The Office of Personnel Management has proposed a rule that would expand hazard pay eligibility for federal wildland firefighters, allowing a 25% premium when they work on prescribed burns—planned fires used to reduce future wildfire risk. The change would not take effect until OPM completes the rulemaking process.
- What’s proposed: A 25% hazard pay differential for eligible federal wildland firefighters performing prescribed burning duties, according to GovExec — Pay & Benefits.
- Why it matters: Prescribed burns are proactive risk-reduction operations, but hazard pay rules have not consistently covered that work the way they cover certain emergency wildfire assignments.
- Who could be affected: Federal wildland firefighters across agencies that conduct prescribed fire operations (including major land-management agencies).
- Status: Proposed regulation—not final. Eligibility and implementation would begin only after the rule is finalized through the federal rulemaking process.
- Pay impact: A 25% differential increases basic pay for covered hours; employees can estimate what a premium could mean for their long-term totals using the FERS retirement calculator (premium pay may affect retirement calculations depending on retirement system rules and what counts as basic pay).
- What to watch: OPM’s final rule language, including definitions of covered duties, documentation requirements, and any limits on when the differential applies.
Prescribed burns are a core tool for reducing hazardous fuels and lowering the intensity of future wildfires, but they still involve dangerous conditions—smoke exposure, shifting winds, difficult terrain, and the inherent risks of operating around active fire. GovExec — Pay & Benefits reported OPM’s proposal would explicitly extend hazard pay to this type of planned fire activity, expanding premium pay eligibility beyond reactive wildfire response.
For employees, the immediate takeaway is timing: this is a proposal, not a new entitlement. Until OPM completes the notice-and-comment process and publishes a final rule with an effective date, agencies will continue applying existing premium pay rules. Once finalized, the change could increase take-home pay for covered prescribed fire assignments and may influence overtime and other pay computations depending on an employee’s work schedule and the final regulatory details.
Employees and supervisors should track agency guidance after any final rule is issued, including how time and attendance codes will be used to document prescribed burn hazard pay eligibility.
Source: GovExec — Pay & Benefits