[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2670 Engrossed in Senate (ES)]

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
107th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2670

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
 To establish Institutes to conduct research on the prevention of, and 
 restoration from, wildfires in forest and woodland ecosystems of the 
                             interior West.

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

                    TITLE I--WILDFIRE PREVENTION ACT

SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Wildfire Prevention Act of 2002''.

SEC. 102. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) there is an increasing threat of wildfire to millions 
        of acres of forest land and rangeland throughout the United 
        States;
            (2) forest land and rangeland are degraded as a direct 
        consequence of land management practices (including practices 
        to control and prevent wildfires and the failure to harvest 
        subdominant trees from overstocked stands) that disrupt the 
        occurrence of frequent low-intensity fires that have 
        periodically removed flammable undergrowth;
            (3) at least 39,000,000 acres of land of the National 
        Forest System in the interior West are at high risk of 
        wildfire;
            (4) an average of 95 percent of the expenditures by the 
        Forest Service for wildfire suppression during fiscal years 
        1990 through 1994 were made to suppress wildfires in the 
        interior West;
            (5) the number, size, and severity of wildfires in the 
        interior West are increasing;
            (6) of the timberland in National Forests in the States of 
        Arizona and New Mexico, 59 percent of such land in Arizona, and 
        56 percent of such land in New Mexico, has an average diameter 
        of 9 to 12 inches diameter at breast height;
            (7) the population of the interior West grew twice as fast 
        as the national average during the 1990s;
            (8) efforts to prioritize forests and communities for 
        wildfire risk reduction have been inconsistent and insufficient 
        and have resulted in funding to areas that are not prone to 
        severe wildfires;
            (9) catastrophic wildfires--
                    (A) endanger homes and communities;
                    (B) damage and destroy watersheds and soils; and
                    (C) pose a serious threat to the habitat of 
                threatened and endangered species;
            (10) a 1994 assessment of forest health in the interior 
        West estimated that only a 15- to 30-year window of opportunity 
        exists for effective management intervention before damage from 
        uncontrollable wildfire becomes widespread, with 8 years having 
        already elapsed since the assessment;
            (11) following a catastrophic wildfire, certain forests in 
        the interior West do not return to their former grandeur;
            (12) healthy forest and woodland ecosystems--
                    (A) reduce the risk of wildfire to forests and 
                communities;
                    (B) improve wildlife habitat and biodiversity;
                    (C) increase tree, grass, forb, and shrub 
                productivity;
                    (D) enhance watershed values;
                    (E) improve the environment; and
                    (F) provide a basis in some areas for economically 
                and environmentally sustainable uses;
            (13) sustaining the long-term ecological and economic 
        health of interior West forests and woodland, and their 
        dependent human communities, requires preventing severe 
        wildfires before the wildfires occur and permitting natural, 
        low-intensity ground fires;
            (14) more natural fire regimes cannot be accomplished 
        without the reduction of excess fuels and thinning of 
        subdominant trees (which fuels and trees may be of commercial 
        value);
            (15) ecologically-based forest and woodland ecosystem 
        restoration on a landscape scale will--
                    (A) improve long-term community protection;
                    (B) minimize the need for wildfire suppression;
                    (C) improve resource values;
                    (D) reduce rehabilitation costs;
                    (E) reduce loss of critical habitat; and
                    (F) protect forests for future generations;
            (16) although the National Fire Plan, and the report 
        entitled ``Protecting People and Sustaining Resources in Fire-
        Adapted Ecosystems--A Cohesive Strategy'' (65 Fed. Reg. 67480), 
        advocate a shift in wildfire policy from suppression to 
        prevention (including restoration and hazardous fuels 
        reduction), Federal land managers are not dedicating sufficient 
        attention and financial resources to restoration activities 
        that simultaneously restore forest health and reduce the risk 
        of severe wildfire;
            (17) although landscape scale restoration is needed to 
        effectively reverse degradation, scientific understanding of 
        landscape scale treatments is limited;
            (18) the Federal wildfire research program is funded at 
        approximately \1/3\ of the amount that is required to address 
        emerging wildfire problems, resulting in the lack of a cohesive 
        strategy to address the threat of catastrophic wildfires; and
            (19) rigorous, understandable, and applied scientific 
        information is needed for--
                    (A) the design, implementation, and adaptation of 
                landscape scale restoration treatments and improvement 
                of wildfire management technology;
                    (B) the environmental review process; and
                    (C) affected entities that collaborate in the 
                development and implementation of wildfire treatment.

SEC. 103. PURPOSES.

    The purposes of this title are--
            (1) to enhance the capacity to develop, transfer, apply, 
        and monitor practical science-based forest restoration 
        treatments that will reduce the risk of severe wildfires, and 
        improve forest and woodland health, in the interior West;
            (2) to develop the practical scientific knowledge required 
        to implement forest and woodland restoration on a landscape 
        scale;
            (3) to develop the interdisciplinary knowledge required to 
        understand the socioeconomic and environmental impacts of 
        wildfire control on ecosystems and landscapes;
            (4) to require Federal agencies--
                    (A) to use ecological restoration treatments to 
                reverse declining forest health and reduce the risk of 
                severe wildfires across the forest landscape;
                    (B) to ensure that sufficient funds are dedicated 
                to wildfire prevention activities, including 
                restoration treatments; and
                    (C) to monitor and use wildfire treatments based on 
                the use of adaptive ecosystem management;
            (5) to develop, transfer, and assist land managers in 
        treating acres with restoration-based treatments and use new 
        management technologies (including the transfer of 
        understandable information, assistance with environmental 
        review, and field and classroom training and collaboration) to 
        accomplish the goals identified in--
                    (A) the National Fire Plan;
                    (B) the report entitled ``Protecting People and 
                Sustaining Resources in Fire-Adapted Ecosystems--A 
                Cohesive Strategy'' (65 Fed. Reg. 67480); and
                    (C) the report entitled ``10-Year Comprehensive 
                Strategy: A Collaborative Approach for Reducing 
                Wildland Fire Risks to Communities and the 
                Environment'' of the Western Governors' Association; 
                and
            (6) to provide technical assistance to collaborative 
        efforts by affected entities to develop, implement, and monitor 
        adaptive ecosystem management restoration treatments that are 
        ecologically sound, economically viable, and socially 
        responsible.

SEC. 104. DEFINITIONS.

    In this title:
            (1) Adaptive ecosystem management.--The term ``adaptive 
        ecosystem management'' means a natural resource management 
        process under which planning, implementation, monitoring, 
        research, evaluation, and incorporation of new knowledge are 
        combined into a management approach that is--
                    (A) based on scientific findings and the needs of 
                society; and
                    (B) used to modify future management methods and 
                policy.
            (2) Affected entities.--The term ``affected entities'' 
        includes--
                    (A) land managers;
                    (B) stakeholders;
                    (C) concerned citizens; and
                    (D) State land managers.
            (3) Institute.--The term ``Institute'' means an Institute 
        established under section 105(a).
            (4) Interior west.--The term ``interior West'' means the 
        States of Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, and 
        Utah.
            (5) Land manager.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``land manager'' means a 
                person or entity that practices or guides natural 
                resource management.
                    (B) Inclusions.--The term ``land manager'' includes 
                a Federal, State, local, or tribal land management 
                agency.
            (6) Restoration.--The term ``restoration'' means a process 
        undertaken to return an ecosystem or habitat toward--
                    (A) the original condition of the ecosystem or 
                habitat; or
                    (B) a condition that supports a related species, 
                natural function, or ecological process (including a 
                low intensity fire).
            (7) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service.
            (8) Secretaries.--The term ``Secretaries'' means--
                    (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through 
                the Chief of the Forest Service; and
                    (B) the Secretary of the Interior.
            (9) Stakeholder.--The term ``stakeholder'' means any person 
        interested in or affected by management of forest or woodland 
        ecosystems.

SEC. 105. ESTABLISHMENT OF INSTITUTES.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary 
of the Interior, shall--
            (1) not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of 
        this title, establish 3 Institutes to promote the use of 
        adaptive ecosystem management to reduce the risk of wildfires, 
        and improve the health of forest and woodland ecosystems, in 
        the interior West; and
            (2) provide assistance to the Institutes to promote the use 
        of adaptive ecosystem management in accordance with paragraph 
        (1).
    (b) Location.--
            (1) Existing institutes.--The Secretary may designate an 
        institute in existence on the date of enactment of this title 
        to serve as an Institute established under this title.
            (2) Locations.--Of the Institutes established under this 
        title, the Secretary shall establish one Institute in each of 
        the States of Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado. The Institute 
        established in Arizona shall be located at Northern Arizona 
        University.
    (c) Duties.--Each Institute shall--
            (1) plan, conduct, or promote research on the use of 
        adaptive ecosystem management to reduce the risk of wildfires, 
        and improve the health of forest and woodland ecosystems, in 
        the interior West, including--
                    (A) research that assists in providing information 
                on the use of adaptive ecosystem management practices 
                to affected entities; and
                    (B) research that will be useful in the development 
                and implementation of practical, science-based, 
                ecological restoration treatments for forest and 
                woodland ecosystems affected by wildfires; and
            (2) provide the results of research described in paragraph 
        (1) to affected entities.
    (d) Cooperation.--To increase and accelerate efforts to restore 
forest ecosystem health and abate unnatural and unwanted wildfires in 
the interior West, each Institute shall cooperate with--
            (1) researchers at colleges and universities in the States 
        of Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado that have a demonstrated 
        capability to conduct research described in subsection (c); and
            (2) other organizations and entities in the interior West 
        (such as the Western Governors' Association).
    (e) Annual Work Plans.--As a condition of the receipt of funds made 
available under this title, for each fiscal year, each Institute shall 
submit to the Secretary, for review by the Secretary, in consultation 
with the Secretary of the Interior, an annual work plan that includes 
assurances, satisfactory to the Secretaries, that the proposed work of 
the Institute will serve the informational needs of affected entities.

SEC. 106. COOPERATION BETWEEN INSTITUTES AND FEDERAL AGENCIES.

    In carrying out this title, the Secretary, in consultation with the 
Secretary of the Interior--
            (1) shall ensure that adequate financial and technical 
        assistance is provided to the Institutes to enable the 
        Institutes to carry out the purposes of the Institutes under 
        section 105, including prevention activities and ecological 
        restoration for wildfires and affected ecosystems;
            (2) shall use information and expertise provided by the 
        Institutes;
            (3) shall encourage Federal agencies to use, on a 
        cooperative basis, information and expertise provided by the 
        Institutes;
            (4) shall encourage cooperation and coordination between 
        Federal programs relating to--
                    (A) ecological restoration;
                    (B) wildfire risk reduction; and
                    (C) wildfire management technologies;
            (5) notwithstanding chapter 63 of title 31, United States 
        Code, may--
                    (A) enter into contracts, cooperative agreements, 
                interagency personal agreements to carry out this 
                title; and
                    (B) carry out other transactions under this title;
            (6) may accept funds from other Federal agencies to 
        supplement or fully fund grants made, and contracts entered 
        into, by the Secretaries;
            (7) may support a program of internships for qualified 
        individuals at the undergraduate and graduate levels to carry 
        out the educational and training objectives of this title;
            (8) shall encourage professional education and public 
        information activities relating to the purposes of this title; 
        and
            (9) may promulgate such regulations as the Secretaries 
        determine are necessary to carry out this title.

SEC. 107. MONITORING AND EVALUATION.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment 
of this title, and every 5 years thereafter, the Secretary, in 
consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, shall complete and 
submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a detailed evaluation 
of the programs and activities of each Institute--
            (1) to ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that the 
        research, communication tools, and information transfer 
        activities of each Institute meet the needs of affected 
        entities; and
            (2) to determine whether continued provision of Federal 
        assistance to each Institute is warranted.
    (b) Termination of Assistance.--If, as a result of an evaluation 
under subsection (a), the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary 
of the Interior, determines that an Institute does not qualify for 
further Federal assistance under this title, the Institute shall 
receive no further Federal assistance under this title until such time 
as the qualifications of the Institute are reestablished to the 
satisfaction of the Secretaries.

SEC. 108. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this title 
$15,000,000 for each fiscal year.

   TITLE II--COMMUNITY-BASED FOREST AND PUBLIC LANDS RESTORATION ACT

SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Community-Based Forest and Public 
Lands Restoration Act''.

SEC. 202. PURPOSES.

    The purposes of this title are--
            (1) to create a coordinated, consistent, community-based 
        program to restore and maintain the ecological integrity of 
        degraded National Forest System and public lands watersheds;
            (2) to ensure that restoration of degraded National Forest 
        System and public lands recognizes variation in forest type and 
        fire regimes, incorporates principles of community forestry, 
        local and traditional knowledge, and conservation biology; and, 
        where possible, uses the least intrusive methods practicable;
            (3) to enable the Secretaries to assist small, rural 
        communities to increase their capacity to restore and maintain 
        the ecological integrity of surrounding National Forest System 
        and public lands, and to use the by-products of such 
        restoration in value-added processing;
            (4) to require the Secretaries to monitor ecological, 
        social, and economic conditions based on explicit mechanisms 
        for accountability;
            (5) to authorize the Secretaries to expand partnerships and 
        to contract with nonprofit organizations, conservation groups, 
        small and micro-enterprises, cooperatives, non-Federal 
        conservation corps, and other parties to encourage them to 
        provide services or products that facilitate the restoration of 
        damaged lands; and
            (6) to improve communication and joint problem solving, 
        consistent with Federal and State environmental laws, among 
        individuals and groups who are interested in restoring the 
        diversity and productivity of watersheds.

SEC. 203. DEFINITIONS.

    As used in this title:
            (1) The term ``public lands'' has the meaning given such 
        term in section 103(e) of the Federal Land Policy and 
        Management Act (43 U.S.C. 1702(e)).
            (2) The term ``National Forest System'' has the meaning 
        given such term in section 11(a) of the Forest and Rangeland 
        Renewable Resources Planning Act (16 U.S.C. 1609(a)).
            (3) The term ``Secretaries'' means the Secretary of 
        Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, 
        and the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director 
        of the Bureau of Land Management.
            (4) The term ``restore'' means to incorporate historic, 
        current, and new scientific information as it becomes 
        available, to reintroduce, maintain, or enhance the 
        characteristics, functions, and ecological processes of 
        healthy, properly functioning watersheds.
            (5) The term ``local'' means within the same county, 
        watershed unit, or jurisdiction of a Resource Advisory Council 
        established pursuant to Public Law 106-393 where an associated 
        restoration project, or projects, are conducted.
            (6) The term ``micro-enterprise'' means a nonsubsidiary 
        business or cooperative employing five or fewer people.
            (7) The term ``small enterprise'' means a nonsubsidiary 
        business or cooperative employing between 6 and 150 people.
            (8) The term ``value-added processing'' means additional 
        processing of a product to increase its economic value and to 
        create additional jobs and benefits where the processing is 
        done.
            (9) The term ``low-impact equipment'' means the use of 
        equipment for restorative, maintenance, or extraction purposes 
        that minimizes or eliminates impacts to soils and other 
        resources.
            (10) The terms ``rural'' and ``rural area'' mean, a city, 
        town, or unincorporated area that has a population of 50,000 
        inhabitants or less, other than an urbanized area immediately 
        adjacent to a city, town, or unincorporated area that has a 
        population in excess of 50,000 inhabitants.

SEC. 204. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.

    (a) Requirements.--The Secretaries shall jointly establish a 
National Forest System and public lands collaborative community-based 
restoration program. The purposes of the program shall be--
            (1) to identify projects that will restore degraded 
        National Forest System and public lands; and
            (2) implement such projects in a collaborative way and in a 
        way that builds rural community capacity to restore and 
        maintain in perpetuity the health of the National Forest System 
        and other public lands.
    (b) Cooperation.--The Secretaries may enter into cooperative 
agreements with willing tribal governments, State and local 
governments, private and nonprofit entities and landowners for 
protection, restoration, and enhancement of fish and wildlife habitat, 
forests, and other resources on the National Forest System and public 
lands.
    (c) Monitoring.--(1) The Secretaries shall establish a multiparty 
monitoring, evaluation, and accountability process in order to assess 
the cumulative accomplishments or adverse impacts of projects 
implemented under this title. The Secretaries shall include any 
interested individual or organization in the monitoring and evaluation 
process.
    (2) Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment of this 
title, the Secretaries shall submit a report to the Committee on Energy 
and Natural Resources of the United States Senate and the Committee on 
Resources of the United States House of Representatives detailing the 
information gathered as a result of the multiparty monitoring and 
evaluation. The report shall include an assessment on whether, and to 
what extent, the projects funded pursuant to this title are meeting the 
purposes of the title.
    (3) The Secretaries shall ensure that monitoring data is collected 
and compiled in a way that the general public can easily access. The 
Secretaries may collect the data using cooperative agreements, grants, 
or contracts with small or micro-enterprises, or Youth Conservation 
Corps work crews or related partnerships with State, local, and other 
non-Federal conservation corps.
    (d) The Secretaries shall hire additional outreach specialists, 
grants and agreements specialists, and contract specialists in order to 
implement this title.

SEC. 205. FOREST RESTORATION AND VALUE-ADDED CENTERS.

    (a) Establishment.--Subject to subsection (d), the Secretaries 
shall 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 National Forest System or public lands.
    (b) Requirements.--The Restoration and Value-Added Centers shall 
provide technical assistance to nonprofit organizations, small or 
micro-enterprises or individuals interested in creating a natural-
resource related small 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 Restoration and Value-Added 
Centers shall provide technical assistance in one or more of the 
following--
            (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 and micro-enterprises,
            (4) accessing urban markets for small 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 nongovernment 
        sources, and
            (7) development of economic infrastructure including 
        collaborative planning, proposal development, and grant writing 
        where appropriate.
    (d) Locations.--The Secretaries shall ensure that at least one 
Restoration and Value-Added Center is located within Idaho, New Mexico, 
Montana, northern California, eastern Oregon, and Washington and that 
every Restoration and Value-Added Center is located in a rural 
community that is adjacent to or surrounded by National Forest System 
or other public lands:
            (1) The Secretaries 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 will issue a request for proposals to 
        create a Restoration and Value-Added Center. The Regional 
        Forester and State Bureau of Land Management Director will 
        select a proposal with input from existing Resource and 
        Technical Advisory Committees where appropriate.
            (3) The Secretaries 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.
            (4) 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 United States Senate and the Committee on 
        Resources of the United States House of Representatives and 
        identify the recipient of the grant award or cooperative 
        agreement.
            (5) After a Restoration and Value-Added Center has operated 
        for 5 years, the Secretary of Agriculture 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.
    (e) Report.--No later than 5 years after the date of enactment of 
this title, the Secretaries shall submit a report to the Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources of the United States Senate and the 
Committee on Resources of the United States House of Representatives, 
assessing the Restoration and Value-Added Centers created pursuant to 
this section. 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 nonprofit organizations, 
        small enterprises, micro-enterprises, or individuals assisted 
        by the Restoration and Value-Added Centers.

SEC. 206. COMMUNITY-BASED NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM AND PUBLIC LANDS 
              RESTORATION.

    (a) Establishment.--(1) Notwithstanding Federal procurement laws, 
the Federal Grant and Cooperative Agreements Act of 1977 (31 U.S.C. 
6301 et seq.), and the Competition in Contracting Act, the Secretaries 
shall ensure that a percentage of the total dollar value of contracts 
and agreements they award in each fiscal year beginning after the date 
of enactment of this Act are awarded to qualifying entities as follows:
            (A) Ten percent in the first fiscal year.
            (B) Twenty percent in the second fiscal year.
            (C) Thirty percent in the third fiscal year.
            (D) Forty percent in the fourth fiscal year.
            (E) Fifty percent in the fifth fiscal year and each fiscal 
        year thereafter.
    (2) For purposes of this section:
            (A) The term ``contracts and agreements'' means special 
        salvage timber sale contracts, other timber sale contracts, 
        service contracts, construction contracts, supply contracts, 
        emergency equipment rental agreements, architectural and 
        engineering contracts, challenge cost-share agreements, 
        cooperative agreements, and participating agreements.
            (B) The term ``qualifying entity'' means--
                    (i) a natural-resource related small or micro-
                enterprise;
                    (ii) a Youth Conservation Corps crew or related 
                partnerships with State, local and other non-Federal 
                conservation corps;
                    (iii) an entity that will hire and train local 
                people to complete the service or timber sale contract;
                    (iv) an entity that will re-train nonlocal 
                traditional forest workers to complete the service or 
                timber sale contract; or
                    (v) a local entity that meets the criteria to 
                qualify for the Historically Underutilized Business 
                Zone Program under section 32 of the Small Business Act 
                (15 U.S.C. 657a).
    (b) Notice of National Forest System Plan.--At the beginning of 
each fiscal year, each unit of the National Forest System shall make 
its advanced acquisition plan publicly available, including publishing 
it in a local newspaper for a minimum of 15 working days.
    (c) Best Value Contracting.--In order to implement projects, the 
Secretaries may select a source for performance of a contract or 
agreement on a best value basis with consideration of one or more of 
the following:
            (1) Understanding of the technical demands and complexity 
        of the work to be done.
            (2) Ability of the offeror to meet desired ecological 
        objectives of the project and the sensitivity of the resources 
        being treated.
            (3) The potential for benefit to local small and micro-
        enterprises.
            (4) The past performance and qualification by the 
        contractor with the type of work being done, the application of 
        low-impact equipment, and the ability of the contractor or 
        purchaser to meet desired ecological conditions.
            (5) The commitment of the contractor to training workers 
        for high wage and high skill jobs.
            (6) The commitment of the contractor to hiring highly 
        qualified workers and local residents.

SEC. 207. NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM RESEARCH AND TRAINING.

    (a) Establishment of Program.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall 
establish a program of applied research using the resources of Forest 
Service Research Station and the Forest Product Laboratory. The 
purposes of the program shall be to--
            (1) identify restoration methods and treatments that 
        minimize impacts to the land, such as through the use of low-
        impact techniques and equipment; and
            (2) test and develop value-added products created from the 
        by-products of restoration.
    (b) Dissemination of Research to Communities.--The Secretary of 
Agriculture shall disseminate the applied research to rural 
communities, including the Restoration and Value-Added Centers, 
adjacent to or surrounded by National Forest System or public lands. 
The Secretary of Agriculture shall annually conduct training workshops 
and classes in such communities to ensure that residents of such 
communities have access to the information.
    (c) Cooperation.--In establishing the program required pursuant to 
this section, the Secretary of Agriculture may partner with nonprofit 
organizations or community colleges.
    (d) Monitoring.--In designing the multiparty monitoring and 
evaluation process to assess the cumulative accomplishments or adverse 
impacts of projects implemented under this title pursuant to section 
204, the Secretaries shall use the expertise of Forest Service Research 
Stations.

SEC. 208. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    These are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out this title.

SEC. 209. SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION.

    Nothing in this title is intended to modify the Small Business Act, 
Public Law 83-167, regulations promulgated by the Small Business 
Administration at part 121 of title 13, Code of Federal Regulations, or 
affect the Small Business shares prescribed in the Memorandum of 
Understanding on the Small Business Set Aside Program or the amount of 
timber volume offered to SBA qualified companies.

        TITLE III--FINGER LAKES NATIONAL FOREST LAND WITHDRAWAL

SEC. 301. FINGER LAKES NATIONAL FOREST LAND WITHDRAWAL.

    All Federal land within the boundary of Finger Lakes National 
Forest in the State of New York is withdrawn from all forms of entry, 
appropriation, or disposal under the public land laws and disposition 
under all laws relating to oil and gas leasing.

              TITLE IV--ALASKA NAVIGABLE WATERS COMMISSION

SEC. 401. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The efficient and orderly development of the State of 
        Alaska will be better achieved if the Federal Government joins 
        the State of Alaska in a carefully coordinated approach to 
        identify ownership and jurisdictional interests in land and 
        waters.
            (2) Alaska has abundant water resources that are invaluable 
        to State residents and all citizens of the United States.
            (3) Because of the massive number of navigable waterways 
        and other bodies of water in the State of Alaska, the task of 
        resolving submerged land ownership and navigable water 
        determinations has been very slow, counter-productive from an 
        orderly resource management standpoint, and costly as the 
        State, private landowners, and the Federal Government attempt 
        to initiate long-range planning processes.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this title are--
            (1) to expedite the process of quieting legitimate title to 
        the submerged lands in the State of Alaska;
            (2) to facilitate determinations for purposes of the 
        Submerged Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.), to the extent 
        possible, which bodies of water in Alaska are navigable waters 
        and which such bodies of water are not navigable waters; and
            (3) to recommend to the State of Alaska and the Federal 
        Government--
                    (A) ways to improve the process of making water use 
                and navigability decisions; and
                    (B) ways to fairly and expeditiously quiet title to 
                the State's submerged lands and assist in the 
                determination of the specifically reserved lands that 
                will remain in Federal ownership.

SEC. 402. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Joint Federal and State Navigable 
Waters Commission for Alaska Act''.

SEC. 403. ESTABLISHMENT.

    There is established a commission to be known as the ``Joint 
Federal and State Navigable Waters Commission for Alaska'' (referred to 
in this title as the ``Commission'').

SEC. 404. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.

    The Commission shall--
            (1) make recommendations to the Secretary of the Interior 
        and the State of Alaska regarding determinations of bodies of 
        water in the State that are navigable waters for purposes of 
        the Submerged Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.);
            (2) establish a process for employing established standards 
        to facilitate making such recommendations and determinations;
            (3) develop procedures for involving private landowners, 
        including Alaska Native corporations and the general public, in 
        that process;
            (4) for purposes of making such recommendations, undertake 
        a process to identify navigable waters in Alaska pursuant to 
        established standards and criteria; and
            (5) make recommendations to improve coordination and 
        consultation between the government of the State of Alaska and 
        the Federal Government regarding navigability determinations 
        and decisions concerning title to submerged lands.

SEC. 405. MEMBERSHIP.

    (a) Number and Appointment.--
            (1) In general.--The Commission shall be composed of 14 
        members, of which 7 shall be Federal members appointed under 
        subsection (b) and 7 shall be State members appointed under 
        subsection (c).
            (2) Appointment deadline.--Initial appointments under this 
        section shall be made not later than 60 days after the date of 
        enactment of this title.
    (b) Federal Members.--The seven Federal members shall consist of--
            (1) two members appointed by the President of the United 
        States, one of which shall be designated as the President's 
        appointee for the position of Federal co-chair under subsection 
        (e);
            (2) one member appointed by each of the three members of 
        the Congress who represent the State of Alaska;
            (3) one member appointed by the Secretary of the Interior; 
        and
            (4) one member appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture.
    (c) State Members.--The seven State members shall be appointed in 
accordance with the requirements of State law.
    (d) Ineligibility for Appointment.--Members of Congress shall not 
be eligible for appointment to the Commission.
    (e) Co-Chairs.--One of the members appointed by the President of 
the United States and the Governor or Governor's designee shall serve 
as co-chairs of the Commission.
    (f) Initial Meeting.--The initial meeting of the Commission shall 
be called by the co-chairs.
    (g) Term of Appointment.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), members of the 
        Commission shall be appointed for the life of the Commission.
            (2) Early termination of appointment:
                    (A) Membership of a member of the Commission shall 
                terminate if the member is an individual who is an 
                officer or employee of a government body and who ceases 
                to serve as such an officer or employee, or if the 
                member is an individual who is not an officer or 
                employee of a government and who becomes an officer or 
                employee of a government.
                    (B) Termination of an individual's membership 
                pursuant to paragraph (A) shall take effect on the 
                expiration of the 90-day period beginning on the date 
                such member ceases to be such an officer or employee of 
                such government, or becomes an officer or employee of a 
                government, respectively.
    (h) Quorum.--Four Federal members and four State members of the 
Commission shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may conduct 
meetings. All decisions of the Commission shall require concurrence by 
at least four State members and four Federal members of the Commission.
    (i) Vacancy.--A vacancy in the membership of the Commission--
            (1) shall not affect the powers of the Commission to meet 
        or conduct business, subject to subsection (h); and
            (2) shall be filled in the same manner in which the 
        original appointment was made, by the same appointing 
        authority.

SEC. 406. COMPENSATION OF THE COMMISSION.

    (a) Pay for Federal Members of the Commission.--
            (1) Non-government employees.--Each Federal member of the 
        Commission who is not otherwise an officer or employee of the 
        Federal Government shall be entitled to receive the daily 
        equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay payable for Level IV 
        of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, United 
        States Code, as in effect from time to time, for each day 
        (including travel time) during which such member is engaged in 
        the actual performance of duties of the Commission.
            (2) Government employees.--A member of the Commission who 
        is an officer or employee of either the government of the State 
        of Alaska or the Federal Government shall serve without 
        additional pay or benefits for service as a member of the 
        Commission.
    (b) Travel Expenses.--Federal members of the Commission shall 
receive travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in 
accordance with subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States 
Code. State members of the Commission are entitled to per diem and 
travel expenses as authorized under pertinent laws of the State of 
Alaska.

SEC. 407. POWERS OF THE COMMISSION.

    (a) Hearings and Meetings.--The Commission or, on the authorization 
of the Commission, any subcommittee or member of the Commission may, 
for the purposes of carrying out its duties, hold hearings, take 
testimony, receive evidence, print or otherwise reproduce and 
distribute all or part of commission proceedings and reports, and sit 
and act at those times and places as the Commission, subcommittee, or 
members consider desirable.
    (b) Information for the Commission.--The Commission may obtain 
directly from any executive agency (as defined in section 105 of title 
5 of the United States Code) or court, information necessary to enable 
it to carry out its duties under this title. On this request of either 
co-chair of the Commission, and consistent with applicable law, the 
head of an executive agency or of a Federal court shall provide such 
information to the Commission.
    (c) Powers of Members and Agents.--Any member or agent of the 
Commission may, if authorized by the Commission, take any action which 
the Commission is authorized to take by this section.
    (d) Volunteer Services.--The Commission may accept volunteer 
services for the purpose of aiding or facilitating the work of the 
Commission.
    (e) Mails.--The Commission may use the United States mails in the 
same manner and under the same conditions as other departments and 
agencies of the United States.
    (f) Administrative Support Services.--Upon the request of the 
Commission, the Administrator of General Services shall provide to the 
Commission, on a reimbursable basis, the administrative support 
services necessary for the Commission to carry out its responsibilities 
under this title.
    (g) Contract Authority.--To the extent or in the amounts provided 
in advance in appropriation Acts, the Commission may contract with and 
compensate government and private agencies or persons for property or 
services, without regard to section 3709 of the Revised Statutes (41 
U.S.C. 5).

SEC. 408. STAFF OF COMMISSION; EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.

    (a) Staff.--Subject to rules prescribed by the Commission, the co-
chairs may appoint and fix the pay of personnel as they consider 
appropriate.
    (b) Applicability of Certain Civil Service Laws.--The staff of the 
Commission may be appointed without regard to the provisions of title 
5, United States Code, governing appointments in the competitive 
service, and may be paid without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 
and subchapter III of chapter 53 of that title relating to 
classification and General Schedule pay rates, except that an 
individual so appointed may not receive pay in excess of the annual 
rate of basic pay for GS-15 of the General Schedule.
    (c) Experts and Consultants.--Subject to rules prescribed by the 
Commission, the co-chairs may procure temporary and intermittent 
services under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, but at 
rates for individuals not to exceed the daily equivalent of the maximum 
annual rate of basic pay for GS-15 of the General Schedule.
    (d) Staff of Federal Agencies.--Upon request of the co-chairs, the 
head of any Federal department or agency may detail, on a reimbursable 
basis, any of the personnel of that department or agency to the 
Commission to assist it in carrying out its duties under this title.

SEC. 409. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAW.

    The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 App. U.S.C.) shall not apply 
to the Commission.

SEC. 410. REPORTS.

    (a) Annual Report.--Not later than January 31 of each year, the 
Commission shall submit to the President of the United States, the 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the United States Senate, 
the Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives, the 
Governor of the State of Alaska, and the legislature of the State of 
Alaska a written report describing its activities during the preceding 
year.
    (b) Final Report.--The Commission shall submit a final 
comprehensive report to the officials and entities referred to in 
subsection (a) at least 10 days before the date the Commission 
terminates.

SEC. 411. TERMINATION OF THE COMMISSION.

    The Commission is terminated 2 years after the date of completion 
of appointment of all members of the Commission.

               TITLE V--LAND CONVEYANCE TO HAINES, OREGON

SEC. 501. CONVEYANCE TO THE CITY OF HAINES, OREGON.

    (a) Conveyance.--As soon as practicable after the date of enactment 
of this title, the Secretary of the Interior shall convey, without 
consideration, all right, title, and interest of the United States in 
and to the parcel of land described in subsection (b) to the city of 
Haines, Oregon.
    (b) Description of Land.--The parcel of land referred to in 
subsection (a) is the parcel of Bureau of Land Management land 
consisting of approximately 40 acres, as indicated on the map entitled 
``S. 1907: Conveyance to the City of Haines, Oregon'' and dated May 9, 
2002.

            Passed the Senate November 20 (legislative day, November 
      19), 2002.

            Attest:

                                                             Secretary.
107th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                                S. 2670

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

 To establish Institutes to conduct research on the prevention of, and 
 restoration from, wildfires in forest and woodland ecosystems of the 
                             interior West.