Governor Tina Kotek is moving forward with a proposal to channel $161 million in interest earnings from Oregon’s reserve fund toward wildfire prevention, aiming to bolster the state’s readiness as hotter, drier summers continue to fuel destructive fire seasons. Her plan would tap into the investment income—not the principal—of what’s often referred to as Oregon’s “rainy day” fund, using the next two years of interest to support firefighting and forest management programs across the state.
The reserve fund, currently holding about $1.9 billion, generates roughly $100 million in interest each biennium. Under Kotek’s proposal, those earnings would be redirected to state and local agencies responsible for wildfire suppression and mitigation, giving Oregon a short-term financial boost without diminishing the core balance of its emergency savings. The funding would help pay for fuel reduction, aerial firefighting contracts, expanded seasonal staffing, and local grants focused on defensible space and preparedness.
With wildfires growing in frequency and cost, the move is being pitched as both a practical stopgap and a necessary shift in thinking about what constitutes a statewide emergency. The 2024 fire season cost the state over $350 million in suppression alone. Experts have warned that Oregon needs at least $300 million every two years to adequately prepare for and respond to wildfire events, meaning the reserve fund interest would cover just over half of that need—at least for now.
Until recently, another idea was gaining traction in legislative circles: a proposed five-cent non-refundable surcharge added to Oregon’s bottle deposit system. The added fee would have generated supplemental funding for wildfire services by piggybacking on the state’s long-standing container return program. But the plan drew pushback from recycling advocates, grocers, and members of the public who worried it would disrupt a system that currently boasts one of the highest redemption rates in the country. Quietly, and without much fanfare, lawmakers scrapped the idea this week and moved on.
The retreat from the bottle surcharge leaves Kotek’s reserve fund proposal as the centerpiece of Oregon’s short-term wildfire financing strategy. While some fiscal conservatives are uneasy about dipping into even the interest from the state’s emergency fund, others argue that the growing costs of wildfires—and the risks they pose to lives, property, and public health—are exactly the kind of crisis the fund was meant to address.
As fire crews gear up for the 2025 season, Kotek’s proposal offers a relatively quick and politically viable solution. It avoids new taxes or fees, doesn’t touch the fund’s principal, and buys lawmakers more time to hash out a longer-term plan. Ideas floated for the future include diverting a portion of Oregon’s income tax “kicker” rebate or placing modest taxes on carbon-heavy consumer products like oral nicotine pouches or jet fuel.
For now, the focus is on securing the $161 million and ensuring that the state’s frontline fire agencies can stay equipped, staffed, and ready through at least the next two fire seasons. The money would be distributed to the Oregon Department of Forestry, the State Fire Marshal’s office, and local governments tasked with reducing risk in the most fire-prone communities.
Though it doesn’t solve Oregon’s wildfire funding problem for good, the use of interest from the reserve fund may help the state weather the immediate threat—without waiting for the next emergency to arrive.