Union Calendar No. 77
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 858
[Report No. 105–136, Part I]
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct a
pilot project on designated lands within Plumas,
Lassen, and Tahoe National Forests in the State
of California to demonstrate the effectiveness of
the resource management activities proposed by
the Quincy Library Group and to amend current
land and resource management plans for these
national forests to consider the incorporation of
these resource management activities.
JUNE 18, 1997
Reported from the Committee on Resources with an
amendment
Referral to the Committee on Agriculture extended for a
period ending not later than June 18, 1997
Committee on Agriculture discharged; committed to the
Committee of the Whole House on the State of the
Union and ordered to be printed
IB
Union Calendar No. 77
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 858
[Report No. 105–136, Part I]
To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct a pilot project on designated
lands within Plumas, Lassen, and Tahoe National Forests in the State
of California to demonstrate the effectiveness of the resource manage-
ment activities proposed by the Quincy Library Group and to amend
current land and resource management plans for these national forests
to consider the incorporation of these resource management activities.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 27, 1997
Mr. HERGER (for himself, Mr. FAZIO of California, Mr. SMITH of Oregon, and
Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to
the Committee on Resources, and in addition to the Committee on Agri-
culture, 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
JUNE 18, 1997
Reported from the Committee on Resources with an amendment
JUNE 18, 1997
Referral to the Committee on Agriculture extended for a period ending not
later than June 18, 1997
JUNE 18, 1997
Additional sponsors: Mr. CANADY of Florida, Mr. HEFLEY, Mr. HILLIARD,
Mr. RADANOVICH, Mr. RIGGS, Mr. POMBO, Mr. PARKER, Mr. LEWIS of
California, and Mr. CANNON
JUNE 18, 1997
Committee on Agriculture discharged; committed to the Committee of the
Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on February 27, 1997]
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct a pilot
project on designated lands within Plumas, Lassen, and
Tahoe National Forests in the State of California to
demonstrate the effectiveness of the resource manage-
ment activities proposed by the Quincy Library Group
and to amend current land and resource management
plans for these national forests to consider the incorpora-
tion of these resource management activities.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Quincy Library Group
Forest Recovery and Economic Stability Act of 1997’’.
SEC. 2. PILOT PROJECT FOR PLUMAS, LASSEN, AND TAHOE
NATIONAL FORESTS TO IMPLEMENT QUINCY
LIBRARY GROUP PROPOSAL.
(a) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the
term ‘‘Quincy Library Group-Community Stability Pro-
posal’’ means the agreement of July 1993 by a coalition
of representatives of fisheries, timber, environmental, coun-
ty government, citizen groups, and local communities that
formed in northern California to develop a resource man-
agement program for certain Federal lands in the Sierra
Nevada area. Such proposal includes the map entitled
‘‘QUINCY LIBRARY GROUP Community Stability Pro-
posal’’, dated June 1993, and prepared by VESTRA Re-
sources of Redding, California.
(b) PILOT PROJECT REQUIRED.—
(1) PILOT
PROJECT
AND
PURPOSE.—The Sec-
retary of Agriculture, acting through the Forest Serv-
ice, shall conduct a pilot project on the Federal lands
described in paragraph (2) to implement and dem-
onstrate the effectiveness of the resource management
activities described in subsection (d), as recommended
in the Quincy Library Group-Community Stability
Proposal.
(2) PILOT PROJECT AREA.—The Secretary shall
conduct the pilot project on the Federal lands within
Plumas National Forest, Lassen National Forest, and
the Sierraville Ranger District of Tahoe National
Forest in the State of California designated as
‘‘Available for Group Selection’’ on the map entitled
‘‘QUINCY LIBRARY GROUP Community Stability
Proposal’’, dated June 1993. Such lands shall be re-
ferred to as the ‘‘pilot project area’’ for purposes of
this Act. Such map shall be on file and available for
inspection in the appropriate offices of the Forest
Service.
(c) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN LANDS AND RIPARIAN
PROTECTION.—
(1) EXCLUSION.—All spotted owl habitat areas
and protected activity centers located within the pilot
project area designated under subsection (b)(2) will be
deferred from resource management activities required
under subsection (d) and timber harvesting during
the term of the pilot project.
(2) RIPARIAN PROTECTION.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Scientific Analysis
Team guidelines for riparian system protection
described in subparagraph (B) shall apply to all
resource management activities conducted under
subsection (d) and all timber harvesting activi-
ties that occur in the pilot project area during
the term of the pilot project.
(B) GUIDELINES DESCRIBED.—The guide-
lines referred to in subparagraph (A) are those
in the document entitled ‘‘Viability Assessments
and Management Considerations for Species As-
sociated with Late-Successional and Old-Growth
Forests of the Pacific Northwest’’, a Forest Serv-
ice research document dated March 1993 and co-
authored by the Scientific Analysis Team, in-
cluding Dr. Jack Ward Thomas.
(d) RESOURCE MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES.—During
the term of the pilot project, the Secretary shall implement
and carry out the following resource management activities
on an acreage basis on the Federal lands included within
the pilot project area designated under subsection (b)(2):
(1) FUELBREAK
CONSTRUCTION.—Construction
of a strategic system of defensible fuel profile zones,
including shaded fuelbreaks, utilizing thinning, indi-
vidual tree selection, and other methods of vegetation
management consistent with the Quincy Library
Group-Community Stability Proposal, on not less
than 40,000, but not more than 60,000, acres per
year.
(2) GROUP
SELECTION
AND
INDIVIDUAL
TREE
SELECTION.—Utilization of group selection and indi-
vidual tree selection uneven-aged forest management
prescriptions described in the Quincy Library Group-
Community Stability Proposal to achieve a desired
future condition of all-age, multistory, fire resilient
forests as follows:
(A) GROUP SELECTION.—Group selection on
an average acreage of .57 percent of the pilot
project area land each year of the pilot project.
(B) INDIVIDUAL
TREE
SELECTION.—Indi-
vidual tree selection may also be utilized within
the pilot project area.
(3) TOTAL
ACREAGE.—The total acreage on
which resource management activities are imple-
mented under this subsection shall not exceed 70,000
acres each year.
(e) COST-EFFECTIVENESS.—In conducting the pilot
project, the Secretary shall use the most cost-effective means
available, as determined by the Secretary, to implement re-
source management activities described in subsection (d).
(f) EFFECT ON MULTIPLE USE ACTIVITIES.—The Sec-
retary shall not rely on the resource management activities
described in subsection (d) as a basis for administrative ac-
tion limiting other multiple use activities on Federal lands
included within the pilot project area designated under sub-
section (b)(2).
(g) FUNDING.—
(1) SOURCE OF FUNDS.—In conducting the pilot
project, the Secretary shall use—
(A) those funds specifically provided to the
Forest Service by the Secretary to begin imple-
menting resource management activities accord-
ing to the Quincy Library Group-Community
Stability Proposal; and
(B) other funds as are allocated for the ad-
ministration of Plumas National Forest, Lassen
National Forest, and the Sierraville Ranger Dis-
trict of Tahoe National Forest.
(2) PROHIBITION ON USE OF CERTAIN FUNDS.—
The Secretary may not conduct the pilot project using
funds appropriated for any other unit of the National
Forest System.
(3) FLEXIBILITY.—During the term of the pilot
project, the forest supervisors of Plumas National For-
est, Lassen National Forest, and Tahoe National For-
est may allocate and use all accounts available for the
administration of Plumas National Forest, Lassen
National Forest, and the Sierraville Ranger District
of Tahoe National Forest to perform the resource
management activities described in subsection (d).
(h) TERM OF PILOT PROJECT.—The Secretary shall
conduct the pilot project during the period beginning on
the date of the enactment of this Act and ending on the
later of the following:
(1) The date on which the Secretary completes
amendment or revision of the land and resource man-
agement plans for Plumas National Forest, Lassen
National Forest, and Tahoe National Forest pursuant
to subsection (i).
(2) The date that is five years after the date of
the commencement of the pilot project.
(i) CORRESPONDING FOREST PLAN AMENDMENTS.—
Within 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act,
the Regional Forester for Region 5 shall initiate the process
to amend or revise the land and resource management plans
for Plumas National Forest, Lassen National Forest, and
Tahoe National Forest. The process shall include prepara-
tion of at least one alternative that—
(1) incorporates the pilot project and area des-
ignations made by subsection (b) and the resource
management activities described in subsection (d);
and
(2) makes other changes warranted by the analy-
ses conducted in compliance with section 102(2) of the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42
U.S.C. 4332(2)), section 6 of the Forest and Range-
land Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16
U.S.C. 1604), and other applicable laws.
(j) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than February 28 of
each year during the term of the pilot project, the Sec-
retary after consultation with the Quincy Library
Group, shall submit to Congress a report on the status
of the pilot project. The report shall include at least
the following:
(A) A complete accounting of the use of
funds made available under subsection (g)(1)(A)
until such funds are fully expended.
(B) A complete accounting of the use of
funds and accounts made available under sub-
section (g)(1) for the previous fiscal year, includ-
ing a schedule of the amounts drawn from each
account used to perform resource management
activities described in subsection (d).
(C) A description of total acres treated for
each of the resource management activities re-
quired under subsection (d), forest health im-
provements, fire risk reductions, water yield in-
creases, and other natural resources-related bene-
fits achieved by the implementation of the re-
source management activities described in sub-
section (d).
(D) A description of the economic benefits to
local communities achieved by the implementa-
tion of the pilot project.
(E) A comparison of the revenues generated
by, and costs incurred in, the implementation of
the resource management activities described in
subsection (d) on the Federal lands included in
the pilot project area with the revenues and costs
during each of the fiscal years 1992 through
1997 of timber management of such lands before
their inclusion in the pilot project.
(F) A schedule for the resource management
activities to be undertaken in the pilot project
area during the calendar year.
(2) 
LIMITATION
ON
EXPENDITURES.—The
amount expended on each annual report under this
subsection shall not exceed $30,000.
(k) FINAL REPORT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning after completion of
the fourth year of the pilot project, the Secretary shall
compile a science-based assessment of, and report on,
the effectiveness of the pilot project in meeting the
stated goals of this pilot project. Such assessment
shall be compiled in consultation with the Quincy Li-
brary Group and shall be submitted to the Congress
by February 28, 2003.
(2) 
LIMITATION
ON
EXPENDITURES.—The
amount expended for each report under this sub-
section shall not exceed $100,000.