Governor Gianforte Receives 2025 Fire Season Briefing

• June 02 2025

HELENA, Mont. – Governor Greg Gianforte today joined local, state, tribal, and federal agency administrators, and fire management officers for the 2025 Fire Season Briefing.

“We are here today to pledge our shared commitment to protect Montanans, our communities, and our lands from catastrophic wildfire,” Gov. Gianforte said. “Throughout the summer, we can expect dry and hot conditions to persist. Working together with our partners, we stand ready to respond with an aggressive initial attack to protect our communities.”

Gov. Gianforte speaking during the 2025 Fire Briefing at the DNRC Hangar in Helena

During a press conference at the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) Aviation Hangar in Helena, the group provided updates on fire season preparedness and agency readiness before receiving a weather outlook.

During the briefing, fire management professionals expressed their anticipation for significant wildfire potential in western Montana in July, expanding to central and eastern Montana in August and September. Drier and warmer conditions are expected to begin in June and persist through August.

Through summer and into the fall, officials anticipate dry, hot weather, with a very active fire season expected across Montana.

Speaking to agency preparedness, DNRC Director Amanda Kaster spoke to the preparedness of the agency and its success with active forest management practices before introducing several state, federal, tribal, and local officials to speak on behalf of their agencies.

Each agency expressed commitment to open communication and resource sharing throughout the upcoming season, ensuring preparedness.

In each year since Gov. Gianforte took office, DNRC has kept 95% of fires in its direct protection to 10 acres or fewer. The state has also placed over 130,000 forested acres under management since 2021.

In the last two legislative sessions, Gov. Gianforte was proud to advance historic legislation to improve forest health and protect communities from wildfire. Signing House Bill 883 into law in 2023, DNRC was allocated $60 million over the biennium to significantly increase the pace and scale of management practices that improve forest health, reduce wildfire risk, and increase wildfire preparedness. House Bill 127 was signed into law in April 2025 to continue these important investments.

“The department would like to thank the Montana legislature for answering the call from Montanans to make fire preparedness a priority in the 2025 session. The passage of House Bill 127 secures sustained, permanent funding to expand DNRC’s fire response and prevention capabilities,” Dir. Kaster said. “Thanks to these investments, DNRC is more prepared than ever – using advanced technology to detect fires earlier, securing additional equipment to fight fires faster, and reduce fuel loads through cross-boundary, landscape scale forest management.”

The current forest health crisis in Montana has created a significant risk for catastrophic wildfire. The governor urged Montanans to do their part to prevent wildfire.

Fire prevention tips include:

• Staying current on weather conditions and fire restrictions in your area.
• Always using an established ring fire and never leaving campfires unattended.
• Ensuring trailer chains are properly secured and not dragging on the pavement.
• Properly maintaining and cleaning farm and lawn equipment.
• Avoiding driving or parking your vehicle, including all-terrain and utility vehicles, on dry grass.
• Using caution when burning debris and never burning piles when it’s hot, windy, or when fire restrictions are in place.

For current fire information and additional tips on preventing human-caused wildfire, visit https://www.mtfireinfo.org/ .

The governor’s 2025 Fire Season Briefing may be viewed here . The weather outlook presentation may be viewed here .

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