Reinstate Trained Firefighters Before the Next Wildfire Strikes

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Sponsor: The Rainforest Site

As fires rage and forests dry, the federal government has slashed the very crews trained to protect our homes, lands, and lives—now we must act before the next disaster hits and help never comes.

Reinstate Trained Firefighters Before the Next Wildfire Strikes

Across the American West, the skies are already beginning to dry and temperatures are rising. Fire season is no longer a future concern. It’s now. Yet the U.S. Forest Service—one of the most vital agencies protecting our communities from wildfires—has been gutted. More than 3,000 trained employees have disappeared from the front lines. Many of them were red-card certified, meaning they had the experience, physical fitness, and training to deploy during wildfire emergencies1. They weren’t protected. They weren’t reassigned. They were let go.

Critical Staff Cut Just When They're Needed Most

These layoffs weren’t limited to administrative roles. Red card holders are the ones who drop everything to respond when fires break out. They lead initial attacks, support handcrews, and fill gaps when full-time firefighters are stretched thin. Without them, federal response is slower and smaller. Federal officials claim these workers left voluntarily. But congressional leaders, state officials, and the workers themselves say otherwise. They say it was part of sweeping cost-cutting measures2. Either way, the result is the same—thousands of qualified responders are no longer available.

States Are Left to Fill the Gap

Colorado, New Mexico, and other fire-prone states are scrambling. Governors, senators, and representatives from both parties are calling for the immediate return of red-card-holding personnel3. They know the truth: state and local fire departments cannot replace the capacity of a fully staffed federal force. When federal responders vanish, the weight shifts to overstretched state and local agencies. That means longer response times, larger fires, and more risk for frontline communities.

Contracts Blocked, Prevention Stalled

Even when funding exists, red tape is choking wildfire response efforts. Equipment requests, helicopter purchases, even tree planting contracts are delayed or denied altogether4. A million new trees were scheduled to be planted as part of a reforestation effort—but delays left them too old to be viable. The cost of bureaucracy is measured in missed windows, lost landscapes, and rising danger.

Fire Season Is Here—And We’re Not Ready

The Forest Service says they’re hiring. But top wildfire officials across the country aren’t convinced the agency will be ready. Drought conditions and low snowpack have set the stage for another brutal fire season. The crews that used to backfill firefighting teams, manage logistics, and fly support helicopters are gone5. If the federal government won’t act, the fallout will be felt by families, firefighters, and fragile ecosystems across the country.

Tell Federal Leaders: Bring Them Back

Thousands of skilled, certified wildfire responders are sitting at home while fire season explodes around them. It doesn’t have to be this way. Sign the petition calling on the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, the Chief of the Forest Service, and the FEMA Administrator to reinstate red-card-holding Forest Service employees immediately.

The fires won’t wait. Neither can we. Sign the petition now!

More on this issue:

  1. Dennis Webb, Grand Junction Daily Sentinel (3 May 2025), "Hurd joins Dems in calling for rehiring of wildfire-qualified national forest staff."
  2. Alex Rivero, WesternSlopeNow.com (2 May 2025), "Hurd and other reps send letter to Dept. of Ag calling for USFS workers to be reinstated."
  3. Hannah Grover, New Mexico Political Report (29 April 2025), "Stansbury warns: ‘We are not ready for the fire season’."
  4. Eric Katz, Government Executive (2 May 2025), "‘Biohazard’: Forest Service employees warn cuts having devastating, and disgusting, impacts."
  5. Jordan Wolman & Natalie Fertig, POLITICO (23 April 2025), "‘Crazy’: Forest Service cuts ignite fear, fury over wildfire risks."

The Petition

To the Honorable Secretary of Agriculture, the Chief of the U.S. Forest Service, and the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA),

We, the undersigned, urge your immediate action to reinstate U.S. Forest Service employees who hold Incident Qualification Cards—commonly known as “red cards”—that certify them for wildfire response.

These individuals are not only trained and physically qualified to engage in wildland firefighting, but many also serve in critical support roles during peak wildfire seasons. Their skills are irreplaceable, and their absence severely weakens our national capacity to respond to fires that increasingly threaten lives, homes, ecosystems, and infrastructure across the United States.

As we enter yet another fire season marked by drought, record-low snowpack, and intensifying climate conditions, communities across the country—particularly in the American West—are bracing for disaster. Now is not the time to reduce personnel. It is the time to fortify our defenses.

The U.S. Forest Service is a cornerstone of our nation’s wildfire mitigation and response infrastructure. Red card holders are the backbone of that system. Reinstating these workers will not only help ensure faster response times and safer conditions for firefighters on the ground, but also protect the communities that depend on federal coordination and leadership during wildfire emergencies.

We call on you to take decisive steps to restore these critical roles immediately.

Doing so will help safeguard our public lands, preserve vital ecosystems, protect human lives, and ensure a safer, more resilient future for all Americans.

Sincerely,