DEAN HELLER conus United States Senate saison August 28, 2018 ‘The Honorable Brock Long Administrator Federal Emergency Management Agency 500 C Street, SW Washington, DC 20472 Dear Administrator Long, I write to you today in the midst of one of the worst fire seasons on record to share my concems with the eligibility criteria for a wildfire to qualify for assistance under the Federal Emergency Management Administration’s (FEMA’s) Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) program As of today, 523 fires have burned or are currently burning across my state, accounting for over one million acres of damage to public lands, grazing allotments, and private property. The South Sugarloaf Fire has already ravaged 237,000 acres across Nevada and is less than $0 percent contained, threatening private property and public lands used for grazing, recreation, and other purposes. During Nevada's previous fire seasons, the FMAG program has been an important component of fire recovery, including last year’s Oil Well Fire near Elko, Nevada, The Oil Well fire shut down highways and threatened homes and property, and I am grateful that FEMA approved an FMAG declaration to help northeastern Nevada recover: While I am a strong supporter of FMAG and its benefits to my state, it seems clear that some of the criteria used to determine eligibility for the FMAG program may put my state’s rural communities at a disadvantage. In order to qualify for FMAG, your agency requires a threat to lives and property, including threats to critical infrastructure and critical watershed areas. As the Senior Senator from a state that is 85 percent managed by the federal government, many of my constituents rely on federal lands for their livelihood. 1 respectfully ask that your agency take into consideration the severe consequences of wildfire on our public lands, including the loss of lands for grazing, energy development, and any other factor that would have an economic impact on Nevadans. During this brutal fire season, it is imperative that western states like Nevada have access to critical resources, like the FMAG program, when looking to combat and suppress wildfires. As a lifelong Nevadan, I look forward to working with you on this issue to ensure that FEMA’s policies and procedures are beneficial to all Americans, including western states like Nevada, Sincerel ‘Dean Heller U.S. Senator