WASHINGTON, DC—The Forest Service is again accepting applications for the Community Wildfire Defense Grant program. Now in its second year, this competitive program funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is designed to assist at-risk communities, including tribal communities, nonprofit organizations, state forestry agencies and Alaska Native Corporations with planning for and mitigating wildfire risks.  

Notices of Funding Opportunities are available on Grants.gov. The agency will accept applications until Oct. 31. Potential applicants are strongly encouraged to work with state or Forest Service Regional Cooperative Fire Programs when developing grant proposals. 

Individual grants will fund up to $250,000 to create and update community wildfire protection plans and up to $10 million for associated wildfire resilience projects. Projects must be completed within five years of the award obligation. The number of projects selected will be determined by available funding, which is up to $250 million.  

In March 2023, the Forest Service awarded $197 million to 99 project proposals across 22 states and seven tribes during the first year of the new program. These projects directly support the agency’s 10-year Wildfire Crisis Strategy to treat up to 20 million acres of national forests and grasslands and 30 million acres of other federal, state, tribal and private lands to reduce wildfire risk to communities, infrastructure and natural resources.  

The Forest Service is working with community-based organizations in historically underserved populations and tribes at high risk of wildfire to provide equitable access to this funding opportunity. These organizations will build awareness of the funding opportunity and assist in the application process.  

The Community Wildfire Defense Grant program prioritizes communities that have a high or very high wildfire hazard potential, are low income or have been impacted by a severe disaster which increased wildfire risk. The program also helps communities in the wildland urban interface meet the three goals of the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy to maintain resilient landscapes, create fire-adapted communities and improve wildfire response. 

Applicants are strongly encouraged to view one of the online applicant webinars for additional information about the grant application process. Webinar recordings are posted on the Community Wildfire Defense Grants webpage. All webinars cover the same content; however, the Aug. 10 webinar was more focused on tribal applications.

More information and applications are available on the Community Wildfire Defense Grants webpage.