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The exploding costs of fighting US wildfires

From taxes on nicotine to hotel rooms, states are looking for ways to pay the skyrocketing bill.

This story was originally published by High Country News and is reproduced here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration.

Oregonians buying nicotine pouches like Zyn and Rogue were met with a surprise at the cash register starting this year. Each tin had a new 65-cent tax on it, meant to bolster funding for the state’s wildfire reduction efforts.

Wildfires burned more than 1.9 million acres in Oregon in 2024. By the time they finally died down at the end of October, the state had spent more than $350 million fighting them, greatly exceeding the $10 million it had allocated. “By July 21, I had already completely blown through my cash on hand,” said Kyle Williams, Oregon Department of Forestry’s deputy director for fire operations.

Contractors weren’t promptly paid for services they’d already provided, from digging fuel breaks to supplying meals, and the state had to hold an emergency legislative session to allocate the money. That summer highlighted the flaws in how the state funds both firefighting and the preventive work that reduces the chances of large, destructive blazes in the first place.

Yes, even most unexpected landscapes in the US can and will burn

This year, as drought and a devastating snowpack stack up across the West, officials are bracing for what could be a challenging fire season. The Idaho Department of Lands has roughly $38 million set aside. But Dustin Miller, Idaho director of lands, said he could spend twice that in a big year. “We’re a little bit concerned this year, because I’m not sure we’re going to have enough to cover what could be a very long and busy fire season,” he said. “The conditions are very concerning to me.”

States across the West are dealing with outdated funding systems in the face of skyrocketing wildfire costs. “Every state is grappling........

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