BY LINDA BENTLEY | FEBRUARY 19, 2014
House passes bill to establish Yarnell Hill Memorial State Park
HB 2624 was passed by the House of Representatives on Monday to establish a state park and memorial dedicated to the 19 members of the Granite Mountain Hotshot Crew who lost their lives fighting the Yarnell Hill Fire last summer.
PHOENIX – On Monday, the House of Representatives passed HB 2624, an emergency measure that establishes the Yarnell Hill Memorial State Park, Yarnell Hill Memorial Site Board, Yarnell Hill Memorial Fund and appropriates $500,000 in FY 2014 to the Arizona State Parks Board.
The bill, which had 63 sponsors, authorizes the Arizona State Parks Board to establish the Yarnell Hill Memorial State Board for the purpose of purchasing a memorial site, while the memorial site board would approve the design and construction of the memorial.
Consuming over 100 homes and structures, the Yarnell Hill Fire, a wildfire that began with a lightning strike on June 28, 2013, quickly turned deadly on June 30 when 19 of the 20-member Granite Mountain Hotshot Crew from the Prescott Fire Department perished in the fire.
The Yarnell area had not experienced a wildland fire since 1966.
HB 2624 also allows for the Arizona State Parks Board to enter into an intergovernmental agreement with Yavapai County, in which the park will be located, for the maintenance and preservation of the memorial and access road.
The memorial site board established by the bill designates as members:
• The director of the Parks Board or the director’s designee, who must serve as the chairperson of the Board;
• The state forester or the state forester’s designee;
• Two representatives from the county in which the Yarnell Hill Fire occurred, who are appointed by the president of the Senate (President);
• A representative from the largest city by population in the county in which the Yarnell Hill Fire occurred, who is appointed by the President;
• A representative from the fire department in the largest city by population in the county in which the Yarnell Hill Fire occurred, who is appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives (Speaker);
• A surviving member of the Granite Mountain Hotshot Crew or a relative of a member who lost his life fighting the Yarnell Hill Fire, who is appointed by the Speaker;
• A relative of a member of the Granite Mountain Hotshot Crew who lost his life fighting the Yarnell Hill Fire, who is appointed by the Speaker;
• A representative of a nonprofit organization in this state that supports public safety, who is appointed by the President;
• A representative of a recognized association representing public firefighters, who is appointed by the Speaker;
• A representative of the Arizona arts community or a person with substantial memorial design experience, who is appointed by the President;
• One member of the House of Representatives who represents the district in which the Yarnell Hill Fire occurred, who is appointed by the Speaker as an advisory member; and
• One member of the Senate who represents the district in which the Yarnell Hill Fire occurred, who is appointed by the President as an advisory member.
The Committee on Energy, Environment and Natural Resources amended the bill to add a representative from the Yarnell Fire District and a member of the Yarnell Chamber of Commerce, both to be appointed by the Speaker.
The board’s responsi-bilities will include establishing a memorial dedicated to the members of the granite Mountain Hotshot Crew who lost their lives fighting the Yarnell Hill Fire; establishing a plan for maintenance and preser-vation of the memorial; solicitation of private donations or public funds for deposit in the Yarnell Hill Memorial Fund; and submission of a report on the progress of the memorial to the governor, the President and the Speaker on or before Dec. 31, 2015 with a copy to the secretary of state.
The bill also requires the memorial to be completed and dedicated within two years from the effective date of the bill.
