The U.S. Department of Agriculture in January announced an ambitious, and only partially funded, new plan to reduce wildfire risks for communities around the United States.

The Biden administration recently announced a new federal program, with funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), to thin forests and reduce wildfire risk on 50 million acres in the United States.
A "Wildfire Risk Strategy" [pdf] announced in January by the U.S. Department of Agriculture would spend an estimated $20 billion over 10 years for work in national forests, in addition to $30 billion for work on other federal, state, tribal, and private lands.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsak announced the plan, with the longer title "Confronting the Wildfire Crisis: A Strategy for Protecting Communities and Improving Resilience in America’s Forests," with a press release on January 18.
"The strategy outlines the need to significantly increase fuels and forest health treatments to address the escalating crisis of wildfire danger that threatens millions of acres and numerous communities across the United States," according to the press release.
In addition to the new levels of funding, the plan also proposes a change to wildfire prevention strategy by focusing risk mitigation at the wildland-urban interface—specifically what Forest Service scientists have identified as high risk "firesheds, described by the press release as "large, forested landscapes with a high likelihood that an ignition could expose homes, communities, infrastructure and natural resources to wildfire."
As noted in an article by Alyssa Lupkat for the New York Times, the Agriculture Department is proposing to spend $655 million annually on forests for the first five years of the new Wildfire Risk Strategy. "That money would be added to $262 million that the U.S. Forest Service had already allocated to the task for this year," according to Lupkat. With an initial $3 billion from the IIJA, the full $50 billion of spending proposed by the ten-year plan has not yet been allocated.
FULL STORY: Secretary Vilsack Announces New 10 Year Strategy to Confront the Wildfire Crisis

The Slow Death of Ride Sharing
From the beginning, TNCs like Lyft and Uber touted shared rides as their key product. Now, Lyft is ending the practice.

Cool Walkability Planning
Shadeways (covered sidewalks) and pedways (enclosed, climate controlled walkways) can provide comfortable walkability in hot climates. The Cool Walkshed Index can help plan these facilities.

Congestion Pricing Could Be Coming to L.A.
The infamously car-centric city is weighing a proposed congestion pricing pilot program to reduce traffic and encourage public transit use.

How San Diego Camping Ban Could Impact Neighborhoods
An ordinance supported by the city’s mayor would bar people from sleeping on the street near shelters or services, but critics say it will simply push people to other neighborhoods and put them farther away from the supportive services they need.

Expanding Access to Golf in South Los Angeles
L.A. County’s Maggie Hathaway Golf Course getting up to $15 Million from U.S. Open Community Legacy Project to expand access to the sport in South L.A.

Opinion: Failed Housing Bills Could Signal California-Style Housing Crisis in Texas
Legislators in a state that so often touts its policies as the opposite of California’s defeated several bills that would have made housing construction easier, leading to concerns that a constricted housing market may exacerbate the housing crisis.
Wichita-Sedgwick County Metropolitan Area Planning Department
City of Bangor
Park City Municipal Corporation
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Montrose County
Wichita-Sedgwick County Metropolitan Area Planning Department
City of Lomita
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.