II 

Calendar No. 592 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2867 

To address the forest health crisis on the National Forest System and public 

lands, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023 

Mr. BARRASSO (for himself and Mr. MANCHIN) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

NOVEMBER 21, 2024 

Reported by Mr. MANCHIN, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To address the forest health crisis on the National Forest 

System and public 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, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

5 ‘‘Promoting Effective Forest Management Act of 2023’’. 


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

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—ACCOMPLISHMENTS OVER RHETORIC 

Sec. 101. Thinning targets. 

Sec. 102. Annual reports. 

Sec. 103. Transparency in fire mitigation reporting. 

Sec. 104. Regional forest carbon accounting. 

Sec. 105. Targets for wildlife habitat improvement. 

TITLE II—FOREST MANAGEMENT 

Sec. 201. Land and resource management plans. 

Sec. 202. Management of old growth and mature forests. 

Sec. 203. Assessment of processed-based restoration techniques. 

Sec. 204. Intervenor status. 

Sec. 205. Utilizing grazing for wildfire prevention. 

TITLE III—WORKFORCE 

Sec. 301. Logging workforce. 

Sec. 302. Break-in-service consideration for firefighter retirements. 

Sec. 303. Firefighter rental housing. 

TITLE IV—CULTURAL CHANGE IN AGENCIES 

Sec. 401. Mandatory use of existing authorities. 

Sec. 402. Curtailing employee relocations. 

Sec. 403. Repeal of FLAME reports. 

3 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

4 In this Act: 

5 (1) NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘National 

7 Forest System’’ has the meaning given the term 

8 in section 11(a) of the Forest and Rangeland 

9 Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 

10 U.S.C. 1609(a)). 

11 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘National 

12 Forest System’’ does not include— 


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1 (i) any forest reserve not created from 

2 the public domain; or 

3 (ii) any national grassland or land uti4 lization project administered under title III 

5 of the Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act 

6 (7 U.S.C. 1010 et seq.). 

7 (2) PUBLIC LANDS.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

9 subparagraph (B), the term ‘‘public lands’’ has 

10 the meaning given the term in section 103 of 

11 the Federal Land Policy and Management Act 

12 of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702). 

13 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘public lands’’ 

14 does not include land governed by the Act of 

15 August 28, 1937 (50 Stat. 874, chapter 876; 

16 43 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.). 

17 (3) SECRETARY CONCERNED.—The term ‘‘Sec18 retary concerned’’ means— 

19 (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, acting 

20 through the Chief of the Forest Service, with 

21 respect to National Forest System land; and 

22 (B) the Secretary of the Interior, acting 

23 through the Director of the Bureau of Land 

24 Management, with respect to public lands. 


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1 TITLE I—ACCOMPLISHMENTS 

2 OVER RHETORIC 

3 SEC. 101. THINNING TARGETS. 

4 (a) BASELINE.—For the National Forest System and 

5 for public lands, the Secretary concerned shall deter6 mine— 

7 (1) for each of fiscal years 2017 through 2021, 

8 the number of acres mechanically thinned, for acres 

9 commercially thinned and for acres pre-commercially 

10 thinned; and 

11 (2) the average of the numbers described in 

12 paragraph (1) over the period of fiscal years 2017 

13 through 2021. 

14 (b) ANNUAL TARGETS.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary concerned 

16 shall establish annual mechanical thinning targets 

17 for acres commercially thinned and for acres pre18 commercially thinned for fiscal year 2024, and annu19 ally thereafter, for the National Forest System and 

20 for public lands. 

21 (2) REQUIREMENTS.— 

22 (A) FISCAL YEARS 2024 AND 2025.—For 

23 each of fiscal years 2024 and 2025, the annual 

24 mechanical thinning targets established under 


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1 paragraph (1) shall be not less than the number 

2 of acres described in subsection (a)(2). 

3 (B) FISCAL YEARS 2026 AND 2027.—For 

4 each of fiscal years 2026 and 2027, the annual 

5 mechanical thinning targets established under 

6 paragraph (1) shall be not less than twice the 

7 number of acres described in subsection (a)(2). 

8 (C) FISCAL YEAR 2028.—For fiscal year 

9 2028 and each fiscal year thereafter, the annual 

10 mechanical thinning targets established under 

11 paragraph (1) shall be not less than 4 times the 

12 number of acres described in subsection (a)(2). 

13 (c) REGIONAL ASSIGNMENTS.—Not later than 90 

14 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually 

15 thereafter, the Secretary concerned shall assign annual 

16 acreage targets for mechanical thinning on National For17 est System land and public lands, categorized by National 

18 Forest System region or by State, as appropriate. 

19 (d) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary concerned shall 

20 make publicly available the data described in subsections 

21 (a), (b), and (c), including by publishing that data on the 

22 website of the Forest Service and the website of the Bu23 reau of Land Management. 


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1 SEC. 102. ANNUAL REPORTS. 

2 Not later than January 1, 2024, and annually there3 after, the Secretary concerned shall publish on the website 

4 of the Forest Service and the website of the Bureau of 

5 Land Management the following information with respect 

6 to the National Forest System or public lands during the 

7 preceding fiscal year: 

8 (1) The number of acres treated to meet the re9 quirement described in section 40803(b) of the In10 frastructure Investment and Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 

11 6592(b)). 

12 (2)(A) The number of acres mechanically 

13 thinned; and 

14 (B) whether the number of acres described in 

15 subparagraph (A) met or exceeded the requirements 

16 described in section 101(b)(2). 

17 (3) Any limitations or challenges, including liti18 gation or permitting delays, that hindered the Sec19 retary concerned from meeting or exceeding the an20 nual target established under section 101(b)(1), if 

21 applicable. 

22 (4) The number of acres that have undergone 

23 a regeneration harvest. 

24 (5) The number of acres described in para25 graphs (2)(A) and (4) that are in an area identified 

26 as having— 


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1 (A) the expectation that, without remedi2 ation, at least 25 percent of standing live basal 

3 area greater than 1 inch in diameter may die 

4 over a 15-year time frame due to insects and 

5 diseases, as depicted on the National Insect and 

6 Disease Composite Risk Map; or 

7 (B) a very high or high wildfire hazard po8 tential. 

9 (6) The number of acres described in para10 graphs (2)(A) and (4) that use either of the fol11 lowing streamlined authorities for environmental re12 view: 

13 (A) A categorical exclusion. 

14 (B) An emergency determination of the 

15 Secretary concerned. 

16 (7) The number of acres described in para17 graphs (2)(A) and (4) that use partners to carry out 

18 the work through— 

19 (A) a good neighbor agreement; 

20 (B) a master stewardship agreement; 

21 (C) a contract or agreement entered into 

22 under the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 

23 (25 U.S.C. 3115a); or 

24 (D) a stewardship end-result contract. 


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1 SEC. 103. TRANSPARENCY IN FIRE MITIGATION REPORT2 ING. 

3 (a) EXCLUSION FROM ANNUAL BUDGET AND PER4 FORMANCE REPORTS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary concerned 

6 shall not include in any appropriations request sub7 mitted to the President for purposes of preparing 

8 the budget of the United States Government under 

9 section 1105 of title 31, United States Code, or any 

10 annual performance report submitted to Congress 

11 any output measures for acres of land on which haz12 ardous fuels treatments were conducted if the land 

13 needs to be treated more than once— 

14 (A) to meet the requirement described in 

15 section 40803(b) of the Infrastructure Invest16 ment and Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 6592(b)); or 

17 (B) to effectively mitigate wildfire risk. 

18 (2) ANNUAL BUDGET.—The President shall not 

19 include in the budget of the United States Govern20 ment submitted to Congress under section 1105 of 

21 title 31, United States Code, any output measures 

22 described in paragraph (1). 

23 (3) INCLUSIONS.—Output measures described 

24 in paragraph (1) include— 


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1 (A) acres of hazardous fuels reduction on 

2 National Forest System land and adjacent 

3 areas to mitigate wildfire risk; and 

4 (B) annual acreage treated to reduce or 

5 maintain fuel conditions on National Forest 

6 System land and non-Federal land. 

7 (b) INCLUSION IN ANNUAL BUDGET AND PERFORM8 ANCE REPORTS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary concerned 

10 shall include in an appropriations request submitted 

11 to the President for purposes of preparing the budg12 et of the United States Government under section 

13 1105 of title 31, United States Code, and an annual 

14 performance report submitted to Congress— 

15 (A) the number of acres of land meeting 

16 the requirement described in section 40803(b) 

17 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act 

18 (16 U.S.C. 6592(b)); and 

19 (B) the annual acreage of National Forest 

20 System land where final treatment effectively 

21 mitigates wildfire risk. 

22 (2) ANNUAL BUDGET.—The President shall in23 clude in the budget of the United States Govern24 ment submitted to Congress under section 1105 of 


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1 title 31, United States Code, the information de2 scribed in paragraph (1). 

3 SEC. 104. REGIONAL FOREST CARBON ACCOUNTING. 

4 Not later than January 1, 2025, and every 3 years 

5 thereafter, the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through 

6 the Chief of the Forest Service, shall— 

7 (1) using data from the forest inventory and 

8 analysis program, determine the net forest carbon 

9 balance on the land in the National Forest System 

10 of each Forest Service region, including whether the 

11 National Forest System land is— 

12 (A) a carbon source; or 

13 (B) a carbon sink; and 

14 (2) publish the information described in para15 graph (1) on the website of the Forest Service. 

16 SEC. 105. TARGETS FOR WILDLIFE HABITAT IMPROVE17 MENT. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—To improve wildlife habitat func19 tion on National Forest System land and public lands, not 

20 later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this 

21 Act, the Secretary concerned shall— 

22 (1) evaluate the extent to which the specific 

23 management goals and objectives relating to wildlife 

24 habitat in existing land management plans or re25 source management plans, as applicable, have been 


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1 met through implementation of the applicable land 

2 management plan or resource management plan; and 

3 (2) establish and implement a strategy, includ4 ing establishing annual targets, to meet the specific 

5 management goals and objectives described in para6 graph (1). 

7 (b) REPORTING.—Beginning in fiscal year 2025, the 

8 Secretary concerned shall annually— 

9 (1) establish targets associated with the strat10 egy developed under subsection (a)(2); and 

11 (2) submit to the Committee on Energy and 

12 Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee 

13 on Natural Resources of the House of Representa14 tives a report on the implementation of the strategy 

15 developed under subsection (a)(2). 

16 TITLE II—FOREST MANAGEMENT 

17 SEC. 201. LAND AND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLANS. 

18 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

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

20 shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Re21 sources of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Re22 sources of the House of Representatives an assessment of 

23 the time period that would be required for the Secretary 

24 of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest 

25 Service, to address the backlog of land and resource manVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:55 Nov 22, 2024 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S2867.RS S2867

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1 agement plans that are noncompliant with section 

2 6(f)(5)(A) of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Re3 sources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1604(f)(5)(A)), 

4 and to come into compliance with that section, if the land 

5 and resource management plans for the units of the Na6 tional Forest System were developed and revised in a man7 ner consistent with the shorter length and development 

8 timelines of the land management plans for the units of 

9 the National Park System. 

10 SEC. 202. MANAGEMENT OF OLD GROWTH AND MATURE 

11 FORESTS. 

12 (a) DEFINITION OF OLD GROWTH.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para14 graph (2), the Secretary concerned shall adhere to 

15 the definitions of ‘‘old growth forest’’ contained in 

16 the regulations of the Secretary concerned (as in ef17 fect on January 1, 2022). 

18 (2) UPDATES.—If the Secretary concerned de19 termines that a definition of ‘‘old growth forest’’ 

20 contained in a regulation of the Secretary concerned 

21 needs to be revised, the Secretary concerned— 

22 (A) shall appoint a committee of scientists 

23 who are not officers or employees of the Forest 

24 Service or the Bureau of Land Management 

25 and have a background in forestry and stand 


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1 dynamics (referred to in this paragraph as the 

2 ‘‘committee of scientists’’); 

3 (B) shall direct the committee of scientists 

4 to provide scientific and technical advice and 

5 counsel on definitions of ‘‘old growth forest’’; 

6 (C) shall review the recommendations of 

7 the committee of scientists; 

8 (D) shall publish the recommendations of 

9 the committee of scientists for public comment; 

10 and 

11 (E) may adopt the recommendations of the 

12 committee of scientists and revise the definition 

13 in a manner consistent with subchapter II of 

14 chapter 5, and chapter 7, of title 5, United 

15 States Code (commonly known as the ‘‘Admin16 istrative Procedure Act’’). 

17 (b) MANAGEMENT OF MATURE TREES.— 

18 (1) DEFINITION OF MATURE FOREST.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—Consistent with section 

20 6(m)(1) of the Forest and Rangeland Renew21 able Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 

22 U.S.C. 1604(m)(1)), with respect to National 

23 Forest System land and public lands, the Sec24 retary concerned shall define the term ‘‘mature 

25 forest’’ as a forest that has reached the 


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1 merchantability standard described in subpara2 graph (B). 

3 (B) MERCHANTABILITY STANDARD.—The 

4 merchantability standard referred to in sub5 paragraph (A) is when a forest has generally 

6 reached the culmination of mean annual incre7 ment of growth. 

8 (2) MANAGEMENT.—Except as provided in sec9 tion 6(m) of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable 

10 Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 

11 1604(m)), on National Forest System land and pub12 lic lands, the Secretary concerned shall only carry 

13 out regeneration harvests in mature forests (as de14 fined by the Secretary concerned under paragraph 

15 (1)). 

16 (c) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Any inventory of forests 

17 adopted through executive branch action shall not modify, 

18 amend, or otherwise change the duties of the Secretary 

19 concerned to manage unreserved forests in accordance 

20 with, as applicable— 

21 (1) the Act of June 4, 1897 (commonly known 

22 as the ‘‘Organic Administration Act’’) (30 Stat. 34, 

23 chapter 2); 

24 (2) the Multiple-Use Sustained-Yield Act of 

25 1960 (16 U.S.C. 528 et seq.); 


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1 (3) the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Re2 sources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1600 et 

3 seq.); 

4 (4) section 14 of the National Forest Manage5 ment Act of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 472a); and 

6 (5) the Federal Land Policy and Management 

7 Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.). 

8 SEC. 203. ASSESSMENT OF PROCESSED-BASED RESTORA9 TION TECHNIQUES. 

10 (a) WETLAND AND RIPARIAN RESTORATION PILOT

11 PROGRAM.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Inte13 rior, acting through the Director of the United 

14 States Geological Survey, and the Secretary of Agri15 culture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Serv16 ice (referred to in this subsection as the ‘‘Secre17 taries’’), shall jointly establish a pilot program to 

18 conduct research on and evaluate wetland and ripar19 ian restoration techniques. 

20 (2) ASSESSMENTS.—In carrying out this sub21 section, the Secretaries shall— 

22 (A) assess the benefits, including to down23 stream infrastructure, water storage, and resil24 ience to natural hazards, of process-based river 


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1 and wetland restoration techniques when car2 ried out at larger scales; and 

3 (B) make available to the public the results 

4 of the assessment described in subparagraph 

5 (A). 

6 (b) EXPERIMENTAL FORESTS PILOT PROJECT.—The 

7 Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the 

8 Forest Service, shall carry out a pilot project on the exper9 imental forests and ranges managed by the Forest Service 

10 to evaluate biologically driven restoration. 

11 SEC. 204. INTERVENOR STATUS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of a civil action re13 lating to a qualified project described in subsection (b), 

14 a unit of local government shall be— 

15 (1) entitled to intervene, as of right, in any sub16 sequent civil action; and 

17 (2) considered to be a full participant in any 

18 settlement negotiation relating to the qualified 

19 project if the unit of local government intervenes. 

20 (b) DESCRIPTION OF QUALIFIED PROJECT.—A quali21 fied project referred to in subsection (a) is a project that— 

22 (1) is located on National Forest System land 

23 or public lands; 

24 (2) has been approved by the Secretary con25 cerned; and 


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1 (3)(A) reduces the risk posed by wildfire, insect, 

2 or disease; or 

3 (B) generates revenue from the harvesting of 

4 timber. 

5 SEC. 205. UTILIZING GRAZING FOR WILDFIRE PREVENTION. 

6 The Secretary concerned, in coordination with hold7 ers of permits to graze livestock on Federal land, shall 

8 develop a strategy to increase opportunities to utilize live9 stock grazing as a wildfire mitigation strategy, includ10 ing— 

11 (1) completion of reviews (as required under the 

12 National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

13 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.)) to allow permitted grazing on 

14 vacant grazing allotments during instances of 

15 drought, wildfire, or other natural disasters that dis16 rupt grazing on allotments already permitted; 

17 (2) use of targeted grazing; 

18 (3) increased use of temporary permits to pro19 mote targeted fuels reduction and reduction of 

20 invasive annual grasses; 

21 (4) increased use of grazing as a fire recovery 

22 strategy, where appropriate; and 

23 (5) use of all applicable authorities under law. 


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1 TITLE III—WORKFORCE 

2 SEC. 301. LOGGING WORKFORCE. 

3 (a) TRAINING.— 

4 (1) INTERSTATE TRAINING PROGRAMS.—The 

5 Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of 

6 the Forest Service, shall work with States to develop 

7 a universal, tiered program to train persons to enter 

8 the logging workforce. 

9 (2) ON-THE-JOB TRAINING.—The Secretary 

10 concerned shall examine potential ways to facilitate 

11 apprenticeship training to increase knowledge and 

12 skills in an emerging logging workforce. 

13 (b) MODERNIZING MACHINERY.—Using funds made 

14 available under section 40804(b)(3) of the Infrastructure 

15 Investment and Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 6592a(b)(3)), the 

16 Secretary of Agriculture shall provide low-interest loans 

17 or loan guarantees to persons, subject to such conditions 

18 as the Secretary of Agriculture determines to be nec19 essary, for the acquisition of mechanized machinery for 

20 the purposes of decreasing injuries in the logging work21 force. 

22 SEC. 302. BREAK-IN-SERVICE CONSIDERATION FOR FIRE23 FIGHTER RETIREMENTS. 

24 Notwithstanding sections 8336(c) and 8412(d) of 

25 title 5, United States Code, not later than May 1, 2024, 


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1 the Secretary concerned, in coordination with the Sec2 retary of Labor, shall promulgate regulations, as nec3 essary, to ensure that a Federal wildland firefighter would 

4 not forfeit previously made contributions or eligibility for 

5 firefighter retirement when the wildland firefighter has a 

6 voluntary break in service of not more than 9 months. 

7 SEC. 303. FIREFIGHTER RENTAL HOUSING. 

8 Notwithstanding OMB Circular No. A-45R, when the 

9 Secretary concerned requires a Federal wildland fire10 fighter to occupy government housing, the Secretary con11 cerned shall not deduct for government housing rent from 

12 the payroll of the wildland firefighter an amount that is 

13 greater than 40 percent of the pre-tax salary of the 

14 wildland firefighter. 

15 TITLE IV—CULTURAL CHANGE 

16 IN AGENCIES 

17 SEC. 401. MANDATORY USE OF EXISTING AUTHORITIES. 

18 Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment 

19 of this Act, with respect to each unit of public lands and 

20 each unit of the National Forest System that contains 

21 land described in section 102(5), the Secretary concerned 

22 shall use not fewer than 1 of the following streamlined 

23 authorities for environmental review: 

24 (1) Section 603(a) of the Healthy Forests Res25 toration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591b(a)). 


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1 (2) Section 605(a) of the Healthy Forests Res2 toration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591d(a)). 

3 (3) Section 606(b) of the Healthy Forests Res4 toration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591e(b)). 

5 (4) Section 40806(b) of the Infrastructure In6 vestment and Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 6592b(b)). 

7 (5) Section 40807 of the Infrastructure Invest8 ment and Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 6592c). 

9 (6) Section 207 of the Wildfire Suppression 

10 Funding and Forest Management Activities Act (16 

11 U.S.C. 6591c note; Public Law 115–141). 

12 SEC. 402. CURTAILING EMPLOYEE RELOCATIONS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture, act14 ing through the Chief of the Forest Service (referred to 

15 in this section as the ‘‘Secretary’’), shall curtail employee 

16 relocations to significantly increase the period of time that 

17 each line officer works at a duty station. 

18 (b) LINE OFFICER HIRING ELIGIBILITY.—To the 

19 maximum extent practicable, the Secretary shall solicit ap20 plications for line officer positions in a manner that does 

21 not limit eligibility for the solicited position to only an ap22 plicant who is a current employee of the Forest Service. 

23 (c) LIMITS ON RELOCATION PAYMENTS.—The Sec24 retary shall not reimburse an employee or otherwise pay 


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1 for expenses relating to a change in duty station in an 

2 amount that exceeds $100,000. 

3 (d) EMPLOYMENT DEVELOPMENT.—The Secretary 

4 shall develop a program to provide incentives for employ5 ees to gain experience and skills without relocating (com6 monly referred to as ‘‘growing in place’’). 

7 SEC. 403. REPEAL OF FLAME REPORTS. 

8 Section 502 of the FLAME Act of 2009 (43 U.S.C. 

9 1748a) is amended— 

10 (1) by striking subsection (h); and 

11 (2) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection 

12 (h). 

13 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

14 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Pro15 moting Effective Forest Management Act of 2024’’. 

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

17 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—ACCOMPLISHMENTS OVER RHETORIC 

Sec. 101. Accelerating treatments on Federal land. 

Sec. 102. Annual reports. 

Sec. 103. Transparency in hazardous fuels reduction activity reporting. 

Sec. 104. Regional forest carbon accounting. 

Sec. 105. Wildland fire performance metrics. 

TITLE II—FOREST MANAGEMENT 

Sec. 201. Vegetation management, facility inspection, and operation and maintenance relating to electric transmission and distribution facility 

rights-of-way. 

Sec. 202. Timber sales on National Forest System land. 

Sec. 203. Categorical exclusion for high-priority hazard trees. 

Sec. 204. Intervenor status. 


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Sec. 205. Utilizing grazing for wildfire risk reduction. 

TITLE III—WORKFORCE 

Sec. 301. Direct hire authority. 

Sec. 302. Continuing accrual of service for firefighters. 

Sec. 303. Affordable housing for Federal wildland firefighters. 

TITLE IV—CULTURAL CHANGE IN AGENCIES 

Sec. 401. Mandatory use of existing authorities. 

Sec. 402. Public-private wildfire technology deployment and testbed partnership. 

Sec. 403. Repeal of FLAME reports. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) FEDERAL LAND.—The term ‘‘Federal land’’ 

4 means— 

5 (A) land of the National Forest System; and 

6 (B) public lands (as defined in section 103 

7 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act 

8 of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702)), the surface of which 

9 is administered by the Secretary of the Interior, 

10 acting through the Director of the Bureau of 

11 Land Management. 

12 (2) HAZARDOUS FUELS REDUCTION ACTIVITY.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘hazardous 

14 fuels reduction activity’’ means any vegetation 

15 management activity to reduce the risk of wild16 fire, including mechanical treatments and pre17 scribed burning. 

18 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘hazardous 

19 fuels reduction activity’’ does not include the 


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1 awarding of a contract to conduct any activity 

2 described in subparagraph (A). 

3 (3) NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘National For5 est System’’ has the meaning given the term in 

6 section 11(a) of the Forest and Rangeland Re7 newable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 

8 U.S.C. 1609(a)). 

9 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘National For10 est System’’ does not include any forest reserve 

11 not created from the public domain. 

12 (4) SECRETARY CONCERNED.—The term ‘‘Sec13 retary concerned’’ means— 

14 (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, acting 

15 through the Chief of the Forest Service, with re16 spect to Federal land described in paragraph 

17 (1)(A); and 

18 (B) the Secretary of the Interior, acting 

19 through the Director of the Bureau of Land 

20 Management, with respect to Federal land de21 scribed in paragraph (1)(B). 

22 (5) WILDLAND-URBAN INTERFACE.—The term 

23 ‘‘wildland-urban interface’’ has the meaning given the 

24 term in section 101 of the Healthy Forests Restora25 tion Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6511). 


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1 TITLE I—ACCOMPLISHMENTS 

2 OVER RHETORIC 

3 SEC. 101. ACCELERATING TREATMENTS ON FEDERAL LAND. 

4 (a) BASELINE TREATMENTS FOR FUELS REDUCTION

5 AND FOREST HEALTH.—For Federal land, the Secretary 

6 concerned shall determine— 

7 (1) for each of fiscal years 2019 through 2023— 

8 (A) the number of acres mechanically 

9 thinned, for acres commercially thinned and for 

10 acres pre-commercially thinned; and 

11 (B) the number of acres treated by pre12 scribed fire; and 

13 (2) the average of the numbers described in sub14 paragraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1) over the pe15 riod of fiscal years 2019 through 2023. 

16 (b) ANNUAL GOALS.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—For Federal land for fiscal 

18 year 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter, the Sec19 retary concerned shall establish annual— 

20 (A) mechanical thinning goals for acres 

21 commercially thinned and for acres pre-commer22 cially thinned; and 

23 (B) prescribed fire goals. 

24 (2) REQUIREMENTS.— 


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1 (A) FISCAL YEARS 2025 AND 2026.—For each 

2 of fiscal years 2025 and 2026, the goals estab3 lished under subparagraphs (A) and (B) of para4 graph (1) shall be not less than the number of 

5 acres described in subsection (a)(2). 

6 (B) FISCAL YEARS 2027 AND 2028.—For each 

7 of fiscal years 2027 and 2028, the goals estab8 lished under subparagraphs (A) and (B) of para9 graph (1) shall be not less than 20 percent more 

10 than the number of acres described in subsection 

11 (a)(2). 

12 (C) FISCAL YEAR 2029 AND SUBSEQUENT

13 FISCAL YEARS.—For fiscal year 2029 and each 

14 fiscal year thereafter, the goals established under 

15 subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1) 

16 shall be not less than 40 percent more than the 

17 number of acres described in subsection (a)(2). 

18 (c) REGIONAL ALLOTMENTS.—Not later than 90 days 

19 after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually there20 after, the Secretary concerned shall assign annual acreage 

21 allotments for mechanical thinning and prescribed fire on 

22 Federal land, categorized by National Forest System region 

23 or by State, as appropriate. 

24 (d) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary concerned shall 

25 make publicly available the data described in subsections 


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1 (a), (b), and (c), including by publishing that data on the 

2 website of the Forest Service and the website of the Bureau 

3 of Land Management. 

4 (e) SAVINGS PROVISION.—Nothing in this section shall 

5 be construed to supersede or conflict with any other provi6 sion of law, including— 

7 (1) section 40803(b) of the Infrastructure Invest8 ment and Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 6592(b)); and 

9 (2) the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.). 

10 (f) APPLICABILITY OF NEPA.—The establishment of 

11 annual goals under subsection (b)(1) and the assignment 

12 of regional allotments under subsection (c) shall not be sub13 ject to the requirements of the National Environmental Pol14 icy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). 

15 SEC. 102. ANNUAL REPORTS. 

16 Not later than September 30, 2025, and annually 

17 thereafter, the Secretary concerned shall publish on a public 

18 website of the Forest Service and a public website of the 

19 Bureau of Land Management the following information 

20 with respect to the Federal land during the preceding fiscal 

21 year: 

22 (1) The number of acres treated pursuant to sec23 tion 40803(b) of the Infrastructure Investment and 

24 Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 6592(b)). 


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1 (2)(A) The number of acres mechanically 

2 thinned; 

3 (B) the number of acres treated by prescribed 

4 fire; and 

5 (C) whether the number of acres described in 

6 subparagraphs (A) and (B) met or exceeded the acres 

7 described in section 101(b)(2). 

8 (3) Any limitations or challenges, including liti9 gation or delays in the preparation of environmental 

10 documentation, that hindered the Secretary concerned 

11 from meeting or exceeding the annual goals estab12 lished under section 101(b)(1), if applicable. 

13 (4) The number of acres that have undergone a 

14 regeneration harvest. 

15 (5) The number of acres described in subpara16 graphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2) and paragraph 

17 (4) that are in an area identified as having— 

18 (A) the expectation that, without remedi19 ation, at least 25 percent of standing live basal 

20 area greater than 1 inch in diameter may die 

21 over a 15-year time frame due to insects and dis22 eases, as depicted on the National Insect and 

23 Disease Composite Risk Map; or 

24 (B) a very high or high wildfire hazard po25 tential. 


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1 (6) The number of acres described in subpara2 graphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2) and paragraph 

3 (4) that use either of the following streamlined au4 thorities for environmental review: 

5 (A) A categorical exclusion. 

6 (B) An emergency action authority of the 

7 Secretary concerned. 

8 (7) The number of acres described in subpara9 graphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2) and paragraph 

10 (4) with respect to which partners are used to carry 

11 out the work through— 

12 (A) a good neighbor agreement under sec13 tion 8206 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (16 

14 U.S.C. 2113a); 

15 (B) a master stewardship agreement; 

16 (C) a contract or agreement entered into 

17 under the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 

18 (25 U.S.C. 3115a); or 

19 (D) a stewardship end-result contract. 

20 SEC. 103. TRANSPARENCY IN HAZARDOUS FUELS REDUC21 TION ACTIVITY REPORTING. 

22 (a) INCLUSION OF HAZARDOUS FUELS REDUCTION

23 REPORT IN MATERIALS SUBMITTED IN SUPPORT OF THE

24 PRESIDENT’S BUDGET.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary concerned shall 

2 include in the materials submitted in support of the 

3 President’s budget pursuant to section 1105 of title 

4 31, United States Code, a report describing— 

5 (A) for each of fiscal years 2025 through 

6 2030, the number of acres of Federal land on 

7 which the Secretary concerned carried out haz8 ardous fuels reduction activities during each of 

9 the preceding 6 fiscal years, as assessed by the 

10 Secretary concerned using— 

11 (i) the methodology of the Secretary 

12 concerned in effect on the day before the 

13 date of enactment of this Act; and 

14 (ii) the methodology described in para15 graph (2); and 

16 (B) for fiscal year 2031 and each fiscal year 

17 thereafter, the number of acres of Federal land 

18 on which the Secretary concerned carried out 

19 hazardous fuels reduction activities during each 

20 of the preceding 6 fiscal years, as assessed by the 

21 Secretary concerned using the methodology de22 scribed in paragraph (2). 

23 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—For purposes of the re24 ports 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 each fiscal year covered by the report— 

5 (i) record acres of Federal land on 

6 which hazardous fuels reduction activities 

7 were completed during each such fiscal year; 

8 and 

9 (ii) record each acre described in 

10 clause (i) once in the report with respect to 

11 a fiscal year, regardless of whether multiple 

12 hazardous fuels reduction activities were 

13 carried out on such acre during such fiscal 

14 year; and 

15 (B) with respect to the acres of Federal land 

16 recorded in the report, include information on— 

17 (i) which such acres are located in the 

18 wildland-urban interface; 

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

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

21 of each fiscal year covered by the report; 

22 (iii) the types of hazardous fuels reduc23 tion activities completed for such acres, de24 lineating between whether such activities 

25 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 fuels 

5 reduction activities carried out during each 

6 fiscal year 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 website 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 relating 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 ac10 tivities 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 are 

14 located within the wildland-urban interface and 

15 which acres are located outside the wildland16 urban interface. 

17 (3) REPORT.—Not later than 14 days 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 relating to hazardous fuels reduction 

25 activities under this subsection. 


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1 SEC. 104. REGIONAL FOREST CARBON ACCOUNTING. 

2 Not later than September 30, 2025, and every 3 years 

3 thereafter, the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the 

4 Chief of the Forest Service, shall— 

5 (1) using data from the forest inventory and 

6 analysis program, determine the net forest carbon bal7 ance on the land in the National Forest System of 

8 each Forest Service region, including whether the Na9 tional Forest System land is— 

10 (A) a carbon source; or 

11 (B) a carbon sink; and 

12 (2) publish the information described in para13 graph (1) on the website of the Forest Service. 

14 SEC. 105. WILDLAND FIRE PERFORMANCE METRICS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months after the 

16 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary concerned shall 

17 submit to the committees of Congress described in subsection 

18 (c) a report on existing key performance indicators and po19 tential outcome-based performance measures to reduce wild20 fire risk on Federal land. 

21 (b) INCLUSIONS.—The report submitted under sub22 section (a) shall identify solutions to track the implementa23 tion and effectiveness of hazardous fuels reduction activities 

24 and forest restoration treatments, including strategies— 


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1 (1) to track whether land management activities 

2 are reducing wildfire hazards and ways to quantify 

3 and track acres in maintenance status; 

4 (2) to track place-based and locally led outcomes; 

5 (3) to standardize national-level monitoring 

6 measures; 

7 (4) to quantify catastrophic wildfire risk reduc8 tion; 

9 (5) to identify modeling and data challenges that 

10 are preventing the transition to annual wildfire risk 

11 mapping updates; and 

12 (6) to integrate advanced technologies or a com13 bination of technologies and analyses that will benefit 

14 the quality of information reported. 

15 (c) COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS DESCRIBED.—The 

16 committees of Congress referred to in subsection (a) are— 

17 (1) the Committee on Energy and Natural Re18 sources of the Senate; 

19 (2) the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and 

20 Forestry of the Senate; 

21 (3) the Committee on Natural Resources of the 

22 House of Representatives; and 

23 (4) the Committee on Agriculture of the House of 

24 Representatives. 


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1 TITLE II—FOREST MANAGEMENT 

2 SEC. 201. VEGETATION MANAGEMENT, FACILITY INSPEC3 TION, AND OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE 

4 RELATING TO ELECTRIC TRANSMISSION AND 

5 DISTRIBUTION FACILITY RIGHTS-OF-WAY. 

6 (a) HAZARD TREES WITHIN 50 FEET OF ELECTRIC

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

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

9 1772(a)(1)(B)(ii)) is amended by striking ‘‘10’’ and insert10 ing ‘‘50’’. 

11 (b) PERMITS AND AGREEMENTS WITH OWNERS AND

12 OPERATORS OF ELECTRIC TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBU13 TION FACILITIES.—Section 512 of the Federal Land Policy 

14 and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1772) is amend15 ed— 

16 (1) in the section heading, by striking 

17 ‘‘MANAGMENT’’ and inserting ‘‘MANAGEMENT’’; 

18 (2) by redesignating subsections (j) and (k) as 

19 subsections (k) and (l), respectively; and 

20 (3) by inserting after subsection (i) the following: 

21 ‘‘(j) PERMITS AND AGREEMENTS WITH OWNERS AND

22 OPERATORS OF ELECTRIC TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBU23 TION FACILITIES.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In any special use permit or 

25 easement on National Forest System or Bureau of 


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1 Land Management land provided to the owner or op2 erator of an electric transmission or distribution fa3 cility, the Secretary concerned may provide permis4 sion to cut and remove trees or other vegetation from 

5 within the vicinity of the electric transmission or dis6 tribution facility without requiring a separate timber 

7 sale, if that cutting and removal is consistent with— 

8 ‘‘(A) the applicable plan; 

9 ‘‘(B) the applicable land and resource man10 agement plan or land use plan; and 

11 ‘‘(C) other applicable environmental laws 

12 (including regulations). 

13 ‘‘(2) USE OF PROCEEDS.—A special use permit 

14 or easement that includes permission for cutting and 

15 removal described in paragraph (1) shall include a 

16 requirement that, if the owner or operator of the elec17 tric transmission or distribution facility sells any 

18 portion of the material removed under the permit or 

19 easement, the owner or operator shall provide to the 

20 Secretary concerned any proceeds received from the 

21 sale, less any transportation costs incurred in the 

22 sale. 

23 ‘‘(3) EFFECT.—Nothing in paragraph (2) shall 

24 require the sale of any material removed under a perVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:55 Nov 22, 2024 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00036 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2867.RS S2867

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1 mit or easement that includes permission for cutting 

2 and removal described in paragraph (1).’’. 

3 SEC. 202. TIMBER SALES ON NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM 

4 LAND. 

5 Section 14(d) of the National Forest Management Act 

6 of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 472a(d)) is amended, in the first sen7 tence, by striking ‘‘$10,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$55,000’’. 

8 SEC. 203. CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION FOR HIGH-PRIORITY 

9 HAZARD TREES. 

10 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

11 (1) HIGH-PRIORITY HAZARD TREE.—The term 

12 ‘‘high-priority hazard tree’’ means a standing tree 

13 that— 

14 (A) presents a visible hazard to people or 

15 Federal property due to conditions such as dete16 rioration of or damage to the root system, trunk, 

17 stem, or limbs of the tree, or the direction or lean 

18 of the tree, as determined by the Secretary; 

19 (B) is determined by the Secretary to be 

20 highly likely to fail and, if it failed, would be 

21 highly likely to cause injury to people or damage 

22 to Federal property; and 

23 (C) is— 


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1 (i) within 300 feet of a National Forest 

2 System road with a maintenance level of 3, 

3 4, or 5; 

4 (ii) along a National Forest System 

5 trail; or 

6 (iii) in a developed recreation site on 

7 National Forest System land that is oper8 ated and maintained by the Secretary. 

9 (2) HIGH-PRIORITY HAZARD TREE ACTIVITY.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘high-priority 

11 hazard tree activity’’ means a forest manage12 ment activity that mitigates the risks associated 

13 with high-priority hazard trees, which may in14 clude pruning, felling, and disposal of those 

15 high-priority hazard trees. 

16 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘high-priority 

17 hazard tree activity’’ does not include— 

18 (i) any activity conducted in a wilder19 ness area or wilderness study area; 

20 (ii) any activity for the construction of 

21 a permanent road or permanent trail; 

22 (iii) any activity conducted on Federal 

23 land on which, by Act of Congress or Presi24 dential proclamation, the removal of vegeta25 tion is restricted or prohibited; 


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1 (iv) any activity conducted in an area 

2 in which activities described in subpara3 graph (A) would be inconsistent with the 

4 applicable land and resource management 

5 plan; or 

6 (v) any activity conducted in an 

7 inventoried roadless area. 

8 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

9 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

10 (b) CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

12 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

13 develop a categorical exclusion (as defined in 111 of 

14 the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

15 U.S.C. 4336e)) for high-priority hazard tree activi16 ties. 

17 (2) ADMINISTRATION.—In developing and ad18 ministering the categorical exclusion under para19 graph (1), the Secretary shall— 

20 (A) comply with the National Environ21 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 

22 seq.); and 

23 (B) apply the extraordinary circumstances 

24 procedures under section 220.6 of title 36, Code 

25 of Federal Regulations (or successor regulations), 


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1 in determining whether to use the categorical ex2 clusion. 

3 (3) PROJECT SIZE LIMITATION.—A project car4 ried out using the categorical exclusion developed 

5 under paragraph (1) may not exceed 3,000 acres. 

6 SEC. 204. INTERVENOR STATUS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of a civil action relat8 ing to a qualified project described in subsection (b), a unit 

9 of local government or an Indian Tribe shall be— 

10 (1) entitled to intervene, as of right, in any sub11 sequent civil action; and 

12 (2) considered to be a full participant in any 

13 settlement negotiation relating to the qualified project 

14 if the unit of local government or Indian Tribe, as 

15 applicable, intervenes. 

16 (b) DESCRIPTION OF QUALIFIED PROJECT.—A quali17 fied project referred to in subsection (a) is a project that— 

18 (1) is located on Federal land adjacent, or with 

19 sufficient minimum contacts, as determined by the 

20 Secretary concerned, to the land under the jurisdic21 tion of the unit of local government or Indian Tribe, 

22 as applicable; 

23 (2) has been approved by the Secretary con24 cerned; and 


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1 (3)(A) reduces the risk posed by wildfire, insect, 

2 or disease; or 

3 (B) generates revenue from the harvesting of tim4 ber. 

5 SEC. 205. UTILIZING GRAZING FOR WILDFIRE RISK REDUC6 TION. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months after the 

8 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary concerned shall 

9 develop and submit to the Committee on Energy and Nat10 ural Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Natural 

11 Resources of the House of Representatives a strategy to ana12 lyze and identify opportunities to use livestock grazing as 

13 a wildfire risk reduction tool on Federal land, consistent 

14 with the laws applicable to the Secretary concerned. 

15 (b) INCLUSIONS.—The strategy developed under sub16 section (a) shall include an analysis of— 

17 (1) opportunities— 

18 (A) to increase the use of any authorities 

19 applicable to livestock grazing, including modi20 fications to grazing permits or leases to allow 

21 variances; 

22 (B) to use targeted grazing to reduce haz23 ardous fuels; 

24 (C) to integrate advanced technologies to 

25 dynamically adjust livestock placement; 


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1 (D) to increase the use of livestock grazing 

2 to eradicate invasive annual grasses and as a 

3 post-fire restoration and recovery strategy, as 

4 appropriate; and 

5 (E) to facilitate and expedite the temporary 

6 use of vacant allotments during extreme weather 

7 events or natural disasters; and 

8 (2) any other opportunities determined to be ap9 propriate by the Secretary concerned. 

10 (c) EFFECT ON EXISTING GRAZING PROGRAMS.— 

11 Nothing in this section affects— 

12 (1) any livestock grazing program carried out by 

13 the Secretary concerned as of the date of enactment 

14 of this Act; or 

15 (2) any statutory authority for any program de16 scribed in paragraph (1). 

17 TITLE III—WORKFORCE 

18 SEC. 301. DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY. 

19 For fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter, 

20 the Secretary concerned may appoint, without regard to the 

21 provisions of subchapter I of chapter 33 of title 5, United 

22 States Code, other than sections 3303 and 3328 of that title, 

23 a Job Corps graduate (as defined in section 142(5) of the 

24 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 

25 3192(5))) directly to a position for which the graduate 


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1 meets Office of Personnel Management qualification stand2 ards. 

3 SEC. 302. CONTINUING ACCRUAL OF SERVICE FOR FIRE4 FIGHTERS. 

5 (a) FEDERAL EMPLOYEES’ RETIREMENT SYSTEM.— 

6 Section 8401(14) of title 5, United States Code, is amended 

7 to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(14) the term ‘firefighter’ means— 

9 ‘‘(A) an employee, the duties of whose posi10 tion— 

11 ‘‘(i) are primarily to perform work di12 rectly connected with the control and extin13 guishment of non-wildland fires; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) are sufficiently rigorous that em15 ployment opportunities should be limited to 

16 young and physically vigorous individuals, 

17 as determined by the Director considering 

18 the recommendations of the employing agen19 cy; 

20 ‘‘(B) an employee, the duties of whose posi21 tion— 

22 ‘‘(i) are primarily to perform work di23 rectly connected with the control and extin24 guishment of wildland fires; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) are sufficiently rigorous that em2 ployment opportunities should be limited to 

3 young and physically vigorous individuals, 

4 as determined by the Director considering 

5 the recommendations of the employing agen6 cy; 

7 ‘‘(C) an employee who— 

8 ‘‘(i) is transferred directly to a super9 visory or administrative position after per10 forming duties described in subparagraph 

11 (A) for at least 3 years; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) while serving in such supervisory 

13 or administrative position, has no break in 

14 service; or 

15 ‘‘(D) an employee who— 

16 ‘‘(i) occupies a supervisory or adminis17 trative position after performing duties de18 scribed in subparagraph (B) for not less 

19 than 3 years; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) has not more than 24 months in 

21 total time of breaks in service;’’. 

22 (b) SERVICE BEFORE DATE OF ENACTMENT.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the requirements 

24 under paragraph (2), service performed before the 

25 date of enactment of this Act by an individual who, 


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1 on the date of enactment of this Act, is an employee 

2 (as defined in section 8401(11) of title 5, United 

3 States Code) shall, for the purposes of chapter 84 of 

4 title 5, United States Code, be treated as service per5 formed by a firefighter if— 

6 (A) such service was performed during the 

7 period beginning on October 1, 2003, and ending 

8 on the day before the date of enactment of this 

9 Act; 

10 (B) at the time of performing such service— 

11 (i) the individual did not meet the re12 quirements to be a firefighter under section 

13 8401(14) of title 5, United States Code, be14 cause of a break in service; and 

15 (ii) would have met the requirements 

16 to be a firefighter under section 8401(14)(D) 

17 of title 5, United States Code, as amended 

18 by this Act; and 

19 (C) appropriate deductions and 

20 withholdings under sections 8422 and 8423 of 

21 title 5, United States Code, were made during 

22 such service. 

23 (2) CREDIT FOR SERVICE.—To receive credit for 

24 eligible service under paragraph (1), the applicable 

25 individual shall— 


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1 (A) before the date on which the individual 

2 separates from service in the agency in which the 

3 individual holds a position on the date of enact4 ment of this Act, submit a written election to the 

5 agency employing the individual; 

6 (B) if the individual is not employed by the 

7 agency that employed the individual when the 

8 service described in paragraph (1) was per9 formed, submit a written election to such agency; 

10 and 

11 (C) remit to the agency that employed the 

12 individual when such service was performed the 

13 additional amount that would have been de14 ducted during the period of prior service under 

15 section 8422 of title 5, United States Code, from 

16 the pay of the individual if the amendments 

17 made by subsection (a) had been in effect during 

18 the prior service, plus any applicable interest 

19 computed under section 8334(e) of title 5, United 

20 States Code. 

21 (3) GOVERNMENT CONTRIBUTIONS.—If an indi22 vidual remits payment under paragraph (2)(C) with 

23 respect to service described in paragraph (1), the 

24 agency that employed the individual when such serv25 ice was performed shall remit to the Office of PerVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:55 Nov 22, 2024 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00046 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2867.RS S2867

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1 sonnel Management (for deposit in the Treasury of 

2 the United States to the credit of the Civil Service Re3 tirement and Disability Fund) the total additional 

4 amount of Federal contributions that would have been 

5 paid under section 8423 of title 5, United States 

6 Code, if the amendments made by subsection (a) had 

7 been in effect during the prior service, plus any ap8 plicable interest computed in accordance with section 

9 8334(e) of title 5, United States Code. 

10 (4) NOTIFICATION AND ASSISTANCE REQUIRE11 MENTS.—The Director of the Office of Personnel Man12 agement shall— 

13 (A) take such action as may be necessary 

14 and appropriate to inform individuals entitled 

15 to have any service credited under this sub16 section, or to have any annuity computed under 

17 this subsection, of the entitlement to the credit or 

18 computation; and 

19 (B) upon request, assist any individual de20 scribed in subparagraph (A) in obtaining such 

21 information in the possession of the Secretary of 

22 Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior, as 

23 applicable, as may be necessary to verify the en24 titlement of the individual to have any service 


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1 credited, or to have any annuity computed, pur2 suant to this subsection. 

3 (5) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

4 section shall be construed to permit or require the 

5 making of any contribution to the Thrift Savings 

6 Fund that would not otherwise have been permitted or 

7 required but for the enactment of this section. 

8 SEC. 303. AFFORDABLE HOUSING FOR FEDERAL WILDLAND 

9 FIREFIGHTERS. 

10 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘‘agency’’ 

11 and ‘‘quarters’’ have the meanings given the terms in sec12 tion 5911(a) of title 5, United States Code. 

13 (b) MODERNIZING RENTAL REGULATIONS FOR FED14 ERAL HOUSING.—Section 5911 of title 5, United States 

15 Code, is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (f), by inserting after the first 

17 sentence the following: ‘‘In prescribing regulations 

18 under the previous sentence defining a dormitory 

19 (also known as a ‘bunkhouse’ or ‘barracks’) in rela20 tion to other forms of quarters, the President shall do 

21 so based on the square footage and intended number 

22 of residents of the quarters and shall discount the 

23 square footage of any area devoted to official use.’’; 

24 and 

25 (2) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(i) The head of each agency shall, to the maximum 

2 extent practicable, maintain quarters under the jurisdiction 

3 of that agency that are rented by an employee in a safe 

4 and sanitary condition. 

5 ‘‘(j) For any quarters rented by an employee that expe6 rience a loss in available facilities— 

7 ‘‘(1) the head of the agency that owns or leases 

8 the quarters shall attempt to repair or replace those 

9 facilities as soon as practicable; and 

10 ‘‘(2) the rental payments paid by the employee 

11 renting the quarters shall be immediately discounted 

12 commensurate to that loss in facilities. 

13 ‘‘(k) Notwithstanding section 5536, for any quarters 

14 that become uninhabitable due to a loss of facilities or other 

15 emergency circumstance, the head of the agency that owns 

16 or leases the quarters may provide alternative quarters and 

17 assess a rental rate not greater than the rate of the inhabit18 able quarters for a period of not longer than 28 days. 

19 ‘‘(l) Notwithstanding section 5536, the head of an 

20 agency may rent quarters owned or leased by that agency 

21 to an employee at a rate corresponding to full occupancy 

22 of those quarters, without regard to whether the quarters 

23 are fully occupied. 

24 ‘‘(m) If quarters are not fully occupied by employees 

25 at any point during a period of more than 1 year, the head 


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1 of the agency that owns or leases the quarters may, subject 

2 to the approval of the Director of the Office of Management 

3 and Budget, reduce the rental rate charged to an employee 

4 for those quarters by not more than 5 percent.’’. 

5 (c) ACCURATE RENTAL RATES FOR HOUSING.— 

6 (1) ACCURACY ASSESSMENT OF RENT FOR RE7 MOTE HOUSING.—Not later than 120 days after the 

8 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

9 of the United States shall initiate a study of the de10 termination of rental rates for quarters owned or 

11 leased by agencies that are— 

12 (A) subject to a reduction in rental rates 

13 due to the remoteness of the quarters under the 

14 regulations promulgated under Circular A–45R 

15 of the Office of Management and Budget, as re16 vised on November 25, 2019 (referred to in this 

17 subsection as ‘‘Circular A–45R’’); or 

18 (B) located in an area that receives a dif19 ferent locality-comparability payment under sec20 tion 5304 or 5304a of title 5, United States 

21 Code, than the nearest established community for 

22 those quarters, as determined under the regula23 tions promulgated under Circular A–45R. 


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1 (2) ANALYSIS.—In conducting the study required 

2 under paragraph (1), the Comptroller General of the 

3 United States shall analyze— 

4 (A) the extent to which rental rates for the 

5 quarters accurately reflect similar units offered 

6 for rent in local housing markets or housing 

7 markets of the nearest established community; 

8 (B) the accuracy of rental rate adjustments 

9 relating to the remoteness of the quarters in mak10 ing rental rates more reflective of rates in the 

11 local housing market, especially for any housing 

12 that can only be accessed through methods other 

13 than on a paved road; and 

14 (C) whether the maximum allowable remote15 ness adjustment of 60 percent from similar units 

16 in the nearest established community is sufficient 

17 in cases of extremely remote housing to accu18 rately reflect local housing markets. 

19 (3) CONSULTATION.—In conducting the study re20 quired under paragraph (1) or the analysis required 

21 under paragraph (2), the Comptroller General of the 

22 United States may consult with— 

23 (A) the National Housing Council described 

24 in Circular A–45R; 


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1 (B) the Director of the Office of Manage2 ment and Budget; 

3 (C) the Secretary of Agriculture; 

4 (D) the Secretary of the Interior; or 

5 (E) any other agency that owns or leases 

6 quarters. 

7 (4) REMEDIATION.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

9 after the completion of the study required under 

10 paragraph (2), the Director of the Office of Man11 agement and Budget shall review the regulations 

12 promulgated under Circular A–45R and, if nec13 essary, revise the regulations to remedy, to the 

14 maximum extent practicable, any discrepancies 

15 between established rental rates for quarters and 

16 the market rate for those quarters. 

17 (B) FACTORS FOR CONSIDERATION.—The 

18 Director of the Office of Management and Budg19 et, in completing any review or revision under 

20 subparagraph (A), shall consider the best avail21 able evidence, including the survey and analysis 

22 by the Comptroller General of the United States 

23 under paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively. 

24 (C) NONAPPLICATION.—The requirement 

25 under subparagraph (A) to revise regulations 


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1 promulgated under Circular A–45R shall not 

2 apply if the Director of the Office of Manage3 ment and Budget certifies that remedying the 

4 discrepancies described in subparagraph (A) 

5 would result in increased rental rates, on aver6 age, for quarters. 

7 (d) AFFORDABILITY OF HOUSING FOR WILDLAND

8 FIREFIGHTERS.— 

9 (1) REPORTING ON EXPENSIVE FIREFIGHTER

10 HOUSING.—Not later than 180 days after the date of 

11 the revision of regulations under subsection (c)(4)(A), 

12 or the certification under section (c)(4)(C), the Sec13 retary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior 

14 shall prepare a report that establishes a list of any 

15 quarters owned or leased by that Secretary that— 

16 (A) as of the date on which the report is 

17 prepared, are rented, or are intended for rent, 

18 primarily by a wildland firefighter; and 

19 (B) have a rental cost that exceeds 30 per20 cent of— 

21 (i) the rate of basic pay for that 

22 wildland firefighter, or any special rate of 

23 basic pay established for that wildland fire24 fighter, plus any locality-based comVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:55 Nov 22, 2024 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00053 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S2867.RS S2867

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1 parability payment under section 5304 or 

2 5304a of title 5, United States Code; or 

3 (ii) for a prevailing rate employee de4 scribed in section 5342(a)(2)(A) of that title 

5 in a position for which the duties of the po6 sition relate primarily to wildland fires, the 

7 wage rate of that employee. 

8 (2) REMEDIATION.—For any quarters included 

9 on the list required under paragraph (1), the Sec10 retary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior, 

11 as applicable, shall prepare a plan to reduce the rent12 al costs for those quarters, including by— 

13 (A) reducing the rental costs for such hous14 ing under the authority provided in subsection 

15 (m) of section 5911 of title 5, United States 

16 Code, as added by this section; 

17 (B) using the authorities provided by— 

18 (i) section 8623 of the Agriculture Im19 provement Act of 2018 (16 U.S.C. 580d 

20 note; Public Law 115–334); 

21 (ii) subchapter III of chapter 1013 of 

22 title 54, United States Code; or 

23 (iii) section 7 of the Fish and Wildlife 

24 Act of 1956 (16 U.S.C. 742f); or 


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1 (C) other applicable authorities to construct 

2 or lease housing. 

3 (3) TEMPORARY REMEDIATION.— 

4 (A) TIME TABLE REQUIRED.—Each remedi5 ation plan prepared under paragraph (2) shall 

6 include a timeline for implementing the plan. 

7 (B) RENTAL CAP.—Notwithstanding the re8 quirements of section 5536 of title 5, United 

9 States Code, the Secretary of Agriculture or Sec10 retary of the Interior, as applicable, may estab11 lish a cap on rental costs for a wildland fire12 fighter or prevailing rate employee in a position 

13 for which the duties of the position relate pri14 marily to wildland fires that inhabits quarters 

15 subject to a remediation plan under paragraph 

16 (2), which shall be not more than 30 percent 

17 of— 

18 (i) the rate of basic pay for that 

19 wildland firefighter, or any special rate of 

20 basic pay established for that wildland fire21 fighter, plus any locality-based com22 parability payment under section 5304 or 

23 5304a of that title; or 

24 (ii) for a prevailing rate employee de25 scribed in section 5342(a)(2)(A) of title 5, 


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1 United States Code, the wage rate of that 

2 employee. 

3 (C) RENTAL CAP DURATION.—The duration 

4 of any rental cap imposed under subparagraph 

5 (B) shall not exceed the timetable identified 

6 under subparagraph (A) for implementation of 

7 the applicable remediation plan prepared under 

8 paragraph (2). 

9 (D) RENTAL CAP RENEWAL.—A rental cap, 

10 the duration of which has expired under sub11 paragraph (C) because of implementation delays 

12 for the applicable remediation plan prepared 

13 under paragraph (2), may be renewed for peri14 ods of not longer than 2 years, if the Secretary 

15 of Agriculture or the Secretary of the Interior, as 

16 applicable, submits an explanation of the reason 

17 for the implementation delays to— 

18 (i) the Committee on Energy and Nat19 ural Resources of the Senate; 

20 (ii) the Committee on Agriculture, Nu21 trition, and Forestry of the Senate; 

22 (iii) the Committee on Homeland Se23 curity and Governmental Affairs of the Sen24 ate; 


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1 (iv) the Committee on Appropriations 

2 of the Senate; 

3 (v) the Committee on Natural Re4 sources of the House of Representatives; 

5 (vi) the Committee on Agriculture of 

6 the House of Representatives; 

7 (vii) the Committee on Oversight and 

8 Accountability of the House of Representa9 tives; and 

10 (viii) the Committee on Appropria11 tions of the House of Representatives. 

12 TITLE IV—CULTURAL CHANGE 

13 IN AGENCIES 

14 SEC. 401. MANDATORY USE OF EXISTING AUTHORITIES. 

15 Not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of 

16 this Act, with respect to each unit of Federal land that con17 tains land described in section 102(5), the Secretary con18 cerned shall use not fewer than 1 of the following stream19 lined authorities for environmental review: 

20 (1) Section 603(a) of the Healthy Forests Res21 toration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591b(a)). 

22 (2) Section 605(a) of the Healthy Forests Res23 toration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591d(a)). 

24 (3) Section 606(b) of the Healthy Forests Res25 toration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591e(b)). 


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1 (4) Section 40806(b) of the Infrastructure Invest2 ment and Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 6592b(b)). 

3 (5) Section 40807 of the Infrastructure Invest4 ment and Jobs Act (16 U.S.C. 6592c). 

5 (6) Section 207 of the Wildfire Suppression 

6 Funding and Forest Management Activities Act (16 

7 U.S.C. 6591c note; Public Law 115–141). 

8 SEC. 402. PUBLIC-PRIVATE WILDFIRE TECHNOLOGY DE9 PLOYMENT AND TESTBED PARTNERSHIP. 

10 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

11 (1) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES.—The term ‘‘ap12 propriate committees’’ means— 

13 (A) the Committees on Agriculture, Nutri14 tion, and Forestry, Energy and Natural Re15 sources, and Commerce, Science, and Transpor16 tation of the Senate; and 

17 (B) the Committees on Agriculture, Natural 

18 Resources, and Science, Space, and Technology 

19 of the House of Representatives. 

20 (2) COVERED AGENCY.—The term ‘‘covered agen21 cy’’ means— 

22 (A) each Federal land management agency 

23 (as defined in section 802 of the Federal Lands 

24 Recreation Enhancement Act (16 U.S.C. 6801)); 

25 (B) the Department of Defense; 


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1 (C) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

2 Administration; 

3 (D) the United States Fire Administration; 

4 (E) the Federal Emergency Management 

5 Agency; 

6 (F) the National Aeronautics and Space 

7 Administration; 

8 (G) the Bureau of Indian Affairs; and 

9 (H) any other Federal agency involved in 

10 wildfire response. 

11 (3) COVERED ENTITY.—The term ‘‘covered enti12 ty’’ means— 

13 (A) a private entity; 

14 (B) a nonprofit organization; and 

15 (C) an institution of higher education (as 

16 defined in section 101 of the Higher Education 

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

18 (4) PILOT PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘Pilot Pro19 gram’’ means the deployment and testbed pilot pro20 gram established under subsection (b). 

21 (5) SECRETARIES.—The term ‘‘Secretaries’’ 

22 means the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary 

23 of the Interior, acting jointly. 

24 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 60 days after 

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1 nation with the heads of the covered agencies, shall establish 

2 a deployment and testbed pilot program for new and inno3 vative wildfire prevention, detection, communication, and 

4 mitigation technologies. 

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

6 the Secretaries shall— 

7 (1) incorporate the Pilot Program into an exist8 ing interagency coordinating group on wildfires; 

9 (2) in consultation with the heads of covered 

10 agencies, identify key technology priority areas with 

11 respect to the deployment of wildfire prevention, de12 tection, communication, and mitigation technologies, 

13 including— 

14 (A) hazardous fuels reduction activities or 

15 treatments; 

16 (B) dispatch communications; 

17 (C) remote sensing and tracking; 

18 (D) safety equipment; and 

19 (E) common operating pictures or oper20 ational dashboards; and 

21 (3) connect each covered entity selected to par22 ticipate in the Pilot Program with the appropriate 

23 covered agency to coordinate real-time and on-the24 ground testing of technology during wildland fire 

25 mitigation activities and training. 


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1 (d) APPLICATIONS.—To participate in the Pilot Pro2 gram, a covered entity shall submit to the Secretaries an 

3 application at such time, in such manner, and containing 

4 such information as the Secretaries may require, which 

5 shall include a proposal to test technologies specific to key 

6 technology priority areas identified under subsection (c)(2). 

7 (e) PRIORITIZATION OF EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES.— 

8 In selecting covered entities to participate in the Pilot Pro9 gram, the Secretaries shall give priority to covered entities 

10 developing and applying emerging technologies that address 

11 issues identified by the Secretaries, including artificial in12 telligence, quantum sensing, computing and quantum-hy13 brid applications, augmented reality, and 5G private net14 works and device-to-device communications supporting no15 madic mesh networks, for wildfire mitigation. 

16 (f) OUTREACH.—The Secretaries, in coordination with 

17 the heads of the covered agencies, shall make publicly avail18 able the key technology priority areas identified under sub19 section (c)(2) and invite covered entities to apply to test 

20 and demonstrate their technologies to address those priority 

21 areas. 

22 (g) REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—Not later 

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

24 each year thereafter for the duration of the Pilot Program, 

25 the Secretaries shall submit to the appropriate committees 


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1 a report that includes the following with respect to the Pilot 

2 Program: 

3 (1) A list of participating covered entities. 

4 (2) A brief description of the technologies tested 

5 by such covered entities. 

6 (3) An estimate of the cost of acquiring the tech7 nology tested in the Pilot Program and applying it 

8 at scale. 

9 (4) Outreach efforts by Federal agencies to cov10 ered entities developing wildfire technologies. 

11 (5) Assessments of, and recommendations relat12 ing to, new technologies with potential adoption and 

13 application at-scale in the wildfire prevention, detec14 tion, communication, and mitigation efforts of Fed15 eral land management agencies (as defined in section 

16 802 of the Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement 

17 Act (16 U.S.C. 6801)). 

18 (h) TERMINATION.—The Pilot Program shall expire on 

19 the date that is 7 years after the date of enactment of this 

20 Act. 

21 SEC. 403. REPEAL OF FLAME REPORTS. 

22 Section 502 of the FLAME Act of 2009 (43 U.S.C. 

23 1748a) is amended— 

24 (1) by striking subsection (h); and 


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1 (2) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection 

2 (h). 


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Calendar No. 592 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2867 

A BILL 

To address the forest health crisis on the National 

purposes. Forest System and public lands, and for other 

NOVEMBER 21, 2024 

Reported with an amendment 


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