Bill > S2950

This bill, the Fostering Overseas Rule of law and Environmentally Sound Trade Act of 2021 (FOREST Act of 2021), aims to combat illegal deforestation by prohibiting the importation of products made wholly or in part from certain commodities produced on land undergoing illegal deforestation. The key provisions of the bill include: 1. Prohibiting the importation of products made wholly or in part from covered commodities (such as palm oil, soybeans, cocoa, cattle, rubber, and wood pulp) produced on land subject to illegal deforestation after the bill's enactment. Importers must file declarations assessing and mitigating the risks that the covered commodities were produced on illegally deforested land. 2. Requiring the U.S. Trade Representative to identify foreign countries without adequate protections against illegal deforestation and develop action plans with those countries to improve their laws, enforcement, and monitoring related to deforestation. 3. Establishing an interagency working group and an advisory committee to provide advice on implementing the bill's requirements. 4. Providing funding to assist foreign governments in eliminating illegal deforestation and to support enforcement and monitoring efforts in the United States. 5. Amending the money laundering statute to include illegal deforestation as a specified unlawful activity. 6. Providing a procurement preference for federal agencies to purchase commodities not produced from land subject to deforestation. The overall goal of the bill is to reduce the importation of agricultural and forestry products linked to illegal deforestation and support international efforts to combat this global environmental challenge.

Budget and Finance

https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-bill/2950/all-info