SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) National Forest System lands in the United 
States are in poor ecological health and in grave 
danger of catastrophic wildfires because of high fuel 
loads. 
(2) The poor condition of these National Forest 
System lands is evidenced by the fact that, during 
2002, 71,160 wildfires devastated over 7 million for-
ested acres, including over 2.2 million acres in Alas-
ka, 650,000 acres in Arizona, 491,000 acres in Cali-
fornia, 915,000 acres of Colorado, 325,000 acres in 
New Mexico, 1 million acres in Oregon, and 265,000 
acres in Utah. 
(3) It has been scientifically established that re-
ducing fuel loads by thinning trees improves forest 
ecological health and reduces the risk of catastrophic 
crown fires. 
(4) Trees damaged by fire are more susceptible 
to insect infestation than healthy undamaged trees, 
and experts agree that fire damaged trees must be 
removed to improve forest health and that such re-
moval must occur within six to twelve months if the 
fire damaged trees are to have any commercial 
value.
(5) Under current Federal law, forest manage-
ment projects designed to reduce fuel loads are sub-
ject to challenge and appeal by groups and individ-
uals. 
(6) In a report issued in July 2002, the Forest 
Service found that 48 percent of projects involving 
mechanical tree thinning on National Forest System 
lands have been subject to challenge and appeal and 
that the extra decision-making analysis forced by 
these appeals ‘‘added significantly to time required 
but did not materially improve the proposed action’’. 
(7) The Forest Service further found that ‘‘In 
spite of the agency’s best efforts, individuals or or-
ganizations opposed to the projects filed appeals 
and/or filed suit to stop the projects.’’. 
(8) Use of existing administrative and legal 
processes to address the fire danger in the United 
States will not enable the Forest Service to take the 
immediate action necessary to reduce fuel loads to 
both improve forest ecological health and prevent the 
occurrence of wildfires likely to cause extreme harm 
to the forest ecosystem.
SEC. 3. REGIONAL FORESTER AUTHORITY TO EXEMPT 
WILDFIRE 
PREVENTION 
TREE-THINNING 
PROJECTS FROM CERTAIN LAWS. 
(a) EXEMPTION AUTHORITY.—Due to the extraor-
dinary wildfire threat present on National Forest System 
lands in the Forest Service Regions, the Regional Forester 
for a Forest Service Region may exempt a Forest Service 
project described in subsection (b) from any provision of 
law including, but not limited to, the National Environ-
mental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and 
the National Forest Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1601 et 
seq.), and the project shall proceed immediately and to 
completion. In addition, the project shall not be subject 
to the notice, comment, and appeal requirements of sec-
tion 322 of Public Law 102–381 (commonly known as the 
Appeals Reform Act; 16 U.S.C. 1612 note) or to judicial 
review by any court of the United States. 
(b) COVERED PROJECTS.—A Forest Service project 
referred to in subsection (a) is a project that involves the 
removal of trees on National Forest System lands man-
aged by the Regional Forester that the Regional Forester 
finds, on the basis of the best scientific information avail-
able—
(1) are located in an area with a high fuel load, 
and a significant possibility exists that a crown fire
could occur which would cause extreme harm to the 
forest ecosystem; or 
(2) are dead or severely damaged from fire. 
(c) CERTIFICATION.—The Regional Forester shall 
certify the findings made under subsection (b) to the Chief 
of the Forest Service and the Congress. 
SEC. 4. CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY. 
The constitutional authority on which this Act rests 
is the authority of Congress to make all laws which shall 
be necessary and proper, as enumerated in Article I, Sec-
tion 8 of the United States Constitution, as well as the 
authority of Congress to make all needful rules and regu-
lations respecting the territory or other property belonging 
to the United States, as enumerated in Article IV, Section 
3 of the United States Constitution.
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