{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://neguse.house.gov/media/press-releases/representative-neguse-leads-congressional-letter-to-departments-of-agriculture-and-interior-to-increase-late-season-wildfire-resources", "Representative Neguse Leads Congressional Letter to Departments of Agriculture and Interior to Increase Late-Season Wildfire Resources", "2020-11-12", "2020", "2020-11", "Democrat", "House", "CO", "Joe Neguse", "N000191", "neguse.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "November 12, 2020\n\t\t\t Representative Neguse Leads Congressional Letter to Departments of Agriculture and Interior to Increase Late-Season Wildfire Resources \n\t\t\tWashington, D.C.  Today, Congressman Joe Neguse and Congresswoman Katie Porter, along with some of their congressional colleagues from the Western United States, sent a letter to Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt and Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, requesting contract extensions and increased funding for Interagency Hotshot Crews (IHC) fighting wildfires. IHCs are critical firefighting crews contracted for fire season, but as we move later into the year, many of these contracts expire and there are fewer crews available to fight fires that burn late into the season.\r\nThis year, we have continued to see the devastating effects of wildfires in our communities, as intense fires late in the season have burned hundreds of thousands of acres and forced thousands to evacuate from their homes, said Congressman Joe Neguse. As crews continue to battle fires all across the West, we must work to ensure there are enough IHCs available to fight these late-season wildfires. Extending the contracts of available crews would be a huge help to our communities who are struggling to obtain enough resources to continue fighting the deadly and destructive fires.\r\nCalifornia is experiencing the worst wildfire season on record, and our communities need every tool they can get to stay safe,said Congresswoman Katie Porter.Hundreds of acres have been destroyed and thousands of families have had to evacuate their homes. My heart breaks for those who have been affected, but I am grateful for the brave first responders and firefighters who have worked tirelessly to protect our communities. It's critical the federal government continues to provide assistance and extend IHC contracts for crews who are still available to help fight these fires.\r\nThe letter can be found here.\r\nThe two largest wildfires in Colorado history are currently burning in the Second Congressional District. The Cameron Peak Fire in Larimer County, the largest in state history, has now burned 208,913 acres; while the East Troublesome Fire in Grand County, the second largest in state history, has burned 193,812 acres. Also in Grand County is the Williams Fork Fire, 14, 833 acres, and Boulder County is still fighting the Calwood Fire at 10,106 acres.\r\n### \n\t\n\t  \n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\t    \t  \n\t\t    \n\t\t    \tPrevious Article", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://neguse.house.gov/media/press-releases/representative-neguse-leads-congressional-letter-to-departments-of-agriculture-and-interior-to-increase-late-season-wildfire-resources"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.4763448853045702, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}