[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5358 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5358

To ensure that funds made available to implement the National Fire Plan 
  on National Forest System lands and other public lands are used to 
   reduce the threat of catastrophic wildfire in the wildland-urban 
   interface, to support community and private land wildfire control 
   efforts, to require that receipts generated from hazardous fuels 
    reduction projects are returned to the Treasury, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 10, 2002

Mr. Inslee (for himself, Mr. Blumenauer, and Ms. Solis) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Resources, and 
    in addition to the Committee on Agriculture, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To ensure that funds made available to implement the National Fire Plan 
  on National Forest System lands and other public lands are used to 
   reduce the threat of catastrophic wildfire in the wildland-urban 
   interface, to support community and private land wildfire control 
   efforts, to require that receipts generated from hazardous fuels 
    reduction projects are returned to the Treasury, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Community 
Protection Against Wildfire Act of 2002''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Definitions.
Sec. 3. Reservation of National Fire Plan funds for wildfire control 
                            efforts on Federal lands in wildland-urban 
                            interface.
Sec. 4. Community and private land wildfire assistance.
Sec. 5. Limitation on maximum diameter of living trees that may be cut.
Sec. 6. Forest restoration and value-added centers.
Sec. 7. Treatment of receipts.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Center.--The term ``Center'' means a Restoration and 
        Value-Added Center established under section 6.
            (2) Federal lands.--The term ``Federal lands'' means--
                    (A) National Forest System lands; and
                    (B) public lands administered by the Secretary of 
                the Interior, acting through the National Park Service, 
                the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, or the 
                Bureau of Land Management.
            (3) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian tribe'' has the 
        meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-
        Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b).
            (4) Micro-enterprise.--The term ``micro-enterprise'' means 
        a non-subsidiary business or cooperative employing five or 
        fewer people.
            (5) National fire plan.--The term ``National Fire Plan'' 
        means the plans, strategies, projects, and activities of the 
        Secretary concerned to respond to adverse impacts on 
        communities and the environment from wildfires on Federal 
        public lands, which are based on and reflect the following:
                    (A) The report of the Secretary of Agriculture and 
                the Secretary of the Interior entitled ``Managing the 
                Impact of Wildfires on Communities and the 
                Environment'', dated September 8, 2000.
                    (B) Congressional direction accompanying 
                appropriations to the Department of Agriculture and the 
                Department of the Interior for wildland fire management 
                for fiscal year 2001 and subsequent years.
            (6) Secretary concerned.--The ``Secretary concerned'' 
        means--
                    (A) the Secretary of Agriculture or the appropriate 
                Federal land manager with respect to the Federal lands 
                described in paragraph (2)(A); and
                    (B) the Secretary of the Interior or the 
                appropriate Federal land manager with respect to the 
                Federal lands described in paragraph (2)(B).
            (7) Small enterprise.--The term ``small enterprise'' means 
        a non-subsidiary business or cooperative employing between 6 
        and 150 people.
            (8) Wildland-urban interface.--The term ``wildland-urban 
        interface'' means a geographic area in which--
                    (A) homes and other structures are within one-
                quarter mile of, or intermixed with, Federal lands 
                containing flammable vegetation;
                    (B) the conditions on such lands are conducive to 
                wildfire; and
                    (C) there is a significant probability of a fire 
                ignition and a resulting spread of the wildfire.

SEC. 3. RESERVATION OF NATIONAL FIRE PLAN FUNDS FOR WILDFIRE CONTROL 
              EFFORTS ON FEDERAL LANDS IN WILDLAND-URBAN INTERFACE.

    Of the total funds appropriated or otherwise made available to the 
Secretary concerned to implement the National Fire Plan in a fiscal 
year, the Secretary concerned shall expend not less than 85 percent of 
the funds to plan and carry out hazardous fuels reduction projects and 
other wildfire control efforts on Federal lands in the wildland-urban 
interface.

SEC. 4. COMMUNITY AND PRIVATE LAND WILDFIRE ASSISTANCE.

    (a) Provision of Assistance.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall 
make grants to States and Indian tribes for the purpose of--
            (1) promoting optimal firefighting efficiency at the 
        Federal, State, Indian tribe, and local levels in the wildland-
        urban interface;
            (2) augmenting Federal projects under the National Fire 
        Plan that establish landscape level protection from wildfires;
            (3) expanding outreach and education programs to homeowners 
        and communities about fire prevention; and
            (4) establishing space around homes and property of private 
        landowners that is defensible against wildfires.
    (b) Administration and Implementation.--The grant funds shall be 
administered, and projects using such funds shall be implemented, by 
State foresters or equivalent State officials or, in the case of a 
grant to an Indian tribe, an appropriate representative of the Indian 
tribe.
    (c) Use of Grant Funds.--The grant funds provided by the Secretary 
of Agriculture to a State or Indian tribe shall be used to undertake on 
non-Federal lands in the wildland-urban interface--
            (1) fuel hazard mitigation and prevention;
            (2) invasive species management;
            (3) multiresource wildfire planning;
            (4) community protection planning;
            (5) community and landowner education enterprises, 
        including the program known as FIREWISE; and
            (6) special restoration projects.
    (d) Consent Required.--Activities undertaken on non-Federal lands 
shall be undertaken only with the consent of the owner of the lands.
    (e) Distribution of Grant Funds.--Funds appropriated or otherwise 
made available to carry out this section for a fiscal year shall be 
distributed by the Secretary of Agriculture to each State and Indian 
tribe in an amount that bears the same relationship to the total funds 
available as the population of communities at risk to wildlife in the 
State or area under the jurisdiction of the Indian tribe, as determined 
by the Secretary, bears to the total population of all communities at 
risk.
    (f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are hereby authorized 
to be appropriated to the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out this 
section a total of $1,500,000,000 during the five-fiscal year period 
beginning October 1, 2002.

SEC. 5. LIMITATION ON MAXIMUM DIAMETER OF LIVING TREES THAT MAY BE CUT.

    (a) Limitations Required.--To ensure that funds appropriated or 
otherwise made available to implement the National Fire Plan or to make 
grants under section 4 are used to actually reduce the threat of 
catastrophic wildfire in the wildland-urban interface, rather than 
increase the harvest of valuable timber, the Secretary concerned shall 
adopt and enforce regulations that limit the diameter of trees that may 
be removed as part of any hazardous fuels reduction project or other 
wildfire control effort funded in whole or in part using National Fire 
Plan funds or grant funds under section 4.
    (b) Basis for Regulations.--The Secretary concerned shall develop 
the regulations required by subsection (a) using the recommendations 
contained in a study, to be conducted by the National Academy of 
Sciences, regarding diameter limitations based on tree species and 
forest types. The National Academy of Sciences shall include specific 
recommendations in the study for the content of the regulations.
    (c) Exception.--The Secretary concerned may grant an exception to a 
diameter limitation adopted under subsection (a) if the Secretary 
determines that extraordinary circumstances exist requiring the removal 
of a tree that exceeds the limitation to ensure public safety.
    (d) Time Period for Implementation.--The study required by 
subsection (b) shall be completed and submitted to the Secretary within 
eight months after the date of the enactment of this Act. As soon as 
possible after receipt of the study, the Secretary concerned shall 
publish in the Federal Register the notice of proposed rule making 
under this section and otherwise comply with the requirements of 
section 553 of title 5, United States Code. Within eight months after 
the receipt of the study, the final regulations shall be issued. The 
regulations shall apply to hazardous fuels reduction projects and other 
wildfire control efforts beginning on or after October 1, 2003, and 
funded in whole or in part using National Fire Plan funds or grant 
funds under section 4.

SEC. 6. FOREST RESTORATION AND VALUE-ADDED CENTERS.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary concerned may provide cost-share 
grants, cooperative agreements, or both to establish Restoration and 
Value-Added Centers in order to improve the implementation of 
collaborative, community-based restoration projects on Federal lands.
    (b) Requirements.--The Centers shall provide technical assistance 
to nonprofit organizations, existing small enterprises or micro-
enterprises or individuals interested in creating a natural-resource 
related small enterprise or micro-enterprise in the following areas--
            (1) restoration, and
            (2) processing techniques for the byproducts of restoration 
        and value-added manufacturing.
    (c) Additional Requirements.--The Centers shall provide technical 
assistance in--
            (1) using the latest, independent peer reviewed, scientific 
        information and methodology to accomplish restoration and 
        ecosystem health objectives,
            (2) workforce training for value-added manufacturing and 
        restoration,
            (3) marketing and business support for conservation-based 
        small enterprises and micro-enterprises,
            (4) accessing urban markets for small enterprises and 
        micro-enterprises located in rural communities,
            (5) developing technology for restoration and the use of 
        products resulting from restoration,
            (6) accessing funding from government and non-government 
        sources, and
            (7) development of economic infrastructure including 
        collaborative planning, proposal development, and grant writing 
        where appropriate.
    (d) Locations.--The Secretaries shall ensure that--
            (1) the Centers are located in the Forest Service regions 
        with the highest percentage of forested land designated as 
        condition class 3; and
            (2) each Center is easily accessible to rural communities 
        that are adjacent to, or surrounded by, Federal lands in the 
        region.
    (e) Process for Establishment.--(1) The Secretary concerned may 
enter into partnerships and cooperative agreements with other Federal 
agencies or other organizations, including local nonprofit 
organizations, conservation groups, or community colleges in creating 
and maintaining the Restoration and Value-Added Centers.
    (2) The appropriate Regional Forester and State Bureau of Land 
Management Director shall issue a request for proposals to create a 
Restoration and Value-Added Center. The Regional Forester and State 
Bureau of Land Management Director shall select a proposal with input 
from existing Resource and Technical Advisory Committees where 
appropriate.
    (f) Cost-Sharing.--(1) The Secretary concerned shall provide cost-
share grants, cooperative agreements, or both equaling 75 percent of 
each Restoration and Value-Added Center's operating costs, including 
business planning, not to exceed $1,000,000 annually per Center.
    (2) After a Restoration and Value-Added Center has operated for 
five years, the Secretary concerned shall assess the Center's 
performance and begin to reduce, by 25 percent annually, the level of 
Federal funding for the center's operating costs.
    (g) Notice.--Within 30 days of approving a grant or cooperative 
agreement to establish a Restoration and Value-Added Center, the 
Secretary shall notify the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 
the Senate and the Committee on Resources of the House of 
Representatives and identify the recipient of the grant award or 
cooperative agreement.
    (h) Report.--No later than five years after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary concerned shall submit a report to 
the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the 
Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives assessing the 
Restoration and Value-Added Centers. The report shall include--
            (1) descriptions of the organizations receiving assistance 
        from the Centers, including their geographic and demographic 
        distribution;
            (2) a summary of the projects the technical assistance 
        recipients implemented; and
            (3) an estimate of the number of non-profit organizations, 
        small enterprises, micro-enterprises, or individuals assisted 
        by the Restoration and Value-Added Centers.

SEC. 7. TREATMENT OF RECEIPTS.

    Any moneys collected as a result of a hazardous fuels reduction 
project or other wildfire control effort funded in whole or in part 
using National Fire Plan funds or grant funds under section 4 shall be 
deposited in the general fund of the Treasury. Such receipts shall not 
be considered to be moneys received from the National Forest System or 
other Federal lands under any other provision of law.
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