Bennet Wants Full Funding, Implementation of Fire Recovery Efforts

Colorado senator Michael Bennet wrote a letter to the USDA and the Forest Service asking the agencies to fully fund and implement fire recovery efforts before spring arrives. Snowmelt runoff and seasonal rains could cause further flooding and damage Colorado watersheds. Bennet says his state faces a funding gap of about $146 million for wildfire recovery.

“Two catastrophic Western wildfires burned over 400,000 acres in Colorado,” Bennet wrote in his letter to Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack and Forest Service Chief Randy Moore.

The Colorado lawmaker wants the Biden Administration to prioritize deploying fire recovery funds. Colorado, like many other western states, was hit hard by wildfires in recent years. Bennet wants the agencies to not only fully fund recovery efforts immediately, but also develop long-term solutions to support Colorado communities on the frontlines of recent wildfires.

“State and local governments shouldn’t carry the burden of post-fire recovery on Federal lands,” he said.

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