# 119-s-160: Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act of 2025

119-s-160, Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act of 2025, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Sheehy, Tim [R-MT] (R-MT); status became_law; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-07-25).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-160
- As of: 2026-07-25
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-160
- Congress: 119
- Title: Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act of 2025
- Status: became_law
- Introduced: 2025-01-21
- Sponsor: Sen. Sheehy, Tim [R-MT] (R-MT)
- Cosponsors: 8
- Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-07-25

## Summary

**Reauthorizes the Department of Defense to sell excess aircraft and parts for wildfire suppression.** The law limits those sales to supporting aircraft services for fighting fires, adds permission to deliver water as well as fire retardant, and sets the authority to end on October 1, 2035. - Firefighting agencies and communities will have expanded access to surplus aircraft and parts for suppression services. Allowing water drops as well as retardant gives crews more tactical options during large fires. - The Department of Defense gains a defined, time-limited process to dispose of excess aircraft and related parts specifically for wildfire missions. The law updates internal legal references and ties the program to a fixed period instead of an open-ended authority. - International wildfire response can now be supported under this program because the law removes the prior restriction on providing international suppression assistance with purchased aircraft.

## Cosponsors (8)

- Sen. Heinrich, Martin [D-NM] (D-NM), 2025-01-21T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Mullin, Markwayne [R-OK-2] (R-OK), 2025-02-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Luján, Ben Ray [D-NM] (D-NM), 2025-02-03T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Kelly, Mark [D-AZ] (D-AZ), 2025-02-19T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Crapo, Mike [R-ID] (R-ID), 2025-03-06T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Risch, James E. [R-ID] (R-ID), 2025-03-06T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Padilla, Alex [D-CA] (D-CA), 2025-04-01T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Warnock, Raphael G. [D-GA] (D-GA), 2025-04-02T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Aerial firefighting authority through 2035: benefit, medium. The law lets the Defense Department sell aircraft and parts to support wildfire fighting. The authority runs from enactment to October 1, 2035. Items sold can be used only to provide aircraft services for wildfire suppression. The law also allows those aircraft to use water as well as fire retardan…

## Related bills

- 119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026
- 119-s-1241: Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025
- 119-s-1547: America the Beautiful Act
- 119-sres-585: A resolution honoring the life, achievements, and legacy of Ben Nighthorse Campbell.
- 119-s-2265: America's Olympic and Paralympic Games Commemorative Coins Act
- 119-sres-255: A resolution honoring the life, achievements, and legacy of former United States Senator Christopher "Kit" Bond of Missouri.

## Sources
- [119-s-160 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/160)

## Related
- [119-s-5066: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5066)
- [119-s-1241: Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1241)
- [119-s-1547: America the Beautiful Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1547)
- [119-sres-585: A resolution honoring the life, achievements, and legacy of Ben Nighthorse Camp…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-585)
- [119-s-2265: America's Olympic and Paralympic Games Commemorative Coins Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2265)
- [119-sres-255: A resolution honoring the life, achievements, and legacy of former United State…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-sres-255)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-160 (as of 2026-07-25).