Results for

  • Invasive Species Prevention and Forest Restoration Act

    HR #3244 | Last Action: 6/12/2019
    Invasive Species Prevention and Forest Restoration Act This bill directs the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to award competitive grants to certain institutions for research to promote the restoration of tree species affected by non-native plant pests and noxious weeds. USDA may also award competitive grants to implement the research or other solutions to restore forest tree species native to the United States that have suffered severe levels of mortality caused by non-native plants pests and noxious weeds. The bill also expands the authority of USDA to transfer funds to respond to an emergency involving an outbreak of a plant pest or noxious weed.
  • Rural Forest Markets Act of 2020

    S #4451 | Last Action: 8/5/2020
    Rural Forest Markets Act of 2020 This bill directs the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish the Rural Forest Market Investment Program to guarantee investments to finance certain projects that will enable rural private forest landowners to participate in an innovative market for forest carbon or other products. Eligible projects are projects developed by a private entity or a publicly supported, charitable nonprofit organization engaged in the aggregation of sustainable forestry practices implemented by rural private forest landowners to facilitate the sale of credits in the voluntary carbon market or other environmental market using a methodology approved by a credible, third-party entity. USDA may guarantee up to $150 million with respect to each investment. Authority to carry out the program terminates on September 30, 2023.
  • TREES Act

    HR #5615 | Last Action: 1/15/2020
    The Residential Energy and Economic Savings Act or the TREES Act This bill provides incentives for retail power providers or cities to plant trees to reduce energy costs. Specifically, the Department of Energy (DOE) must establish a program to award grants to retail power providers that partner with nonprofit tree-planting organizations to establish or continue operating tree-planting programs. Under the program, retail power providers must give residential consumers free or discounted trees that provide maximum amounts of shade during the summer or wind protection during the fall and winter. Retail power providers include entities that generate, distribute, or provide retail electricity, natural gas, or fuel oil service. In addition, DOE must annually give an award that designates communities or other areas as the Arbor City of America. The award must recognize communities for superior efforts in increasing tree canopy coverage and assisting residents in reducing energy costs. DOE must give award recipients funding for green infrastructure or green spaces.
  • Forest Health and Biomass Energy Act of 2020

    S #4603 | Last Action: 9/16/2020
    Forest Health and Biomass Energy Act of 2020 This bill addresses biomass energy, particularly with respect to materials removed from high-hazard areas (e.g., areas that pose wildfire risks). The bill directs the Department of Energy, in coordination with the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture (USDA), to assess the potential to produce biomass energy from certain land under the administrative jurisdiction of Interior and USDA. With respect to the removal of timber located within certain high-hazard areas, USDA shall not charge a stumpage rate or assign any value to (1) certain trees, (2) forest processing residues or byproducts of forest restoration, or (3) a large dead tree that is not suitable for higher-valued wood products because of decay. The bill establishes the High Hazard Area Wood Biomass Fund, into which USDA may deposit a percentage of the revenue generated from base stumpage rates of timber sales that occur on National Forest System land to assist timber operators and biomass energy producers with the collection, harvest, storage, and transportation of biomass material removed from high-hazard areas. The President shall include in the annual budget submission an annual performance metric, which shall be established by USDA, for the harvest of wood biomass material in green tons made available for bioenergy markets.
  • Trillion Trees Act

    HR #2639 | Last Action: 6/15/2021
  • Neighborhood Tree Act of 2022

    S #4118 | Last Action: 4/28/2022
  • Neighborhood Tree Act of 2023

    S #1380 | Last Action: 4/27/2023
  • Urban Forests Act of 2021

    HR #2477 | Last Action: 4/13/2021
  • Trillion Trees Act

    HR #5859 | Last Action: 2/25/2020
  • Emergency Wildfire and Public Safety Act of 2020

    S #4431 | Last Action: 8/4/2020
    Emergency Wildfire and Public Safety Act of 2020 This bill addresses wildfire preparedness and response. Among other things, the bill requires the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to select three forest landscapes on which to conduct projects to reduce the risk of wildfire, restore ecological health, or adapt to the increased risk of wildfire due to climate change. USDA and the Department of the Interior shall expedite the placement of wildfire detection equipment in areas at risk of wildfire, expedite related permitting, expand the use of satellite data to assist wildfire response, and establish a center to train individuals in methods to mitigate wildfire risk. The bill excludes certain forest management activities from environmental review requirements. Interior may make a determination that an emergency situation exists regarding National Forest System land and authorize specified emergency actions. Such a determination and such actions are not subject to administrative review. Interior shall provide grants, loans, and loan guarantees to support biomass conversion facilities. The bill allows the export of unprocessed timber of dead and dying trees from federal land in California. Interior shall establish a grant program to assist in the development and utilization of innovative activities relating to workforce development in the forest sector, raise public awareness about the forest sector, and connect individuals to careers in the forest sector. The Department of Energy shall provide support to improve the energy resilience, power needs, and energy efficiency of critical facilities.
  • Emergency Wildfire and Public Safety Act of 2020

    HR #7978 | Last Action: 8/10/2020
    Emergency Wildfire and Public Safety Act of 2020 This bill addresses wildfire preparedness and response. Among other things, the bill requires the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to select three forest landscapes on which to conduct projects to reduce the risk of wildfire, restore ecological health, or adapt to the increased risk of wildfire due to climate change. USDA and the Department of the Interior shall expedite the placement of wildfire detection equipment in areas at risk of wildfire, expedite related permitting, expand the use of satellite data to assist wildfire response, and establish a center to train individuals in methods to mitigate wildfire risk. The bill excludes certain forest management activities from environmental review requirements. Interior may make a determination that an emergency situation exists regarding National Forest System land and authorize specified emergency actions. Such a determination and such actions are not subject to administrative review. Interior shall provide grants, loans, and loan guarantees to support biomass conversion facilities. The bill allows the export of unprocessed timber of dead and dying trees from federal land in California. Interior shall establish a grant program to assist in the development and utilization of innovative activities relating to workforce development in the forest sector, raise public awareness about the forest sector, and connect individuals to careers in the forest sector. The Department of Energy shall provide support to improve the energy resilience, power needs, and energy efficiency of critical facilities.
  • Trillion Trees and Natural Carbon Storage Act

    S #4985 | Last Action: 12/9/2020
  • Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2019

    HR #2607 | Last Action: 5/23/2019
    Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2019 This bill revises provisions regarding certain forest management activities conducted by the Department of Agriculture or the Department of the Interior. The bill establishes categorical exclusions from environmental review for activities such as responding to an infestation or protecting a municipal water supply. For certain forest management activities, including those developed through a collaborative process, an environmental review may compare the impact of the proposed activity only to the impact of taking no action.
  • TREE Act of 2020

    S #4038 | Last Action: 6/23/2020
    Tackling Residential Energy burdens Efficiently Act of 2020 or theTREE Act of 2020 This bill directs the Department of Energy to establish a grant program for states, local governments, Indian tribes, and other entities to plant a minimum of 300,000 trees annually in residential neighborhoods throughout the United States.
  • TREE Act of 2020

    HR #8291 | Last Action: 9/17/2020
    Tackling Residential Energy burdens Efficiently Act of 2020 or theTREE Act of 2020 This bill directs the Department of Energy to establish a grant program for states, local governments, Indian tribes, and other entities to plant a minimum of 300,000 trees annually in residential neighborhoods throughout the United States.
  • Special Forest Products Program Reauthorization Act of 2019

    HR #4357 | Last Action: 9/17/2019
    Special Forest Products Program Reauthorization Act of 2019 This bill directs the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish a program of charging and collecting fees for forest botanical products harvested on National Forest System (NFS) lands. Under the program, USDA may not permit forest botanical products to be harvested in excess of sustainable harvest levels. Collected fees must be in an amount to recover a portion of the fair market value of the harvested forest botanical products and a portion of all of the costs incurred by USDA that are associated with the granting, modifying, or monitoring of the authorization for harvest of the products, including the costs of any environmental or other analysis. USDA must establish a personal use harvest level for each forest botanical product. The harvesting of a forest botanical product below that level by a person for personal use shall not be subject to the charges and fees under this bill. USDA shall (1) conduct analyses to determine whether and how the harvest of forest botanical products on NFS lands can be conducted on a sustainable basis, and (2) establish procedures and timeframes for monitoring and revising the harvest levels established for such products. Funds collected under the program shall be expended at NFS units to pay for the costs of conducting inventories of forest botanical products, determining sustainable levels of harvest, monitoring and assessing the impacts of harvest levels and methods, restoration activities, and authorizing harvest.
  • Agricultural Emissions Data Act of 2020

    S #4845 | Last Action: 10/22/2020
    Agricultural Emissions Data Act of 2020 This bill directs the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to conduct surveys and data analysis to collect agricultural subsector-specific information and data regarding (1) the prevention, reduction, and mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions, including livestock emissions reductions; (2) soil carbon sequestration; and (3) forest wood and tree carbon sequestration. Additionally, the establishment of federal agricultural baselines for the prevention, reduction, and mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions, soil carbon sequestration, and forest wood and tree carbon sequestration must be determined by modeling based on the information and data collected by USDA. USDA must submit to the Environmental Protection Agency and other appropriate federal agencies, and make publicly available, the results of the surveys.
  • Rural Forest Markets Act of 2023

    S #3399 | Last Action: 12/5/2023
  • Rural Forest Markets Act of 2023

    HR #5315 | Last Action: 8/29/2023
  • To require the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct a study on lands that could be included in a National Forest in Hawai'i, and for other purposes.

    HR #7045 | Last Action: 7/29/2020
    This bill directs the Forest Service to conduct a study to identify available land within the islands of Hawaii, Maui, Molokai, Lanai, Oahu and Kauai that could be included in a national forest in Hawaii.
  • Clearing Lines along Electrical At-Risk Zones Act

    HR #5744 | Last Action: 2/4/2020
    Clearing Lines along Electrical At-Risk Zones Act This bill revises requirements related to vegetation management practices and forest management activities. The bill redefineshazard treesas trees that come within 50 feet (rather than 10 feet, as under current law) of an electric power line. Hazard trees are subject to certain management activities under current law. A vegetation management, facility inspection, and operation and maintenance plan shall describe processes for consultation with private landowners with respect to hazard trees identified for removal. Such plans must be approved according to specified deadlines. The bill generally excludes specified forest management activities from certain environmental assessment and environmental impact statement requirements. Specifically, the bill excludes from these requirements (1) the development and approval of a vegetation management, facility inspection, and operation and maintenance plan; and (2) the implementation of routine activities conducted under such a plan. The use of this exclusion shall not be subject to extraordinary circumstances procedures.