Sponsors (10)
The bill establishes a new, predictable but modest federal grant program to help communities repair post-wildfire mudslide damage and enable local applicants, but limited annual funding, competitive awards, and a pilot/short-term design risk leaving many high-need or under-resourced areas without sufficient, sustained assistance.
State, local, and tribal governments, nonprofits, homeowners, and rural communities: receive a predictable federal grant stream of $5M/year (FY2026–2032) to repair mudslide damage after wildland fires and support hazard mitigation, which accelerates recovery and reduces future risk.
Local actors such as fire departments, homeowner associations, local governments, and nonprofits: can apply directly for grants, enabling community-led, locally tailored repair and mitigation projects.
Communities affected by post-wildfire mudslides, especially in rural and tribal areas: gain a targeted federal program addressing a specific gap in disaster recovery assistance focused on mudslide repair and hazard mitigation.
State and local governments, tribal communities, and homeowners: may receive insufficient assistance because the program is limited to $5M/year, an amount that is likely too small to cover large-scale repairs in many affected areas.
Rural and under-resourced communities, including tribal areas: may be disadvantaged by the competitive grant structure, which tends to favor applicants with grant-writing capacity and administrative resources.
State and local governments and communities seeking long-term mitigation: may face delays or uncertainty because the program is structured as a pilot with a limited-term funding window and an establishment timeline (within 180 days) that could constrain sustained planning.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Creates a competitive pilot grant program to fund innovative repairs for mudslide damage after wildland fires and authorizes $5M per year for FY2026–2032.
Introduced February 13, 2025 by Norma Judith Torres · Last progress February 13, 2025
Creates a competitive pilot grant program, jointly run by the Department of the Interior and the Department of Homeland Security (through FEMA), to fund innovative repairs for damage caused by mudslides that occur after wildland fires. The agencies must set up the program within 180 days of enactment and the law authorizes $5 million per year for each fiscal year 2026 through 2032 to run the program. States, territories, Indian Tribes, state/tribal forestry agencies, local governments, fire departments, and eligible nonprofits (including homeowner associations) can apply for grants under terms set by the agencies.