Utah News Dispatch
Utah to start assessing fees on properties in ‘high risk’ wildfire areas to encourage prevention
The Pioneer Fire burns in the Boise National Forest near Idaho City in 2016.(Photo courtesy of the U.S. Forest Service)
State officials have created a new online map that Utahns can use to check how at-risk their homes are to wildfire. Officials will also start using the map to assess fees on property owners in high-risk areas to help conduct assessments meant to minimize risk.
Statewide, about 60,000 structures in Utah have been deemed “high risk” for wildfires. That’s according to a new online map the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands released last week.
By plugging in their addresses to the tool called the Utah Wildfire Risk Explorer, Utahns can generate a report on how likely it is that their homes could be impacted by a wildfire. The site also suggests actions homeowners can take to better protect their property.
SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
“Our goal is to empower homeowners, communities, fire departments, and municipalities to act in reducing their vulnerability to wildfire by giving them the necessary tools to identify and understand their wildfire risk,” the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands says on the website.
State officials were required to build the tool after the 2025 Utah Legislature passed HB48, a law meant to increase wildfire risk awareness and encourage property owners to “share the responsibility of reducing that risk” in wildland urban interface areas, or areas where homes or other structures border or mingle with undeveloped wildlands.
The Utah Legislature passed the law as wildfires in the West have increased in frequency and severity. Insurers have also raised premiums and created stricter eligibility requirements.
“Insurance availability and affordability are concerns for property owners in Utah, and many are already experiencing increased premiums or losing coverage as insurers respond to wildfire risk,” the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire & State Lands says on its website.
Under the law, which takes effect Jan. 1, property insurers are required to use the map to determine a property’s wildfire risk.
“If an insurer raises rates by 20% or more, or drops coverage due to wildfire risk, it must provide notice and justification based on the facts underlying the decision, if requested by the property owner,” according to the division.
The new law also requires the state to assess property fees within the high-risk wildland urban interface boundary to help support risk assessments. Utahns will only be charged a fee if they own a taxable structure within the map’s High Risk Wildland Urban Interface boundary.
Starting in 2026 and 2027, the fee will range from $20 to $100 per structure, based on square footage of taxable structures on the property, according to the division’s frequently asked questions page on HB48.
If property owners take actions to reduce their wildfire risk, the fee may be reduced, the website says.
