[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 868 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 868

 To make forestry insurance plans available to owners and operators of 
  private forest land, to encourage the use of prescribed burning and 
 fuel treatment methods on private forest land, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 22, 1999

 Mr. Graham (for himself and Mr. Mack) introduced the following bill; 
  which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, 
                        Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To make forestry insurance plans available to owners and operators of 
  private forest land, to encourage the use of prescribed burning and 
 fuel treatment methods on private forest land, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Forestry Initiative to Restore the 
Environment Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. FORESTRY INSURANCE.

    (a) In General.--Section 508 of the Federal Crop Insurance Act (7 
U.S.C. 1508) is amended in subsections (l) and (m)(2) by inserting 
after ``generally available from private companies'' each place it 
appears the following: ``in a State or area at rates and terms that are 
normal for privately underwritten policies, as determined by the 
Corporation''.
    (b) Pilot Program.--Section 508 of the Federal Crop Insurance Act 
(7 U.S.C. 1508) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(o) Forestry Insurance Pilot Program.--The Corporation shall 
conduct a pilot program in at least 4 States under which the 
Corporation shall offer forestry insurance plans to indemnify owners 
and operators of private forest land that is used to produce a variety 
of types of timber for loss of yield or prevented planting due to 
drought, flood, or other natural disaster (as determined by the 
Secretary), with an emphasis on small, nonindustrial owners and 
operators of private forest land.''.

SEC. 3. FORESTRY INCENTIVES PROGRAM.

    Section 4(a) of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 (16 
U.S.C. 2103(a)) is amended in the second sentence by inserting 
``increased seedling production capacity,'' after ``prescribed 
burning,''.

SEC. 4. RURAL FIRE PREVENTION AND CONTROL.

    (a) In General.--Section 10(b) of the Cooperative Forestry 
Assistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2106(b)) is amended--
            (1) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
            ``(2) provide financial, technical, and related assistance 
        to State foresters or equivalent State officials, and through 
        them to other agencies and individuals, for the prescribed use 
        of burning on private forest land for the prevention, control, 
        and suppression of fire, including providing grants to pay up 
        to 75 percent of the cost of carrying out the burning'';
            (2) in paragraph (3), by striking ``and'' after the 
        semicolon;
            (3) in paragraph (4), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(5) develop, in cooperation with the Administrator of the 
        Environmental Protection Agency, educational and outreach 
        programs and materials on prescribed use of burning for the 
        prevention, control, and suppression of fire.''.
    (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 10(e) of the 
Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2106(e)) is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``, (2),'';
            (2) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); and
            (3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
            ``(2) Prescribed burning.--There are authorized to be 
        appropriated to carry out subsection (b)(2) $10,000,000 for 
        each fiscal year.''.
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