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Congress·In Committee·about 1 year ago

Congress proposes higher base pay and new health, leave, and retirement benefits for wildland firefighters

Also known as: Tim’s Act

Legislative Progress

✓ Filed
Review
Senate
House
President

Impacts

Positive Impacts(3)
Federal Employee
Helps
Disability Benefits
Helps
Retiree
Helps

Key Points

  • Raises base pay for federal wildland firefighters by grade, with bigger boosts at lower pay levels (up to 42%).
  • Adds incident response premium pay for longer or more complex fire deployments, capped at $9,000 per year.
  • Creates new paid time off after major incidents, plus 7 consecutive days of paid mental health leave each year.
  • Sets up health tracking and support: a public cancer and heart disease database, and a new mental health support program for firefighters and families.
  • Improves long-term benefits: retirement credit options, some disability rules for job-related disease, bonuses starting at $1,000, a housing allowance for deployments over 50 miles, and tuition help of at least $4,000 per year.
Labor EmploymentHealthcareInfrastructure

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions
Jan 28, 2025Senate

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Jan 28, 2025

Introduced in Senate

What Happens Next

Projected impacts based on AI analysis

2025-10-01

Rest and recuperation leave becomes available after qualifying incidents

After longer deployments, eligible employees could be given paid recovery time that must be used right away (not saved for later)

2025-10-01

Incident standby premium pay is counted toward existing premium pay limits for 2025

Some people could hit annual pay caps sooner in late 2025 depending on the mix of overtime/premium pays they earn

First pay period with a payment date in January 2026

New special premium pay limitation rules begin

Higher earners and heavy overtime workers could be affected by new annual pay cap rules and possible waivers, changing how much premium pay can be paid out

2026-01-01

Mental health awareness and support program must be up and running

Wildland firefighters and their immediate families should gain access to dedicated counseling and peer support without session limits (as described in the bill)

Within 180 days after the Act is enacted

Wildland Fire Management Casualty Assistance Program is created at Interior

Families dealing with hospitalization or a line-of-duty death could get help navigating benefits and get travel reimbursement to visit injured firefighters

Within 1 year after the Act is enacted

Cancer and cardiovascular disease tracking database goes live

Current and former wildland firefighters could see better tracking of long-term exposure-related disease and improved prevention recommendations over time

Within 1 year after the Act is enacted

Tuition assistance program begins for permanent wildland firefighters

Eligible permanent staff could apply for at least $4,000 per year to pay for education or job training to support career transitions

1 year after the Act is enacted

Structural firefighter pay/benefit parity requirement starts

Federal structural firefighters could see pay/benefit changes aimed at matching what wildland firefighters receive under this Act

Related News

3 articles
Federal News Network·12 months ago

Federal wildland firefighters secure permanent pay raise, but work is ‘far from over’

Explains the new permanent pay tables and premium pay created in the FY2025 funding package, and notes remaining workforce issues (housing, rest/recuperation, mental health) that overlap with Tim’s Act goals.

C~
The Associated Press·12 months ago

Trump backs higher pay for wildland firefighters while DOGE cuts wildfire support staff

Covers the permanent pay fix and incident-response premium pay in a spending bill; provides context for why lawmakers continue pushing broader packages like Tim’s Act on benefits, housing, and health supports.

C~
The Wildland Firefighter·12 months ago

Federal Wildland Firefighters Win Permanent Pay Raises in Budget Deal

Wildland-focused outlet summarizing the FY2025 budget deal’s permanent pay changes and incident response premium pay—overlapping with key compensation concepts contained in Tim’s Act.

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Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

Tim’s Act

Bill NumberS 279
Congress119th Congress
ChamberSenate
Latest ActionRead twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Sponsor

Analysis generated by AI. While we strive for accuracy, this should not be considered legal or professional advice. Always verify information with official government sources.