in all the must pass legislation in committee. The legislation goes to the full house where it won’t pass. What I’m guessing is going to occur is the Senate will send their bills created by their majority party (different than the house majority party) which should include their version of the FF Bill and send it over to the house as a must pass. What the house does with it who know as it seems there is no one in charge over there except the crazies.
Working on getting a Bill Update via Zoom Meeting for everyone from NFFE
Listened to an LPCC area ready resources report this morning. Sounds. Kinda. Light. The Speaker needs to cut bait and finish the task before him before somebody gets killed.
I don’t know what his office is really thinking, but that they can just roll the dice on urban alpha strike teams to always come to the rescue. The legal environment is such, with no small contribution by California’s leisure-class state politicians enjoying a wet year without the 1001 WUI riparian creek and parkway fires that constantly engage and tie up medics and available resources. I don’t really think this is something you bank on.
I mean, I guess when your getting exhortations from delirious sky pilot vacay boaters out on the reservoir so often and so loud that you can’t hear people from the nearby town saying T-shirt sales ain’t insuring their homes, and the USFS garages are full of engines with no one to drive them and transporters with no one to transport, you need to review your priorities and hang up on somebody or surrender the job, right? Hang up on the Sky Pilot and pick up the call from the Ranger, Mr. Speaker. Okay, I’m done. :\
Update About Erroneous Annual Salary Documentation Issued to Employees in Wildland Firefighting Positions
Human Resources Management wanted to provide an update about employees in wildland firefighting positions who received erroneous annual salary documentation, Standard Form 50 (SF-50), just over two weeks ago.
As communicated by Tony Dixon, Deputy Chief for Business Operations in today’s Chief’s Newsletter, Inside the Forest Service, Human Resources Management and the National Finance Center (the agency’s payroll service provider) have worked together to create a solution to issue new SF-50s that display the correct total annual salary amounts. Wildland firefighters will receive an email message when a corrected SF-50 has been uploaded to their electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF); some employees may receive their notice as early as next week. The corrected SF-50 will reflect the total annual amount of wildland firefighter supplemental payments, up to a maximum of $20,000. Wildland firefighters who receive supplemental payments equal to 50% of their base pay will not receive a corrected SF-50 because their SF-50 is correct.
Please know that this error was not made deliberately, and it is realized it created confusion for those who received erroneous SF-50s.
Creating corrected SF-50s will take multiple weeks to complete and I appreciate your patience during this time. If anyone has questions about their pay, please call the Human Resources Management Contact Center at 1-877-372-7248, press 2.
For more details on the permanent pay fix for wildland firefighters, please continue to refer to information provided by Deputy Chief Jaelith Hall-Rivera posted in the Chief Newsletter, Inside the Forest Service.
Not sure what this is saying. Is the Forest Service going to continue receiving the payments after Oct 1?
This is saying the amounts shown on the SF50s many of got a few weeks ago was in fact an error and they will be correcting it. who knows if we will keep the retention payments after Oct 1. I received a confirmation letter this week saying the following
“The funding for this supplemental pay expires on September 30, 2026, or until the funds are depleted, whichever comes first. The Forest Service is engaged in working toward a long-term solution.”
so rest easy, they are working on. (said with a heavy dose of sarcasm)
Here’s a update that I’ll provide,
This past week a group of Wildland Firefighters supported by NFFE traveled to DC to lobby to Congress to educate and get this over the finish line.
Accomplished a couple things.
-6 more Cosponsors of the House Bill
-2 more Cosponsors of the Senate Bill
- Spoke with committee leaders (house ag, natural resources, and oversight/workforce) to let them know this is a must pass Bill and it’ll be on their hands when the public finds out homes burned and people die because they gave WLFFs a pay decease.
- Confronted several “problem” reps when they didn’t take our meetings in the hallways of the house office buildings.
- House and Senate leadership know this is a Must Pass issue regardless of Continuing Resolution (CR) or Gov Shutdown.
- The phone calls to members is working because they’re telling us about them. So keep that going!
-We did several press articles while there including the Washington Post and a podcast.
We need to keep the pressure on. Start calling and Writing. Tell them how this is gonna effect you! Especially if you are represented by our more “fiscally conservative” friends.
The Union sent 8 WLFFs to lobby on your behalf. Their travel and a place to stay was provided by Union dues! Its not cheap to travel to DC to advocate. Become a Dues Paying Union Member to support Federal Employees. Please thank these 8 WLFFs went travelled on their own A/L! They could’ve used it on their families.
That’s the latest from DC.
Nice work Hurryup
Firefighter pay escalates tensions between Biden administration and House conservatives
The Forest Service may have slightly more wiggle room to maintain boosted firefighter pay than it’s letting on — but not nearly to the extent House Republicans are claiming.
As Congress approaches a critical Sept. 30 deadline to fund the government, the Forest Service has said nearly 20,000 of thefederal firefighting workforce could see their paychecks cut in half come October if Congress doesn’t extend temporary payincreases. But Republicans on the House Natural Resources Committee are accusing the Forest Service of misleading them on how quickly a fund bumping pay for firefighters will run dry. Aides said that as recently as last week, the agency told them that “there would be no money” and “there was nothing to shuffle around.”
“It’s just kind of a bewildering situation for us,” said one of the staffers, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to talk candidly about the alleged discrepancy. “Our priority is making sure that wildland firefighters are taken care of and that they’re also getting the best and most accurate information possible.” Lawmakers generally agree that wildland firefighters are underpaid and overworked, with the nation experiencing its most damaging wildfire seasons on record in the past three years. So when Congress passed the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, it included $480 million to temporarily boost firefighter pay in fiscal years 2022 and 2023.
According to a recent data table, the Forest Service, which is housed by the Agriculture Department, still had about a quarter of those funds, or $119 million, remaining in its account roughly two weeks ago. That table showed the agency had already spent 75 percent, or $361 million of those mandated funds. The Republican staffer told The Climate 202 that, by their calculations, the Forest Service should have enough money left in its bank to guarantee pay for federal firefighters through May 2024.
But a USDA spokes person, Democrats on the committee and union officials have all said that’s incorrect. “We have been incredibly transparent about the status of funds as we make our case that a permanent pay fix is needed for the federal wildland firefighting workforce, but the misinformation they’re sharing today is disingenuous to those very firefighters,” the USDA spokesperson said, adding that the GOP assertions “are based on a misunderstanding and miscalculation of data.”
The numbers
Here’s the breakdown:
As of Sept. 13, $109 million remained in the Forest Service’s infrastructure law account to fund raises for wildland firefighters. The most recent pay period ended on Sept. 9. It will cost roughly $30 million to cover the costs of raises through the last pay period in this fiscal year. Then, there is another $30 million set aside for cost overruns and corrections, or for things like overtime and hazard
pay. Notably, the agency has also set aside $25 million in compliance with the law from those same funds for mental health services. This money will remain in the account indefinitely until the Forest Service finds a way to use the funds.
So, the total undisclosed funding left over — which those familiar with the internal budget said is likely the number that the House Republicans were looking for — is $24 million. The USDA says this amount can probably cover two additional pay periods of raises, or up until Nov. 5, adding more than a month onto the supposed expiration date.
G. William Hoagland, senior vice president of the Bipartisan Policy Center, said that while he hasn’t reviewed the specific numbers, “if they have unobligated, unspent moneys that they have available, and there’s no restriction on those being carried over, then yes — then the cliff would be softened.”
But Steve Lenkhart, executive director of the National Federation of Federal Employees, said the difference of only about 30 days doesn’t really amount to “funding that was hidden under a bookshelf somewhere,” comparing the time frame to “tomorrow in congressional terms.”
The details
The spat comes as the NFFE, which represents about 100,000 public employees in the federal government,estimates that 30 percent to 50 percent of the federal firefighter workforce could walk off the job in the nextyear if Congress doesn’t quickly approve future funding. Such resignations en masse could have a profound impact on the nation’s ability to tackle fierce blazes at the peak of wildfire season, which is becoming longer and more intense in a warming world, Lenkhart said.
Lawmakers in both chambers have introduced bipartisan bills to at least codify the current pay increase issued by the 2021infrastructure law, which bumped firefighter paychecks to a minimum of $15 per hour and increased pay by $20,000 or 50 percent of base salary, whichever was lower. And the Biden administration has asked Congress to include $60 million for firefighter pay in a supplemental spending package by the end of the month.
Still, the Republican staffer said that the House Natural Resources Committee will likely conduct major oversight of the Forest Service in the coming months in light of the standoff.
A Democratic spokesperson for the committee told The Climate 202 that “despite the majority’s distortion of the facts to claim otherwise, failing to fund the government and the President’s supplemental request will have real, damaging impacts on thelives of the wildland firefighters we depend on to keep us safe.”
That was in the Washington Post
There is so much of this that is altogether misleading, first they will not lose half of their pay, they will just lose the retention/bonus/supplementals that is maybe technically not pay, kinda like a cash award, which was not at all well thought out, a comprehensive evaluation of the GS pay scale is needed, depending on a retention bonus is absurd, it’s not real…And to use stupid scare tactics with congress is very risky, they will call you out…ie…30-40% will walk off the job if they lose their retention bonus…come on…just knock off with the ridiculous empty threats…Yep you all need a real pay raise to be sure…But now I am a retired fed/tax payer and a 20,000 a year pay raise is beyond ridiculous, where is the money going to come from, and furthermore what makes you all so much more special than other fed natural resource folks that are trying to make a living…You all need to stop and put some real thought into what you really want. We need entry level pay scales to ensure that those that stick around are worth the money, if you pay way to much then folks will stay around just for the paycheck…and that’s the last thing we need…Figure it out and stop complaining so much…try to be a little bit 
…Peace… What if climate change ushers in slow fire seasons…just saying…
Yeaaaaaaah,
gonna have to disagree with ya there people will lose 50% or $20,000 in their paychecks. Now yes it is a bonus. But the BIL language to begin with never was supposed to be interpreted that way. Now, it is estimated that 30-50% will walk off. Currently as it sits. The average vacancy percentage is at 35%. With a average amount of 90 WLFFs per Forest. That just in R5 alone. One forest alone lost 42 well trained, experienced WLFFs in a month. This Bill is a solution to stop WLFFs across this nation from losing $752 per pay period. Now is it the end all be all? Hell no. There’s a lot more work to do after this. Such as Tim Hart. But the reality is, Tim Hart will not pass by Sept 30th. Now you mentioned “how are we gonna pay for this?” We spent 460 million last year in contract and municipal services last year in R5. That’s where the money needs to come from. It’s outrageous to think we pay State and Municipal Depts, four times more and get four times less productivity. You don’t see them constructing handline or firing off a piece. And besides, elected officials decide where the money comes from. Not us. They don’t tell us how to fight fire.
I think your perception needs to meet reality.
Sorry, just my .02 cents. I’m sure just about everyone on this forum knows who I am and how directly connected I am to passing this bill and giving folks a livable wage.
You need to do some fact checking from your old stomping grounds and get the whole picture.
2 of 4 IHC on the BDF are not staffed and VG has a total of 13 including supervision. Making them a Wildland Fuel Module. Of the 28 engines assigned to the BDF at best 18 are covered, some days as low as 13, with maybe 3 having 7 day per week coverage.
Sacramento, Labor, & The restaurant association just cut a deal that any restaurant, or chain in the fast food industry with 60 or more restaurants NATIONWIDE. Will start wages at $20/hr.
Steve and Sally McBurger flipper at the local drive through Choke & Puke Will now make $4.50/hr above California Minimum Wage. Even Calfire is have challenges hiring and staffing crews & engines.
While I agree with you’re thought process as a taxpaying citizen, under the current political climate the money printing press in D.C is continuing to work overtime.
I have co-workers, peers that would rather make Tic Tok & YouTube videos, ride the recliner, or just leave the field all together. Cal-Fire RRU is over 300 employees short with 100 being FF-PM.
I have stated this many times. This is a demographic problem that Will not get better without a substantial change in birth rates, immigration, or Depression level economic activity.
I wish my Federal Borthers & Sisters well and encourage each and every one of them to continue their education, move on to greener pastures, so that they can live and raise a family. That means being willing to relocate to a less expensive cost of living location other than R5.
Some units, almost want to say many, are already 25% vacant. Thinking that projection might not be to far off for some areas.
On my forest, 2 of 7 engines are unstaffed, only one of 7 is seven day staffed, and shakily so. Crews have been rolling short staffed all season, half having lost their ihc status due to lack of overhead. Additionally, our district services a semi remote area where a large majority of locals end up with the forest service. Local applicants have been near zero last few years. We’ll see what the future brings, but 16 bucks an hour for a starting wage for this line of work is crazy!
Old_DRHS, obviously the BDF was important enough in your career for you to create your username from the crew you used to run. I’m not sure what is more worrisome, the fact that you speak with skepticism to the real issues yet have no idea how depleted your old crew is or the fact that you feel the need to come out of retirement to shoot down what so many are desperately trying to repair. These are the the people that really care about continuing the culture that you say we have forgotten. You probably don’t know anyone that is left on the BDF, but I’m sure you can call one of the other old sups that’s still working for the USFS and he could probably describe to you the dire straights they are in. If you want a true idea of what is going on in the field. But as EHoss has described, it’s bad. BTW, EHoss thank you for ways supporting your federal partners. Especially the BDF. You don’t have to speak to our issues but you always describe them so well. We appreciate you.