Thomas Vilsack

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FILE - This March 14, 2014 file photo shows Agriculture Secretary Thomas Vilsack testifying on Capitol Hill in Washington. The U.S. Forest Service will soon have to tap into programs designed to prevent wildfires so that it can meet the expenses of fighting this summer’s round of fires. Vilsack said Tuesday that about $400 million to $500 million in projects will have to be put on hold in what has become a routine exercise toward the end of the fiscal year. He predicted that the money set aside strictly for firefighting will have run dry by the end of August. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)