I 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2178 
To restore employment and educational opportunities in, and improve the 
economic stability of, counties containing National Forest System land, 
while also reducing Forest Service management costs, by ensuring that 
such counties have a dependable source of revenue from timber sales 
conducted on National Forest System land, to reduce payments under 
the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 
2000 to reflect such counties’ receipt of timber sale revenues, to strength-
en stewardship end result contracting, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 30, 2015 
Mrs. MCMORRIS RODGERS (for herself, Mr. NEWHOUSE, Mrs. KIRKPATRICK, 
Mr. RIBBLE, Mr. BENISHEK, Mr. POLIQUIN, Mr. LABRADOR, and Mr. 
REICHERT) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Natural Re-
sources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 
each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic-
tion of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To restore employment and educational opportunities in, and 
improve the economic stability of, counties containing 
National Forest System land, while also reducing Forest 
Service management costs, by ensuring that such coun-
ties have a dependable source of revenue from timber 
sales conducted on National Forest System land, to re-
duce payments under the Secure Rural Schools and Com-
munity Self-Determination Act of 2000 to reflect such 
counties’ receipt of timber sale revenues, to strengthen 
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stewardship end result contracting, and for other pur-
poses. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Fostering Opportunities for Resources and Education 
Spending through Timber Sales Act of 2015’’ or ‘‘FOR-
ESTS Act of 2015’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Purposes. 
TITLE I—FOREST ACTIVE MANAGEMENT AREAS 
Sec. 101. Definitions. 
Sec. 102. Establishment of Forest Active Management Areas and annual vol-
ume requirements. 
Sec. 103. Management of Forest Active Management Areas. 
Sec. 104. Environmental analysis process for covered active management 
projects. 
Sec. 105. Expedited compliance with Endangered Species Act. 
Sec. 106. Administrative review. 
Sec. 107. Use of arbitration instead of litigation to address challenge to covered 
active management project developed through collaborative 
process. 
Sec. 108. Distribution of forest active management revenues. 
Sec. 109. Annual report. 
TITLE II—TRANSITION OF SECURE RURAL SCHOOLS AND COM-
MUNITY SELF-DETERMINATION ACT OF 2000 AND 25-PERCENT 
PAYMENTS 
Sec. 201. Extension of Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determina-
tion Act of 2000 to reflect recent extension covering fiscal 
years 2014 and 2015. 
Sec. 202. Effect of receipt of forest active management revenues or stewardship 
project payments. 
Sec. 203. Restoring original calculation method for 25-percent payments. 
Sec. 204. Prohibition on State retention of portion of 25-percent payments 
made on behalf of beneficiary counties. 
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TITLE III—STEWARDSHIP END RESULT CONTRACTING 
AUTHORITY 
Sec. 301. Maximum authorized duration of stewardship end result contracts. 
Sec. 302. Cancellation ceiling authority and requirements. 
Sec. 303. Payment of portion of stewardship project revenues to county in 
which stewardship project occurs. 
Sec. 304. Use of contractors to perform environmental analysis in connection 
with stewardship end result contracting projects. 
TITLE IV—OTHER MATTERS 
Sec. 401. Treatment as supplemental funding. 
Sec. 402. Definition of fire suppression to include certain related activities. 
Sec. 403. Prohibition on certain actions regarding Forest Service roads and 
trails. 
SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 
The purposes of this Act are as follows: 
(1) To restore employment and educational op-
portunities in, and improve the economic stability of, 
counties containing National Forest System land. 
(2) To ensure that such counties have a de-
pendable source of revenue from National Forest 
System land. 
(3) To reduce Forest Service management costs 
while also ensuring the protection of United States 
forest resources. 
(4) To reduce the frequency and severity of cat-
astrophic wildfires on Federal lands and to lessen 
the need for the Forest Service to borrow resources 
from other important forest management accounts 
to combat fires. 
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TITLE I—FOREST ACTIVE 
MANAGEMENT AREAS 
SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 
In this title: 
(1) ANNUAL VOLUME REQUIREMENT.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘annual vol-
ume requirement’’, with respect to a Forest Ac-
tive Management Area, means a volume of na-
tional forest materials that, subject to adjust-
ment pursuant to section 102(e)(2), is equal to 
not less than 50 percent of the sustained yield 
of the Forest Active Management Area. 
(B) EXCLUSIONS.—In determining the vol-
ume of national forest materials or the sus-
tained yield of a Forest Active Management 
Area, the Secretary may not include non-com-
mercial post and pole sales and personal use 
firewood. 
(2) BENEFICIARY COUNTY.—The term ‘‘bene-
ficiary county’’ means a political subdivision of a 
State that, on account of containing National Forest 
System land, was eligible to receive payments for 
any of the fiscal years 2001 through 2013 through 
the State under title I of the Secure Rural Schools 
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and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 (16 
U.S.C. 7111 et seq.). 
(3) COLLABORATIVE PROCESS.—The term ‘‘col-
laborative process’’ refers to a planning, decision-
making, and management process that, as deter-
mined by the forest manager of the unit of the Na-
tional Forest System for which the process will occur 
and as confirmed by the Regional Forester— 
(A) includes multiple interested persons 
representing diverse interests; and 
(B) is transparent and nonexclusive or 
meets the requirements for a resource advisory 
committee under subsections (c) through (f) of 
section 205 of the Secure Rural Schools and 
Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 (16 
U.S.C. 7125). 
(4) 
COVERED
ACTIVE
MANAGEMENT 
PROJECT.—The terms ‘‘covered active management 
project’’ and ‘‘covered project’’ mean a project in-
volving the management or sale of national forest 
materials within a Forest Active Management Area 
to generate forest active management revenues and 
achieve the annual volume requirement for the For-
est Active Management Area. 
(5) FOREST ACTIVE MANAGEMENT AREA.— 
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(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Forest Ac-
tive Management Area’’ means National Forest 
System land in a unit of the National Forest 
System designated for sustainable forest man-
agement for the production of national forest 
materials and forest active management reve-
nues. 
(B) INCLUSIONS.—Subject to subpara-
graph (C) and any adjustment made pursuant 
to section 102(f)(3), but otherwise notwith-
standing any other provision of law, including 
executive orders and regulations, the Secretary 
shall include in Forest Active Management 
Areas not less than 50 percent of the National 
Forest System lands identified as commercial 
forest land capable of producing twenty cubic 
feet of timber per acre. 
(C) EXCLUSIONS.—A Forest Active Man-
agement Area may not include National Forest 
System land— 
(i) that is a component of the Na-
tional Wilderness Preservation System; 
(ii) on which the removal of vegetation 
is specifically prohibited by Federal stat-
ute; or 
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(iii) that is included within a National 
Monument as of the date of the enactment 
of this Act. 
(6) FOREST
ACTIVE
MANAGEMENT
REVE-
NUES.—The term ‘‘forest active management reve-
nues’’ means revenues derived from the sale of na-
tional forest materials in a Forest Active Manage-
ment Area. 
(7) NATIONAL FOREST MATERIALS.—The term 
‘‘national forest materials’’ has the meaning given 
that term in section 14(e)(1) of the National Forest 
Management Act of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 472a(e)(1)). 
(8) NATIONAL
FOREST
SYSTEM.—The term 
‘‘National Forest System’’ has the meaning given 
that term in section 11(a) of the Forest and Range-
land Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 
U.S.C. 1609(a)), except that the term does not in-
clude the National Grasslands and land utilization 
projects designated as National Grasslands adminis-
tered pursuant to the Act of July 22, 1937 (7 
U.S.C. 1010–1012). 
(9) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of Agriculture. 
(10) SUSTAINED YIELD.—The term ‘‘sustained 
yield’’ means the maximum annual growth potential 
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of a forest calculated on the basis of the culmination 
of mean annual increment using cubic measurement. 
(11) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ includes the 
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. 
(12) 25-PERCENT
PAYMENT.—The term ‘‘25- 
percent payment’’ means the payment to States re-
quired by the sixth paragraph under the heading of 
‘‘FOREST SERVICE’’ in the Act of May 23, 1908 
(35 Stat. 260; 16 U.S.C. 500), and section 13 of the 
Act of March 1, 1911 (36 Stat. 963; 16 U.S.C. 
500). 
SEC. 102. ESTABLISHMENT OF FOREST ACTIVE MANAGE-
MENT AREAS AND ANNUAL VOLUME RE-
QUIREMENTS. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT OF FOREST ACTIVE MANAGE-
MENT AREAS.—Notwithstanding any other provision of 
law, the Secretary shall establish one or more Forest Ac-
tive Management Areas within each unit of the National 
Forest System. 
(b) DEADLINE FOR ESTABLISHMENT.—To the max-
imum extent practicable, the Secretary shall complete the 
establishment of Forest Active Management Areas not 
later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act. 
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(c) PURPOSE.—The purpose of a Forest Active Man-
agement Area is to provide a dependable source of 25- 
percent payments and economic activity through sustain-
able forest management for each beneficiary county con-
taining National Forest System land included within that 
Forest Active Management Area. 
(d) FIDUCIARY
RESPONSIBILITY.—The Secretary 
shall have a fiduciary responsibility to beneficiary counties 
to manage a Forest Active Management Area to satisfy 
the annual volume requirement established for that Forest 
Active Management Area. 
(e) ANNUAL VOLUME REQUIREMENT.— 
(1) DEADLINE
FOR
ESTABLISHMENT.—Not 
later than 30 days after the date of the establish-
ment of a Forest Active Management Area or as 
soon thereafter as practicable, the Secretary shall es-
tablish the annual volume requirement for that For-
est Active Management Area. 
(2) COLLABORATIVE
ADJUSTMENT
AUTHOR-
ITY.—The Secretary may establish the annual vol-
ume requirement for a Forest Active Management 
Area at a level below 50 percent of the sustained 
yield of that Forest Active Management Area if the 
lower level is developed and agreed upon through a 
collaborative process. 
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(f) SIZE OF FOREST ACTIVE MANAGEMENT AREA.— 
(1) MINIMUM
SIZE.—Except as provided in 
paragraph (3), the Forest Active Management Areas 
established within a unit of the National Forest Sys-
tem shall include not less than 50 percent of the Na-
tional Forest System lands in that unit identified as 
commercial forest land capable of producing twenty 
cubic feet of timber per acre. 
(2) REDUCTION PROHIBITED.—Except as pro-
vided in paragraph (3), once a Forest Active Man-
agement Area is established, the Secretary may not 
reduce the number of acres of National Forest Sys-
tem land included in that Forest Active Management 
Area. 
(3) COLLABORATIVE
ADJUSTMENT
AUTHOR-
ITY.—The Secretary may reduce the number of 
acres of National Forest System land included in a 
Forest Active Management Area, including an acre-
age reduction resulting in the inclusion of a quantity 
of commercial forest land below the percentage re-
quired by paragraph (1) and section 101(5)(B), if 
the reduction is developed and agreed upon through 
a collaborative process. 
(g) MAP.—The Secretary shall submit a map of all 
Forest Active Management Areas established under sub-
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section (a) and a map of any Forest Active Management 
Area whose acreage is adjusted made pursuant to sub-
section (f)(3)— 
(1) to the Committee on Agriculture and the 
Committee on Natural Resources of the House of 
Representatives; and 
(2) to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, 
and Forestry and the Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources of the Senate. 
(h) 
RECOGNITION
OF
VALID
AND
EXISTING 
RIGHTS.—Neither the establishment of Forest Active 
Management Areas under subsection (a) nor any other 
provision of this title shall be construed to limit or re-
strict— 
(1) access to National Forest System land for 
hunting, fishing, recreation, and other related pur-
poses; or 
(2) valid and existing rights regarding National 
Forest System land, including rights of any federally 
recognized Indian tribe. 
SEC. 103. MANAGEMENT OF FOREST ACTIVE MANAGEMENT 
AREAS. 
(a) REQUIREMENT TO ACHIEVE ANNUAL VOLUME 
REQUIREMENT.—Immediately upon the establishment of 
a Forest Active Management Area, the Secretary shall 
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manage the Forest Active Management Area in the man-
ner necessary to achieve the annual volume requirement 
for the Forest Active Management Area. The Secretary 
is authorized and encouraged to commence covered active 
management projects as soon as practicable after the date 
of the enactment of this Act to begin generating forest 
active management revenues. 
(b) STANDARDS FOR PROJECTS WITHIN FOREST AC-
TIVE MANAGEMENT AREAS.—The Secretary shall conduct 
covered active management projects within Forest Active 
Management Areas in accordance with this section and 
sections 104 and 105, which shall serve as the sole means 
by which the Secretary will comply with the National En-
vironmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4331 et seq.) 
and other laws applicable to the covered projects. 
(c) USE OF COLLABORATIVE PROCESS.—The Sec-
retary is authorized and encouraged to develop covered ac-
tive management projects for a Forest Active Management 
Area through a collaborative process. The decision notice 
for a covered active management project shall describe the 
collaborative process by which the project was developed, 
including a description of— 
(1) participation by or consultation with State, 
local, and Tribal governments; and 
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(2) any established record of successful collabo-
rative planning and implementation of forest man-
agement projects by the collaborators. 
(d) USE OF CONTRACTORS TO PERFORM ENVIRON-
MENTAL ANALYSIS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—As part of a covered active 
management project, or as a separate agreement or 
contract in connection with one or more covered ac-
tive management projects, the Secretary may pro-
cure the services of persons who are not Federal em-
ployees to perform activities necessary to ensure 
project for compliance with the National Environ-
mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4331 et seq.) 
and the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 
1531 et seq.). 
(2) APPROVAL
REQUIREMENT.—Services per-
formed under this subsection are subject to approval 
by the Chief of the Forest Service or other respon-
sible official of the Forest Service. 
(3) FUNDING SOURCE.—As provided in section 
108(c)(2), the Secretary shall use forest active man-
agement revenues to cover the cost of services pro-
cured under this subsection. 
(e) APPLICATION OF LAND AND RESOURCE MANAGE-
MENT PLAN.— 
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(1) MODIFICATION AUTHORITY.—The Secretary 
may modify the standards and guidelines contained 
in the land and resource management plan for the 
unit of the National Forest System in which the cov-
ered active management project will be carried out 
as necessary to achieve the requirements of this Act. 
(2) 
HARVESTING
SYSTEM.—Section 
6(g)(3)(E)(iv) of the Forest and Rangeland Renew-
able Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 
1604(g)(3)(E)(iv)) shall not apply to a covered ac-
tive management project. 
(f) USE OF ALL-TERRAIN VEHICLES FOR MANAGE-
MENT ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary may allow the use of 
all-terrain vehicles within the Forest Active Management 
Areas for the purpose of activities associated with the sale 
of national forest materials in a Forest Active Manage-
ment Area. 
SEC. 104. ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS PROCESS FOR COV-
ERED ACTIVE MANAGEMENT PROJECTS. 
(a) ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT.—Except in the 
case of a covered active management project for which a 
categorical exclusion is available under subsection (e) or 
a Forest Active Management Area for which a pro-
grammatic environmental impact statement is in effect 
under subsection (f), the Secretary shall— 
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(1) publish advance notice of each covered ac-
tive management project proposed to be conducted 
within a Forest Active Management Area; and 
(2) complete an environmental assessment pur-
suant to section 102(2) of the National Environ-
mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)) for 
the proposed covered active management project. 
(b) NO ALTERNATIVE VERSION.—The Secretary is 
not required to study, develop, or describe any alternative 
to the proposed agency action. 
(c) CUMULATIVE EFFECTS.—The Secretary shall 
consider cumulative effects solely by evaluating the im-
pacts of a proposed covered active management project 
combined with the impacts of any other projects that were 
approved with a Decision Notice or Record of Decision be-
fore the date on which the Secretary published notice of 
the proposed covered project. The cumulative effects of 
past projects may be considered in the environmental as-
sessment by using a description of the current environ-
mental conditions. 
(d) TREATMENT OF DECISION NOTICE.—The deci-
sion notice for a covered active management project shall 
be considered a final agency action and no additional anal-
ysis under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 
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(42 U.S.C. 4331 et seq.) shall be required to implement 
any portion of the covered project. 
(e) CATEGORICAL EXCLUSION.— 
(1) APPLICATION
OF
CATEGORICAL
EXCLU-
SION.—A covered active management project de-
scribed in paragraph (2) is categorically excluded 
from the requirements of the National Environ-
mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4331 et seq.). 
(2) DESCRIPTION
OF
COVERED
ACTIVE
MAN-
AGEMENT
PROJECTS.—The categorical exclusion 
granted by paragraph (1) applies with respect to a 
covered active management project that— 
(A) is prepared using a collaborative proc-
ess; and 
(B) covers an area of 10,000 acres or less. 
(f) 
PROGRAMMATIC
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACT 
STATEMENT ALTERNATIVE.—In lieu of preparing an envi-
ronmental assessment on a covered project-by-covered 
project basis under this section, the Secretary may pre-
pare a draft and final programmatic environmental impact 
statement applicable to all or a portion of a Forest Active 
Management Area. The programmatic environmental im-
pact statement shall be prepared utilizing a collaborative 
process. 
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paragraph (1) shall include recommendations for 
measures that— 
(A) will avoid the likelihood of jeopardy to 
an endangered or threatened species; 
(B) can be implemented in a manner con-
sistent with the intended purpose of the covered 
active management project; 
(C) can be implemented consistent with the 
scope of the Secretary’s legal authority and ju-
risdiction; and 
(D) are economically and technologically 
feasible. 
(c) FORMAL CONSULTATION.—In addition to rec-
ommendations made under subsection (b)(2) when the 
Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary of Commerce 
rejects a determination issued by the Secretary under sub-
section (a), the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary 
of Commerce, as the case may be, shall engage in formal 
consultation with the Secretary pursuant to section 7 of 
the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536). 
The Secretaries shall complete such consultation within 90 
days after the submission of the written response under 
subsection (b). 
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SEC. 106. ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW. 
Administrative review of a covered active manage-
ment project shall occur only in accordance with the spe-
cial administrative review process and requirements estab-
lished under section 105 of the Healthy Forests Restora-
tion Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6515), including the project- 
level predecisional administrative review process estab-
lished in part 218 of title 36, Code of Federal Regulations. 
SEC. 107. USE OF ARBITRATION INSTEAD OF LITIGATION 
TO ADDRESS CHALLENGE TO COVERED AC-
TIVE MANAGEMENT PROJECT DEVELOPED 
THROUGH COLLABORATIVE PROCESS. 
(a) ARBITRATION PROCESS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a covered ac-
tive management project that was developed through 
a collaborative process, any challenge to the covered 
project made after the special administrative review 
process required by section 106 shall be addressed 
using arbitration consistent with this section instead 
of through judicial review. 
(2) WHO MAY SEEK.—Any person who sought 
administrative review for the covered project de-
scribed in paragraph (1) and who is not satisfied 
with the decision made under the administrative re-
view process may file a demand for arbitration re-
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garding the covered project in accordance with chap-
ter 1 of title 9, United States Code. 
(b) REQUIREMENTS FOR DEMAND.—The demand for 
arbitration under subsection (a)(2) shall— 
(1) be filed not more than 30 days after the 
date on which the administrative review decision was 
issued; and 
(2) include a proposal describing the modifica-
tions sought to the covered project. 
(c) INTERVENING PARTIES.— 
(1) REQUIREMENTS.—Any person that sub-
mitted a public comment on the covered active man-
agement project subject to arbitration may intervene 
in the arbitration— 
(A) by endorsing the covered project or the 
modification proposal submitted under sub-
section (b)(2); or 
(B) by submitting a proposal to further 
modify the covered project. 
(2) DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION.—A request to 
intervene in an arbitration must be submitted not 
later than the date that is 30 days after the date on 
which the demand for arbitration was filed. 
(3) MULTIPLE PARTIES.—Multiple objectors or 
intervening parties may submit a joint proposal so 
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long as each objector or intervening party meets the 
eligibility requirements of subsection (a)(2) or para-
graph (1), whichever applies. 
(d) APPOINTMENT
OF ARBITRATOR.—The United 
States District Court in the district in which the covered 
active management project is located shall appoint the ar-
bitrator to conduct the arbitration proceedings in accord-
ance with this section and chapter 1 of title 9, United 
States Code. 
(e) SELECTION OF PROPOSALS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The arbitrator appointed 
under subsection (d)— 
(A) may not modify any of the proposals 
submitted with the demand for arbitration or a 
request to intervene; and 
(B) shall select to be conducted— 
(i) a proposal submitted by an objec-
tor or an intervening party; or 
(ii) the covered active management 
project, as approved by the Secretary. 
(2) SELECTION CRITERIA.—An arbitrator shall 
select the proposal that best meets the purpose and 
needs described in the environmental analysis con-
ducted for the covered project. 
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(f) EFFECT OF DECISION.—The decision of an arbi-
trator with respect to the covered active management 
project— 
(1) shall not be considered a major Federal ac-
tion; 
(2) shall be binding; and 
(3) shall not be subject to judicial review. 
(g) DEADLINE FOR COMPLETION.—Not later than 90 
days after the date on which the demand for arbitration 
is filed with respect to the covered active management 
project, the arbitration process shall be completed. 
SEC. 108. DISTRIBUTION OF FOREST ACTIVE MANAGEMENT 
REVENUES. 
(a) USE TO MAKE 25-PERCENT PAYMENTS.—The 
Secretary shall use forest active management revenues 
generated by covered active management projects to make 
25-percent payments to States for payment to beneficiary 
counties. 
(b) RELATION
TO
PAYMENTS
UNDER
SECURE 
RURAL SCHOOLS
AND COMMUNITY SELF-DETERMINA-
TION ACT OF 2000.—Subject to the offset required by 
subsection (f) of section 102 of the Secure Rural Schools 
and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 (16 
U.S.C. 7112), as added by section 202(a) of this Act, a 
beneficiary county may receive both— 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
00:50 May 13, 2015
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