Title 65A, Title 65A: Forestry, Fire, and State Lands

65A-8-201. Uncontrolled fire is a public nuisance. Any fire on forest, range, watershed, or wildland urban interface land in the state burning uncontrolled and without proper and adequate action being taken to manage it is a public nuisance.

65A-8-202. Fire control -- County responsibilities. (1) A county shall abate the public nuisance caused by wildfire on unincorporated, privately owned or county owned forest, range, watershed, and wildland urban interface lands within its boundaries. (2) A county may participate …

65A-8-202.5. City and town responsibilities. (1) A municipality shall abate the public nuisance caused by wildfire on forest, range, watershed, and wildland urban interface land within the boundaries of the municipality if the land is: privately owned; or owned by the municipalit…

65A-8-203. Cooperative fire protection agreements. (1) As used in this section, "eligible entity" means: a county, a municipality, or a special service district, special district, or service area with: wildland fire suppression responsibility as described in Section; and 11-7-1 w…

65A-8-203.1. Delegation of fire management authority. (1) As used in this section, "delegation of fire management authority" means the acceptance by the division of responsibility for: managing a wildfire; and wildfire costs and wildfire prevention costs as defined in Section. 65…

65A-8-203.2. Billing a county or municipality not covered by a cooperative agreement -- Calculating cost of wildfire suppression. (1) The division shall bill a county that is not covered by a cooperative agreement with the division, as described in Section, for the cost of wildfi…

65A-8-209. Responsibilities of county sheriffs and fire wardens in controlling fires. (1) In a county that has not entered into a cooperative agreement as described in Section, the county sheriff shall take appropriate action to suppress wildfires on state or private lands. 65A-8…

65A-8-209.1. County fire warden. (1) As used in this section, "participating county" means a county that participates in a cooperative agreement with the division, as described in Section. 65A-8-203 (2) A county fire warden who is employed by the division as a county fire warden …

65A-8-210. Fire control on state-owned lands -- Responsibilities of state agencies. (1) The division shall abate the public nuisance caused by wildfire on state-owned forest, range, watershed, and wildland urban interface lands. (2) State agencies responsible for the administrati…

65A-8-211. Closed fire season -- Notice -- Violations -- Red Flag Warnings -- Burning permits -- Personal liability -- Exemptions from burning permits. (1) As used in this section: "Applicable public safety answering point" means a public safety answering point or dispatch center…

65A-8-212. Power of state forester to close hazardous areas -- Violations of an order closing an area. (1) If the state forester finds conditions in a given area in the state to be extremely hazardous, "extremely hazardous" means categorized as "extreme" under a nationally recogn…

65A-8-216. Great Plains Interstate Fire Compact. The governor may enter into a compact on behalf of the state with any other state or states legally joining therein in the form substantially as follows:The purpose of this compact is to promote effective prevention and control of …

65A-8-217. Utah Wildfire Fund. (1) As used in this section: "Cooperative agreement for forest management" means an instrument used when a state agency agrees to substantial involvement with other government agencies during the performance of a project related to forest management…

65A-8-301. Legislative finding and purpose. (1) The Legislature finds the health and welfare of the people of the state require the preservation of certain rare, or threatened, or vanishing species of trees to preserve the state's scenic beauty and preserve its historic past as i…

65A-8-302. Definitions. As used in this part: (1) "Alter" means to change the configuration of a heritage tree by pruning, trimming, topping, cutting, or by any other means. (2) "Division" means the Division of Forestry, Fire, and State Lands. (3) "Heritage tree" means any tree o…

65A-8-303. Application to alter or remove trees. (1) Any person that desires to alter or remove one or more heritage trees from any public property within this state shall before altering or removing any such tree make application to the division on forms prescribed by it. (2) An…

65A-8-304. Guidelines and standards for granting or denying applications to alter or remove trees. The division shall consider the following criteria in granting or denying an application: (1) the physical condition of the heritage tree or trees with respect to: insect infestatio…

65A-8-305. Powers of division. The division may: (1) grant or deny applications for designation of heritage trees from individuals, local shade tree commissions, or local governments; (2) grant or deny applications for alteration or removal of heritage trees; (3) acquire land if …

65A-8-307. Exemption for emergency or permit. This part shall not apply to any emergency when heritage trees constitute a danger to life or property, or to any person whose application for alteration or removal of a heritage tree has been granted by the division.

65A-8-308. Enforcement -- Prosecution of violations. (1) The Division of Law Enforcement, county sheriffs, police, other law enforcement officers within their respective jurisdictions, and the division are responsible for the enforcement of this part. (2) The county attorney or d…

65A-8-309. Injury -- Violation of part -- Misdemeanor. Any person who intentionally or knowingly alters, injures, damages, or causes death of a heritage tree or who otherwise violates this part is guilty of a class B misdemeanor.

65A-8-401. Definitions. As used in this section: (1) "High risk wildland urban interface property" means property located within the boundary of high risk wildland urban interface as designated by the wildfire risk assessment tool in Subsectionand defined by rule made in accordan…

65A-8-402. Evaluation of wildland urban interface property -- Fee amounts -- Rulemaking. (1) The division shall establish a program under which a wildland urban interface coordinator evaluates and classifies high risk wildland urban interface property using a triage scale. The wi…

65A-8-403. Liability. This part does not create a cause of action against the state, the division, an officer, employee, or consultant of the division, a county, or a wildland urban interface coordinator for an act or failure to act under this part and does not waive governmental…