Bill > HR2401

This bill, known as the Good Neighbor Forestry Act, authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture, for National Forest System land, and the Secretary of the Interior, for Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land, to enter into agreements and contracts with state foresters, who are the heads of state agencies managing forestry programs in states with federal lands. These agreements will allow state foresters to provide services for restoring, managing, and protecting forests, rangelands, and watersheds on federal lands, including treating insect-infested forests, reducing hazardous fuels, conducting commercial harvesting or other vegetation treatments, and improving forest health and wildlife habitat. State foresters can also subcontract these services, and importantly, the bill clarifies that decisions required by the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), a law requiring federal agencies to assess the environmental effects of their proposed actions, will not be delegated to state foresters, ensuring federal oversight of environmental reviews.