HJR 15: Urging the Governor, the Department of Natural Resources, division of forestry and fire protection, the Department of Public Safety, municipalities of the state and relevant wildfire planning and response agencies, and the Alaska delegation in Congress to prepare for the 2025 wildfire season.
00 HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 15 01 Urging the Governor, the Department of Natural Resources, division of forestry and fire 02 protection, the Department of Public Safety, municipalities of the state and relevant 03 wildfire planning and response agencies, and the Alaska delegation in Congress to 04 prepare for the 2025 wildfire season. 05 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 WHEREAS the frequency and severity of wildfires in the state is increasing because 07 of the effects of lower precipitation and rising temperatures, leading to prolonged fire seasons; 08 and 09 WHEREAS the 2025 wildfire season presents an immediate and severe risk to 10 communities in wildland-urban interface areas, including Anchorage, Fairbanks, Kenai, 11 Soldotna, and other high-risk zones across the state, some of which have never experienced 12 wildfires and which contain dangerous fuel loads; and 13 WHEREAS the National Weather Service projects below-average precipitation levels 14 and continued dry conditions in regions of the state, exacerbating fire danger and making 15 proactive mitigation efforts critical; and
01 WHEREAS limited water sources, difficult terrain, and constrained or single-access 02 routes to large residential areas in many communities pose significant challenges to ground- 03 based firefighting and evacuation efforts; and 04 WHEREAS the costs of fighting a widespread fire increase significantly when crews 05 must be brought in from out of state, and providing quick, effective, locally sourced fire 06 suppression reduces costs for firefighting and reduces economic losses caused by a fire; and 07 WHEREAS there is a demonstrated need for improved aerial firefighting resources, 08 additional water reservoirs for bucket operations, and enhanced early detection of wildfires 09 and warning systems to support rapid response; and 10 WHEREAS community safety and preparedness depend on early and effective public 11 outreach, which could include expansion of public education programs like the Ready, Set, 12 Go! Program, engaging residents in annual inspections and preparation through a program 13 like Firewise USA, coordinating neighborhood evacuation planning and drills with local fire 14 stations, and other interagency coordination efforts; and 15 WHEREAS the role of local and state public information officers, in collaboration 16 with state and federal agencies, is to actively coordinate public education campaigns, enhance 17 emergency notifications, and facilitate communication between fire response agencies and the 18 public; and 19 WHEREAS past legislative efforts have underscored the importance of wildfire 20 mitigation funding, including appropriations granted for wildfire fuel reduction programs, 21 defensible space and fuel break initiatives, and support for local fire departments in high-risk 22 areas; 23 BE IT RESOLVED that, in preparation for the 2025 wildfire season, the Alaska State 24 Legislature urges the Governor, the Department of Natural Resources, division of forestry and 25 fire protection, and relevant municipal and local agencies to enhance wildfire preparedness 26 and response coordination by reviewing and developing comprehensive interagency wildfire 27 response plans specific to high-risk wildland-urban interface communities; conducting full 28 reviews of available response equipment, joint response agreements, and water resources; 29 identifying opportunities for additional water storage and access points; and inspecting and 30 treating aircraft landing zones and roadways, especially those that are single-access routes to 31 large residential populations, to minimize hazard trees, reduce sources of fuel for wildfires,
01 including fuel in rights-of-way, clear road and intersection obstructions, and repair roads that 02 are in poor condition to enable use of the roadways to support wildfire response and safe 03 evacuations; and be it 04 FURTHER RESOLVED that, in preparation for the 2025 wildfire season, the Alaska 05 State Legislature urges the Governor, the Department of Natural Resources, division of 06 forestry and fire protection, and relevant municipal and local agencies to expand public 07 outreach and education by implementing a statewide public awareness campaign on wildfire 08 risks and prevention strategies, which may include engaging residents and local fire 09 departments in a program like Firewise USA, inspections, and evacuation preparedness; and 10 promoting wildfire preparedness by launching an early detection campaign, promoting the 11 Ready, Set, Go! Program, and enhancing local notification and emergency news sources; and 12 be it 13 FURTHER RESOLVED that, in preparation for the 2025 wildfire season, the Alaska 14 State Legislature urges the Governor, the Department of Natural Resources, division of 15 forestry and fire protection, and relevant municipal and local agencies to conduct emergency 16 response and evacuation drills by organizing and funding multi-agency tabletop exercises and 17 live wildfire evacuation drills before May 1, 2025; and to model evacuation scenarios, 18 including planning for the possibility of single-access road closures, emergency vehicle 19 congestion, and multiple fires resulting from ember transport downwind; and be it 20 FURTHER RESOLVED that, in preparation for the 2025 wildfire season, the Alaska 21 State Legislature urges the Governor, the Department of Natural Resources, division of 22 forestry and fire protection, and relevant municipal and local agencies to bolster fire 23 suppression resources by securing additional ground and aerial firefighting assets and 24 stationing those assets close to high-risk areas during peak fire seasons; establishing new 25 water reservoirs and enhancing access to existing water sources for bucket and hose 26 operations in areas with limited local water supplies; and be it 27 FURTHER RESOLVED that, in preparation for the 2025 wildfire season, the Alaska 28 State Legislature urges the Governor, the Department of Natural Resources division of 29 forestry and fire protection, and relevant municipal and local agencies to improve fire 30 detection and early warning systems by implementing advanced fire detection technology to 31 improve response times and situational awareness and conducting community-wide tests of
01 emergency notification systems to ensure reliability in crisis situations; and be it 02 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges federal 03 representatives, including the Alaska delegation in Congress, to advocate for increased federal 04 funding and support for the state's wildfire prevention and mitigation efforts. 05 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Michael Dunleavy, 06 Governor of the State of Alaska; the Honorable John Boyle, Commissioner, Department of 07 Natural Resources; the Honorable James Cockrell, Commissioner, Department of Public 08 Safey; the Honorable Suzanne LaFrance, Mayor of the Municipality of Anchorage; the 09 Honorable Glenda D. Ledford, Mayor of the City of Wasilla; the Honorable Steve Carrington, 10 Mayor of the City of Palmer; the Honorable David Pruhs, Mayor of the City of Fairbanks; the 11 Honorable Grier Hopkins, Mayor of the Fairbanks North Star Borough; the Honorable Brian 12 Gabriel, Mayor of the City of Kenai; the Honorable Paul Whitney, Mayor of the City of 13 Soldotna; the Honorable Peter Micciche, Mayor of the Kenai Peninsula Borough; Doug 14 Schrage, Fire Chief, Anchorage Fire Department; Chad VanOrmer, Regional Forester, Alaska 15 Region, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture; and the Honorable Lisa Murkowski 16 and the Honorable Dan Sullivan, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Nicholas Begich, U.S. 17 Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.