# 116-hr-7978: Emergency Wildfire and Public Safety Act of 2020

116-hr-7978, Emergency Wildfire and Public Safety Act of 2020, is a 116th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Panetta, Jimmy [D-CA-19] (D-CA); status Referred to the Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife. (as of 2025-11-18).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-7978
- As of: 2025-11-18
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 116-hr-7978
- Congress: 116
- Title: Emergency Wildfire and Public Safety Act of 2020
- Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Water, Oceans, and Wildlife.
- Introduced: 2020-08-07
- Sponsor: Rep. Panetta, Jimmy [D-CA-19] (D-CA)
- Cosponsors: 14
- Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2025-11-18

## Summary

Emergency Wildfire and Public Safety Act of 2020 This bill addresses wildfire preparedness and response. Among other things, the bill requires the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to select three forest landscapes on which to conduct projects to reduce the risk of wildfire, restore ecological health, or adapt to the increased risk of wildfire due to climate change. USDA and the Department of the Interior shall expedite the placement of wildfire detection equipment in areas at risk of wildfire, expedite related permitting, expand the use of satellite data to assist wildfire response, and establish a center to train individuals in methods to mitigate wildfire risk. The bill excludes certain forest management activities from environmental review requirements. Interior may make a determination that an emergency situation exists regarding National Forest System land and authorize specified emergency actions. Such a determination and such actions are not subject to administrative review. Interior shall provide grants, loans, and loan guarantees to support biomass conversion facilities. The bill allows the export of unprocessed timber of dead and dying trees from federal land in California. Interior shall establish a grant program to assist in the development and utilization of innovative activities relating to workforce development in the forest sector, raise public awareness about the forest sector, and connect individuals to careers in the forest sector. The Department of Energy shall provide support to improve the energy resilience, power needs, and energy efficiency of critical facilities.

## Cosponsors (14)

- Rep. LaMalfa, Doug [R-CA-1] (R-CA), 2020-08-07T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Costa, Jim [D-CA-21] (D-CA), 2020-08-07T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Harder, Josh [D-CA-9] (D-CA), 2020-08-07T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Garamendi, John [D-CA-8] (D-CA), 2020-08-07T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Cox, TJ [D-CA-21] (D-CA), 2020-08-07T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Carbajal, Salud O. [D-CA-24] (D-CA), 2020-08-07T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Gianforte, Greg [R-MT-At Large] (R-MT), 2020-08-07T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Cook, Paul [R-CA-8] (R-CA), 2020-10-09T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Waters, Maxine [D-CA-43] (D-CA), 2020-10-09T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Thompson, Mike [D-CA-4] (D-CA), 2020-10-20T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Cisneros, Gilbert Ray [D-CA-31] (D-CA), 2020-10-23T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Matsui, Doris O. [D-CA-7] (D-CA), 2020-10-23T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Vargas, Juan [D-CA-52] (D-CA), 2020-10-23T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Porter, Katie [D-CA-47] (D-CA), 2020-11-05T00:00:00.000Z

## Related bills

- 116-hr-1830: National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coin Act
- 116-hr-8726: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 101 South Willowbrook Avenue in Compton, California, as the "PFC James Anderson, Jr.,…
- 116-hr-7052: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 2141 Ferry Street in Anderson, California, as the "Norma Comnick Post Office".
- 116-hr-5983: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 4150 Chicago Avenue in Riverside, California, as the "Woodie Rucker-Hughes Post Office…
- 116-hr-5711: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1 League in Irvine, California, as the "Tuskegee Airman Lieutenant Colonel Robert J. F…
- 116-hr-4672: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 21701 Stevens Creek Boulevard in Cupertino, California, as the "Petty Officer 2nd Clas…

## Sources
- [116-hr-7978 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/7978)

## Related
- [116-hr-1830: National Purple Heart Hall of Honor Commemorative Coin Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-1830)
- [116-hr-8726: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 101 So…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-8726)
- [116-hr-7052: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 2141 F…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-7052)
- [116-hr-5983: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 4150 C…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-5983)
- [116-hr-5711: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 1 Leag…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-5711)
- [116-hr-4672: To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 21701…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-4672)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/116-hr-7978 (as of 2025-11-18).