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ExpectMore.govExpectMore.gov home pageEXPECT FEDERAL PROGRAMS TO PERFORM WELL, AND BETTER EVERY YEAR.
 
Program Assessment

Program

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Department of the Interior - Wildland Fire Management

This program is responsible for managing and, if necessary, extinguishing fires on DOI lands and on other lands under fire protection agreements. The three largest program activities are fire preparedness, fire suppression, and hazardous fuels reduction (i.e., removal of small trees and brush that exacerbate fire risks).

Rating

What This Rating Means

NOT PERFORMING
Results Not Demonstrated

A rating of Results Not Demonstrated (RND) indicates that a program has not been able to develop acceptable performance goals or collect data to determine whether it is performing.
  • The cost of responding to fires has increased substantially in recent years, with the 10-year average cost rising from $108 million in 1995 to $260 million today. DOI has made some improvements in its business practices, but the agency needs to continue to emphasize cost containment within the program. DOI also needs to continue to improve its performance measures and data for the program.
  • The agency has taken steps to improve program management over the past several years, but still faces obstacles in meeting its long-term goals of reducing risks to communities and restoring fire-adapted ecosystems. Hazardous fuels funds need to be clearly targeted and performance measures for the program need to be improved, clarified, and prioritized.
  • The program has developed two new systems to improve internal management. The first is intended to allocate fire preparedness resources (such as firefighters and equipment) effectively across geographic areas. The second will collect hazardous fuels data to prioritize fuels reduction projects and inform fire suppression efforts. The agency faces implementation challenges for both systems.

Improvement Plan

About Improvement Plans

We are taking the following actions to improve the performance of the program:

  • Emphasizing accountability for firefighting costs, improving management oversight, and ensuring that states are paying their fair share of such costs.
  • Implementing new performance measures and strengthening hazardous fuels project criteria to ensure that funds are more effectively targeted.
  • Prioritizing the timely implementation of the preparedness and fuels reduction systems to ensure that institutional barriers are overcome.

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