Membership Information

Membership Information

Committee and subgroup members are leaders, subject matter experts, and contributors from NWCG member agencies and other stakeholders. Membership will be managed by the committee/subgroup chairs with approval from the member agencies. All membership is subject to Executive Board oversight. (NWCG  Master Committee Charter)

• Each member agency determines its committee/subgroup membership needs. Members are appointed through agency specific command channels with full understanding of the collateral duty nature of NWCG work and potential workload impacts.
• Membership by all agencies on every committee/subgroup is not required. Many members serve as functional area experts and represent multiple agencies simultaneously. All members, regardless of agency affiliation, are expected to keep  the overall NWCG mission in mind as they accomplish their work.  
• Member agencies may coordinate with each other to have a single committee/subgroup member represent multiple agencies.
• Individuals from non-member agencies may participate in a member capacity at the discretion of the Executive Board and with the approval of their agency leadership.
• Contractors may contribute subject matter expertise but may not be members of NWCG committees or subgroups. Due to inherent potential conflicts of interest, contractor participation must be temporary and related to specific and finite objectives. Contractors will not participate in decision making.

Member Types and Responsibilities

• Primary Member Participates in decision making. Member agencies usually have no more than one primary member on an NWCG committee/group, but exceptions occur based on geographic representation, subject matter, or skill needs. When an agency has more than one primary member on a committee/subgroup, the members will have a single voice in decision making discussions.
• Associate Member  Participates in discussions but not decision making. The Executive Board and committees/subgroups (with Executive Board approval) may confer associate membership to individuals or entities with expertise, interests, or resources pertinent to the NWCG mission. Current associate member organizations at the Executive Board level are:
  • Australia/New Zealand Forest Fire Management Group (ANZ FFMG)
  • DOI Office of Wildland Fire
• Alternate Member Performs the primary member or associate member duties in absence of those individuals.
• Support Staff  Provides administrative and technical support to committee/subgroup leadership.
• Advisor  Provides subject matter expertise, often from a separate functional area or multidisciplinary perspective.
• Liaison  Facilitates a close working relationship and coordinates information exchange between two or more NWCG committees/subgroups or other stakeholders.
• Chair  Responsible for accomplishing the committee/subgroup mission. Manages the activities of the committee/subgroup. Distributes workload within the committee. All committees will designate a chair.
• Vice-chair Serves as primary assistant to the chair. Serves as the chair during the chair’s absence.
• Co-chair  Serves simultaneously with another co-chair. Co-chairs jointly perform the duties and share the responsibilities of the chair.

Committee member expectations