TRUCKEE, Calif. — Truckee Fire Protection District has stretched local tax dollars further this summer by using Measure T funds to leverage hundreds of thousands of dollars in outside support for wildfire prevention.

Through a series of new partnership reimbursement agreements, TFPD has invested nearly $200,000 of Measure T funds, part of the district’s local funding stream of $3.6 million, to unlock more than $560,000 in regional wildfire prevention projects.

“Our forests are over-dense, unhealthy and at risk to high-intensity wildfire, and no single agency can solve this problem alone,” said Dillon Sheedy, a registered professional forester with TFPD. “Sharing resources allows us to achieve common goals more quickly and have greater impact on our communities, landscapes and forest health.”

Partnership Reimbursement Agreements, authorized in June, have allowed TFPD to strategically fill funding gaps, giving partner agencies the ability to expand the scope of their wildfire prevention projects and move them forward more quickly.

“Local funds allow us to enter into agreements more nimbly with a wide range of partners who are putting good projects on the ground in our district,” Sheedy said.

Eric Horntvedt, TFPD’s wildfire prevention manager, said the model ensures taxpayer dollars go further.

“When we invest $200,000 into projects with our partners, the local taxpayer investment is greatly magnified for increased impact,” Horntvedt said. “We always get a baseline level of work done every year, but when we enter into these agreements, it increases the pace and scale of meaningful wildfire prevention work in strategic, high-priority areas.”

Projects underway

Three major projects demonstrate how the partnership model is playing out across the district:

Town of Truckee 2025 Roadway Vegetation Management Project

Truckee Fire contributed $20,000 in Measure T funds, paired with Measure V funds from the Town of Truckee, to extend vegetation treatments along South Shore Drive near Donner Lake. The work expands fuel reduction into adjacent private parcels, creating a continuous fuel break along critical evacuation routes in neighborhoods with limited access.

Nevada County Resource Conservation District Serene Lakes Egress Roadside Fuel Reduction Project

TFPD invested $35,000 in Measure T funds to help cover higher-than-expected bids for a 25-acre project along Soda Springs Road. The work, supported by a $114,000 grant from Pacific Gas & Electric Co., fulfills a long-standing priority identified in the Community Wildfire Protection Plan.

California State Lands Commission Prosser Dam Road Forest Management and Fuels Reduction

The State Lands Commission committed $250,000 to reduce heavy fuels on 109 acres near Prosser Dam Road and the Pannonia Ranchos neighborhood. Truckee Fire added $145,000 in Measure T funds to expand the project’s scope, providing critical thinning and fuel reduction.

A key aspect of each project is the creation of strategic operations areas where firefighters and other emergency responders can safely set up and operate while defending local communities in the event of a wildfire. 

“We are focused on spending Measure T funds from the inside out, starting at the community level and working outward,” Horntvedt said. “When these projects are in line with the Community Wildfire Protection Plan, it is a way for us to get so much more meaningful work done.”