USDA Orders Wildfire Readiness Push Ahead of Challenging Fire Season
WASHINGTON, D.C. USDA has ordered the Forest Service to raise national wildfire readiness before what agency leaders described as a challenging 2026 fire year, with the department pointing to firefighter safety, faster suppression, hazardous fuels work and stronger state and tribal coordination as its main priorities.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins issued Secretarial Memorandum 1078-022 and a separate direction letter on April 29, according to USDA. The department said the order tells USDA mission areas to maintain qualification readiness, surge staffing capacity and contracting support for wildland fire operations.
What Happened
USDA said the Forest Service can mobilize more than 28,000 wildfire responders and more than 22,000 contracted resources across 2,500 vendors. The agency also said it manages the majority of the federal firefighting aviation fleet, including helicopters and airtankers used nationwide.
The Forest Service's public readiness page lists more than 90 Hotshot crews, 40 Type 2 Initial Attack crews, more than 400 additional Type 2 crews, 900 agency fire engines and more than 1,600 contracted engines and pieces of heavy equipment as part of the national response network.
Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz wrote in his 2026 fire letter of intent that every unplanned ignition on National Forest System lands will be managed under a full suppression strategy. Schultz said crews will use direct tactics when conditions allow and indirect tactics when needed, while keeping public and firefighter safety first.
The letter also ties readiness to prevention work before peak fire conditions arrive. Schultz listed priorities that include fuels treatments and prescribed fire in the highest-risk areas, prevention of human-caused fires, coordination with states, tribes and local governments, and management of employee fatigue and stress.
The Response
Rollins framed the order as a department-wide alignment effort, saying USDA wants all mission areas prepared to move quickly when fires start. Her memorandum builds on Executive Order 14308, a June 2025 White House order that directed the Interior and Agriculture departments to consolidate wildland fire programs where lawful and practicable.
That executive order also told federal agencies to expand mutual aid capabilities, consider removing barriers to prescribed fire and fire retardant use, review wildfire rules that slow prevention or response, and develop response performance metrics including response times, annual fuels treatments, safety and cost effectiveness.
Schultz described wildfire response as a shared responsibility. His letter says federal crews will continue to work with states, tribes, local governments and contractors, and it cites shared stewardship agreements in Alaska, Georgia, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Utah, along with an agreement with the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians.
The operational tradeoff is clear in the agencies' own documents. USDA is emphasizing aggressive suppression of unwanted fires, while the Forest Service also says prescribed fire and active forest management are needed to reduce future fuel loads in high-risk areas.
By the Numbers
USDA says the Forest Service can mobilize more than 28,000 wildfire responders for the 2026 fire year.
The Forest Service says it has access to more than 22,000 contracted resources through 2,500 vendors.
The agency says its aviation system includes more than 400 aircraft, including airtankers, helicopters and water-scoopers.
The Forest Service says it reduces hazardous fuels across 3 million to 4 million acres each year through thinning, timber harvest, prescribed fire and other active management.
What People Are Saying
"This memorandum ensures the entire Department is aligned, prepared and focused on responding quickly and effectively to protect communities and the natural resources Americans depend on." - Brooke Rollins, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture
"Wildfire response is a shared responsibility, and USDA will remain vigilant." - Tom Schultz, U.S. Forest Service Chief
"Predictive services indicates the 2026 fire year will challenge us. Lives, homes and taxpayer dollars are on the line every time a wildfire starts." - Tom Schultz, U.S. Forest Service Chief
"The main objectives of the National Significant Wildland Fire Potential Outlooks are to improve information available to fire management decision makers." - National Interagency Coordination Center Predictive Services
The Big Picture
The next test is whether federal readiness on paper translates into quick decisions during red-flag weather, lightning outbreaks and human-caused ignitions. The National Interagency Coordination Center says its significant fire potential outlooks are designed to help decision makers protect lives and property, reduce firefighting costs and improve firefighting efficiency.
For communities near national forests, the practical markers will be visible before and during peak season: prescribed fire windows used safely, fuel breaks built where agencies and landowners agree, aircraft and crews moved before conditions worsen, and suppression decisions made fast enough to keep unwanted fires small.
