Over 11,000 wildland firefighters could be facing a huge pay cut depending on Congress

SALT LAKE CITY — If Congress doesn’t act soon, more than 11,000 wildland firefighters across the nation could get a huge pay cut. The cut could start as soon as next week.

Jon Smith with the North Tooele Fire District told Utah’s Noon News that would be devastating. He said it would hurt wildland firefighters’ ability to use hotshot crews, wildland fire trucks and air support.

“So I’m in Tooele County. We cover 1,700 square miles of wildland territory,” Smith said. “That’s about the size of Rhode Island.”

Additionally, Utah has more than 52 million acres of federal land. If the funding goes away, the state would suddenly become responsible for protecting it.

Wildland fire crews could see a $20,000 salary cut if the 2021 infrastructure law is not continued or a more permanent law is passed. The law provided $600 million to boost firefighter’s salaries.

Congress has until Dec. 20 to continue the infrastructure law or pass a more permanent law.

Tammy Kikuchi is a reporter and anchor for KSL NewsRadio.

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