Rep. Panetta Introduces Bipartisan Support our Firefighters Act to Mandate Paid Rest and Permanent Overtime Pay
This bill is in the early stages of the legislative process and is currently sitting with three different House committees. Since June 23, 2026, no further action has been taken, and it is common for bills to stall at this stage without a committee vote. The House committees must review the bill before it can move forward.
The bill has support from both parties and addresses a major staffing crisis, but it must still pass through several committees before a full vote.
Scores run from -100 (strongly harmful) to +100 (strongly beneficial) for each group, combining impact, certainty, scope, and duration ratings of 1-5. How impact scoring works
Federal wildland firefighters employed by the Forest Service and Department of the Interior would gain guaranteed paid rest leave after extended fire deployments, permanent overtime pay protections, and continued base salary increases. While the total number of affected federal workers is a small fraction of the overall federal workforce (roughly 15,000-20,000 wildland firefighters), the impact on those individuals is meaningful, improving working conditions in one of the most dangerous and demanding federal jobs.
“A covered employee may receive paid rest and recuperation leave following the completion of service in which the covered employee is deployed to respond to a qualifying incident, subject to the policies prescribed under this subsection.”
Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees on Agriculture, and Natural Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.
Introduced in House
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
No votes or related bills recorded for this bill yet.
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Support our Firefighters Act
Analysis generated by AI. Always verify with official sources.