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[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2588 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2588

 To reauthorize and expand authorities used by the Forest Service and 
  the Bureau of Land Management for hazardous fuels reduction, forest 
 health, forest restoration, and watershed restoration, and for other 
                               purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 28, 2013

  Mr. Duffy introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
  Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committee on 
Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 
 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
                jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
 To reauthorize and expand authorities used by the Forest Service and 
  the Bureau of Land Management for hazardous fuels reduction, forest 
 health, forest restoration, and watershed restoration, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Fulfilling Our Responsibility for 
Efficient and Sustainable Timber Supply Act of 2013'' or the ``FORESTS 
Act of 2013''.

SEC. 2. STEWARDSHIP END RESULT CONTRACTING AUTHORITY.

    (a) Extension of Authority.--Subsection (a) of section 347 of the 
Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 
1999 (as contained in section 101(e) of division A of Public Law 105-
277; 16 U.S.C. 2104 note), as most recently amended by section 323 of 
Public Law 108-7 (117 Stat. 275), is amended by striking ``Until 
September 30, 2013'' and inserting ``Until September 30, 2023''.
    (b) Contract Duration and Terms.--Subsection (c) of such section is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``10 years'' and 
        inserting ``20 years''; and
            (2) in paragraph (4), by adding at the end the following 
        new sentence: ``However, when the timber sale component of a 
        Forest Service agreement or contracts under subsection (a) 
        exceeds the resource component of agreement or contract, the 
        timber sale contract authority applies to the timber sale.''.
    (c) Cancellation or Termination Costs.--Subsection (c) of such 
section is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(6) Cancellation or termination costs.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Notwithstanding section 3903 of 
                title 41, United States Code, the Secretary of 
                Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior are not 
                required to obligate funds to cover the cost of 
                cancelling or terminating a multiyear stewardship 
                contract or agreement until such contract or agreement 
                is cancelled or terminated.
                    ``(B) Funding sources.--The costs of cancelling or 
                terminating of a multiyear stewardship contract or 
                agreement may be paid from--
                            ``(i) appropriations originally made 
                        available for the performance of the contract 
                        or agreement;
                            ``(ii) appropriations currently available 
                        for procurement of the type of service 
                        concerned, and not otherwise obligated; or
                            ``(iii) funds appropriated for payments for 
                        that performance or procurement.
                    ``(C) Anti-deficiency act violations.--In a case in 
                which payment or obligation of funds under this 
                paragraph would constitute a violation of section 1341 
                of title 31, United States Code (commonly known as the 
                Anti-Deficiency Act), the Secretary may--
                            ``(i) seek a supplemental appropriation; or
                            ``(ii) request funds from the permanent 
                        judgment appropriation established pursuant to 
                        section 1304 of such title.''.
    (d) Payments to Counties.--Subsection (d) of such section is 
amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(4) Payments to counties.--25 percent of timber sale 
        receipts from a contract or agreement entered into under the 
        authority of this section and after the date of the enactment 
        of this paragraph shall be paid to the county within whose 
        boundaries the receipts are derived. Payments to a county made 
        under this paragraph shall be in addition to the amounts 
        received under chapter 69 of title 31, United States Code 
        (Payment in Lieu of Taxes; 31 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.).''.

SEC. 3. FOREST SERVICE AND BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT GOOD-NEIGHBOR 
              COOPERATION.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Eligible state.--The term ``eligible State'' means a 
        State that contains National Forest System land or Bureau of 
        Land Management land.
            (2) Federal land.--The term ``Federal land'' means--
                    (A) land of the National Forest System (as defined 
                in section 11(a) of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable 
                Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1609(a))); or
                    (B) public lands (as defined in section 103 of the 
                Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 
                U.S.C. 1702)).
            (3) Secretary concerned.--The term ``Secretary concerned'' 
        means--
                    (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, in the case of 
                National Forest System land; and
                    (B) the Secretary of the Interior, in the case of 
                public lands administered by the Secretary of the 
                Interior through the Bureau of Land Management.
            (4) State forester.--The term ``State Forester'' means the 
        head of a State agency with jurisdiction over State forestry 
        programs in an eligible State.
    (b) Cooperative Agreements and Contracts.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary concerned may enter into a 
        cooperative agreement or contract (including a sole source 
        contract) with a State Forester to authorize the State Forester 
        to provide the forest, rangeland, and watershed restoration, 
        management, and protection services described in paragraph (2) 
        on Federal lands administered by the Secretary concerned in the 
        eligible State.
            (2) Authorized services.--The forest, rangeland, and 
        watershed restoration, management, and protection services 
        referred to in paragraph (1) include the conduct of--
                    (A) activities to treat insect infected forests;
                    (B) activities to reduce hazardous fuels;
                    (C) activities involving commercial harvesting or 
                other mechanical vegetative treatments; or
                    (D) any other activities determined by the 
                Secretary concerned to be appropriate to restore or 
                improve forest, rangeland, and watershed health, 
                including fish and wildlife habitat.
            (3) State as agent.--Except as provided in paragraph (6), a 
        cooperative agreement or contract entered into under paragraph 
        (1) may authorize the State Forester to serve as the agent for 
        the Secretary concerned in providing the restoration, 
        management, and protection services authorized under that 
        paragraph. Even though the State Forester serves as the agent 
        for the Secretary concerned, the employment laws otherwise 
        applicable to the State, rather than the employment laws 
        applicable to the Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management, 
        shall control with regard to the cooperative agreement or 
        contract and any subcontract.
            (4) Subcontracts.--In accordance with applicable contract 
        procedures for the eligible State, a State Forester may enter 
        into subcontracts to provide the restoration, management, and 
        protection services authorized under a cooperative agreement or 
        contract entered into under paragraph (1).
            (5) Timber sales.--Subsections (d) and (g) of section 14 of 
        the National Forest Management Act of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 472a) 
        shall not apply to services performed under a cooperative 
        agreement or contract entered into under paragraph (1).
            (6) Retention of nepa responsibilities.--Any decision 
        required to be made under the National Environmental Policy Act 
        of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) with respect to any 
        restoration, management, and protection services to be provided 
        under this section by a State Forester on Federal land, shall 
        not be delegated to a State Forester or any other officer or 
        employee of the eligible State.
    (c) Applicable Law.--The restoration, management, and protection 
services to be provided under this section shall be carried out on a 
project-to-project basis under existing applicable authorities of the 
Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management.
    (d) Termination of Effectiveness.--The authority of the Secretary 
concerned to enter into cooperative agreements and contracts under this 
Act terminates on September 30, 2023.
    (e) Duration of Contracts.--A cooperative agreement or contract 
entered into under this Act shall not extend beyond 20 years.
                                 <all>
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