The Biden administration has told New Mexico forest fire victims to cover certain property damage expenses for a forest fire the U.S. government started, Reuters reported.
In April, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) mismanaged a controlled burn in northern New Mexico that ended up merging with another controlled blaze, resulting in over 341,000 acres of land being burned and 432 homes being destroyed.
In response, President Joe Biden announced in June that the U.S. government “is covering 100 percent of the costs… for the next critical months of recovery” during a visit to the state.
However, the vague declaration only covered debris removal and emergency protective measures and not full compensation for victims who lost property from the federal government-started Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon fire, Reuters noted.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, left, greets President Joe Biden at Kirtland Air Force Base during a trip to meet with state and local officials on the New Mexico wildfires, Saturday, June 11, 2022, in Albuquerque, N.M. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Low-income victims, such as Daniel Encinias, 55, a rancher living in a trailer with his wife and children next to his destroyed home, were told by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) that they would receive support with little to no cost.
In this photo released by the U.S. Forest Service, aircraft known as “super scoopers” battle the Hermits Peak and Calf Canyon Fires in the Santa Fe National Forest in New Mexico on Tuesday, April 26, 2022 (J. Michael Johnson/U.S. Forest Service via AP)
After submitting an application to be compensated for a damaged well on his property, Encinias was told by the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) that he would have to foot 25 percent of the bill, Reuters reported.
Carson Hot Shots Tyler Freeman works to keep a burning log from rolling down a slope, May 23, 2022, as he and his coworkers work on hot spots from the Calf Canyon/Hermits Peak Fire in the Carson National Forest west of Chacon, N.M. (Eddie Moore/The Albuquerque Journal via AP)
“Why the hell am I going to pay anything when I didn’t cause this damn fire?” Encinias told the outlet.
He decided to rebuild the well himself after being told by the NRCS that his application would not be considered until September and that recovery may take up to 12 months after it is accepted.
Fire rages along a ridgeline east of highway 518 near the Taos County line as firefighters from all over the country converge on Northern New Mexico to battle the Hermit’s Peak and Calf Canyon fires on May 13, 2022. (Jim Weber/Santa Fe New Mexican via AP)
Apart from losing their 5-bedroom home, the rancher also lost eight acres of forest, farm machinery, and cars and is surviving off of a $37,000 maximum payout from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Encinias may potentially join other similar victims in a massive civil suit that might be filed against the USFS, which is under the USDA.
Reuters noted that the Biden administration is reportedly waiting for legislation, introduced by New Mexico Democrats, to be passed in the fall by Congress that would “bridge FEMA relief” to provide 100 percent compensation to victims of the fire. Burdened local and state officials are hoping either the federal government will announce compensation or that Congress will pass the legislation.
“[T]he federal government can and must take responsibility for the harm the prescribed burn unleashed on our homelands,” said Teresa Leger Fernández (D-NM), one of the cosponsors of the legislation.
FEMA has so far given out $4.2 million to 1,164 fire survivors, an average payout of $3,600, Reuters noted.
You can follow Ethan Letkeman on Twitter at @EthanLetkeman.