summary
Introduced
06/20/2017
06/20/2017
In Committee
10/04/2017
10/04/2017
Crossed Over
11/02/2017
11/02/2017
Passed
Dead
12/31/2018
12/31/2018
Introduced Session
115th Congress
Bill Summary
Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2017 This bill shall apply whenever the Department concerned, either the Department of Agriculture for National Forest System (NFS) lands or the Department of the Interior for public lands, prepares an environmental assessment or an environmental impact statement pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) for specified forest management activities, including those that: will occur on lands identified as suitable for timber production; or will occur on a landscape-scale area designated by the Department concerned as part of an insect and disease treatment program on NSF land pursuant to the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003, notwithstanding whether such activity is initiated before September 30, 2018. In such an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement, the Department concerned shall study, develop, and describe only these two alternatives: the forest management activity, and the alternative of no action. In the case of the alternative of no action, the Department concerned shall evaluate: the effect of no action on forest health, habitat diversity, wildfire potential, insect and disease potential, and timber production; and the implications of a resulting decline in forest health, loss of habitat diversity, wildfire, or insect or disease infestation on domestic water supply in the project area, wildlife habitat loss, and other economic and social factors. The bill establishes categorical exclusions regarding certain other forest management actions. A process is established for declaration of a major disaster for wildfire on federal lands managed by specified federal land management agencies.
AI Summary
This bill, the Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2017, aims to expedite environmental analysis and make categorical exclusions available to expedite forest management activities on National Forest System lands and public lands. Key provisions include:
- Requiring the Department of Agriculture or Department of the Interior to study only two alternatives - the forest management activity and no action - when preparing environmental assessments or environmental impact statements for certain forest management activities.
- Establishing categorical exclusions for various forest management activities like addressing insect or disease infestations, reducing hazardous fuel loads, and improving or restoring forest lands.
- Allowing the use of arbitration instead of litigation to address challenges to certain forest management activities.
- Modifying the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act to allow greater use of reserved funds for forest management projects.
- Expanding the use of stewardship end result contracting authorities.
- Establishing a State-Supported Forest Management Fund to cover the cost of planning, carrying out, and monitoring certain forest management activities.
- Allowing Tribal lands to be managed as part of the National Forest System or public lands in certain circumstances.
- Declaring major disasters for wildfires on federal lands and establishing a process and funding mechanism to provide assistance for wildfire suppression operations.
Committee Categories
Agriculture and Natural Resources, Business and Industry
Sponsors (19)
Bruce Westerman (R)*,
Ralph Abraham (R),
Bradley Byrne (R),
Liz Cheney (R),
Greg Gianforte (R),
Raúl Labrador (R),
Doug LaMalfa (R),
Tom McClintock (R),
Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R),
Dan Newhouse (R),
Richard Nolan (D),
Collin Peterson (D),
Pete Sessions (R),
Jason Smith (R),
Chris Stewart (R),
G.T. Thompson (R),
Scott Tipton (R),
David Valadao (R),
Greg Walden (R),
Last Action
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. (on 11/02/2017)
Official Document
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