It was responsible for overseeing the control of wildfires across the country by coordinating the activities of local Rural Fire Authorities.

[3][4] By 1977, it had become clear that the previous acts were no longer fit for purpose; of the 114 rural fire districts gazetted since the 1947 act, only 17 remained, and the enquiry into the 1972 Mount White wildfire highlighted poorly defined responsibilities and a lack of communication and coordination between different wildfire agencies.

[5] The National Rural Fire Authority was a small and decentralised organisation, consisting of a small core of staff at National Headquarters and five Managers Rural Fire in Auckland, Napier, Palmerston North, Christchurch and Dunedin.

For the purposes of the act, all warranted employees of the Department of Conservation are considered RFOs.

These forces are primarily responsible for operational firefighting within a fire district; each VRFF must contain at least one RFO so that they may discharge the duties of such an officer under the 1977 act.