What This Bill Does
This bill changes how the U.S. Forest Service handles environmental reviews for projects that reduce wildfire fuel and control insects and diseases on National Forest lands. It aims to speed up these projects by allowing the Forest Service to skip certain lengthy environmental analysis steps in specific situations.
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Who It Affects
The bill directly impacts the Secretary of Agriculture (who oversees the Forest Service), state governors working with the Forest Service on restoration projects, and federal land managers carrying out hazardous fuel and insect disease risk reduction work on National Forests.
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Key Provisions
• The Forest Service must skip detailed environmental reviews for fuel reduction and insect disease projects in areas designated for timber production or where timber harvesting is allowed. (Sec. 2)
• In an "insect and disease treatment area," the Forest Service must prioritize reducing insect, disease and wildfire risks over other management goals, except where federal forest plans already require different standards. (Sec. 2)
• The Forest Service must apply streamlined environmental review rules (called "categorical exclusions") to projects in Fire Regime Group IV areas. (Sec. 2)
• The Forest Service cannot use these streamlined reviews in Wilderness areas or inventoried roadless areas, with limited exceptions. (Sec. 2)
• State governors who sell timber through "good neighbor agreements" can keep the money and use it for restoration work in their state. (Sec. 3)
• The Forest Service must publish yearly data on acres treated under these fuel reduction and insect disease projects. (Sec. 2)
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What Changes
If passed, the Forest Service could move faster on fuel reduction and insect disease projects by completing shorter environmental reviews instead of full environmental impact statements in certain forest areas. State governors gain the ability to spend timber sale revenue on restoration projects within their own state rather than returning money to the federal government.
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Important Definitions
• "Insect and disease treatment area" means an area officially designated by the Secretary of Agriculture as such, or an area marked as at-risk or hazardous on the most recent National Insect and Disease Risk Map published by the Forest Service.
• "Secretary" refers to the Secretary of Agriculture.
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Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 808
To amend the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 to require the Sec-
retary of Agriculture to expedite hazardous fuel or insect and disease
risk reduction projects on certain National Forest System land, and
for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
MARCH 15, 2023
Mr. THUNE introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred
to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
A BILL
To amend the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003
to require the Secretary of Agriculture to expedite haz-
ardous fuel or insect and disease risk reduction projects
on certain National Forest System land, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Expediting Forest Res-
4
toration and Recovery Act of 2023’’.
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•S 808 IS
SEC. 2. APPLICATION BY FOREST SERVICE OF AUTHORI-
1
TIES TO EXPEDITE ENVIRONMENTAL ANAL-
2
YSES IN CARRYING OUT HAZARDOUS FUEL
3
AND INSECT AND DISEASE RISK REDUCTION
4
PROJECTS.
5
Section 104 of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act
6
of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6514) is amended by adding at the
7
end the following:
8
‘‘(i) APPLICATION BY FOREST SERVICE OF AUTHORI-
9
TIES TO EXPEDITE ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSES IN CAR-
10
RYING OUT HAZARDOUS FUEL AND INSECT AND DISEASE
11
RISK REDUCTION PROJECTS.—
12
‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection:
13
‘‘(A) INSECT
AND
DISEASE
TREATMENT
14
AREA.—The term ‘insect and disease treatment
15
area’ means an area that—
16
‘‘(i) is designated by the Secretary as
17
an insect and disease treatment area under
18
this title; or
19
‘‘(ii) is designated as at risk or a haz-
20
ard on the most recent National Insect and
21
Disease Risk Map published by the Forest
22
Service.
23
‘‘(B) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’
24
has the meaning given the term in section
25
101(14)(A).
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•S 808 IS
‘‘(2) USE OF AUTHORITIES.—In carrying out a
1
hazardous fuel or insect and disease risk reduction
2
project in an insect and disease treatment area au-
3
thorized under this Act, the Secretary shall—
4
‘‘(A) apply the categorical exclusion estab-
5
lished by section 603 in the case of a hazardous
6
fuel or insect and disease risk reduction project
7
carried out in an area—
8
‘‘(i) designated as suitable for timber
9
production within the applicable forest
10
plan; or
11
‘‘(ii) where timber harvest activities
12
are not prohibited;
13
‘‘(B) conduct applicable environmental as-
14
sessments and environmental impact statements
15
in accordance with this section in the case of a
16
hazardous fuel or insect and disease risk reduc-
17
tion project—
18
‘‘(i) carried out in an area—
19
‘‘(I) outside of an area described
20
in subparagraph (A); or
21
‘‘(II) where other significant re-
22
source concerns exist, as determined
23
exclusively by the Secretary; or
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•S 808 IS
‘‘(ii) that is carried out in an area
1
equivalent to not less than a hydrologic
2
unit code 5 watershed, as defined by the
3
United States Geological Survey; and
4
‘‘(C) notwithstanding subsection (d), in the
5
case of any other hazardous fuel or insect and
6
disease risk reduction project, in the environ-
7
mental assessment or environmental impact
8
statement prepared under subsection (b), study,
9
develop, and describe—
10
‘‘(i) the proposed agency action; and
11
‘‘(ii) the alternative of no action.
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‘‘(3) PRIORITY FOR REDUCING RISKS OF IN-
13
SECT INFESTATION AND WILDFIRE.—Except where
14
established as a mandatory standard that constrains
15
project and activity decision making in a resource
16
management plan (as defined in section 101(13)(A))
17
in effect on the date of enactment of this Act, in the
18
case of an insect and disease treatment area, the
19
Secretary shall prioritize reducing the risks of insect
20
and disease infestation and wildfire over other plan-
21
ning objectives.
22
‘‘(4) INCLUSION OF FIRE REGIME GROUP IV.—
23
Notwithstanding section 603(c)(2)(B), the Secretary
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•S 808 IS
shall apply the categorical exclusion described in
1
paragraph (2)(A) to areas in Fire Regime Group IV.
2
‘‘(5) EXCLUDED AREAS.—This subsection shall
3
not apply to—
4
‘‘(A) a component of the National Wilder-
5
ness Preservation System; or
6
‘‘(B) an inventoried roadless area, except
7
in the case of an activity that is permitted
8
under—
9
‘‘(i) the final rule of the Secretary en-
10
titled ‘Special Areas; Roadless Area Con-
11
servation’ (66 Fed. Reg. 3244 (January
12
12, 2001)); or
13
‘‘(ii) a State-specific roadless area
14
conservation rule.
15
‘‘(6) REPORTS.—The Secretary shall annually
16
make publicly available data describing the acreage
17
treated under hazardous fuel or insect and disease
18
risk reduction projects in insect and disease treat-
19
ment areas during the previous year.’’.
20
SEC. 3. GOOD NEIGHBOR AUTHORITY.
21
Section 8206(b)(2) of the Agricultural Act of 2014
22
(16 U.S.C. 2113a(b)(2)) is amended by striking subpara-
23
graph (C) and inserting the following:
24
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•S 808 IS
‘‘(C) TREATMENT
OF
REVENUE.—Funds
1
received from the sale of timber by a Governor
2
of a State under a good neighbor agreement
3
shall be retained and used by the Governor—
4
‘‘(i) to carry out authorized restora-
5
tion services under that good neighbor
6
agreement; and
7
‘‘(ii) if funds remain after carrying
8
out authorized restoration services under
9
clause (i), to carry out authorized restora-
10
tion services within the State under other
11
good neighbor agreements.’’.
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Æ
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