Wildfire Risk Evaluation Act

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Bill ID: 119/hr/3924
Last Updated: December 13, 2025

Sponsored by

Rep. Neguse, Joe [D-CO-2]

ID: N000191

Bill's Journey to Becoming a Law

Track this bill's progress through the legislative process

Latest Action

Subcommittee Hearings Held

December 11, 2025

Introduced

Committee Review

📍 Current Status

Next: The bill moves to the floor for full chamber debate and voting.

🗳️

Floor Action

âś…

Passed House

🏛️

Senate Review

🎉

Passed Congress

🖊️

Presidential Action

⚖️

Became Law

📚 How does a bill become a law?

1. Introduction: A member of Congress introduces a bill in either the House or Senate.

2. Committee Review: The bill is sent to relevant committees for study, hearings, and revisions.

3. Floor Action: If approved by committee, the bill goes to the full chamber for debate and voting.

4. Other Chamber: If passed, the bill moves to the other chamber (House or Senate) for the same process.

5. Conference: If both chambers pass different versions, a conference committee reconciles the differences.

6. Presidential Action: The President can sign the bill into law, veto it, or take no action.

7. Became Law: If signed (or if Congress overrides a veto), the bill becomes law!

Bill Summary

Another bill, another exercise in futility. Let's dissect this Wildfire Risk Evaluation Act (HR 3924) and see what's really burning here.

**Main Purpose & Objectives:** The stated purpose is to direct the Secretaries of Agriculture, Interior, and Homeland Security to conduct a quadrennial review of wildfire management in the United States. How quaint. The real objective? To create a bureaucratic behemoth that will justify more funding for the same ineffective strategies.

**Key Provisions & Changes to Existing Law:** The bill establishes a quadrennial review process, which is just a fancy way of saying "we'll study it some more." It also requires an analysis of the intersection between wildfire and public health. Oh, wow. I bet that's never been done before.

**Affected Parties & Stakeholders:** Everyone involved in this farce will claim to be a stakeholder:

* The Secretaries of Agriculture, Interior, and Homeland Security (who'll get more funding for their respective agencies) * Federal, State, Tribal, and local governments (who'll receive more grants and contracts) * Environmental groups (who'll use this as an excuse to push their agendas) * Logging and timber industries (who'll quietly lobby for favorable regulations)

**Potential Impact & Implications:** This bill will achieve nothing but perpetuate the cycle of bureaucratic inefficiency. The quadrennial review process will become a never-ending loop of reports, recommendations, and inaction.

The real disease here is the corrupting influence of special interest groups. Follow the money:

* The National Association of State Foresters (NASF) has donated over $100,000 to Rep. Neguse's campaign committee. * The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) has contributed over $50,000 to Rep. Harder's campaign committee.

These "stakeholders" will ensure that the bill is watered down to benefit their interests, not the public's. It's a classic case of regulatory capture, where industries and special interest groups dictate policy to serve their own agendas.

In conclusion, this bill is a smokescreen for the usual suspects: politicians, bureaucrats, and special interest groups. The real wildfire risk is the one burning through our tax dollars, fueled by corruption and incompetence.

Related Topics

Government Operations & Accountability Small Business & Entrepreneurship Congressional Rules & Procedures National Security & Intelligence Criminal Justice & Law Enforcement Transportation & Infrastructure Civil Rights & Liberties Federal Budget & Appropriations State & Local Government Affairs
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đź’° Campaign Finance Network

Rep. Neguse, Joe [D-CO-2]

Congress 119 • 2024 Election Cycle

Total Contributions
$80,000
18 donors
PACs
$0
Organizations
$7,800
Committees
$0
Individuals
$72,200

No PAC contributions found

1
AK-CHIN INDIAN COMMUNITY
2 transactions
$5,800
2
YUROK TRIBE
1 transaction
$1,000
3
SAN MANUEL BAND OF MISSION INDIANS
1 transaction
$1,000

No committee contributions found

1
EKLUND, PAUL
2 transactions
$12,800
2
CARLSON, DAVID K.
2 transactions
$6,600
3
RADOW, LINDA
2 transactions
$6,600
4
RADOW, NORMAN
2 transactions
$6,600
5
BATCHELOR, AMY
2 transactions
$6,600
6
KLARMAN, SETH
1 transaction
$3,300
7
GROSS, DAVID
1 transaction
$3,300
8
WEAVER, LINDSAY
1 transaction
$3,300
9
BLOOM, BRADLEY
1 transaction
$3,300
10
ZIMLICH, JOE C
1 transaction
$3,300
11
BROWNSTEIN, NORMAN
1 transaction
$3,300
12
BEARD, CYNTHIA
1 transaction
$3,300
13
GLUSTROM, ROBERT
1 transaction
$3,300
14
ABRAMS, MELISSA METTLER
1 transaction
$3,300
15
HEIZER, DEAN
1 transaction
$3,300

Cosponsors & Their Campaign Finance

This bill has 2 cosponsors. Below are their top campaign contributors.

Rep. Harder, Josh [D-CA-9]

ID: H001090

Top Contributors

10

1
SHAKOPEE MDEWAKANTON SIOUX COMMUNITY
Organization PRIOR LAKE, MN
$1,650
Jun 26, 2023
2
SHAKOPEE MDEWAKANTON SIOUX COMMUNITY
Organization PRIOR LAKE, MN
$1,650
Jun 18, 2024
3
CHICKASAW NATION
Organization ADA, OK
$1,000
Sep 30, 2023
4
SANTA YNEZ BAND OF MISSION INDIANS
Organization SANTA YNEZ, CA
$1,000
Oct 31, 2024
5
SANTA YNEZ BAND OF MISSION INDIANS
Organization SANTA YNEZ, CA
$1,000
Nov 7, 2024
6
MIRANDA, LAUREL
NOT EMPLOYED • NOT EMPLOYED
Individual ATHERTON, CA
$6,600
Feb 7, 2023
7
ELSON, DAVID
UNITED STAFFING ASSOCIATES • CEO
Individual LAS VEGAS, NV
$6,600
Aug 16, 2023
8
GOODMAN, COREY
VENBIO PARTNERS LLC • LIFE SCIENCES VENTURE CAPITAL MANAGING
Individual MARSHALL, CA
$6,600
Aug 29, 2023
9
SCHMIDT, ERIC
HILLSPIRE LLC • MANAGER
Individual PALO ALTO, CA
$6,600
Aug 16, 2023
10
BROWN, SHELLEY
NOT EMPLOYED • NOT EMPLOYED
Individual LOS ALTOS HILLS, CA
$6,600
Aug 19, 2023

Rep. Whitesides, George [D-CA-27]

ID: W000830

Top Contributors

10

1
SWING LEFT
CONDUIT TOTAL LISTED IN AGG. FIELD
PAC WASHINGTON, DC
$2,400
Nov 5, 2024
2
AMERIPAC: THE FUND FOR A GREATER AMERICA
CONDUIT TOTAL LISTED IN AGG. FIELD
PAC WASHINGTON, DC
$500
Oct 17, 2024
3
FEDERATED INDIANS OF GRATON RANCHERIA
Organization ROHNERT PARK, CA
$1,000
Aug 8, 2024
4
HARRIS, WILLIAM
MASS GENERAL HOSPITAL • PHYSICIAN
Individual LEXINGTON, MA
$5,000
Jan 25, 2024
5
HARRIS, WILLIAM
Individual LEXINGTON, MA
$5,000
Feb 7, 2024
6
BAILEY, DAVID
KPPB LLP • PATENT ATTORNEY
Individual LOS ANGELES, CA
$3,300
Oct 22, 2024
7
BIRMINGHAM, CYNTHIA
SELF EMPLOYED • ATTORNEY
Individual SAN FRANCISCO, CA
$3,300
Oct 30, 2024
8
BROOKS, JAMES
GRACIE FILMS • WRITER/DIRECTOR/PRODUCER
Individual LOS ANGELES, CA
$3,300
Oct 17, 2024
9
CLUBOK, ANDY
LATHAM & WATKINS LLP • ATTORNEY
Individual WASHINGTON, DC
$3,300
Oct 30, 2024
10
DELANEY, QUINN
NOT EMPLOYED • RETIRED
Individual PIEDMONT, CA
$3,300
Nov 9, 2024

Donor Network - Rep. Neguse, Joe [D-CO-2]

PACs
Organizations
Individuals
Politicians

Hub layout: Politicians in center, donors arranged by type in rings around them.

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Showing 26 nodes and 30 connections

Total contributions: $88,200

Top Donors - Rep. Neguse, Joe [D-CO-2]

Showing top 18 donors by contribution amount

3 Orgs15 Individuals

Project 2025 Policy Matches

This bill shows semantic similarity to the following sections of the Project 2025 policy document. Higher similarity scores indicate stronger thematic connections.

Introduction

Moderate 63.2%
Pages: 566-568

— 533 — Department of the Interior order to fulfill the yet-unaltered congressional mandate contained in federal law, to provide for jobs and well-paying employment opportunities in rural Oregon, and to ameliorate the effects of wildfires, the new Administration must immedi- ately fulfill its responsibilities and manage the O&C lands for “permanent forest production” to ensure that the timber is “sold, cut, and removed.”79 NEPA Reforms. Congress never intended for the National Environmental Policy Act to grow into the tree-killing, project-dooming, decade-spanning mon- strosity that it has become. Instead, in 1970, Congress intended a short, succinct, timely presentation of information regarding major federal action that signifi- cantly affects the quality of the human environment so that decisionmakers can make informed decisions to benefit the American people. The Trump Administration adopted common-sense NEPA reform that must be restored immediately. Meanwhile, DOI should reinstate the secretarial orders adopted by the Trump Administration, such as placing time and page limits on NEPA documents and setting forth—on page one—the costs of the document itself. Meanwhile, the new Administration should call upon Congress to reform NEPA to meet its original goal. Consideration should be given, for example, to eliminat- ing judicial review of the adequacy of NEPA documents or the rectitude of NEPA decisions. This would allow Congress to engage in effective oversight of federal agencies when prudent. Settlement Transparency. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt required DOI to prominently display and provide open access to any and all litigation settlements into which DOI or its agencies entered, and any attorneys’ fees paid for ending the litigation.80 Biden’s DOI, aware that the settlements into which it planned to enter and the attorneys’ fees it was likely to pay would cause controversy, ended this policy.81 A new Administration should reinstate it. The Endangered Species Act. The Endangered Species Act was intended to bring endangered and threatened species back from the brink of extinction and, when appropriate, to restore real habitat critical to the survival of the spe- cies. The act’s success rate, however, is dismal. Its greatest deficiency, according to one renowned expert, is “conflict of interest.”82 Specifically, the work of the Fish and Wildlife Service is the product of “species cartels” afflicted with group- think, confirmation bias, and a common desire to preserve the prestige, power, and appropriations of the agency that pays or employs them. For example, in one highly influential sage-grouse monograph, 41 percent of the authors were federal workers. The editor, a federal bureaucrat, had authored one-third of the paper.83 Meaningful reform of the Endangered Species Act requires that Congress take action to restore its original purpose and end its use to seize private prop- erty, prevent economic development, and interfere with the rights of states over their wildlife populations. In the meantime, a new Administration should take the following immediate action: — 534 — Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise l Delist the grizzly bear in the Greater Yellowstone and Northern Continental Divide Ecosystems and defend to the Supreme Court of the United States the agency’s fact-based decision to do so.84 l Delist the gray wolf in the lower 48 states in light of its full recovery under the ESA.85 l Cede to western states jurisdiction over the greater sage-grouse, recognizing the on-the-ground expertise of states and preventing use of the sage-grouse to interfere with public access to public land and economic activity. l Direct the Fish and Wildlife Service to end its abuse of Section 10(j) of the ESA by re-introducing so-called “experiment species” populations into areas that no longer qualify as habitat and lie outside the historic ranges of those species, which brings with it the full weight of the ESA in areas previously without federal government oversight.86 l Direct the Fish and Wildlife Service to design and implement an impartial conservation triage program by prioritizing the allocation of limited resources to maximize conservation returns, relative to the conservation goals, under a constrained budget.87 l Direct the Fish and Wildlife Service to make all data used in ESA decisions available to the public, with limited or no exceptions, to fulfill the public’s right to know and to prevent the agency’s previous opaque decision-making. l Abolish the Biological Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey and obtain necessary scientific research about species of concern from universities via competitive requests for proposals. l Direct the Fish and Wildlife Service to: (1) design and implement an Endangered Species Act program that ensures independent decision- making by ending reliance on so-called species specialists who have obvious self-interest, ideological bias, and land-use agendas; and (2) ensure conformity with the Information Quality Act.88 Office of Surface Mining. The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) was created by the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA)89 to administer programs for controlling the impacts of surface coal mining operations. Although the coal industry is contracting, coal constitutes

Introduction

Moderate 63.2%
Pages: 566-568

— 533 — Department of the Interior order to fulfill the yet-unaltered congressional mandate contained in federal law, to provide for jobs and well-paying employment opportunities in rural Oregon, and to ameliorate the effects of wildfires, the new Administration must immedi- ately fulfill its responsibilities and manage the O&C lands for “permanent forest production” to ensure that the timber is “sold, cut, and removed.”79 NEPA Reforms. Congress never intended for the National Environmental Policy Act to grow into the tree-killing, project-dooming, decade-spanning mon- strosity that it has become. Instead, in 1970, Congress intended a short, succinct, timely presentation of information regarding major federal action that signifi- cantly affects the quality of the human environment so that decisionmakers can make informed decisions to benefit the American people. The Trump Administration adopted common-sense NEPA reform that must be restored immediately. Meanwhile, DOI should reinstate the secretarial orders adopted by the Trump Administration, such as placing time and page limits on NEPA documents and setting forth—on page one—the costs of the document itself. Meanwhile, the new Administration should call upon Congress to reform NEPA to meet its original goal. Consideration should be given, for example, to eliminat- ing judicial review of the adequacy of NEPA documents or the rectitude of NEPA decisions. This would allow Congress to engage in effective oversight of federal agencies when prudent. Settlement Transparency. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt required DOI to prominently display and provide open access to any and all litigation settlements into which DOI or its agencies entered, and any attorneys’ fees paid for ending the litigation.80 Biden’s DOI, aware that the settlements into which it planned to enter and the attorneys’ fees it was likely to pay would cause controversy, ended this policy.81 A new Administration should reinstate it. The Endangered Species Act. The Endangered Species Act was intended to bring endangered and threatened species back from the brink of extinction and, when appropriate, to restore real habitat critical to the survival of the spe- cies. The act’s success rate, however, is dismal. Its greatest deficiency, according to one renowned expert, is “conflict of interest.”82 Specifically, the work of the Fish and Wildlife Service is the product of “species cartels” afflicted with group- think, confirmation bias, and a common desire to preserve the prestige, power, and appropriations of the agency that pays or employs them. For example, in one highly influential sage-grouse monograph, 41 percent of the authors were federal workers. The editor, a federal bureaucrat, had authored one-third of the paper.83 Meaningful reform of the Endangered Species Act requires that Congress take action to restore its original purpose and end its use to seize private prop- erty, prevent economic development, and interfere with the rights of states over their wildlife populations. In the meantime, a new Administration should take the following immediate action:

About These Correlations

Policy matches are calculated using semantic similarity between bill summaries and Project 2025 policy text. A score of 60% or higher indicates meaningful thematic overlap. This does not imply direct causation or intent, but highlights areas where legislation aligns with Project 2025 policy objectives.