I 108th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 4838 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES July 15, 2004 Mr. Walden of Oregon (for himself and Mr. Udall of New Mexico) 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 establish a Healthy Forest Youth Conservation Corps to provide a means by which young adults can carry out rehabilitation and enhancement projects to prevent fire and suppress fires, rehabilitate public land affected or altered by fires, and provide disaster relief, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Healthy Forest Youth Conservation Corps Act of 2004.

2.

Findings

Congress finds that— (1)the natural fire regimes of forested public land have been altered by intensive fire suppression; (2)fire suppression has led to increased risk of unnaturally severe wildfires that in recent years have destroyed thousands of homes, devastated agricultural crops and livestock, reduced biodiversity, and scorched thousands of areas of soil and natural resources; (3)catastrophic wildfires pose a particular threat to communities and wildlife living close to forested wildland, known as the wildland-urban interface; (4)each year millions of dollars are spent to fight severe wildfires and protect communities where municipal water supplies, human lives, and property are threatened; (5)contracts and cooperative agreements between Federal agencies and State and local governments and other entities empower communities and are cost-effective tools that provide positive social and environmental benefits, and the use of such contracts and agreements should be encouraged as a means to prevent unnaturally severe fires, rehabilitate public land affected or altered by fires, and enhance and maintain environmentally important land and water; (6)joint collaborations between the Federal agencies and service and conservation corps composed of young adults are particularly beneficial, as the collaborations provide— (A)young adults the opportunity to prepare for productive lives while engaged in meaningful and educational public service opportunities; and (B)the public with cost-saving human resources to assist in conserving, maintaining, and protecting public land.

3.

Purposes

The purposes of this Act are— (1)to allow service and conservation corps to enter into agreements with public land management agencies to perform rehabilitation and enhancement projects to prevent fire, rehabilitate public land affected or altered by fires, and suppress fires, and provide disaster relief; (2)to offer young adults, particularly those who are at-risk or economically disadvantaged, who are members of a service and conservation corps the opportunity to gain productive employment; (3)to provide those young adults the opportunity to serve their communities and their country; and (4)to expand educational opportunities by rewarding individuals who participate in the Healthy Forest Youth Conservation Corps with an increased ability to pursue higher education or employment.

4.

Healthy Forest Youth Conservation Corps

(a)

Establishment

There is established a Healthy Forest Youth Conservation Corps. (b)

Participants

The Corps shall consist of young adults who are enrolled as members of a service and conservation corps covered by a contract or cooperative agreement entered into under subsection (c). (c)

Contracts or agreements

The Secretary concerned may enter into contracts or cooperative agreements directly with— (1)any service and conservation corps to carry out a rehabilitation and enhancement project described in subsection (d); or (2)a department of natural resources, agriculture, or forestry (or an equivalent department) of any State that has entered into a contract or cooperative agreement with a service and conservation corps to carry out a rehabilitation and enhancement project described in subsection (d). (d)

Authorized projects

Under a contract or cooperative agreement entered into under subsection (c), a service and conservation corps may carry out a rehabilitation and enhancement project to prevent fire and suppress fires, rehabilitate public land affected or altered by fires, and provide disaster relief, including— (1)a project relating to the National Fire Plan; (2)a project relating to the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.); and (3)other activities allowed under— (A)a national forest and grassland land management plan; or (B)a Bureau of Land Management land use plan. (e)

Priority projects

In entering into a contract or cooperative agreement under subsection (b), the Secretary concerned shall give priority to projects that will— (1)reduce hazardous fuels on public land; (2)restore public land affected or imminently threatened by disease or insect infestation; (3)rehabilitate public land affected or altered by fires; (4)assess windthrown public land or public land at high risk of reburn; (5)work to address public land located within relative proximity to a municipal watershed and municipal water supply; (6)provide related emergency assistance, such as natural disaster relief and the rescue of lost or injured persons; (7)instill in members of the service and conservation corps a work ethic and a sense of personal responsibility; (8)be labor-intensive; and (9)be planned and initiated promptly. (f)

Supportive services

The Secretary concerned may provide such services as the Secretary considers to be necessary to carry out this Act, including technical assistance, oversight, monitoring, and evaluation to or for— (1)State departments of natural resources and agriculture (or equivalent agencies); (2)service and conservation corps; (3)in the case of Indian lands, the applicable Indian tribe; (4)in the case of Hawaiian home lands, the applicable State agency in the State of Hawaii; and (5)in the case of land under the jurisdiction of an Alaska Native Corporation, the applicable Alaska Native Corporation. (g)

Other uses of funds

Funds made available under this Act may be used to support implementation, monitoring, training, technical assistance, and administrative work of service and conservation corps covered by a contract or cooperative agreement entered into under subsection (c).

5.

Noncompetitive hiring status

The Secretary may grant a person who is a former member of the Healthy Forest Youth Conservation Corps with credit for time served as a member of the Corps toward future Federal hiring and may provide the person with a noncompetitive hiring status for not more than 120 days beginning on the date on which the person completed service as a member of the Corps.

6.

Nondisplacement

The nondisplacement requirements of section 177(b) of the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12637(b)) shall apply to activities carried out under this Act.

7.

Definitions

In this Act: (1)

Alaska Native Corporation

The term Alaska Native Corporation means a Regional Corporation or Village Corporation, as those terms are defined in section 3 of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602). (2)

Hawaiian home lands

The term Hawaiian home lands has the meaning given the term in section 203 of Public Law 91–378 (commonly known as the Youth Conservation Corps Act of 1970) (16 U.S.C. 1722). (3)

Indian lands

The term Indian lands has the meaning given the term in section 203 of Public Law 91–378 (commonly known as the Youth Conservation Corps Act of 1970) (16 U.S.C. 1722). (4)

Public land

The term public land means— (A)land of the National Forest System (as defined in section 11(a) of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1609(a))); (B)public lands (as defined in section 103 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702)) and other land administered by the Secretary of the Interior through the United States Fish and Wildlife Service; (C)land owned by a State or local agency; (D)Indian lands, with the approval of the applicable Indian tribe; (E)Hawaiian home lands, with the approval of the applicable State agency in the State of Hawaii; and (F)land under the jurisdiction of an Alaska Native Corporation, with the approval of the applicable Alaska Native Corporation. (5)

Secretary concerned

The term Secretary concerned means— (A)the Secretary of Agriculture, with respect to land of the National Forest System described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (4); (B)the Secretary of the Interior, with respect to public land described in subparagraph (B) of such paragraph; and (C)the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior jointly, with respect to land described in subparagraphs (C) through (F) of such paragraph. (6)

Service and conservation Corps

The term service and conservation corps means any organization established by a State or local government, nonprofit organization, or Indian tribe that— (A)has a research-validated demonstrable capability to provide productive work to individuals; (B)gives participants a combination of work experience, basic and life skills, education, training, and support services; and (C)provides participants with the opportunity to develop citizenship values through service to their communities and the United States. (7)

State

The term State means— (A)a State; (B)the District of Columbia; (C)the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; (D)Guam; (E)American Samoa; (F)the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands; (G)the Federated States of Micronesia; (H)the Republic of the Marshall Islands; (I)the Republic of Palau; and (J)the United States Virgin Islands. (8)

Young adults

The term young adults means individuals between 16 and 25 years of age.

8.

Authorization of appropriations

There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2005 through 2009.