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Media Advisory No. 0079.15 Contact: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and U.S. Senator Ron Wyden to Participate in Fire Briefing and Media Availability PORTLAND, Aug. 26, 2015 — On Friday, Aug, 28, 10:00 a.m. PT Secretary Vilsack and U.S. Senator Ron Wyden will participate in a briefing on the status of the current wildfires in the western United States and make remarks on the efforts to battle the fires and prevent future fires. The briefing is open to press, and Vilsack and Wyden will take questions from reporters at its conclusion. For reporters outside of Oregon, there will be a short media call at 10:45 a.m.PT/1:45 pm ET. Prior to the event, Secretary Vilsack will meet privately with staff at the U.S. Forest Service’s Pacific Northwest (Region 6) office to recognize their contributions to fighting the historic fire outbreak. Today, fire seasons are 78 days longer than in the 1970s and fires are more severe and cost more to suppress. Since August 13, 2015, the National Preparedness Level has remained at 5, the highest level, indicating a high level of wildfire activity and a high level of commitment of available wildfire suppression assets, such as firefighters, aircraft, and engines. USDA is expending in excess of $150 million per week on fire suppression activities, and that will likely grow in the days and weeks ahead. When the cost of putting out fires continues to increase, more and more of the Forest Service budget (52% in 2015) is diverted to pay for fighting fires which depletes non-fire programs including restoration and prevention programs that can help reduce fire costs. In addition, when fire suppression costs more than Congress appropriates to the Forest Service in any given year, the agency is forced to transfer additional funds from already depleted programs, called "fire transfer." Senator Wyden has introduced the Wildfire Disaster Funding Act to create a long-term solution for wildfire budgets. Friday, August 28, 2015 What: Where: All members of the media who wish to attend should email Joanne.Peters@xxxxxxxxxxx to RSVP. 1:45 PM EDT/10:45 AM PDT What: Dial-in: 888-790-3413 PASSCODE: FIRE (Given Verbally) Trouble number – 202-720-8560 To join the Q&A portion of the meeting, reporters are instructed to press *1 on their touch tone phone.
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