I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3534 

To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to select and implement landscapescale forest restoration projects, to assist communities in increasing their 

resilience to wildfire, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 25, 2021 

Mr. PANETTA (for himself, Mr. COSTA, Mr. HARDER of California, Mr. 

GARAMENDI, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mr. CORREA, and Mr. THOMPSON of California) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committees on Transportation and 

Infrastructure, Natural Resources, Energy and Commerce, and Education and Labor, 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 direct the Secretary of Agriculture to select and implement landscape-scale forest restoration projects, to assist 

communities in increasing their resilience to wildfire, 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 ‘‘Wildfire Emergency Act of 2021’’. 


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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. 

TITLE I—LANDSCAPE-SCALE FOREST RESTORATION 

Sec. 101. Definitions. 

Sec. 102. Purpose. 

Sec. 103. Selection and implementation of landscape-scale forest restoration 

projects. 

Sec. 104. Conservation finance agreements. 

Sec. 105. Administration. 

Sec. 106. Report evaluating implementation. 

Sec. 107. Funding. 

TITLE II—INCREASING COMMUNITY RESILIENCE TO WILDFIRE 

Sec. 201. Critical infrastructure and microgrid program. 

Sec. 202. Retrofits for fire-resilient communities. 

Sec. 203. Hazard mitigation using disaster assistance. 

Sec. 204. Wildfire detection equipment. 

TITLE III—RESEARCH, TRAINING, AND CAPACITY BUILDING 

Sec. 301. Western prescribed fire centers. 

Sec. 302. Innovative forest workforce development program. 

Sec. 303. National community capacity and land stewardship grant program. 

3 TITLE I—LANDSCAPE-SCALE 

4 FOREST RESTORATION 

5 SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 

6 In this title: 

7 (1) CONSERVATION FINANCE AGREEMENT.— 

8 The term ‘‘conservation finance agreement’’ means a 

9 mutual benefit agreement (excluding a procurement 

10 contract, grant, or cooperative agreement described 

11 in chapter 63 of title 31, United States Code)— 

12 (A) the term of which is more than 1, but 

13 not more than 20, years; 


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1 (B) that may provide that performance 

2 under the agreement during the second and 

3 subsequent years of the agreement is contingent 

4 on the appropriation of funds; and 

5 (C) if the agreement does so provide, that 

6 may provide for a cancellation payment to be 

7 made to the partner if those appropriations are 

8 not made. 

9 (2) ECOLOGICAL CONDITIONS.—The term ‘‘eco10 logical conditions’’ has the meaning given the term 

11 in section 219.19 of title 36, Code of Federal Regu12 lations (as in effect on the date of enactment of this 

13 Act). 

14 (3) ECOLOGICAL INTEGRITY.—The term ‘‘eco15 logical integrity’’ has the meaning given the term in 

16 section 219.19 of title 36, Code of Federal Regula17 tions (as in effect on the date of enactment of this 

18 Act). 

19 (4) LANDSCAPE ASSESSMENT.—The term 

20 ‘‘landscape assessment’’ means an assessment of a 

21 landscape that— 

22 (A) meets the requirements described in 

23 section 103(c)(1)(C); 

24 (B) does not constitute a decision docu25 ment or final agency action requiring a separate 


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1 analysis under the National Environmental Pol2 icy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); and 

3 (C) may be presented— 

4 (i) in a separate analysis; 

5 (ii) within 1 or more broader analyses, 

6 including analyses under the National En7 vironmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

8 4321 et seq.); or 

9 (iii) through a combination of the 

10 analyses described in clauses (i) and (ii). 

11 (5) RESTORE.—The term ‘‘restore’’ has the 

12 meaning given the term in section 219.19 of title 36, 

13 Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the 

14 date of enactment of this Act). 

15 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

16 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

17 (7) WILDLAND-URBAN INTERFACE.—The term 

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

19 the term in section 101 of the Healthy Forests Res20 toration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6511). 

21 SEC. 102. PURPOSE. 

22 The purpose of this title is to increase the pace and 

23 scale of forest restoration and reduction in the risk of 

24 uncharacteristic wildfire through— 


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1 (1) authorizing a pilot program with conserva2 tion finance agreement authority to leverage other 

3 Federal and non-Federal investment (excluding 

4 funds appropriated to the Forest Service) in land5 scape-scale forest restoration and related natural 

6 and built infrastructure, equipment, and job train7 ing; 

8 (2) project planning and analysis practices that 

9 effectively scale up to the landscape level of 100,000 

10 acres or more; 

11 (3) requiring ecological standards and collabo12 ration for landscape-scale projects; and 

13 (4) coordination with Federal, State, local, and 

14 Tribal agencies to expand personnel options to sup15 port the pilot program described in paragraph (1) by 

16 taking advantage of interorganizational support. 

17 SEC. 103. SELECTION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF LAND18 SCAPE-SCALE FOREST RESTORATION 

19 PROJECTS. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall select, in ac21 cordance with this section, landscape-scale forest restora22 tion projects— 

23 (1) to implement on National Forest System 

24 land; and 


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1 (2) if applicable, to implement on land adjoin2 ing National Forest System land, in coordination 

3 with other Federal and non-Federal entities. 

4 (b) INITIAL PHASE.—During the 5-year period begin5 ning on the date of enactment of this Act, subject to the 

6 availability of appropriations pursuant to section 107(a), 

7 the Secretary shall select not more than 20 landscape8 scale forest restoration projects under subsection (a). 

9 (c) ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), to 

11 be eligible for selection and implementation under 

12 subsection (a), a landscape-scale forest restoration 

13 project shall satisfy the following requirements: 

14 (A) The purposes and needs for the project 

15 shall be— 

16 (i) to restore the ecological integrity 

17 and ecological resilience of terrestrial and 

18 aquatic areas that have departed from ref19 erence conditions within the forest land20 scape; 

21 (ii) to restore appropriate natural fire 

22 regimes, including by reducing fuel loads 

23 and modifying forest structure in areas 

24 that have departed from reference condiVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:21 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3534.IH H3534

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1 tions, taking into account the current and 

2 projected impacts of climate change; and 

3 (iii) to conduct wildfire risk reduction 

4 activities within the wildland-urban inter5 face to the extent that the project includes 

6 lands within the wildland-urban interface. 

7 (B) The project shall be developed and 

8 supported by a collaborative group that— 

9 (i) includes multiple interested per10 sons representing diverse interests; 

11 (ii) is transparent and inclusive; and 

12 (iii) has sufficient expertise, capacity, 

13 and scientific support to effectively plan, 

14 implement, and monitor landscape-level, 

15 ecologically based forest restoration activi16 ties. 

17 (C) The project shall be based on a land18 scape assessment that shall— 

19 (i) cover a landscape of— 

20 (I) except as provided in sub21 clauses (II) and (III), not less than 

22 100,000 acres; 

23 (II) in such limited cases as the 

24 Secretary determines to be appro25 priate, not less than 80,000 acres if— 


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1 (aa) the assessment is com2 pleted or substantially completed 

3 as of the date of enactment of 

4 this Act; and 

5 (bb) in the determination of 

6 the Secretary, assessing a larger 

7 area is not necessary to restore 

8 the integrity, resilience, and fire 

9 regimes of the landscape; or 

10 (III) not less than 50,000 acres 

11 in the case of a project that is carried 

12 out east of the 100th meridian; 

13 (ii) evaluate ecological integrity and 

14 determine reference conditions for the 

15 landscape; 

16 (iii) identify terrestrial and aquatic 

17 areas within the landscape that have de18 parted from reference conditions; 

19 (iv) identify criteria to determine ap20 propriate restoration treatments within de21 graded areas of the landscape to achieve 

22 reference conditions, including manage23 ment prescriptions, mitigation measures, 

24 and constraints to be applied when car25 rying out actions in those areas; 


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1 (v) be based on the best available sci2 entific information and data, including, 

3 where applicable, high-resolution imagery, 

4 LiDAR, and similar technologies and infor5 mation, and involve direct engagement by 

6 scientists; and 

7 (vi) identify priority restoration strat8 egies for terrestrial and aquatic areas, in9 cluding prescribed fire and wildfires man10 aged for multiple resource benefits, which 

11 shall focus on— 

12 (I) areas that are the most de13 parted from reference conditions; and 

14 (II) areas that would benefit the 

15 most from reducing the risk of 

16 uncharacteristic wildfire, especially 

17 with respect to nearby communities, 

18 taking into account other completed, 

19 ongoing, and planned fuels-reduction 

20 projects. 

21 (D) Restoration treatments under the 

22 project— 

23 (i) shall emphasize the reintroduction 

24 of characteristic fire, based on forest ecol25 ogy and reference conditions, through the 


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1 use of prescribed fire, wildfire managed for 

2 resource benefits, or both; 

3 (ii) that involve any proposed mechan4 ical treatments shall be designed to pro5 mote— 

6 (I) the restoration of reference 

7 conditions in areas that lack ecological 

8 integrity, especially the reduction of 

9 surface and ladder fuels; and 

10 (II) the establishment of condi11 tions that will facilitate prescribed fire 

12 or managed wildfire; 

13 (iii) shall— 

14 (I) fully maintain or contribute 

15 to the restoration of reference old for16 est conditions, taking into account the 

17 current and projected impacts of cli18 mate change; and 

19 (II) protect or increase the num20 ber and distribution of large old trees, 

21 consistent with reference conditions, 

22 excepting any de minimis losses of 

23 large old trees from prescribed fire or 

24 hazardous tree removal; and 


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1 (iv) that involve prescribed fire shall 

2 provide advance notification, in accordance 

3 with notification procedures developed by 

4 the Secretary, to the owner or operator of 

5 critical infrastructure, such as a power line 

6 right-of-way, of any prescribed fire treat7 ments within close proximity to the infra8 structure. 

9 (E) The project shall be consistent with all 

10 applicable environmental laws, including— 

11 (i) the National Environmental Policy 

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

13 (ii) the Endangered Species Act of 

14 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.); and 

15 (iii) the Forest and Rangeland Renew16 able Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 

17 U.S.C. 1600 et seq.). 

18 (F) The project shall be consistent with 

19 the Roadless Area Conservation Rule estab20 lished under part 294 of title 36, Code of Fed21 eral Regulations (or successor regulations), and 

22 the final rule and record of decision of the For23 est Service entitled ‘‘Special Areas; Roadless 

24 Area Conservation’’ (66 Fed. Reg. 3244 (Janu25 ary 12, 2001)) (or a successor rule). 


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1 (G) The project shall require multiparty 

2 monitoring, including opportunities for public 

3 engagement, and an adaptive management ap4 proach that— 

5 (i) conditions the future implementa6 tion of the project on the satisfactory com7 pletion of— 

8 (I) priority restoration actions; 

9 and 

10 (II) required monitoring; 

11 (ii) validates conditions projected to 

12 occur in the environmental analysis for the 

13 project; and 

14 (iii) requires modifications to the 

15 project if monitoring reveals impacts be16 yond the anticipated impacts of the 

17 project. 

18 (H)(i) No new permanent road may be 

19 built as part of the project. 

20 (ii) Any new temporary roads needed to 

21 implement the project shall be decommissioned 

22 not later than 3 years after completion of the 

23 project. 

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1 making that is consistent with the National En2 vironmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

3 4321 et seq.), which may include— 

4 (i) the preparation of a single environ5 mental impact statement or environmental 

6 assessment, as applicable, for the entire 

7 project, incorporating the landscape assess8 ment described in subparagraph (C); 

9 (ii) the use of, as applicable— 

10 (I) multiple records of decision to 

11 implement a single environmental im12 pact statement; or 

13 (II) multiple decision notices to 

14 implement a single environmental as15 sessment; 

16 (iii) the preparation of a pro17 grammatic environmental impact state18 ment or environmental assessment, as ap19 plicable, for the entire project, incor20 porating the landscape assessment de21 scribed in subparagraph (C), followed by 

22 focused, concise, and site-specific— 

23 (I) environmental assessments; or 

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1 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

2 4321 et seq.); or 

3 (iv) the use of the landscape assess4 ment described in subparagraph (C), 

5 through incorporation by reference and 

6 similar approaches, to support focused, 

7 concise, and site-specific— 

8 (I) environmental assessments; or 

9 (II) categorical exclusions con10 sistent with the National Environ11 mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 

12 4321 et seq.). 

13 (2) EXCEPTION.—If the Secretary determines 

14 that there are an insufficient number of projects 

15 that fully comply with the requirements described in 

16 paragraph (1) to implement based on all available 

17 funding, then the Secretary may, during the 2-year 

18 period beginning on the date of enactment of this 

19 Act, select under subsection (a) not more than a 

20 total of 5 landscape-scale forest restoration projects 

21 to implement that do not fully comply with those re22 quirements if the projects— 

23 (A) fully comply with the requirements de24 scribed in subparagraphs (B), (D), (E), (F), 

25 (G), (H), and (I) of that paragraph; 


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1 (B) in the determination of the Secretary, 

2 have purposes and needs that are consistent 

3 with the purposes and needs described in sub4 paragraph (A) of that paragraph; and 

5 (C) are supported by landscape assess6 ments that are substantially (if not completely) 

7 consistent with the requirements described in 

8 subparagraph (C) of that paragraph, subject to 

9 the condition that the applicable landscape as10 sessments fully comply with the requirements 

11 described in clauses (i) and (v) of that subpara12 graph. 

13 (d) EVALUATION OF ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—In determining which land15 scape-scale forest restoration projects to select under 

16 subsection (a), the Secretary shall consider— 

17 (A) the criteria described in paragraph (2); 

18 (B) the extent to which the project utilizes 

19 the approaches to project implementation de20 scribed in paragraph (3); and 

21 (C) the recommendations of the advisory 

22 panel established under subsection (e). 

23 (2) CRITERIA.—The criteria referred to in 

24 paragraph (1)(A) are— 


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1 (A) the demonstrated need, based on the 

2 best available science, to restore ecological in3 tegrity to degraded or departed areas within the 

4 landscape covered by the project, taking into 

5 account the current and projected impacts of 

6 climate change; 

7 (B)(i) the importance of watersheds in the 

8 area covered by the project for downstream 

9 waters supply; and 

10 (ii) the opportunity to improve the ecologi11 cal integrity and ecological conditions of those 

12 watersheds and reduce risks to water resources 

13 through landscape-scale forest restoration; 

14 (C)(i) the potential extent of cost sharing 

15 for the development and implementation of the 

16 project from diverse sources, such as State or 

17 local governments, water or electric utilities, 

18 carbon credits, or private entities; and 

19 (ii) the proportion of the non-Federal cost 

20 share that is in the form of cash contributions; 

21 (D) whether the area covered by the 

22 project has high-resolution, remote-sensing data 

23 and other information available that enables a 

24 landscape assessment and a robust analysis and 


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1 disclosure of the effects and outcomes of imple2 menting restoration activities; 

3 (E) whether the project is using, or will 

4 use, innovative approaches to completing re5 source surveys that are less costly and less 

6 time-consuming than usual practices while pro7 viding the information necessary for project de8 sign and analysis; 

9 (F) whether the project will reduce the 

10 number of miles of permanent roads on Na11 tional Forest System land that are not nec12 essary for resource management or recreational 

13 access; 

14 (G) whether the project will assess or 

15 quantify the ecosystem service benefits of forest 

16 restoration within the landscape covered by the 

17 project, such as water, carbon, biodiversity, fire 

18 risk reduction, public health, and community 

19 safety; 

20 (H) whether the project has the potential 

21 to support new or existing wood processing in22 frastructure that can make economic use of the 

23 byproducts of forest restoration; 

24 (I) whether the project has the potential to 

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1 portunities, particularly in economically dis2 advantaged communities; 

3 (J) the scale of the landscape assessment 

4 for the project, with a preference for projects 

5 for which the landscape assessment covers a 

6 larger area; and 

7 (K) whether the project— 

8 (i) strives to restore ecological integ9 rity and ecological conditions within areas 

10 across land ownerships, including State 

11 and private land; and 

12 (ii) will reduce the risk of 

13 uncharacteristic wildfire, and, to the extent 

14 practicable, restore ecological integrity, 

15 within the wildland-urban interface. 

16 (3) APPROACHES TO LANDSCAPE-SCALE

17 PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION.—A landscape-scale res18 toration project carried out under this section may 

19 use 1 or both of the following approaches to project 

20 implementation: 

21 (A) CONSERVATION FINANCE AGREE22 MENTS.—The Secretary may enter into a con23 servation finance agreement under the pilot 

24 program established under section 104(a) to 

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1 tating private, other non-Federal, and other 

2 Federal investment (excluding the investment of 

3 any other amounts appropriated to the Forest 

4 Service)— 

5 (i) to increase the pace and scale of 

6 forest restoration at the landscape level; 

7 (ii) to support the use of prescribed 

8 fire at a greater scale; or 

9 (iii) to make greater economic use of 

10 the byproducts of forest restoration to re11 duce the net cost of forest restoration. 

12 (B) INTERAGENCY PERSONNEL COLLABO13 RATION.—The Secretary may coordinate with 

14 Federal, State, local, and Tribal agencies to ex15 pand personnel options to support the project 

16 by using authorities such as— 

17 (i) the good neighbor authority under 

18 section 8206 of the Agricultural Act of 

19 2014 (16 U.S.C. 2113a); 

20 (ii) sections 3371 through 3376 of 

21 title 5, United States Code (commonly re22 ferred to as the ‘‘Intergovernmental Per23 sonnel Act’’); and 

24 (iii) part 334 of title 5, Code of Fed25 eral Regulations (or successor regulations). 


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1 (e) ADVISORY PANEL.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 

3 and maintain an advisory panel composed of not 

4 more than 15 members to evaluate, and provide rec5 ommendations on— 

6 (A) each landscape-scale forest restoration 

7 project that the Secretary is reviewing for po8 tential selection under subsection (a); and 

9 (B) proposals for planning and developing 

10 landscape-scale forest restoration projects that 

11 the Secretary is reviewing for potential funding 

12 under section 107(a)(1). 

13 (2) REPRESENTATION.—The Secretary shall en14 sure that the membership of the advisory panel es15 tablished under paragraph (1) is fairly balanced in 

16 terms of the points of view represented and the 

17 functions to be performed by the advisory panel. 

18 (3) INCLUSION.—The advisory panel estab19 lished under paragraph (1) shall include experts in 

20 ecological forest restoration, fire ecology, fire man21 agement, rural economic and workforce development, 

22 strategies for ecological adaptation to climate 

23 change, fish and wildlife ecology, and woody biomass 

24 and small-diameter tree utilization. 


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1 (4) EXEMPTION.—The advisory panel estab2 lished under paragraph (1) shall be exempt from the 

3 Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.). 

4 SEC. 104. CONSERVATION FINANCE AGREEMENTS. 

5 (a) PILOT PROGRAM AUTHORITY.—The Secretary 

6 shall establish a pilot program under which the Secretary 

7 may enter into a conservation finance agreement with a 

8 public or private person, including a for-profit or nonprofit 

9 organization, to plan, implement, and monitor a land10 scape-scale forest restoration project selected by the Sec11 retary under section 103(a) if the Secretary finds each of 

12 the following: 

13 (1) There is a reasonable expectation that, 

14 throughout the contemplated agreement period, the 

15 Secretary will request funding for the agreement at 

16 the level required to avoid agreement cancellation. 

17 (2) The environmental analysis for the project 

18 demonstrates that there is a sufficient supply of 

19 small-diameter material to support a long-term 

20 agreement consistent with the landscape assessment 

21 and all applicable environmental laws. 

22 (3) The use of the conservation finance agree23 ment will, in the area of the applicable landscape24 scale forest restoration project, assist in achieving 

25 the purpose described in section 102. 


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1 (4) The project involves an entity that dem2 onstrates experience in— 

3 (A) developing and implementing conserva4 tion finance public-private partnerships; and 

5 (B) raising capital commitments from 

6 concessional and market rate investors or other 

7 external financing. 

8 (b) LIMITED DELEGATION.—The Secretary may not 

9 delegate the pilot program authority under subsection (a) 

10 to a Federal official that serves under the Chief of the 

11 Forest Service. 

12 (c) LIMITATIONS.—The pilot program authority 

13 under subsection (a)— 

14 (1) may be used for the obligation under con15 servation finance agreements of not more than— 

16 (A) $250,000,000 in the aggregate; and 

17 (B) $50,000,000 for any 1 landscape-scale 

18 forest restoration project; and 

19 (2) may not be used to pay interest to any 

20 other entity providing funds for the applicable land21 scape-scale forest restoration project. 

22 (d) CANCELLATION, TERMINATION, OR MODIFICA23 TION FOR INSUFFICIENT FUNDING.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.— 


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1 (A) INSUFFICIENT FUNDING.—If funds are 

2 not made available for the continuation of a 

3 conservation finance agreement made under 

4 this section into a subsequent fiscal year, the 

5 agreement shall be canceled, terminated, or 

6 modified. 

7 (B) PAYMENT OF COSTS.—If the Secretary 

8 determines that it is necessary to cancel or ter9 minate a conservation finance agreement pursu10 ant to subparagraph (A), and the conservation 

11 finance agreement includes a cancellation provi12 sion described in paragraph (2)(A), the Sec13 retary may pay the costs of that cancellation or 

14 termination using any of the following amounts: 

15 (i) Appropriations originally available 

16 for the performance of the applicable con17 servation finance agreement. 

18 (ii) Appropriations currently available 

19 for the type of services concerned under 

20 the applicable conservation finance agree21 ment, and not otherwise obligated. 

22 (iii) Funds appropriated for payments 

23 for those costs of cancellation or termi24 nation. 

25 (2) PROVISIONS IN AGREEMENTS.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

2 provide for cancellation provisions in conserva3 tion finance agreements under this section to 

4 the extent that those provisions are necessary 

5 and in the best interests of the United States. 

6 (B) CONSIDERATIONS.—The cancellation 

7 provisions described in subparagraph (A) may 

8 include consideration of the recurring and non9 recurring costs of the partner under the appli10 cable conservation finance agreement. 

11 (3) CANCELLATION CEILINGS.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may ob13 ligate funds in stages that are economically or 

14 programmatically viable to cover any potential 

15 cancellation or termination costs for a conserva16 tion finance agreement under paragraph (1)(B) 

17 and implement the agreement pursuant to this 

18 section. 

19 (B) ADVANCE NOTICE TO CONGRESS OF

20 CANCELLATION CEILING IN EXCESS OF

21 $25,000,000.—Not later than 30 days before en22 tering into a conservation finance agreement 

23 under this section that includes a cancellation 

24 ceiling in excess of $25,000,000, but does not 

25 include proposed funding for the costs of canVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:21 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3534.IH H3534

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1 celling the agreement up to that cancellation 

2 ceiling, the Secretary shall submit to the Com3 mittee on Energy and Natural Resources and 

4 the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and 

5 Forestry of the Senate and the Committee on 

6 Natural Resources and the Committee on Agri7 culture of the House of Representatives a writ8 ten notice that includes— 

9 (i) a description of the cancellation 

10 ceiling amounts proposed for each program 

11 year in the agreement; 

12 (ii) the reasons why the cancellation 

13 ceiling amounts described under clause (i) 

14 were selected; 

15 (iii) a description of the extent to 

16 which the costs of agreement cancellation 

17 are not included in the budget for the 

18 agreement; and 

19 (iv) an assessment of the financial 

20 risk of not including budgeting for the 

21 costs of agreement cancellation. 

22 (C) TRANSMITTAL OF NOTICE TO OMB.— 

23 Not later than 14 days after the date on which 

24 written notice is provided under subparagraph 

25 (B), the Secretary shall transmit a copy of the 


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1 notice to the Director of the Office of Manage2 ment and Budget. 

3 (D) RELATIONSHIP OF CANCELLATION

4 CEILING TO CONSERVATION FINANCE AGREE5 MENT.—The Secretary may enter into a con6 servation finance agreement pursuant to this 

7 section that includes partner services in return 

8 for payments by the Secretary in future years 

9 that are contingent on the appropriation of 

10 funds, subject to the requirement that the Sec11 retary shall pay the partner cancellation costs 

12 pursuant to paragraph (1)(B) up to the can13 cellation ceiling applicable to the agreement if 

14 funding for the completion of the agreement is 

15 not appropriated. 

16 SEC. 105. ADMINISTRATION. 

17 (a) GUIDANCE.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

18 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue guid19 ance on the implementation of this title. 

20 (b) IMPLEMENTATION.—A landscape-scale forest res21 toration project under this title shall be implemented con22 sistent with— 

23 (1) the requirements for the project described 

24 in section 103(c); and 


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1 (2) all project commitments described in the 1 

2 or more decisions or decision notices relating to the 

3 project. 

4 SEC. 106. REPORT EVALUATING IMPLEMENTATION. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 4 years after the 

6 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit 

7 to the Committee on Natural Resources and the Com8 mittee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives 

9 and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and 

10 the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate a report 

11 evaluating the implementation of this title, including— 

12 (1) a list of the landscape-scale forest restora13 tion projects selected under section 103(a) and the 

14 accomplishments under those projects; 

15 (2) an evaluation of the approaches to project 

16 planning and implementation described in section 

17 103(d)(3) based on the experience of the implemen18 tation of those approaches in the projects described 

19 in paragraph (1); and 

20 (3) an evaluation of the pilot authority for con21 servation finance agreements described in section 

22 104, including whether that authority has— 

23 (A) increased the availability of non-Fed24 eral funding sources to assist in landscape-scale 

25 forest restoration projects; and 


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1 (B) promoted private or other non-Federal 

2 investment in— 

3 (i) new or existing infrastructure and 

4 related equipment that can make use of 

5 the byproducts of forest restoration; 

6 (ii) the use of prescribed fire at a 

7 greater scale; 

8 (iii) related economic development and 

9 workforce training and development; 

10 (iv) land management activities en11 hancing natural infrastructure with bene12 fits for downstream water users; or 

13 (v) mitigating the risk of 

14 uncharacteristic wildfire. 

15 (b) CONSULTATION.—In preparing the report under 

16 subsection (a), the Secretary shall consult with the advi17 sory panel established under section 103(e). 

18 SEC. 107. FUNDING. 

19 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

20 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 

21 $250,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2022 through 

22 2026, to remain available until expended— 

23 (1) to plan and develop potential landscape24 scale forest restoration projects under this title that 


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1 the Secretary and a collaborative group described in 

2 section 103(c)(1)(B) shall design— 

3 (A) to meet the requirements of section 

4 103(c); and 

5 (B) to satisfy the criteria described in sec6 tion 103(d)(2), to the maximum extent prac7 ticable; and 

8 (2) to implement landscape-scale forest restora9 tion projects selected under section 103. 

10 (b) SOURCES OF FUNDING.—Landscape-scale forest 

11 restoration projects under this Act may be carried out 

12 using— 

13 (1) amounts appropriated under subsection (a); 

14 (2) other sources of Forest Service funding; 

15 (3) other sources of Federal funding; 

16 (4) non-Federal funding sources; or 

17 (5) any combination of the amounts described 

18 in paragraphs (1) through (4). 

19 (c) COST-SHARE.— 

20 (1) FEDERAL SHARE.— 

21 (A) PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT.—The 

22 Federal share of the cost of planning and devel23 oping a potential landscape-scale forest restora24 tion project under this title shall not exceed 75 

25 percent. 


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1 (B) IMPLEMENTATION AND MONI2 TORING.—The Federal share of the cost of car3 rying out and monitoring each landscape-scale 

4 forest restoration project on National Forest 

5 System land under this title shall not exceed 60 

6 percent. 

7 (2) FORM OF NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—The non8 Federal share of the cost of a project carried out 

9 using funds made available pursuant to this title 

10 may include in-kind contributions. 

11 (d) ADAPTIVE MANAGEMENT.—Not less than 5 per12 cent of the amount made available for each landscape13 scale forest restoration project under this title shall be 

14 used for monitoring and adaptive management in the ap15 plicable landscape. 

16 (e) STEWARDSHIP CONTRACTING.—In the case of a 

17 landscape-scale forest restoration project under this title 

18 that is covered by an agreement or a contract under sec19 tion 604 of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 

20 (16 U.S.C. 6591c), the Secretary may use monies retained 

21 by the Secretary under subsection (e)(2)(A) of that section 

22 to plan, analyze, and implement landscape-scale forest res23 toration projects within the area covered by that agree24 ment or contract consistent with this title. 


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1 (f) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Not more than 5 per2 cent of any amounts appropriated to carry out this title 

3 may be used for administrative management and program 

4 oversight. 

5 TITLE II—INCREASING COMMU6 NITY RESILIENCE TO WILD7 FIRE 

8 SEC. 201. CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND MICROGRID 

9 PROGRAM. 

10 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

11 (1) CRITICAL FACILITY.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘critical fa13 cility’’ means a facility that provides services or 

14 may be used— 

15 (i) to save lives; 

16 (ii) to protect property, public health, 

17 and public safety; or 

18 (iii) to lessen or avert the threat of a 

19 catastrophe. 

20 (B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘critical facil21 ity’’ includes— 

22 (i) a hospital; 

23 (ii) an outpatient clinic; 

24 (iii) a nursing home; 

25 (iv) a police station; 


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1 (v) an emergency operation center; 

2 (vi) a jail or prison; 

3 (vii) a fire station; 

4 (viii) a facility in the communications 

5 sector, as determined by the Secretary; 

6 (ix) a facility in the chemical sector, 

7 as determined by the Secretary; 

8 (x) a school or other large building 

9 that may serve as a temporary gathering 

10 space; 

11 (xi) a utility station, such as a water 

12 and wastewater station; 

13 (xii) a facility described in subpara14 graph (A) that is owned or operated by, or 

15 provides services to, an Indian Tribe (as 

16 defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-De17 termination and Education Assistance Act 

18 (25 U.S.C. 5304)); 

19 (xiii) a Federal facility, including a 

20 military base or installation; and 

21 (xiv) any other facility described in 

22 subparagraph (A), as determined by the 

23 Secretary. 

24 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

25 the Secretary of Energy. 


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1 (b) CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE AND MICROGRID

2 PROGRAM.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 

4 a program— 

5 (A) to improve the energy resilience and 

6 power needs of critical facilities through the use 

7 of microgrids, renewable energy, energy effi8 ciency, reduced electricity demand, and on-site 

9 storage; 

10 (B) to improve the energy efficiency of 

11 critical facilities by decreasing the size and cost 

12 of generators; 

13 (C) to provide technical assistance and fa14 cilitate the distribution and sharing of informa15 tion to develop more resilient electricity systems 

16 (including bulk systems and localized systems); 

17 and 

18 (D) to promulgate consumer-facing infor19 mation and resources to inform the public on 

20 best practices and resources related to increas21 ing resilience of electricity systems and reducing 

22 the impacts of extreme weather events on elec23 tricity systems. 


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1 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out the pro2 gram established under paragraph (1), the Secretary 

3 shall ensure, with respect to critical facilities— 

4 (A) provision of on-site back-up power with 

5 renewable resources, low-carbon liquid fuels, 

6 and on-site energy storage technologies; and 

7 (B) installation, at the transmission and 

8 distribution level, of interoperable technologies, 

9 advanced power flow control, dynamic line rat10 ing, topology optimization, and communications 

11 systems. 

12 (3) INTERESTED PARTY INPUT.—In estab13 lishing the program under paragraph (1), the Sec14 retary shall seek the input of State energy regu15 lators, electric utilities (as defined in section 3 of the 

16 Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 796)), regional trans17 mission organizations and independent system oper18 ators, electric utility customers and ratepayer orga19 nizations, local governments, community choice 

20 aggregators or regional energy collaboratives, and 

21 other interested parties. 

22 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

24 appropriated to the Secretary $100,000,000 to carry 

25 out this section, to remain available until expended. 


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1 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Of the amount 

2 used to carry out this section, not more than 10 per3 cent shall be used for salaries and expenses, admin4 istrative management, and oversight of the program 

5 established under subsection (b)(1). 

6 SEC. 202. RETROFITS FOR FIRE-RESILIENT COMMUNITIES. 

7 (a) DEFINITION OF WEATHERIZATION MATE8 RIALS.—Section 412(9) of the Energy Conservation and 

9 Production Act (42 U.S.C. 6862(9)) is amended— 

10 (1) in subparagraph (I), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

11 the end; 

12 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (J) as sub13 paragraph (K); and 

14 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (I) the fol15 lowing: 

16 ‘‘(J) materials that are resistant to high 

17 heat and fire; and’’. 

18 (b) WEATHERIZATION PROGRAM.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 413(b)(6) of the En20 ergy Conservation and Production Act (42 U.S.C. 

21 6863(b)(6)) is amended— 

22 (A) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

23 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

24 (B) in subparagraph (D), by striking the 

25 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 


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1 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(E) owners of such dwelling units shall 

3 use fire- and drought-resistant building mate4 rials and incorporate wildfire and drought pre5 vention and mitigation planning, as directed by 

6 the State.’’. 

7 (2) LIMITATIONS.—Section 415(c) of the En8 ergy Conservation and Production Act (42 U.S.C. 

9 6865(c)) is amended— 

10 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

11 (i) by redesignating subparagraphs 

12 (A) through (E) as clauses (i) through (v), 

13 respectively, and indenting appropriately; 

14 (ii) in the matter preceding clause (i) 

15 (as so redesignated), in the second sen16 tence, by striking ‘‘Labor’’ and all that fol17 lows through ‘‘to—’’ and inserting the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(B) LABOR AND WEATHERIZATION MATE20 RIALS.—Labor, weatherization materials, and 

21 related matter described in subparagraph (A) 

22 includes—’’; 

23 (iii) by striking ‘‘(c)(1) Except’’ and 

24 inserting the following: 

25 ‘‘(c) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) AVERAGE COST.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except’’; 

3 (iv) in subparagraph (A) (as so des4 ignated)— 

5 (I) by striking ‘‘exceed an aver6 age of $6,500’’ and inserting the fol7 lowing: ‘‘exceed— 

8 ‘‘(i) an average of $13,000 (adjusted 

9 annually for inflation)’’; 

10 (II) in clause (i) (as so des11 ignated), by striking the period at the 

12 end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

13 (III) by adding at the end the 

14 following: 

15 ‘‘(ii) another average amount that is 

16 greater than the amount described in 

17 clause (i), if the Secretary determines it 

18 necessary to waive or adjust the average 

19 amount established under that clause.’’; 

20 and 

21 (v) in subparagraph (B) (as so des22 ignated)— 

23 (I) in clause (iv) (as so redesig24 nated), by striking ‘‘, and’’ and insert25 ing ‘‘; and’’; and 


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1 (II) in clause (v) (as so redesig2 nated), by adding a period at the end; 

3 and 

4 (B) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘$3,000’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘$6,000 (adjusted annually for 

6 inflation)’’. 

7 SEC. 203. HAZARD MITIGATION USING DISASTER ASSIST8 ANCE. 

9 Section 404(f)(12) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster 

10 Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 

11 5170c(f)(12)) is amended— 

12 (1) by inserting ‘‘and wildfire’’ after ‘‘wind13 storm’’; 

14 (2) by striking ‘‘including replacing’’ and in15 serting the following: ‘‘including— 

16 ‘‘(A) replacing’’; 

17 (3) in subparagraph (A) (as so designated)— 

18 (A) by inserting ‘‘, wildfire,’’ after ‘‘ex19 treme wind’’; and 

20 (B) by adding ‘‘and’’ after the semicolon 

21 at the end; and 

22 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(B) the installation of fire-resistant wires 

24 and infrastructure and the undergrounding of 

25 wires;’’. 


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1 SEC. 204. WILDFIRE DETECTION EQUIPMENT. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title VI of the Healthy Forests 

3 Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591 et seq.) is 

4 amended by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 607. WILDFIRE DETECTION EQUIPMENT. 

6 ‘‘To the extent practicable, the Secretary of Agri7 culture and the Secretary of the Interior shall— 

8 ‘‘(1) expedite the placement of wildfire detec9 tion equipment, such as sensors, cameras, and other 

10 relevant equipment, in areas at risk of wildfire; 

11 ‘‘(2) expand the use of satellite data to assist 

12 wildfire response; and 

13 ‘‘(3) expedite any permitting required by the 

14 Secretary of Agriculture or the Secretary of the In15 terior for the installation, maintenance, or removal 

16 of wildfire detection equipment.’’. 

17 (b) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

18 for the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 

19 U.S.C. 6501 note; Public Law 108–148) is amended by 

20 adding at the end of the items relating to title VI the fol21 lowing: 

‘‘Sec. 607. Wildfire detection equipment.’’. 


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1 TITLE III—RESEARCH, TRAIN2 ING, AND CAPACITY BUILD3 ING 

4 SEC. 301. WESTERN PRESCRIBED FIRE CENTERS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture and 

6 the Secretary of the Interior (referred to in this section 

7 as the ‘‘Secretaries’’) shall establish 1 or more centers to 

8 train individuals in prescribed fire methods and other 

9 methods relevant to the mitigation of wildfire risk (re10 ferred to in this section as a ‘‘center’’). 

11 (b) HOST INSTITUTIONS.—The 1 or more centers 

12 shall be— 

13 (1) located at 1 or more institutions of higher 

14 education; or 

15 (2) developed in collaboration with 1 or more 

16 institutions of higher education. 

17 (c) GOALS.—The 1 or more centers shall advance the 

18 following goals: 

19 (1) Training individuals and conducting re20 search on prescribed fire methods and other restora21 tion methods relevant to the mitigation of wildfire 

22 risk. 

23 (2) Developing and advancing interdisciplinary 

24 science relating to wildfire, including social science 


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1 and human dimensions of wildfire, in consultation 

2 with stakeholders who— 

3 (A) need that science; 

4 (B) will benefit from the outcomes of that 

5 science; and 

6 (C) will coordinate with 1 or more other 

7 centers in developing and advancing that 

8 science. 

9 (3) Conducting ongoing and forward-looking 

10 needs assessments among stakeholders, including 

11 Federal and State agencies and Indian Tribes, to de12 termine common need requirements and emerging 

13 challenges to reduce wildfire risk and adapt commu14 nities to increased risk from wildfire, including the 

15 following hazard-related focus areas: 

16 (A) Increasing disaster resilience. 

17 (B) Mitigation and management methods. 

18 (C) Air quality. 

19 (D) Firestorm weather forecasting and 

20 burn-area debris flow forecasting, including em21 pirical and modeling research. 

22 (4) Collaborating with Federal wildfire sci23 entists at the Forest Service, the Department of the 

24 Interior, and other related agencies. 


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1 (5) Identifying, through a detailed engagement 

2 process targeting defined end-users, the require3 ments and delivery mechanisms for products and 

4 services that are practical and will have an impact 

5 on mitigating wildfire risk. 

6 (6) Promoting technology transfer with path7 ways for dissemination, implementation, and applica8 tion of research results on the ground, using and en9 hancing previous research. 

10 (7) Ensuring the connectivity and interoper11 ability of distributed services to maximize synergies 

12 and benefits across services. 

13 (8) Developing open digital infrastructure to 

14 make research data, science, and models open for all 

15 sectors to use. 

16 (d) LOCATION.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—The 1 or more centers shall 

18 be located in any State the entirety of which is lo19 cated west of the 100th meridian. 

20 (2) CONSULTATION.—The Secretaries shall con21 sult with the Joint Fire Science Program to solicit 

22 and evaluate proposals for the location of the 1 or 

23 more centers. 

24 (3) SELECTION.—Not later than 1 year after 

25 the date of enactment of this Act, based on the conVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:21 Jul 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3534.IH H3534

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1 sultation under paragraph (2), the Secretaries shall 

2 select a location for the 1 or more centers. 

3 SEC. 302. INNOVATIVE FOREST WORKFORCE DEVELOP4 MENT PROGRAM. 

5 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

6 (1) CAREER IN FORESTRY AND FIRE MANAGE7 MENT.—The term ‘‘career in forestry and fire man8 agement’’ means a career in a field relating to for9 ests and the restoration to the natural fire regimes 

10 of forests, including— 

11 (A) in timber operations; 

12 (B) as a registered professional forester; 

13 (C) in vegetation treatment, including as a 

14 member of a hand crew, a machine operator, 

15 and in conducting prescribed fires as part of a 

16 fire restoration workforce that is capable of 

17 conducting large landscape restorative and 

18 maintenance prescribed fires; 

19 (D) in ecological restoration, including res20 toration of watersheds; 

21 (E) in wildland fire fighting; and 

22 (F) in community fire resilience, including 

23 workforce development projects. 

24 (2) FORESTRY AND FIRE MANAGEMENT.—The 

25 term ‘‘forestry and fire management’’ includes the 


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1 areas of fields relating to forests described in sub2 paragraphs (A) through (F) of paragraph (1). 

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

4 the Secretary of Agriculture. 

5 (b) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary shall es6 tablish a competitive grant program— 

7 (1) to assist in the development and utilization 

8 of innovative activities relating to workforce develop9 ment in forestry and fire management and opportu10 nities for careers in forestry and fire management; 

11 and 

12 (2) to expand public awareness about forestry 

13 and fire management and connect individuals to ca14 reers in forestry and fire management. 

15 (c) SELECTION OF GRANT RECIPIENTS.—In award16 ing grants under subsection (b), the Secretary shall, to 

17 the extent practicable, select nonprofit professional or 

18 service organizations, labor organizations, State agencies, 

19 community colleges, institutions of higher education, or 

20 other training and educational institutions— 

21 (1) that have qualifications and experience— 

22 (A) in the development of training pro23 grams and curricula relevant to the workforce 

24 needs of forestry and fire management; 


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1 (B) working in cooperation with forestry 

2 and fire management; or 

3 (C) developing public education materials 

4 appropriate for communicating with groups of 

5 various ages and educational backgrounds; and 

6 (2) that will address the human resources and 

7 workforce needs of forestry and fire management. 

8 (d) USE OF FUNDS.—Grants awarded under sub9 section (b) may be used for activities such as— 

10 (1) targeted internship, apprenticeship, pre-ap11 prenticeship, and post-secondary bridge programs 

12 for skilled forestry and fire management trades that 

13 provide— 

14 (A) on-the-job training; 

15 (B) skills development; 

16 (C) test preparation for skilled trade ap17 prenticeships; 

18 (D) advance training in forestry and fire 

19 management relating to jobs as forest 

20 restorationists, members of hand crews, 

21 wildland fire fighters, machine operators, li22 censed timber operators, registered professional 

23 foresters, ecologists, biologists, or workers in 

24 construction in support of resilient infrastruc25 ture, including residential buildings; or 


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1 (E) other support services to facilitate 

2 post-secondary success; 

3 (2) education programs designed for elemen4 tary, secondary, and higher education students 

5 that— 

6 (A) inform people about the role of for7 estry, vegetation management, and ecological 

8 restoration in the communities of those people; 

9 (B) increase the awareness of opportunities 

10 for careers in forestry and fire management 

11 and exposure of students to those careers 

12 through various work-based learning opportuni13 ties inside and outside the classroom; and 

14 (C) connect students to pathways to ca15 reers in forestry and fire management; 

16 (3) the development of a model curriculum and 

17 related vocational programs to be adopted by com18 munity colleges, which, to the extent practicable and 

19 feasible, shall— 

20 (A) provide professional training in imple21 menting prescribed fire projects, including the 

22 knowledge and skills necessary to plan and im23 plement broad-scale surface and ladder fuel 

24 treatments within the wildland-urban interface, 

25 wildlands, and urbanized areas, as appropriate; 


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1 (B) include a focus on the ecological con2 cerns, economics, and practices necessary to im3 prove community safety and forest resilience; 

4 and 

5 (C) train students in— 

6 (i) the retrofitting of houses, including 

7 the use of fire-resistant materials and the 

8 maintenance of defensible space; 

9 (ii) urban forestry; and 

10 (iii) policies or guidance relating to 

11 the management of vegetation near utility 

12 infrastructure and relevant portions of 

13 electric utility wildfire mitigation plans; 

14 (4) regional industry and workforce develop15 ment collaborations, including the coordination of 

16 candidate development, particularly in areas of high 

17 unemployment; 

18 (5) integrated learning laboratories in sec19 ondary educational institutions that provide students 

20 with— 

21 (A) hands-on, contextualized learning op22 portunities; 

23 (B) dual enrollment credit for post-sec24 ondary education and training programs; and 


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1 (C) direct connection to industry or gov2 ernment employers; and 

3 (6) leadership development, occupational train4 ing, mentoring, or cross-training programs that en5 sure that workers are prepared for high-level super6 visory or management-level positions. 

7 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

8 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry 

9 out this section such sums as are necessary. 

10 SEC. 303. NATIONAL COMMUNITY CAPACITY AND LAND 

11 STEWARDSHIP GRANT PROGRAM. 

12 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

13 (1) COMMUNITY CAPACITY.—The term ‘‘com14 munity capacity’’ means the ability of an eligible en15 tity to carry out or assist in a land stewardship ac16 tivity. 

17 (2) DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITY.—The term 

18 ‘‘disadvantaged community’’ means— 

19 (A) a low-income community (as defined in 

20 section 45D(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

21 1986); and 

22 (B) a community that includes a signifi23 cant population that has been systematically de24 nied a full opportunity to participate in aspects 

25 of economic, social, and civic life based on a 


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1 particular characteristic, such as Black, Latino, 

2 Indigenous, and Native American persons, 

3 Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, and other 

4 persons of color. 

5 (3) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti6 ty’’ means any the following entities that is located 

7 in or represents a disadvantaged community: 

8 (A) An organization described in section 

9 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

10 and exempt from taxation under section 501(a) 

11 of that Code. 

12 (B) A collaborative group fiscally spon13 sored by an organization described in subpara14 graph (A). 

15 (C) A unit of local government. 

16 (D) An Indian Tribe. 

17 (E) A special district government, as de18 fined by the Director of the Bureau of the Cen19 sus. 

20 (4) ECOLOGICAL INTEGRITY.—The term ‘‘eco21 logical integrity’’ has the meaning given the term in 

22 section 219.19 of title 36, Code of Federal Regula23 tions (as in effect on the date of enactment of this 

24 Act). 


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1 (5) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 

2 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the 

3 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 

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

5 (6) LAND STEWARDSHIP ACTIVITY.—The term 

6 ‘‘land stewardship activity’’ means any of the fol7 lowing activities, as applied to a qualifying project: 

8 (A) Planning. 

9 (B) Collaboration and building community 

10 support. 

11 (C) Implementation on land other than 

12 National Forest System land. 

13 (D) Monitoring, including multiparty moni14 toring, and adaptive management. 

15 (7) QUALIFYING PROJECT.—The term ‘‘quali16 fying project’’ means any of the following activities 

17 that takes place at least in substantial part on Na18 tional Forest System land or national grasslands: 

19 (A) Restoration of the ecological integrity 

20 of a forest, meadow, grassland, prairie, or other 

21 habitat. 

22 (B) Tribal management for aligned cul23 tural and ecological values. 

24 (C) Enhancing community wildfire resil25 ience in the wildland-urban interface. 


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1 (D) Increasing equitable access to environ2 mental education and volunteerism opportuni3 ties. 

4 (8) RESTORATION.—The term ‘‘restoration’’ 

5 has the meaning given the term in section 219.19 of 

6 title 36, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on 

7 the date of enactment of this Act). 

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

9 the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through— 

10 (A) the regional offices of the State and 

11 Private Forestry Deputy Area of the Forest 

12 Service; and 

13 (B) as appropriate, regional offices of 

14 other Deputy Areas of the Forest Service. 

15 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to sup16 port increasing community capacity, partnerships, and col17 laborations within and involving disadvantaged commu18 nities for land stewardship activities and restoration of ec19 ological integrity on— 

20 (1) National Forest System land; 

21 (2) national grasslands; and 

22 (3) adjacent private, State, and trust land asso23 ciated with the health and resilience of land de24 scribed in paragraphs (1) and (2). 

25 (c) ADMINISTRATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may issue 

2 grants to eligible entities for increasing community 

3 capacity for land stewardship activities and related 

4 activities based on the criteria described in sub5 section (d). 

6 (2) FEDERAL COST-SHARE.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

8 fund up to 100 percent of the cost of land stew9 ardship activities and related activities carried 

10 out using a grant issued under paragraph (1). 

11 (B) MATCHING ELIGIBILITY.—A grant 

12 issued under this section may be considered a 

13 non-Federal matching contribution from the eli14 gible entity that received the grant towards 

15 other sources of Federal funding. 

16 (3) DURATION.—The Secretary may issue a 

17 grant under paragraph (1) for a period of 1 or more 

18 years. 

19 (4) MAXIMUM GRANT AMOUNT.—The amount of 

20 a grant issued under paragraph (1) shall be not 

21 more than $50,000 per year. 

22 (5) APPLICABLE LAWS.—The Secretary shall 

23 administer grants under paragraph (1) in accord24 ance with all applicable Federal and State laws. 

25 (d) CRITERIA FOR AWARDING GRANTS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

2 the Secretary shall award grants to eligible entities 

3 under subsection (c)(1) on a competitive basis in ac4 cordance with the following criteria: 

5 (A) The extent to which the proposed land 

6 stewardship activities benefit units of the Na7 tional Forest System and national grasslands 

8 over the short and long term. 

9 (B) The extent to which valuable ecologi10 cal, economic, and social benefits to disadvan11 taged communities, including job creation and 

12 business development or retention, are likely to 

13 result from the scope of the land stewardship 

14 activities. 

15 (C) The extent to which the grant would 

16 benefit disadvantaged communities that have 

17 historically received less investment in collabo18 rative capacity. 

19 (D) The extent to which the proposal 

20 brings together diverse interests through plan21 ning, collaboration, implementation, or moni22 toring of land stewardship activities to benefit 

23 units of the National Forest System or national 

24 grasslands. 


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1 (E) The extent to which the grant funds 

2 appear to be critical for the success of the eligi3 ble entity and the identified land stewardship 

4 activities. 

5 (F) The extent to which the budget for the 

6 land stewardship activities is reasonable given 

7 the anticipated outcomes. 

8 (2) SET-ASIDE FOR INDIAN TRIBES.—The Sec9 retary shall allocate not less than 10 percent of the 

10 funding awarded under this section to Indian Tribes 

11 or eligible entities representing Indian Tribes. 

12 (e) ANNUAL REVIEWS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 

14 and maintain an advisory panel composed of not 

15 more than 15 members to provide feedback each 

16 year to each regional office of the State and Private 

17 Forestry Deputy Area of the Forest Service on the 

18 extent to which the implementation of this section by 

19 the regional office is fulfilling the purpose described 

20 in subsection (b). 

21 (2) INCLUSIONS.—The advisory panel estab22 lished under paragraph (1) shall include representa23 tion from a diversity of public land stakeholders 

24 from across interest groups, including— 


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1 (A) not fewer than 8 members rep2 resenting the interests of a diversity of dis3 advantaged communities; and 

4 (B) not fewer than 2 members rep5 resenting not fewer than 2 Indian Tribes. 

6 (3) EXEMPTION.—The advisory panel estab7 lished under paragraph (1) shall be exempt from the 

8 Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.). 

9 (f) REPORT EVALUATING PROGRAM IMPLEMENTA10 TION.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 4 years after 

12 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

13 shall submit to the Committee on Natural Resources 

14 and the Committee on Appropriations of the House 

15 of Representatives and the Committee on Energy 

16 and Natural Resources and the Committee on Ap17 propriations of the Senate a report evaluating the 

18 implementation of this section, including— 

19 (A) a list of the eligible entities and land 

20 stewardship activities selected for funding under 

21 this section and the accomplishments of those 

22 activities; and 

23 (B) an evaluation of the extent to which 

24 the implementation of this section is fulfilling 

25 the purpose described in subsection (b). 


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1 (2) CONSULTATION; CONTRACTING.—In pre2 paring the report under paragraph (1), the Sec3 retary— 

4 (A) shall consult with the advisory panel 

5 established under subsection (e)(1); and 

6 (B) may contract with a third party to 

7 complete an evaluation of the implementation of 

8 this section to inform the report. 

9 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

11 appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this sec12 tion $50,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2022 

13 through 2026. 

14 (2) DISTRIBUTION.—The Secretary shall dis15 tribute amounts made available under paragraph (1) 

16 to the regional offices of the State and Private For17 estry Deputy Area and, as appropriate, regional of18 fices of other Deputy Areas, of the Forest Service to 

19 administer the grants under this section. 

20 (3) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—Not more than 

21 10 percent of any amounts made available to carry 

22 out this section may be used for administrative man23 agement and program oversight. 

Æ 


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