I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 8790 

To expedite under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and improve forest management activities on National Forest System lands, 

on public lands under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management, and on Tribal lands to return resilience to overgrown, fire-prone 

forested lands, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 18, 2024 

Mr. WESTERMAN (for himself, Mr. PETERS, Mr. TIFFANY, Mr. PANETTA, Mr. 

STAUBER, Mr. COSTA, Mr. MCCLINTOCK, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, Mr. CURTIS, 

Mr. BERA, Mr. DUARTE, Mr. MOYLAN, and Mr. GOSAR) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, 

and in addition to the Committees on Agriculture, and Science, Space, 

and Technology, 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 expedite under the National Environmental Policy Act 

of 1969 and improve forest management activities on 

National Forest System lands, on public lands under 

the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management, 

and on Tribal lands to return resilience to overgrown, 

fire-prone forested lands, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Fix Our Forests Act’’. 

4 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—LANDSCAPE-SCALE RESTORATION 

Subtitle A—Addressing Emergency Wildfire Risks in High Priority Firesheds 

Sec. 101. Designation of fireshed management areas. 

Sec. 102. Fireshed center. 

Sec. 103. Fireshed registry. 

Sec. 104. Shared stewardship. 

Sec. 105. Fireshed assessments. 

Sec. 106. Emergency fireshed management. 

Sec. 107. Sunset. 

Subtitle B—Expanding Collaborative Tools To Reduce Wildfire Risk and 

Improve Forest Health 

Sec. 111. Modification of the treatment of certain revenue and payments under 

good neighbor agreements. 

Sec. 112. Fixing stewardship end result contracting. 

Sec. 113. Intra-agency strike teams. 

Sec. 114. Locally-led restoration. 

Subtitle C—Litigation Reform 

Sec. 121. Commonsense litigation reform. 

Sec. 122. Consultation on forest plans. 

TITLE II—PROTECTING COMMUNITIES IN THE WILDLAND-URBAN 

INTERFACE 

Sec. 201. Community wildfire risk reduction program. 

Sec. 202. Community wildfire defense research program. 

Sec. 203. Vegetation management, facility inspection, and operation and maintenance relating to electric transmission and distribution facility rights-of-way. 

Sec. 204. Categorical exclusion for electric utility lines rights-of-way. 

Sec. 205. Seeds of success. 

TITLE III—TRANSPARENCY AND TECHNOLOGY 

Sec. 301. Biochar innovations and opportunities for conservation, health, and 

advancements in research. 

Sec. 302. Accurate hazardous fuels reduction reports. 

Sec. 303. Public-private wildfire technology deployment and testbed partnership. 


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Sec. 304. GAO study on Forest Service policies. 

Sec. 305. Forest Service Western headquarters study. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

4 the Director of the Fireshed Center appointed under 

5 section 102. 

6 (2) FIRESHED.—The term ‘‘fireshed’’ means a 

7 landscape-scale area that faces similar wildfire 

8 threat where a response strategy could influence the 

9 wildfire outcome. 

10 (3) FIRESHED MANAGEMENT PROJECT.—The 

11 term ‘‘fireshed management project’’ means a 

12 project under section 106. 

13 (4) FIRESHED REGISTRY.—The term ‘‘Fireshed 

14 Registry’’ means the fireshed registry established 

15 under section 103. 

16 (5) FOREST PLAN.—The term ‘‘forest plan’’ 

17 means— 

18 (A) a land use plan prepared by the Bu19 reau of Land Management for public lands pur20 suant to section 202 of the Federal Land Policy 

21 and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 

22 1712); 

23 (B) a land and resource management plan 

24 prepared by the Forest Service for a unit of the 


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1 National Forest System pursuant to section 6 

2 of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Re3 sources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 

4 1604); or 

5 (C) a forest management plan (as defined 

6 in section 304 of the National Indian Forests 

7 Resources Management Act (25 U.S.C. 3104)) 

8 with respect to Indian forest land or rangeland. 

9 (6) GOVERNOR.—The term ‘‘Governor’’ means 

10 the Governor or any other appropriate executive offi11 cial of an affected State or Indian tribe or the Com12 monwealth of Puerto Rico. 

13 (7) HAZARDOUS FUELS MANAGEMENT ACTIVI14 TIES.—The term ‘‘hazardous fuels management ac15 tivities’’ means any vegetation management activities 

16 (or combination thereof) that reduce the risk of 

17 wildfire, including mechanical thinning, mastication, 

18 prescribed burning, cultural burning (as determined 

19 by the applicable Indian Tribe), timber harvest, and 

20 grazing. 

21 (8) HFRA TERMS.—The terms ‘‘at-risk com22 munity’’, ‘‘community wildfire protection plan’’, and 

23 ‘‘wildland-urban interface’’ have the meanings given 

24 such terms, respectively, in section 101 of the 


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1 Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 

2 6511). 

3 (9) INDIAN FOREST LAND OR RANGELAND.— 

4 The term ‘‘Indian forest land or rangeland’’ means 

5 land that— 

6 (A) is held in trust by, or with a restriction 

7 against alienation by, the United States for an 

8 Indian Tribe or a member of an Indian Tribe; 

9 and 

10 (B)(i)(I) is Indian forest land (as defined 

11 in section 304 of the National Indian Forest 

12 Resources Management Act (25 U.S.C. 3103)); 

13 or 

14 (II) has a cover of grasses, 

15 brush, or any similar vegetation; or 

16 (ii) formerly had a forest cover or veg17 etative cover that is capable of restoration. 

18 (10) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 

19 has the meaning given that term in section 4 of the 

20 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

21 Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 

22 (11) NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM LANDS.—The 

23 term ‘‘National Forest System lands’’ has the mean24 ing given the term in section 11(a) of the Forest 


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1 and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act 

2 of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1609). 

3 (12) PUBLIC LANDS.—The term ‘‘public lands’’ 

4 has the meaning given that term in section 103 of 

5 the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 

6 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702), except that the term in7 cludes Coos Bay Wagon Road Grant lands and Or8 egon and California Railroad Grant lands. 

9 (13) RELEVANT CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT10 TEES.—The term ‘‘relevant Congressional Commit11 tees’’ means— 

12 (A) the Committees on Natural Resources 

13 and Agriculture of the House of Representa14 tives; and 

15 (B) the Committees on Energy and Nat16 ural Resources and Agriculture, Nutrition, and 

17 Forestry of the Senate. 

18 (14) RESPONSIBLE OFFICIAL.—The term ‘‘re19 sponsible official’’ means an employee of the Depart20 ment of the Interior or Forest Service who has the 

21 authority to make and implement a decision on a 

22 proposed action. 

23 (15) SECRETARIES.—The term ‘‘Secretaries’’ 

24 means each of— 

25 (A) the Secretary of the Interior; and 


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1 (B) the Secretary of Agriculture. 

2 (16) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

3 means the Secretary of Agriculture. 

4 (17) SECRETARY CONCERNED.—The term 

5 ‘‘Secretary concerned’’ means— 

6 (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, with re7 spect to National Forest System lands; and 

8 (B) the Secretary of the Interior, with re9 spect to public lands. 

10 (18) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 

11 the several States, the District of Columbia, and 

12 each territory of the United States 

13 TITLE I—LANDSCAPE-SCALE 

14 RESTORATION 

15 Subtitle A—Addressing Emergency 

16 Wildfire Risks in High Priority 

17 Firesheds 

18 SEC. 101. DESIGNATION OF FIRESHED MANAGEMENT 

19 AREAS. 

20 (a) DESIGNATION OF FIRESHED MANAGEMENT

21 AREAS.— 

22 (1) INITIAL DESIGNATIONS.—For the period be23 ginning on the date of enactment of this Act and 

24 ending on the date that is 5 years after the date of 


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1 enactment of this Act, there are designated fireshed 

2 management areas, which— 

3 (A) shall be comprised of individual land4 scape-scale firesheds identified as being a high 

5 risk fireshed in the ‘‘Wildfire Crisis Strategy’’ 

6 published by the Forest Service in January 

7 2022; 

8 (B) shall be comprised of individual land9 scape-scale firesheds identified by the Secretary, 

10 in consultation with the Secretary of the Inte11 rior, as being in the top 20 percent of the 7,688 

12 firesheds published by the Rocky Mountain Re13 search Station of the Forest Service in 2019 for 

14 wildfire exposure based on the following cri15 teria— 

16 (i) wildfire exposure and cor17 responding risk to communities, including 

18 risk to structures and life; 

19 (ii) wildfire exposure and cor20 responding risk to municipal watersheds; 

21 and 

22 (iii) risk of forest conversion due to 

23 wildfire; 

24 (C) shall not overlap with any other 

25 fireshed management areas; 


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1 (D) may contain Federal and non-Federal 

2 land, including Indian forest lands or range3 lands; and 

4 (E) where the Secretary concerned shall 

5 carry out fireshed management projects. 

6 (2) FURTHER FIRESHED MANAGEMENT AREA

7 DESIGNATIONS.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—On the date that is 5 

9 years after the date of the enactment of this 

10 Act and every 5 years thereafter, the Secretary, 

11 in consultation with the Secretary of the Inte12 rior, shall submit to the relevant Congressional 

13 Committees an updated map of firesheds based 

14 on the Fireshed Registry maintained under sec15 tion 103. 

16 (B) DESIGNATION.—Not later than 60 

17 days after submitting an updated fireshed map 

18 under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall, 

19 based on such map, designate additional 

20 fireshed management areas that are identified 

21 as being in the top 20 percent of firesheds at 

22 risk for wildfire exposure based on the criteria 

23 specified in subparagraphs (B), (C), (D), and 

24 (E) of paragraph (1). 


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1 (b) APPLICABILITY OF NEPA.—The designation of 

2 fireshed management areas under this section shall not 

3 be subject to the requirements of the National Environ4 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 

5 SEC. 102. FIRESHED CENTER. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 

8 through the Chief of the Forest Service and the Sec9 retary of the Interior, acting through the Director of 

10 the U.S. Geological Survey, shall jointly establish a 

11 Fireshed Center (hereinafter referred to as the 

12 ‘‘Center’’) comprised of at least one career rep13 resentative from each of the following: 

14 (A) The Forest Service. 

15 (B) The Bureau of Land Management. 

16 (C) The National Park Service. 

17 (D) The Bureau of Indian Affairs. 

18 (E) The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

19 (F) The U.S. Geological Survey. 

20 (G) The Department of Defense. 

21 (H) The Department of Homeland Secu22 rity. 

23 (I) The Department of Energy. 

24 (J) The Federal Emergency Management 

25 Agency. 


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1 (K) The National Science Foundation. 

2 (L) The National Oceanic and Atmos3 pheric Administration. 

4 (M) The National Aeronautics and Space 

5 Administration. 

6 (N) The National Institute of Standards 

7 and Technology. 

8 (2) DIRECTOR.—The Secretary, acting through 

9 the Chief of the Forest Service and the Secretary of 

10 the Interior, acting through the Director of the U.S. 

11 Geological Survey, shall jointly appoint a Director of 

12 the Center, who— 

13 (A) shall be an employee of the U.S. Geo14 logical Survey or the Forest Service; 

15 (B) shall serve an initial term of not more 

16 than 7 years; and 

17 (C) may serve one additional term of not 

18 more than 7 years after the initial term de19 scribed in subparagraph (B). 

20 (3) ADDITIONAL REPRESENTATION.—The Sec21 retary, acting through the Chief of the Forest Serv22 ice and the Secretary of the Interior, acting through 

23 the Director of the U.S. Geological Survey, may 

24 jointly appoint additional representatives of Federal 


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1 agencies to the Center, as the Secretaries determine 

2 necessary. 

3 (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of the Center are to— 

4 (1) comprehensively assess and predict fire in 

5 the wildland and built environment interface through 

6 data aggregation and science-based decision support 

7 services; 

8 (2) reduce fragmentation and duplication across 

9 Federal land management agencies with respect to 

10 predictive service and decision support functions re11 lated to wildland fire; 

12 (3) promote interorganizational coordination 

13 and sharing of data regarding wildland fire decision 

14 making; 

15 (4) streamline procurement processes and cy16 bersecurity systems related to addressing wildland 

17 fire; 

18 (5) provide publicly accessible data, models, 

19 technologies, assessments, and fire weather forecasts 

20 to support short- and long-term planning regarding 

21 wildland fire and post-fire recovery; and 

22 (6) maintain the Fireshed Registry established 

23 under section 103. 

24 (c) MEMORANDAS OF UNDERSTANDING.—The Cen25 ter may enter into memorandums of understanding with 


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1 State governments, Indian Tribes, local governments, aca2 demic or research institutions, and private entities to im3 prove the information and operations of the Center. 

4 (d) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT, TECHNICAL SERV5 ICES, AND STAFF SUPPORT.— 

6 (1) USGS SUPPORT.—The Secretary of the In7 terior shall make personnel of the U.S. Geological 

8 Survey available to the Center for such administra9 tive support, technical services, and development and 

10 dissemination of data as the Secretary determines 

11 necessary to carry out this section. 

12 (2) USFS SUPPORT.—The Secretary shall 

13 make personnel of the Forest Service available to 

14 the Center for such administrative support, technical 

15 services, and the development and dissemination of 

16 information related to fireshed management and the 

17 Fireshed Registry as the Secretary determines nec18 essary to carry out this section. 

19 SEC. 103. FIRESHED REGISTRY. 

20 (a) FIRESHED REGISTRY.—The Secretary, acting 

21 through the Director of the Fireshed Center appointed 

22 under section 102, shall maintain a Fireshed Registry on 

23 a publicly accessible website that provides interactive 

24 geospatial data on individual firesheds, including informa25 tion on— 


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1 (1) wildfire exposure delineated by ownership, 

2 including rights-of-way for utilities and other public 

3 or private purposes; 

4 (2) any hazardous fuels management activities 

5 that have occurred within an individual fireshed in 

6 the past 10 years; 

7 (3) wildfire exposure with respect to such 

8 fireshed delineated by— 

9 (A) wildfire exposure and corresponding 

10 risk to communities, including risk to structures 

11 and life; 

12 (B) wildfire exposure and corresponding 

13 risk to municipal watersheds; and 

14 (C) risk of forest conversion due to wild15 fire; 

16 (4) the percentage of the fireshed that has 

17 burned in wildfires in the past 10 years, including, 

18 to the extent practicable, delineations of acres that 

19 have burned at a high severity; 

20 (5) spatial patterns of wildfire exposure, includ21 ing plausible extreme fire events; and 

22 (6) any hazardous fuels management activities 

23 planned for the fireshed, including fireshed manage24 ment projects under section 106 of this Act. 


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1 (b) COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLANS.— 

2 The Director shall make data from the Fireshed Registry 

3 available to local communities developing or updating com4 munity wildfire protection plans. 

5 (c) REQUIREMENT TO MAINTAIN.—As part of the 

6 website containing the Fireshed Registry, the Director 

7 shall— 

8 (1) publish fireshed assessments created under 

9 section 105; and 

10 (2) maintain a searchable database to track— 

11 (A) the status of Federal environmental re12 views, permits, and authorizations for specific 

13 fireshed management projects conducted under 

14 section 106, including— 

15 (i) a comprehensive permitting time16 table; 

17 (ii) the status of the compliance of 

18 each lead agency, cooperating agency, and 

19 participating agency with the permitting 

20 timetable with respect to such fireshed 

21 management projects; 

22 (iii) any modifications of the permit23 ting timetable required under clause (i), in24 cluding an explanation as to why the per25 mitting timetable was modified; and 


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1 (iv) information about project-related 

2 public meetings, public hearings, and pub3 lic comment periods, which shall be pre4 sented in English and the predominant 

5 language of the community or communities 

6 most affected by the project, as that infor7 mation becomes available; 

8 (B) the projected cost of such fireshed 

9 management projects; and 

10 (C) in the case of fireshed management 

11 projects completed pursuant to section 106, the 

12 effectiveness of such projects in reducing the 

13 wildfire exposure within an applicable fireshed, 

14 including wildfire exposure described in sub15 paragraphs (A) through (C) of subsection 

16 (a)(3). 

17 SEC. 104. SHARED STEWARDSHIP. 

18 (a) JOINT AGREEMENTS.—Not later than 90 days 

19 after receiving a written request from a Governor of a 

20 State or an Indian Tribe, the Secretary concerned shall 

21 enter into a shared stewardship agreement (or similar 

22 agreement) with such Governor or Indian Tribe to joint23 ly— 

24 (1) promote the reduction of wildfire exposure, 

25 based on the criteria in section 101(a)(1)(B), in 


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1 fireshed management areas across jurisdictional 

2 boundaries; and 

3 (2) conduct fireshed assessments under section 

4 105. 

5 (b) ADDITIONAL FIRESHED MANAGEMENT AREAS.— 

6 With respect to a shared stewardship agreement (or simi7 lar agreement) with a Governor of a State or an Indian 

8 Tribe entered into under subsection (a), the Secretary con9 cerned, if requested by such Governor or Indian Tribe, 

10 may— 

11 (1) designate additional fireshed management 

12 areas under such agreement; and 

13 (2) update such agreement to address new wild14 fire threats. 

15 SEC. 105. FIRESHED ASSESSMENTS. 

16 (a) FIRESHED ASSESSMENTS.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

18 the date on which the Secretary concerned enters 

19 into an agreement with a Governor of a State or an 

20 Indian Tribe under section 104, the Secretary con21 cerned and such Governor or Indian Tribe shall, 

22 with respect to the fireshed management areas des23 ignated in such State, jointly conduct a fireshed as24 sessment that— 

25 (A) identifies— 


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1 (i) using the best available data, wild2 fire exposure risks within each such 

3 fireshed management area, including sce4 nario planning and wildfire hazard map5 ping and models; and 

6 (ii) each at-risk community within 

7 each fireshed management area; 

8 (B) identifies potential fireshed manage9 ment projects to be carried out in such fireshed 

10 management areas, giving priority— 

11 (i) primarily, to projects with the pur12 pose of reducing— 

13 (I) wildfire exposure and cor14 responding risk to communities, in15 cluding risk to structures and life; 

16 (II) wildfire exposure and cor17 responding risk to municipal water18 sheds; 

19 (III) risk of forest conversion due 

20 to wildfire; or 

21 (IV) any combination of purposes 

22 described in subclauses (I) through 

23 (III); and 

24 (ii) secondarily, to projects with the 

25 purpose of protecting— 


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1 (I) critical infrastructure, includ2 ing utility infrastructure; 

3 (II) wildlife habitats, including 

4 habitat for species listed under the 

5 Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 

6 1531 et seq.); 

7 (III) the built environment, in8 cluding residential and commercial 

9 buildings; 

10 (IV) Tribal resources; or 

11 (V) any combination of purposes 

12 described in subclauses (I) through 

13 (IV); 

14 (C) includes— 

15 (i) a strategy for reducing the threat 

16 of wildfire to at-risk communities in the 

17 wildland-urban interface on both Federal 

18 and non-Federal land; 

19 (ii) a timeline for the implementation 

20 of fireshed management projects; 

21 (iii) long-term benchmark goals for 

22 the completion of fireshed management 

23 projects in the highest wildfire exposure 

24 areas so that such projects contribute to 


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1 the development and maintenance of 

2 healthy and resilient landscapes; and 

3 (iv) policies to ensure fireshed man4 agement projects comply with applicable 

5 forest plans and incorporate the best avail6 able science; 

7 (D) shall be regularly updated based on 

8 the best available data, as determined by the 

9 Secretary concerned; and 

10 (E) shall be publicly available on a website 

11 maintained by the Secretary concerned. 

12 (2) LOCAL GOVERNMENT PARTICIPATION.— 

13 Upon the written request of a local government, the 

14 Secretary concerned may allow such local govern15 ment to participate in producing the fireshed assess16 ment under paragraph (1) with the Governor of the 

17 State and for the State in which the local govern18 ment is located. 

19 (3) INFORMATION IMPROVEMENT.— 

20 (A) MEMORANDUMS OF UNDER21 STANDING.—In carrying out a fireshed assess22 ment under this subsection, the Secretary con23 cerned may enter into memorandums of under24 standing with other Federal agencies or depart25 ments, States, Indian Tribes, private entities, 


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1 or research or educational institutions to im2 prove, with respect to such assessment, the use 

3 and integration of— 

4 (i) advanced remote sensing and 

5 geospatial technologies; 

6 (ii) statistical modeling and analysis; 

7 or 

8 (iii) any other technology or combina9 tion of technologies and analyses that the 

10 Secretary concerned determines will benefit 

11 the quality of information of such an as12 sessment. 

13 (B) BEST AVAILABLE SCIENCE.—In using 

14 the best available science for the fireshed as15 sessments completed under subsection (a)(1), 

16 the Secretary concerned and Governor shall, to 

17 the maximum extent practicable, incorporate— 

18 (i) traditional ecological knowledge 

19 from Indian Tribes; 

20 (ii) data from State forest action 

21 plans and State wildfire risk assessments; 

22 (iii) data from the Fireshed Registry 

23 maintained under section 103; and 

24 (iv) data from other Federal, State, 

25 Tribal, and local governments or agencies. 


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1 (b) APPLICABILITY OF NEPA.—Fireshed assess2 ments conducted under this section shall not be subject 

3 to the requirements of the National Environmental Policy 

4 Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 

5 SEC. 106. EMERGENCY FIRESHED MANAGEMENT. 

6 (a) FIRESHED MANAGEMENT PROJECTS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary concerned, 

8 acting through a responsible official, shall carry out 

9 fireshed management projects in fireshed manage10 ment areas designated under section 101 in accord11 ance with this section. 

12 (2) FIRESHED MANAGEMENT PROJECTS.—The 

13 responsible official shall carry out the following for14 est and vegetation management activities as fireshed 

15 management projects under this section: 

16 (A) Conducting hazardous fuels manage17 ment activities. 

18 (B) Creating fuel breaks and fire breaks. 

19 (C) Removing hazard trees, dead trees, 

20 dying trees, or trees at risk of dying, as deter21 mined by the responsible official. 

22 (D) Developing, approving, or conducting 

23 routine maintenance under a vegetation man24 agement, facility inspection, and operation and 

25 maintenance plan submitted under section 


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1 512(c)(1) of the Federal Land Policy and Man2 agement Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1772(c)(1)). 

3 (E) Removing trees to address over4 stocking or crowding in a forest stand, con5 sistent with the appropriate basal area of the 

6 forest stand as determined by the responsible 

7 official. 

8 (F) Using chemical or re-seeding and 

9 planting treatments to address insects and dis10 ease and control vegetation competition or 

11 invasive species. 

12 (G) Any activities recommended by the 

13 state-specific fireshed assessment carried out 

14 under section 105. 

15 (H) Any activities recommended by an ap16 plicable community wildfire protection plan. 

17 (I) Any combination of activities described 

18 in this paragraph. 

19 (3) EMERGENCY FIRESHED MANAGEMENT.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—For any fireshed man21 agement area designated under section 101, the 

22 following shall have the force and effect of law: 

23 (i) Section 220.4(b) of title 36, Code 

24 of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the 

25 date of enactment of this Act), with reVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:30 Jul 01, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8790.IH H8790

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1 spect to lands under the jurisdiction of the 

2 Secretary. 

3 (ii) Section 46.150 of title 43, Code of 

4 Federal Regulations (as in effect on the 

5 date of enactment of this Act), with re6 spect to lands under the jurisdiction of the 

7 Secretary of the Interior. 

8 (iii) Section 402.05 of title 50, Code 

9 of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the 

10 date of enactment of this Act). 

11 (iv) Section 800.12 of title 36, Code 

12 of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the 

13 date of enactment of this Act). 

14 (B) UTILIZATION OF EXISTING STREAM15 LINED AUTHORITIES IN FIRESHED MANAGE16 MENT AREAS.— 

17 (i) IN GENERAL.—Fireshed manage18 ment projects carried out under this sec19 tion shall be considered authorized projects 

20 under the following categorical exclusions: 

21 (I) Section 603(a) of the Healthy 

22 Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 

23 U.S.C. 6591b(a)). 


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1 (II) Section 605(a) of the 

2 Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 

3 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591d(a)). 

4 (III) Section 606(b) of the 

5 Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 

6 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591e(b)). 

7 (IV) Section 40806(b) of the In8 frastructure Investment and Jobs Act 

9 (16 U.S.C. 6592b(b)). 

10 (V) Section 4(c)(4) of the Lake 

11 Tahoe Restoration Act (Public Law 

12 106–506; 114 Stat. 2353). 

13 (VI) Subject to subsection (d) of 

14 section 40807 of the Infrastructure 

15 Investment and Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 

16 6592c) in the same manner as author17 ized emergency actions (as defined in 

18 subsection (a) of such section) are 

19 subject to such subsection. 

20 (ii) USE OF EXPEDITED AUTHORI21 TIES.—In carrying out fireshed manage22 ment project, the Secretary shall apply a 

23 categorical exclusion under clause (i)— 


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1 (I) in a manner consistent with 

2 the statute establishing such categor3 ical exclusion 

4 (II) in any area— 

5 (aa) designated as suitable 

6 for timber production within the 

7 applicable forest plan; or 

8 (bb) where timber harvest 

9 activities are not prohibited. 

10 (iii) FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY ACT RE11 QUIREMENTS.—In carrying out this sec12 tion, the Secretary concerned shall ensure 

13 compliance with the amendments made to 

14 the National Environmental Policy Act (42 

15 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) by the Fiscal Respon16 sibility Act of 2023 (Public Law 118–5). 

17 (iv) USE OF OTHER AUTHORITIES.— 

18 To the maximum extent practicable, the 

19 Secretary concerned shall use the authori20 ties provided under this section in com21 bination with other authorities to carry out 

22 fireshed management projects, including— 

23 (I) good neighbor agreements en24 tered into under section 8206 of the 


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1 Agricultural Act of 2014 (16 U.S.C. 

2 2113a) (as amended by this Act); 

3 (II) stewardship contracting 

4 projects entered into under section 

5 604 of the Healthy Forests Restora6 tion Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591c) 

7 (as amended by this Act); 

8 (III) self-determination contracts 

9 and self-governance compact agree10 ments entered into under the Indian 

11 Self-Determination and Education As12 sistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.); 

13 and 

14 (IV) agreements entered into 

15 under the Tribal Forest Protection 

16 Act of 2004 (25 U.S.C. 3115a et 

17 seq.). 

18 (b) EXPANSION.— 

19 (1) HFRA AMENDMENTS.—The Healthy For20 ests Restoration Act of 2003 is amended— 

21 (A) in section 603(c)(1) (16 U.S.C. 

22 6591b(c)(1)), by striking ‘‘3000 acres’’ and in23 serting ‘‘10,000 acres’’; 


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1 (B) in section 605(c)(1) (16 U.S.C. 

2 6591d(c)(1)), by striking ‘‘3,000 acres’’ and in3 serting ‘‘10,000 acres’’; 

4 (C) in section 606(g) (16 U.S.C. 

5 6591e(g)), by striking ‘‘4,500 acres’’ and in6 serting ‘‘10,000 acres’’; and 

7 (D) in section 40806(d) of the Infrastruc8 ture Investment and Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 

9 6592b(d)(1)), by striking ‘‘3,000 acres’’ and in10 serting ‘‘10,000 acres’’; and 

11 (2) LAKE TAHOE RESTORATION ACT AMEND12 MENTS.—Section 4(c)(4)(C) of the Lake Tahoe Res13 toration Act (Public Law 106–506; 114 Stat. 2353) 

14 is amended— 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘Lake Tahoe Basin Man16 agement Unit’’; and 

17 (B) by inserting ‘‘applicable to the area’’ 

18 before the period at the end. 

19 SEC. 107. SUNSET. 

20 The authority under this subtitle shall terminate on 

21 the date that is 7 years after the date of enactment of 

22 this Act. 


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1 Subtitle B—Expanding Collabo2 rative Tools To Reduce Wildfire 

3 Risk and Improve Forest Health 

4 SEC. 111. MODIFICATION OF THE TREATMENT OF CERTAIN 

5 REVENUE AND PAYMENTS UNDER GOOD 

6 NEIGHBOR AGREEMENTS. 

7 (a) GOOD NEIGHBOR AUTHORITY.—Section 8206 of 

8 the Agricultural Act of 2014 (16 U.S.C. 2113a) is amend9 ed— 

10 (1) in subsection (a)(6), by striking ‘‘or Indian 

11 tribe’’; and 

12 (2) in subsection (b)— 

13 (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by inserting ‘‘, 

14 Indian tribe,’’ after ‘‘Governor’’; 

15 (B) in paragraph (2)(C)— 

16 (i) by striking clause (i) and inserting 

17 the following: 

18 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Funds received 

19 from the sale of timber or forest product 

20 by a Governor, an Indian tribe, or a county 

21 under a good neighbor agreement shall be 

22 retained and used by the Governor, Indian 

23 tribe, or county, as applicable— 


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1 ‘‘(I) to carry out authorized res2 toration services under the good 

3 neighbor agreement; and 

4 ‘‘(II) if there are funds remain5 ing after carrying out subclause (I), 

6 to carry out authorized restoration 

7 services under other good neighbor 

8 agreements and for the administration 

9 of a good neighbor authority program 

10 by a Governor, Indian tribe, or coun11 ty.’’; and 

12 (ii) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘2024’’ 

13 and inserting ‘‘2029’’; 

14 (C) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘, In15 dian tribe,’’ after ‘‘Governor’’; and 

16 (D) by striking paragraph (4). 

17 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 8206(a) 

18 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (16 U.S.C. 2113a(a)) is 

19 amended— 

20 (1) in paragraph (1)(B), by inserting ‘‘, Indian 

21 tribe,’’ after ‘‘Governor’’; and 

22 (2) in paragraph (5), by inserting ‘‘, Indian 

23 tribe,’’ after ‘‘Governor’’. 

24 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

25 this section apply to any project initiated pursuant to a 


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1 good neighbor agreement (as defined in section 8206(a) 

2 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (16 U.S.C. 2113a(a)))— 

3 (1) before the date of enactment of this Act, if 

4 the project was initiated after the date of enactment 

5 of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (Public 

6 Law 115–334; 132 Stat. 4490); or 

7 (2) on or after the date of enactment of this 

8 Act. 

9 SEC. 112. FIXING STEWARDSHIP END RESULT CON10 TRACTING. 

11 Section 604 of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act 

12 of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591c) is amended— 

13 (1) in subsection (b), by inserting ‘‘, including 

14 retaining and expanding existing forest products in15 frastructure’’ before the period at the end; 

16 (2) in subsection (d)(3)(B), by striking ‘‘10 

17 years’’ and inserting ‘‘20 years’’; and 

18 (3) in subsection (h), by adding at the end the 

19 following: 

20 ‘‘(4) SPECIAL RULE FOR LONG-TERM STEWARD21 SHIP CONTRACTS.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A long-term agree23 ment or contract entered into with an entity 

24 under subsection (b) by the Chief or the Direc25 tor shall provide that in the case of the canVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:30 Jul 01, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8790.IH H8790

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1 cellation or termination by the Chief or the Di2 rector of such long-term agreement or contract, 

3 the Chief or the Director, as applicable, shall 

4 provide 10 percent of the agreement or contract 

5 amount to such entity as cancellation or termi6 nation costs. 

7 ‘‘(B) DEFINITION OF LONG-TERM AGREE8 MENT OR CONTRACT.—In this paragraph, the 

9 term ‘long-term agreement or contract’ means 

10 an agreement or contract under subsection 

11 (b)— 

12 ‘‘(i) with a term of more than 5 years; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(ii) entered into on or after the date 

15 of the enactment of this paragraph.’’. 

16 SEC. 113. INTRA-AGENCY STRIKE TEAMS. 

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary concerned 

18 shall establish intra-agency strike teams to assist the Sec19 retary concerned with— 

20 (1) any reviews, including analysis under the 

21 National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

22 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), consultations under the Na23 tional Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (16 U.S.C. 

24 470 et seq.), and consultations under the Endan25 gered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), 


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1 with the intent to accelerate and streamline inter2 agency consultation processes; 

3 (2) the implementation of any necessary site 

4 preparation work in advance of or as part of a 

5 fireshed management project; 

6 (3) the implementation of fireshed management 

7 projects under such section; and 

8 (4) any combination of purposes under para9 graphs (1) through (3). 

10 (b) MEMBERS.—The Secretary concerned may ap11 point not more than 10 individuals to serve on an intra12 agency strike team comprised of— 

13 (1) employees of the Department under the ju14 risdiction of the Secretary concerned; 

15 (2) employees of a different Federal agency, 

16 with the consent of that agency’s Secretary; 

17 (3) private contractors from any nonprofit orga18 nization, State government, Indian Tribe, local gov19 ernment, quasi-governmental agency, academic insti20 tution, or private organization; and 

21 (4) volunteers from any nonprofit organization, 

22 State government, Indian Tribe, local government, 

23 quasi-governmental agency, academic institution, or 

24 private organization. 


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1 (c) SUNSET.—The authority provided under this sec2 tion shall terminate on the date that is 7 years after the 

3 date of enactment of this Act. 

4 SEC. 114. LOCALLY-LED RESTORATION. 

5 (a) THRESHOLD ADJUSTMENT.—Section 14(d) of the 

6 National Forest Management Act of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 

7 472a(d)) is amended by— 

8 (1) striking ‘‘$10,000’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘$55,000’’; and 

10 (2) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘Begin11 ning on January 1, 2025, and annually thereafter, 

12 the amount in the first sentence of this subsection 

13 shall be adjusted by the Secretary for changes in the 

14 Consumer Price Index of All Urban Consumers pub15 lished by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the De16 partment of Labor.’’. 

17 (b) FIRESHED MANAGEMENT PROJECTS.—Begin18 ning on the date that is 30 days after the date of enact19 ment of this Act, the Secretary shall solicit bids under sec20 tion 14 of the National Forest Management Act of 1976 

21 (16 U.S.C. 472a(d)) for fireshed management projects 

22 under section 106. 


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1 Subtitle C—Litigation Reform 

2 SEC. 121. COMMONSENSE LITIGATION REFORM. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—A court shall not enjoin a fireshed 

4 management project if the court determines that the plain5 tiff is unable to demonstrate that the claim of the plaintiff 

6 is likely to succeed on the merits. 

7 (b) BALANCING SHORT- AND LONG-TERM EFFECTS

8 OF FIRESHED MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES IN CONSID9 ERING INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.—As part of its weighing the 

10 equities while considering any request for an injunction 

11 that applies to any agency action as part of a fireshed 

12 management project, the court reviewing the agency ac13 tion shall balance the impact to the ecosystem likely af14 fected by the fireshed management project of— 

15 (1) the short- and long-term effects of under16 taking the agency action; against 

17 (2) the short- and long-term effects of not un18 dertaking the action. 

19 (c) LIMITATIONS FOR INJUNCTIVE RELIEF AND RE20 MAND.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

22 provision of law, a court shall not vacate or other23 wise limit, delay, stay, or enjoin a fireshed manage24 ment project unless the court determines that— 


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1 (A) the fireshed management project will 

2 pose a risk of a proximate and substantial envi3 ronmental harm; and 

4 (B) there is no other equitable remedy 

5 available as a matter of law. 

6 (2) REMAND.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 

8 other provision of law, if a court determines 

9 that a fireshed management project will not 

10 pose a risk of a proximate and substantial envi11 ronmental harm— 

12 (i) the court may remand the fireshed 

13 management project to the applicable 

14 agency with instruction to correct (includ15 ing specific directions) the errors or defi16 ciencies within 180 days; and 

17 (ii) an activity under the fireshed 

18 management project may be carried out so 

19 long as such activity does not affect the er20 rors or deficiencies described in clause (i). 

21 (B) REVIEW.—Unless the court finds that 

22 the applicable agency entirely failed to prepare 

23 a required environmental assessment or envi24 ronmental impact statement, on remand— 


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1 (i) the court shall not require such 

2 agency to prepare a new environmental as3 sessment or environmental impact state4 ment; and 

5 (ii) such agency may use another for6 mat, including a memorandum or errata 

7 sheet, to document any new analysis re8 quired. 

9 (d) LIMITATIONS ON CLAIMS.—Notwithstanding any 

10 other provision of law, a claim arising under Federal law 

11 seeking judicial review of a fireshed management project 

12 shall be barred unless— 

13 (1) with respect to an agency document noticed 

14 in the Federal Register, such claim is filed not later 

15 than 120 days after the date of publication of a no16 tice in the Federal Register of agency intent to carry 

17 out the fireshed management project, unless a short18 er period is specified in such Federal law; 

19 (2) in the case of an agency document not de20 scribed in paragraph (1), such claim is filed not 

21 later than 120 days after the date that is the earlier 

22 of— 

23 (A) the date on which such agency docu24 ment is published; and 


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1 (B) the date on which such agency docu2 ment is noticed; and 

3 (3) in the case of an authorization or action for 

4 which there was a public comment period, such 

5 claim— 

6 (A) is filed by a party that— 

7 (i) participated in the administrative 

8 proceedings regarding such fireshed man9 agement project; and 

10 (ii) submitted a comment during such 

11 public comment period and such comment 

12 was sufficiently detailed to put the applica13 ble agency on notice of the issue upon 

14 which the party seeks judicial review; and 

15 (B) is related to such comment. 

16 (e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

17 (1) AGENCY DOCUMENT.—The term ‘‘agency 

18 document’’ means, with respect to a fireshed man19 agement project, a record of decision, categorical ex20 clusion, environmental document, or programmatic 

21 environmental document. 

22 (2) NEPA TERMS.—The terms ‘‘categorical ex23 clusion’’, ‘‘environmental document’’, and ‘‘pro24 grammatic environmental document’’ have the mean25 ings given such terms, respectively, in section 111 of 


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1 the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

2 U.S.C. 4336e). 

3 SEC. 122. CONSULTATION ON FOREST PLANS. 

4 (a) FOREST SERVICE PLANS.—Section 6(d)(2) of the 

5 Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act 

6 of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1604(d)(2)) is amended to read as 

7 follows: 

8 ‘‘(2) NO ADDITIONAL CONSULTATION RE9 QUIRED UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES.—Not10 withstanding any other provision of law, the Sec11 retary shall not be required to reinitiate consultation 

12 under section 7(a)(2) of the Endangered Species Act 

13 of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536(a)(2)) or section 402.16 of 

14 title 50, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor 

15 regulation), on a land management plan approved, 

16 amended, or revised under this section when— 

17 ‘‘(A) a new species is listed or critical habi18 tat is designated under the Endangered Species 

19 Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); or 

20 ‘‘(B) new information reveals effects of the 

21 land management plan that may affect a spe22 cies listed or critical habitat designated under 

23 that Act in a manner or to an extent not pre24 viously considered.’’. 


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1 (b) BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT PLANS.—Sec2 tion 202 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act 

3 of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1712) is amended by adding at the 

4 end the following: 

5 ‘‘(g) NO ADDITIONAL CONSULTATION REQUIRED

6 UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES.—Notwithstanding 

7 any other provision of law, the Secretary shall not be re8 quired to reinitiate consultation under section 7(a)(2) of 

9 the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 

10 1536(a)(2)) or section 402.16 of title 50, Code of Federal 

11 Regulations (or a successor regulation), on a land use plan 

12 approved, amended, or revised under this section when— 

13 ‘‘(1) a new species is listed or critical habitat 

14 is designated under the Endangered Species Act of 

15 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); or 

16 ‘‘(2) new information reveals effects of the land 

17 use plan that may affect a species listed or critical 

18 habitat designated under that Act in a manner or to 

19 an extent not previously considered.’’. 


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1 TITLE II—PROTECTING COMMU2 NITIES IN THE WILDLAND3 URBAN INTERFACE 

4 SEC. 201. COMMUNITY WILDFIRE RISK REDUCTION PRO5 GRAM. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 30 days after 

7 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretaries shall 

8 jointly establish an interagency program to be known as 

9 the ‘‘Community Wildfire Risk Reduction Program’’ that 

10 shall consist of at least one representative from each of 

11 the following: 

12 (1) The Office of Wildland Fire of the Depart13 ment of the Interior. 

14 (2) The National Park Service. 

15 (3) The Bureau of Land Management. 

16 (4) The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

17 (5) The Bureau of Indian Affairs. 

18 (6) The Forest Service. 

19 (7) The Federal Emergency Management Agen20 cy. 

21 (8) The U.S. Fire Administration. 

22 (9) The National Institute of Standards and 

23 Technology. 

24 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the program estab25 lished under subsection (a) is to support interagency coVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:30 Jul 01, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8790.IH H8790

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1 ordination in reducing the risk of, and the damages result2 ing from, wildfires in communities (including tribal com3 munities) in the wildland-urban interface through— 

4 (1) advancing research and science in wildfire 

5 resilience and land management; 

6 (2) supporting adoption by Indian Tribes and 

7 local governmental entities of fire-resistant building 

8 methods, codes, and standards; 

9 (3) supporting efforts by Indian Tribes or local 

10 governmental entities to address the effects of 

11 wildland fire on such communities, including prop12 erty damages, air quality, and water quality; 

13 (4) encouraging public-private partnerships to 

14 conduct hazardous fuels management activities in 

15 the wildland-urban interface; 

16 (5) providing technical and financial assistance 

17 to communities through streamlined and unified 

18 mechanisms, including the portal and grant applica19 tion established under subsection (c). 

20 (c) PORTAL AND UNIFORM GRANT APPLICATION.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—As part of the program es22 tablished under subsection (a), the Secretaries and 

23 the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Man24 agement Agency shall establish a portal through 


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1 which a person may submit a single, uniform appli2 cation for any of the following: 

3 (A) A community wildfire defense grant 

4 under section 40803(f) of the Infrastructure In5 vestment and Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 6592(f)). 

6 (B) An emergency management perform7 ance grant under section 662 of the Post8 Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 

9 2006 (6 U.S.C. 761). 

10 (C) A grant under section 33 of the Fed11 eral Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 

12 (15 U.S.C. 2229). 

13 (D) A grant under section 34 of the Fed14 eral Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 

15 (15 U.S.C. 2229a). 

16 (E) Financial or technical assistance or a 

17 grant under sections 203, 205, 404, 406, or 

18 420 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 

19 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 

20 5133, 5135, 5170c, 5172, 5187). 

21 (2) SIMPLIFICATION OF APPLICATION.—In es22 tablishing the portal and application under para23 graph (1), the Secretaries and the Administrator 

24 shall seek to reduce the complexity and length of the 


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1 application process for the grants described in para2 graph (1). 

3 (3) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretaries 

4 shall provide technical assistance to communities or 

5 persons seeking to apply for financial assistance 

6 through the portal using the application established 

7 under paragraph (1). 

8 (d) SUNSET.—The program established under this 

9 section shall terminate on the date that is 7 years after 

10 the date of enactment of this Act. 

11 SEC. 202. COMMUNITY WILDFIRE DEFENSE RESEARCH PRO12 GRAM. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretaries shall, acting 

14 jointly, expand the Joint Fire Science Program to include 

15 performance-driven research and development program 

16 known as the ‘‘Community Wildfire Defense Research 

17 Program’’ for the purpose of testing and advancing inno18 vative designs to create or improve the wildfire-resistance 

19 of structures and communities. 

20 (b) PROGRAM PRIORITIES.—In carrying out the pro21 gram established under subsection (a), the Secretaries 

22 shall evaluate opportunities to create wildfire-resistant 

23 structures and communities through— 

24 (1) different affordable building materials, in25 cluding mass timber; 


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1 (2) home hardening, including policies to 

2 incentivize and incorporate defensible space; 

3 (3) subdivision design and other land use plan4 ning and design; 

5 (4) landscape architecture; and 

6 (5) other wildfire-resistant designs, as deter7 mined by the Secretary. 

8 (c) COMMUNITY WILDFIRE DEFENSE INNOVATION

9 PRIZE.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the program 

11 established under subsection (a), the Secretaries 

12 shall carry out a competition through which a person 

13 may submit to the Secretaries innovative designs for 

14 the creation or improvement of an ignition-resistant 

15 structure or fire-adapted communities. 

16 (2) PRIZE.—Subject to the availability of ap17 propriations made in advance for such purpose, the 

18 Secretaries may award a prize under the competition 

19 described in paragraph (1), based on criteria estab20 lished by the Secretaries and in accordance with 

21 paragraph (3). 

22 (3) SCALE.—In awarding a prize under para23 graph (2), the Secretaries shall prioritize for an 

24 award designs with the most potential to scale to ex25 isting infrastructure. 


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1 (d) SUNSET.—The program established under sub2 section (a) shall terminate on the date that is 7 years after 

3 the date of enactment of this Act. 

4 SEC. 203. VEGETATION MANAGEMENT, FACILITY INSPEC5 TION, AND OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE 

6 RELATING TO ELECTRIC TRANSMISSION AND 

7 DISTRIBUTION FACILITY RIGHTS-OF-WAY. 

8 (a) HAZARD TREES WITHIN 150 FEET OF ELECTRIC

9 POWER LINE.—Section 512(a)(1)(B)(ii) of the Federal 

10 Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 

11 1772(a)(1)(B)(ii)) is amended by striking ‘‘10’’ and in12 serting ‘‘150’’. 

13 (b) CONSULTATION WITH PRIVATE LANDOWNERS.— 

14 Section 512(c)(3)(E) of such Act (43 U.S.C. 

15 1772(c)(3)(E)) is amended— 

16 (1) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

17 (2) in clause (ii), by striking the period and in18 serting ‘‘; and’’; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(iii) consulting with a private land21 owner with respect to any hazard trees 

22 identified for removal from land owned by 

23 the private landowner.’’. 


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1 (c) REVIEW AND APPROVAL PROCESS.—Section 

2 512(c)(4)(A)(iv) of such Act (43 U.S.C. 1772(c)(4)(A)) 

3 is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(iv) ensures that— 

5 ‘‘(I) a plan submitted without a 

6 modification under clause (iii) shall be 

7 automatically approved 120 days after 

8 review; and 

9 ‘‘(II) with respect to a plan sub10 mitted with a modification under 

11 clause (iii), if not approved within 120 

12 days after being submitted, the Sec13 retary concerned shall develop and 

14 submit a letter to the owner and oper15 ator describing— 

16 ‘‘(aa) a detailed timeline (to 

17 conclude within 165 days after 

18 the submission of the plan) for 

19 completing review of the plan; 

20 ‘‘(bb) any identified defi21 ciencies with the plan and spe22 cific opportunities for the owner 

23 and operator to address such de24 ficiencies; and 


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1 ‘‘(cc) any other relevant in2 formation, as determined by the 

3 Secretary concerned.’’. 

4 SEC. 204. CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION FOR ELECTRIC UTIL5 ITY LINES RIGHTS-OF-WAY. 

6 (a) CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION ESTABLISHED.—For7 est management activities described in subsection (b) are 

8 a category of activities hereby designated as being cat9 egorically excluded from the preparation of an environ10 mental assessment or an environmental impact statement 

11 under section 102 of the National Environmental Policy 

12 Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332). 

13 (b) FOREST MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES DESIGNATED

14 FOR CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION.—The forest management 

15 activities designated under subsection (a) for a categorical 

16 exclusion are— 

17 (1) the development and approval of a vegeta18 tion management, facility inspection, and operation 

19 and maintenance plan submitted under section 

20 512(c)(1) of the Federal Land Policy and Manage21 ment Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1772(c)(1)) by the 

22 Secretary concerned; and 

23 (2) the implementation of routine activities con24 ducted under the plan referred to in paragraph (1). 


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1 (c) AVAILABILITY OF CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION.— 

2 On and after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec3 retary concerned may use the categorical exclusion estab4 lished under subsection (a) in accordance with this section. 

5 (d) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN AREAS FROM CATEGOR6 ICAL EXCLUSION.—The categorical exclusion established 

7 under subsection (a) shall not apply to any forest manage8 ment activity conducted— 

9 (1) in a component of the National Wilderness 

10 Preservation System; or 

11 (2) on National Forest System lands on which 

12 the removal of vegetation is restricted or prohibited 

13 by an Act of Congress. 

14 (e) PERMANENT ROADS.— 

15 (1) PROHIBITION ON ESTABLISHMENT.—A for16 est management activity designated under subsection 

17 (b) shall not include the establishment of a perma18 nent road. 

19 (2) EXISTING ROADS.—The Secretary con20 cerned may carry out necessary maintenance and re21 pair on an existing permanent road for the purposes 

22 of conducting a forest management activity des23 ignated under subsection (b). 

24 (3) TEMPORARY ROADS.—The Secretary con25 cerned shall decommission any temporary road conVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:30 Jul 01, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00049 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H8790.IH H8790

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1 structed for carrying out a forest management activ2 ity designated under subsection (b) not later than 

3 the date that is 3 years after the date on which the 

4 forest management activity is completed. 

5 (f) APPLICABLE LAWS.—Clauses (iii) and (iv) of sec6 tion 106(a)(3) shall apply to forest management activities 

7 designated under subsection (b). 

8 SEC. 205. SEEDS OF SUCCESS. 

9 (a) STRATEGY ESTABLISHED.—Not later than 2 

10 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secre11 taries and the Secretary of Defense shall jointly develop 

12 and implement a strategy, to be known as the ‘‘Seeds of 

13 Success strategy’’, to enhance the domestic supply chain 

14 of seeds. 

15 (b) ELEMENTS.—The strategy required under sub16 section (a) shall include a plan for each of the following: 

17 (1) Facilitating sustained interagency coordina18 tion in, and a comprehensive approach to, native 

19 plant materials development and restoration. 

20 (2) Promoting the re-seeding of native or fire21 resistant grasses post-wildfire, particularly in the 

22 wildland-urban interface. 

23 (3) Creating and consolidating information on 

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1 formation with State, local governments, and Indian 

2 Tribes. 

3 (4) Building regional programs and partner4 ships to promote the development of materials made 

5 from plants native to the United States and restores 

6 such plants to the native habitat of each such plant 

7 within the United States, giving priority to the 

8 building of such programs and partnerships in re9 gions of the Bureau of Land Management where 

10 such partnerships and programs do not already exist 

11 as of the date of enactment of this Act. 

12 (5) Expanding seed storage and seed-cleaning 

13 infrastructure. 

14 (6) Expanding the Warehouse System of the 

15 Bureau of Land Management, particularly the cold 

16 storage capacity of the Warehouse System. 

17 (7) Shortening the timeline for the approval of 

18 permits to collect seeds on public lands managed by 

19 the Bureau of Land Management. 

20 (c) REPORT.—The Secretaries and the Secretary of 

21 Defense shall submit to the relevant Congressional Com22 mittees the strategy developed under paragraph (1). 


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1 TITLE III—TRANSPARENCY AND 

2 TECHNOLOGY 

3 SEC. 301. BIOCHAR INNOVATIONS AND OPPORTUNITIES 

4 FOR CONSERVATION, HEALTH, AND AD5 VANCEMENTS IN RESEARCH. 

6 (a) DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.— 

7 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years 

9 after the date of enactment of this Act, the cov10 ered Secretaries shall establish a program to 

11 enter into partnerships with eligible entities to 

12 carry out demonstration projects to support the 

13 development and commercialization of biochar 

14 in accordance with this subsection. 

15 (B) LOCATION OF DEMONSTRATION

16 PROJECTS.—In carrying out the program estab17 lished under subparagraph (A), the covered 

18 Secretaries shall, to the maximum extent prac19 ticable, enter into partnerships with eligible en20 tities such that not fewer than one demonstra21 tion project is carried out in each region of the 

22 Forest Service and each region of the Bureau 

23 of Land Management. 

24 (2) PROPOSALS.—To be eligible to enter into a 

25 partnership to carry out a biochar demonstration 


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1 project under paragraph (1)(A), an eligible entity 

2 shall submit to the covered Secretaries a proposal at 

3 such time, in such manner, and containing such in4 formation as the covered Secretaries may require. 

5 (3) PRIORITY.—In selecting proposals under 

6 paragraph (2), the covered Secretaries shall give pri7 ority to entering into partnerships with eligible enti8 ties that submit proposals to carry out biochar dem9 onstration projects that— 

10 (A) have the most carbon sequestration po11 tential; 

12 (B) have the most potential to create new 

13 jobs and contribute to local economies, particu14 larly in rural areas; 

15 (C) have the most potential to dem16 onstrate— 

17 (i) new and innovative uses of biochar; 

18 (ii) market viability for cost effective 

19 biochar-based products; 

20 (iii) the ecosystem services created or 

21 supported by the use of biochar; 

22 (iv) the restorative benefits of biochar 

23 with respect to forest heath and resiliency, 

24 including forest soils and watersheds; or 


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1 (v) any combination of purposes speci2 fied in clauses (i) through (iv); and 

3 (D) are located in areas that have a high 

4 need for biochar production, as determined by 

5 the covered Secretaries, due to— 

6 (i) nearby lands identified as having 

7 high or very high or extreme risk of wild8 fire; 

9 (ii) availability of sufficient quantities 

10 of feedstocks; 

11 (iii) a high level of demand for 

12 biochar or other commercial byproducts of 

13 biochar; or 

14 (iv) any combination of purposes spec15 ified in subparagraphs (A) through (D). 

16 (4) USE OF FUNDS.—In carrying out the pro17 gram established under paragraph (1)(A), the cov18 ered Secretaries may enter into partnerships and 

19 provide funding to such partnerships to carry out 

20 demonstration projects to— 

21 (A) acquire and test various feedstocks and 

22 their efficacy; 

23 (B) develop and optimize commercially and 

24 technologically viable biochar production units, 

25 including mobile and permanent units; 


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1 (C) demonstrate— 

2 (i) the production of biochar from for3 est residue; and 

4 (ii) the use of biochar to restore forest 

5 health and resiliency; 

6 (D) build, expand, or establish biochar fa7 cilities; 

8 (E) conduct research on new and innova9 tive uses of biochar; 

10 (F) demonstrate cost-effective market op11 portunities for biochar and biochar-based prod12 ucts; 

13 (G) carry out any other activities the cov14 ered Secretaries determine appropriate; or 

15 (H) any combination of the purposes speci16 fied in subparagraphs (A) through (F). 

17 (5) FEEDSTOCK REQUIREMENTS.—To the max18 imum extent practicable, an eligible entity that car19 ries out a biochar demonstration project under this 

20 subsection shall, with respect to the feedstock used 

21 under such project, derive at least 50 percent of 

22 such feedstock from forest thinning and manage23 ment activities, including mill residues, conducted on 

24 National Forest System lands or public lands. 

25 (6) REVIEW OF BIOCHAR DEMONSTRATION.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The covered Secretaries 

2 shall conduct regionally-specific research, in3 cluding economic analyses and life-cycle assess4 ments, on any biochar produced from a dem5 onstration project carried out under the pro6 gram established in paragraph (1)(A), includ7 ing— 

8 (i) the effects of such biochar on— 

9 (I) forest health and resiliency; 

10 (II) carbon capture and seques11 tration, including increasing soil car12 bon in the short-term and long-term; 

13 (III) productivity, reduced input 

14 costs, and water retention in agricul15 tural practices; 

16 (IV) the health of soil and grass17 lands used for grazing activities, in18 cluding grazing activities on National 

19 Forest System land and public land; 

20 (V) environmental remediation 

21 activities, including abandoned mine 

22 land remediation; and 

23 (VI) other ecosystem services cre24 ated or supported by the use of 

25 biochar; 


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1 (ii) the effectiveness of biochar as a 

2 co-product of biofuels or in biochemicals; 

3 and 

4 (iii) the effectiveness of other poten5 tial uses of biochar to determine if any 

6 such use is technologically and commer7 cially viable. 

8 (B) COORDINATION.—The covered Secre9 taries shall, to the maximum extent practicable, 

10 provide data, analyses, and other relevant infor11 mation collected under subparagraph (A) with 

12 recipients of a grant under subsection (b). 

13 (7) LIMITATION ON FUNDING FOR ESTAB14 LISHING BIOCHAR FACILITIES.—If the covered Sec15 retaries provide to an eligible entity that enters into 

16 a partnership with the covered Secretaries under 

17 paragraph (1)(A) funding for establishing a biochar 

18 facility, such funding may not exceed 35 percent of 

19 the total capital cost of establishing such biochar fa20 cility. 

21 (b) BIOCHAR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT GRANT

22 PROGRAM.— 

23 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of the In24 terior shall establish or expand an existing applied 

25 biochar research and development grant program to 


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1 make competitive grants to eligible institutions to 

2 carry out the activities described in paragraph (3). 

3 (2) APPLICATIONS.—To be eligible to receive a 

4 grant under this subsection, an eligible institution 

5 shall submit to the Secretary a proposal at such 

6 time, in such manner, and containing such informa7 tion as the Secretary may require. 

8 (3) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible institution 

9 that receives a grant under this subsection shall use 

10 the grant funds to conduct applied research on— 

11 (A) the effect of biochar on forest health 

12 and resiliency, accounting for variations in 

13 biochar, soil, climate, and other factors; 

14 (B) the effect of biochar on soil health and 

15 water retention, accounting for variations in 

16 biochar, soil, climate, and other factors; 

17 (C) the long-term carbon sequestration po18 tential of biochar; 

19 (D) the best management practices with 

20 respect to biochar and biochar based-products 

21 that maximize— 

22 (i) carbon sequestration benefits; and 

23 (ii) the commercial viability and appli24 cation of such products in forestry, agri25 culture, environmental remediation, water 


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1 quality improvement, and any other similar 

2 uses, as determined by the Secretary; 

3 (E) the regional uses of biochar to increase 

4 productivity and profitability, including— 

5 (i) uses in agriculture and environ6 mental remediation; and 

7 (ii) use as a co-product in fuel produc8 tion; 

9 (F) new and innovative uses for biochar 

10 byproducts; and 

11 (G) opportunities to expand markets for 

12 biochar and create related jobs, particularly in 

13 rural areas. 

14 (c) REPORTS.— 

15 (1) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 2 

16 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

17 covered Secretaries shall submit to Congress a re18 port that— 

19 (A) includes policy and program rec20 ommendations to improve the widespread use of 

21 biochar; 

22 (B) identifies any area of research needed 

23 to advance biochar commercialization; and 


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1 (C) identifies barriers to further biochar 

2 commercialization, including permitting and 

3 siting considerations. 

4 (2) MATERIALS SUBMITTED IN SUPPORT OF

5 THE PRESIDENT’S BUDGET.—Beginning with the 

6 second fiscal year that begins after the date of en7 actment of this Act and annually thereafter until the 

8 date described in subsection (d), the covered Secre9 taries shall include in the materials submitted to 

10 Congress in support of the President’s budget pursu11 ant to section 1105 of title 31, United States Code, 

12 a report describing, for the fiscal year covered by the 

13 report, the status of each demonstration project car14 ried out under subsection (a) and each research and 

15 development grant carried out under subsection (b). 

16 (d) SUNSET.—The authority to carry out this section 

17 shall terminate on the date that is 7 years after the date 

18 of enactment of this Act. 

19 (e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

20 (1) BIOCHAR.—The term ‘‘biochar’’ means car21 bonized biomass produced by converting feedstock 

22 through reductive thermal processing for non-fuel 

23 uses. 

24 (2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti25 ty’’ means— 


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1 (A) a State, local, or Tribal government; 

2 (B) an eligible institution; or 

3 (C) a private, non-private, or cooperative 

4 entity. 

5 (3) ELIGIBLE INSTITUTION.—The term ‘‘eligi6 ble institution’’ means land-grant colleges and uni7 versities, including institutions eligible for funding 

8 under the— 

9 (A) Act of July 2, 1862 (12 Stat. 503, 

10 chapter 130; 7 U.S.C. 301 et seq.); 

11 (B) Act of August 30, 1890 (26 Stat. 417, 

12 chapter 841; 7 U.S.C. 321 et seq.), including 

13 Tuskegee University; 

14 (C) Public Law 87–788 (commonly known 

15 as the ‘‘McIntire-Stennis Act of 1962’’); or 

16 (D) Equity in Educational Land-Grant 

17 Status Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 301 note; Public 

18 Law 103–382). 

19 (4) FEEDSTOCK.—The term ‘‘feedstock’’ means 

20 excess biomass in the form of plant matter or mate21 rials that serves as the raw material for the produc22 tion of biochar. 

23 (5) COVERED SECRETARIES.—The term ‘‘cov24 ered Secretaries’’ means— 


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1 (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, acting 

2 through the Chief of the Forest Service; 

3 (B) the Secretary of the Interior, acting 

4 through the Director of the Bureau of Land 

5 Management; and 

6 (C) the Secretary of Energy, acting 

7 through the Director of the Office of Science. 

8 SEC. 302. ACCURATE HAZARDOUS FUELS REDUCTION RE9 PORTS. 

10 (a) INCLUSION OF HAZARDOUS FUELS REDUCTION

11 REPORT IN MATERIALS SUBMITTED IN SUPPORT OF THE

12 PRESIDENT’S BUDGET.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning with the first fis14 cal year that begins after the date of enactment of 

15 this Act, and each fiscal year thereafter, the Sec16 retary concerned shall include in the materials sub17 mitted to Congress in support of the President’s 

18 budget pursuant to section 1105 of title 31, United 

19 States Code, a report on the number of acres of 

20 Federal land on which the Secretary concerned car21 ried out hazardous fuels reduction activities during 

22 the preceding fiscal year. 

23 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—For purposes of the re24 port required under paragraph (1), the Secretary 

25 concerned shall— 


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1 (A) in determining the number of acres of 

2 Federal land on which the Secretary concerned 

3 carried out hazardous fuels reduction activities 

4 during the period covered by the report— 

5 (i) record acres of Federal land on 

6 which hazardous fuels reduction activities 

7 were completed during such period; and 

8 (ii) record each acre described in 

9 clause (i) once in the report, regardless of 

10 whether multiple hazardous fuels reduction 

11 activities were carried out on such acre 

12 during such period; and 

13 (B) with respect to the acres of Federal 

14 land recorded in the report, include information 

15 on— 

16 (i) which such acres are located in the 

17 wildland-urban interface; 

18 (ii) the level of wildfire risk (high, 

19 moderate, or low) on the first and last day 

20 of the period covered by the report; 

21 (iii) the types of hazardous fuels ac22 tivities completed for such acres, delin23 eating between whether such activities 

24 were conducted— 


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1 (I) in a wildfire managed for re2 source benefits; or 

3 (II) through a planned project; 

4 (iv) the cost per acre of hazardous 

5 fuels activities carried out during the pe6 riod covered by the report; 

7 (v) the region or system unit in which 

8 the acres are located; and 

9 (vi) the effectiveness of the hazardous 

10 fuels reduction activities on reducing the 

11 risk of wildfire. 

12 (3) TRANSPARENCY.—The Secretary concerned 

13 shall make each report submitted under paragraph 

14 (1) publicly available on the websites of the Depart15 ment of Agriculture and the Department of the Inte16 rior, as applicable. 

17 (b) ACCURATE DATA COLLECTION.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

19 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary con20 cerned shall implement standardized procedures for 

21 tracking data related to hazardous fuels reduction 

22 activities carried out by the Secretary concerned. 

23 (2) ELEMENTS.—The standardized procedures 

24 required under paragraph (1) shall include— 


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1 (A) regular, standardized data reviews of 

2 the accuracy and timely input of data used to 

3 track hazardous fuels reduction activities; 

4 (B) verification methods that validate 

5 whether such data accurately correlates to the 

6 hazardous fuels reduction activities carried out 

7 by the Secretary concerned; 

8 (C) an analysis of the short- and long-term 

9 effectiveness of the hazardous fuels reduction 

10 activities on reducing the risk of wildfire; and 

11 (D) for hazardous fuels reduction activities 

12 that occur partially within the wildland-urban 

13 interface, methods to distinguish which acres 

14 are located within the wildland-urban interface 

15 and which acres are located outside the 

16 wildland-urban interface. 

17 (3) REPORT.—Not later than 2 weeks after im18 plementing the standardized procedures required 

19 under paragraph (1), the Secretary concerned shall 

20 submit to Congress a report that describes— 

21 (A) such standardized procedures; and 

22 (B) program and policy recommendations 

23 to Congress to address any limitations in track24 ing data related to hazardous fuels reduction 

25 activities under this subsection. 


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1 (c) GAO STUDY.—Not later than 2 years after the 

2 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

3 of the United States shall— 

4 (1) conduct a study on the implementation of 

5 this section, including any limitations with respect 

6 to— 

7 (A) reporting hazardous fuels reduction ac8 tivities under subsection (a); or 

9 (B) tracking data related to hazardous 

10 fuels reduction activities under subsection (b); 

11 and 

12 (2) submit to Congress a report that describes 

13 the results of the study under paragraph (1). 

14 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

15 (1) HAZARDOUS FUELS REDUCTION ACTIV16 ITY.—The term ‘‘hazardous fuels reduction activ17 ity’’— 

18 (A) means any vegetation management ac19 tivity to reduce the risk of wildfire, including 

20 mechanical treatments and prescribed burning; 

21 and 

22 (B) does not include the awarding of con23 tracts to conduct hazardous fuels reduction ac24 tivities. 


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1 (2) FEDERAL LANDS.—The term ‘‘Federal 

2 lands’’ means lands under the jurisdiction of the 

3 Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Agri4 culture. 

5 (e) NO ADDITIONAL FUNDS AUTHORIZED.—No addi6 tional funds are authorized to carry out the requirements 

7 of this section, and the activities authorized by this section 

8 are subject to the availability of appropriations made in 

9 advance for such purposes. 

10 SEC. 303. PUBLIC-PRIVATE WILDFIRE TECHNOLOGY DE11 PLOYMENT AND TESTBED PARTNERSHIP. 

12 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

13 (1) COVERED AGENCY.—The term ‘‘covered 

14 agency’’ means— 

15 (A) each Federal land management agency 

16 (as such term is defined in the Federal Lands 

17 Recreation Enhancement Act (16 U.S.C. 

18 6801)); 

19 (B) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

20 Administration; 

21 (C) the U.S. Fire Administration; 

22 (D) the Federal Emergency Management 

23 Agency; 

24 (E) the National Aeronautics and Space 

25 Administration; 


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1 (F) the Bureau of Indian Affairs; 

2 (G) the Department of Defense; and 

3 (H) any other Federal agency involved in 

4 wildfire response. 

5 (2) COVERED ENTITY.—The term ‘‘covered en6 tity’’ means— 

7 (A) a private entity; 

8 (B) a nonprofit organization; or 

9 (C) an institution of higher education (as 

10 defined in section 101 of the Higher Education 

11 Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)). 

12 (b) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after the 

13 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretaries, in coordina14 tion with the heads of the covered agencies, shall establish 

15 a deployment and testbed pilot program (in this section 

16 referred to as ‘‘Pilot Program’’) for new and innovative 

17 wildfire prevention, detection, communication, and mitiga18 tion technologies. 

19 (c) FUNCTIONS.—In carrying out the Pilot Program, 

20 the Secretaries shall— 

21 (1) incorporate the Pilot Program into existing 

22 interagency coordinating groups on wildfires; 

23 (2) in consultation with the heads of covered 

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1 tion, communication, and mitigation technologies, in2 cluding— 

3 (A) hazardous fuels reduction treatments 

4 or activities; 

5 (B) dispatch communications; 

6 (C) remote sensing, detection, and track7 ing; 

8 (D) safety equipment; and 

9 (E) common operating pictures or oper10 ational dashboards; and 

11 (3) connect each covered entity selected to par12 ticipate in the Pilot Program with the appropriate 

13 covered agency to coordinate real-time and on-the14 ground testing of technology during wildland fire 

15 mitigation activities and training. 

16 (d) APPLICATIONS.—To be eligible to be selected to 

17 participate in the Pilot Program, a covered entity shall 

18 submit to the Secretaries an application at such time, in 

19 such manner, and containing such information as the Sec20 retaries may require, including a proposal to test tech21 nologies specific to the key technology priority areas iden22 tified pursuant to subsection (c)(2). 

23 (e) PRIORITIZATION OF EMERGING TECH24 NOLOGIES.—In selecting covered entities to participate in 

25 the Pilot Program, the Secretaries shall give priority to 


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1 covered entities developing and applying emerging tech2 nologies, including artificial intelligence, quantum sensing, 

3 computing and quantum-hybrid applications, augmented 

4 reality, and 5G private networks and device-to-device com5 munications supporting nomadic mesh networks, for wild6 fire mitigation. 

7 (f) OUTREACH.—The Secretaries, in coordination 

8 with the heads of covered agencies, shall make public the 

9 key technology priority areas identified pursuant to sub10 section (c)(2) and invite covered entities to apply under 

11 subsection (d) to test and demonstrate their technologies 

12 to address such priority areas. 

13 (g) REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—Not later 

14 than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and 

15 annually thereafter for the duration of the Pilot Program, 

16 the Secretaries shall submit to the relevant Congressional 

17 Committees, the Committee on Science, Space, and Tech18 nology of the House of Representatives, and the Com19 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

20 Senate a report that includes, with respect to the Pilot 

21 Program, the following: 

22 (1) A list of participating covered entities. 

23 (2) A brief description of the technologies test24 ed by each such covered entity. 


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1 (3) An estimate of the cost of acquiring each 

2 such technology and applying the technology at 

3 scale. 

4 (4) Outreach efforts by Federal agencies to cov5 ered entities developing wildfire technologies. 

6 (5) Assessments of, and recommendations relat7 ing to, new technologies with potential adoption and 

8 application at-scale in Federal land management 

9 agencies’ wildfire prevention, detection, communica10 tion, and mitigation efforts. 

11 (h) SUNSET.—The authority to carry out this section 

12 shall terminate on the date that is 7 years after the date 

13 of enactment of this Act. 

14 SEC. 304. GAO STUDY ON FOREST SERVICE POLICIES. 

15 Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment 

16 of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 

17 shall— 

18 (1) conduct a study evaluating— 

19 (A) the effectiveness of Forest Service 

20 wildland firefighting operations; 

21 (B) transparency and accountability meas22 ures in the Forest Service’s budget and ac23 counting process; and 

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1 bility of responding and suppressing wildland 

2 fires on Federal lands; and 

3 (2) submit to Congress a report that describes 

4 the results of the study required under paragraph 

5 (1). 

6 SEC. 305. FOREST SERVICE WESTERN HEADQUARTERS 

7 STUDY. 

8 Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment 

9 of this Act, the Chief of the Forest Service shall— 

10 (1) conduct a study evaluating— 

11 (A) potential locations for a Western head12 quarters for the Forest Service, including po13 tential locations in at least 3 different States lo14 cated west of the Mississippi river; and 

15 (B) the potential benefits of creating a 

16 Western headquarters for the Forest Service, 

17 including expected— 

18 (i) improvements to customer service; 

19 (ii) improvements to employee recruit20 ment and retention; and 

21 (iii) operational efficiencies and cost 

22 savings; and 


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1 (2) submit to Congress a report that describes 

2 the results of the study required under paragraph 

3 (1). 

Æ 


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