2025
STATE OF WYOMING
25LSO-0607
ENGROSSED
1SF0148
SENATE FILE NO. SF0148
Fire suppression and restoration funding.
Sponsored by: Senator(s) Crago, Anderson, Barlow, Boner and
Driskill and Representative(s) Byron,
Clouston, Connolly, Davis, Eklund, Larsen, L
and Williams
A BILL
for
1 AN ACT relating to wildfires; providing appropriations;
2 authorizing grants and expenditures; specifying duties of
3 the executive director of the Wyoming wildlife and natural
4 resource trust account board; providing for the transfer of
5 funds; authorizing borrowing; repealing prior borrowing
6 authorization; and providing for effective dates.
7
8
9
10 [WILDFIRE SUPPRESSION, RESTORATION AND REHABILITATION
11 FUNDING]
12
13.
14 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-0607
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2SF01481 (a) There is appropriated from the general fund for
2 the purpose of restoring funds expended by the state of
3 Wyoming to suppress wildfires that occurred in calendar
4 year 2024 the following amounts for the following programs
5 or purposes:
6
7 (i) One million dollars ($1,000,000.00) for the
8 special contingency division of the office of the governor,
9 unit 0601;
10
11 (ii) One million two hundred sixty-three
12 thousand nine hundred sixty-six dollars ($1,263,966.00) for
13 the disaster contingency unit within the homeland security
14 division of the office of the governor, unit 1106;
15
16 (iii) Thirty million dollars ($30,000,000.00) to
17 the emergency fire suppression account within the office of
18 state lands and investments.
19
20 (b) There is appropriated from the general fund up to
21 twenty million dollars ($20,000,000.00), or as much thereof
22 as is necessary, to be deposited by the state auditor in
23 the legislative stabilization reserve account for repayment 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-0607
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3SF0148
1 of funds borrowed on or before June 30, 2025 from the
2 legislative stabilization reserve account under 2024
3 Wyoming session laws, chapter 118, section 301(b).
4
5 (c) There is appropriated from the general fund the
6 amounts specified in this subsection to the Wyoming
7 wildlife and natural resource trust income account for
8 mitigation and restoration projects needed as a result of
9 the wildfires that occurred within the state of Wyoming in
10 calendar year 2024. Notwithstanding W.S. 9-15-103(b),
11 amounts appropriated in this subsection shall not be
12 subject to the grant process or other requirements
13 specified in the Wyoming Wildlife and Natural Resource
14 Funding Act. The following amounts shall be expended for
15 grants and expenditures approved by the executive director
16 of the Wyoming wildlife and natural resource trust account
17 board:
18
19 (i) One hundred million dollars
20 ($100,000,000.00) for purposes of restoring grass and
21 vegetation destroyed by wildfires on private and state
22 lands, preventing the establishment of nonnative invasive
23 terrestrial vegetation on private and state lands affected 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-0607
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4SF0148
1 by wildfires, replacing and restoring habitats destroyed by
2 wildfires on private and state lands and restoring lost
3 public infrastructure;
4
5 (ii) Ten million dollars ($10,000,000.00) for
6 projects to restore watershed health and infrastructure for
7 municipal, community and county water supplies.
8
9 (d) The executive director of the Wyoming wildlife
10 and natural resource trust account board shall:
11
12 (i) Establish a process to accept and review
13 applications for grants and expenditures from funds
14 appropriated in subsection (c) of this section;
15
16 (ii) Develop grant and expenditure eligibility
17 criteria for receipt of funds appropriated in subsection
18 (c) of this section.
19
20 (e) Any proposed grant or expenditure of funds
21 appropriated in subsection (c) in this section shall be
22 subject to the following requirements:
23 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-0607
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5SF01481 (i) The proposed grant or expenditure shall be
2 reviewed by the attorney general, who shall determine
3 whether the grant or expenditure provides a substantial
4 public benefit and constitutes a lawful use of funds; and
5
6 (ii) The executive director of the Wyoming
7 wildlife and natural resource trust account board may
8 impose conditions on his approval of any grant or
9 expenditure, including a requirement for consideration from
10 the recipient or beneficiary thereof.
11
12 (f) The executive director of the Wyoming wildlife
13 and natural resource trust account board shall, not later
14 than October 1, 2025 and each October 1 thereafter until
15 the funds appropriated in subsection (c) of this section
16 are fully expended, report to the joint travel, recreation,
17 wildlife and cultural resources interim committee and the
18 joint appropriations committee on the expenditure,
19 encumbrances, obligations, recipients, purposes and
20 justifications for all grants and expenditures from funds
21 appropriated in subsection (c) of this section.
22 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-0607
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6SF01481 (g) Funds appropriated in this section shall not be
2 transferred or expended for any other purpose.
3 Notwithstanding W.S. 9-2-1008, 9-2-1012(e) and 9-4-207, any
4 unexpended, unobligated funds appropriated in this section
5 shall revert as provided by law on June 30, 2027.
6
7 [TRANSFERS – WILDFIRE SUPPRESSION, RESTORATION AND
8 REHABILITATION]
9
10The state auditor shall transfer one
11 hundred sixty-two million two hundred seventy-six thousand
12 four hundred sixty-six dollars ($162,276,466.00) from the
13 legislative stabilization reserve account to the general
14 fund for purposes of this act.
15
16 [BORROWING AUTHORITY – WILDFIRE SUPPRESSION]
17
18For the period beginning July 1, 2025 and
19 ending June 30, 2026, the governor is authorized to borrow
20 from the legislative stabilization reserve account up to
21 forty million dollars ($40,000,000.00) as necessary to meet
22 funding requirements to fight wildfires in the event the
23 reserves in the office of state lands and investments' 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-0607
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7SF0148
1 forestry division have been exhausted. The governor shall
2 report to the joint appropriations committee, the president
3 of the senate and the speaker of the house of
4 representatives immediately upon exercise of this
5 authority.
6
7 [APPLICABILITY]
8
9
10
11 (a) The appropriations in section 1(a) of this act
12 shall be reduced in accordance with the following:
13
14 (i) The appropriation in section 1(a)(i) of this
15 act shall be reduced by one dollar ($1.00) for every one
16 dollar ($1.00) appropriated in the 2025 general session for
17 the special contingency division of the office of the
18 governor, unit 0601, for the purposes specified in section
19 1(a) of this act;
20
21 (ii) The appropriation in section 1(a)(ii) of
22 this act shall be reduced by one dollar ($1.00) for every
23 one dollar ($1.00) appropriated in the 2025 general session 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-0607
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8SF0148
1 for the disaster contingency unit within the homeland
2 security division of the office of the governor, unit 1106,
3 for the purposes specified in section 1(a) of this act;
4
5 (iii) The appropriation in section 1(a)(iii) of
6 this act shall be reduced by one dollar ($1.00) for every
7 one dollar ($1.00) appropriated in the 2025 general session
8 to the emergency fire suppression account within the office
9 of state lands and investments for the purposes specified
10 in section 1(a) of this act.
11
12 (b) The appropriation in section 1(b) of this act
13 shall be reduced by one dollar ($1.00) for every one dollar
14 ($1.00) appropriated in the 2025 general session to the
15 legislative stabilization reserve account for the repayment
16 of funds borrowed on or before June 30, 2025 from the
17 account under 2024 Wyoming session laws, chapter 118,
18 section 301(b).
19
20 (c) The appropriations in section 1(c) of this act
21 shall be reduced in accordance with the following:
22 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-0607
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9SF01481 (i) The appropriation in section 1(c)(i) of this
2 act shall be reduced by one dollar ($1.00) for every one
3 dollar ($1.00) appropriated or authorized for borrowing in
4 section 346 of 2025 Senate File 0001 or section 346 of 2025
5 House Bill 0001;
6
7 (ii) The appropriation in section 1(c)(ii) of
8 this act shall be reduced by one dollar ($1.00) for every
9 one dollar ($1.00) appropriated or authorized for borrowing
10 in the 2025 general session for the purposes specified in
11 section 1(c) and 1(c)(ii) of this act.
12
13 (d) Section 1(d) through (k) of this act shall not be
14 effective if either section 346 of 2025 Senate File 0001 or
15 section 346 of 2025 House Bill 0001 is enacted into law.
16
17 (e) The appropriation in section 2 of this act shall
18 be reduced by one dollar ($1.00) for every one dollar
19 ($1.00) that an appropriation specified in subsections (a)
20 through (c) of this section is reduced.
21
22 (f) The authority to borrow funds specified in
23 section 3 of this act shall be reduced by one dollar 2025STATE OF WYOMING25LSO-0607
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10SF0148
1 ($1.00) for every one dollar ($1.00) of borrowing authority
2 granted in 2025 Senate File 0001, 2025 House Bill 0001 or
3 2025 Senate File 0152 for the purposes specified in section
4 3 of this act.
5
6 [REPEAL]
7
8. 2024 Wyoming session laws, chapter 118,
9 section 301(b) is repealed.
10
11 [EFFECTIVE DATES]
12
13
14
15 (a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this
16 section, this act is effective immediately upon completion
17 of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided
18 by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution.
19
20 (b) Sections 3 and 5 of this act are effective July
21 1, 2025.
22
23 (END)