The minimum time behind bars for convicted arsonists is proposed to rise from five years to nine years.

The state government announced the crackdown following a recommendation of the Sentencing Council to help ensure those who committed bushfire offences spent more time behind bars.

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Rural Fire Service Acting Commissioner Rob Rogers called on the community to report suspicious behaviour.

"The prolonged drought means there is an increased risk of fires. It is important people remain vigilant and report any suspicious behaviour, so offenders are caught," he said.

Rural Fire Service Canobolas Zone operations office Brett Bowden said deliberately lit fires, landowners conducting burnoffs without notifying the RFS and burnoffs that got out of control were a problem.

"We don't generally see the criminal element until the middle of summer," he said.

"We do get a bit but it's not a big issue."

Mr Bowden said a bigger problem in the region was people conducting burnoffs on their property who did notify the RFS or neighbours beforehand.

He said people spotted the smoke and RFS brigades responded only to find it was a burnoff.

"We want to cut down on these nuisance fires," he said.

"The biggest problem we get locally is people who have lit a fire for a good reason. They want to reduce the dangers before the height of the fire season," he said.

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However he said they wasted community resources if they did not call the RFS first.

Mr Bowden said 82 burnoffs were currently registered in the region but far more were conducted without letting the RFS know.

He said people conducting burnoffs often did not have the equipment to handle it.

"In many cases people don't have any fire suppression equipment whatsoever."

Police and Emergency Services Minister David Elliott said one act of stupidity could bring a community to its knees through fire.