[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1493 Introduced in Senate (IS)]








109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1493

   To require the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a program to 
   expand and strengthen cooperative efforts to restore and protect 
    forests in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 26, 2005

Mr. Sarbanes (for himself, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. Warner, Mr. Allen, and Mr. 
   Santorum) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To require the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a program to 
   expand and strengthen cooperative efforts to restore and protect 
    forests in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, 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 ``Chesapeake Bay Watershed Forestry 
Program Act of 2005''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
            (1) trees and forests are critical to the long-term health 
        and proper ecological functioning of the Chesapeake Bay and the 
        Chesapeake Bay watershed;
            (2) the Chesapeake Bay States are losing forest land to 
        urban and suburban growth at a rate of nearly 100 acres per 
        day;
            (3) the Forest Service has a vital role to play in 
        assisting States, local governments, and nonprofit 
        organizations in carrying out forest conservation, restoration, 
        and stewardship projects and activities; and
            (4) existing programs do not ensure the support necessary 
        to meet Chesapeake Bay forest goals.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to expand and strengthen cooperative efforts to 
        protect, restore, and manage forests in the Chesapeake Bay 
        watershed; and
            (2) to contribute to the achievement of the goals of the 
        Chesapeake Bay Agreement.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Chesapeake bay agreement.--The term ``Chesapeake Bay 
        Agreement'' means the formal, voluntary agreements--
                    (A) executed to achieve the goal of restoring and 
                protecting the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem and the living 
                resources of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem; and
                    (B) signed by the Council.
            (2) Chesapeake bay state.--The term ``Chesapeake Bay 
        State'' means each of the States of Delaware, Maryland, New 
        York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia and the 
        District of Columbia.
            (3) Coordinator.--The term ``Coordinator'' means the 
        Coordinator of the program designated under section 4(b)(1)(B).
            (4) Council.--The term ``Council'' means the Chesapeake Bay 
        Executive Council.
            (5) Program.--The term ``program'' means the Chesapeake Bay 
        watershed forestry program carried out under section 4(a).
            (6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service 
        and the Coordinator.

SEC. 4. CHESAPEAKE BAY WATERSHED FORESTRY PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall carry out a Chesapeake Bay 
watershed forestry program under which the Secretary shall make grants 
and provide technical assistance to eligible entities to restore and 
conserve forests in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, including grants and 
assistance--
            (1) to promote forest conservation, restoration, and 
        stewardship efforts in urban, suburban, and rural areas of the 
        Chesapeake Bay watershed;
            (2) to accelerate the restoration of riparian forest 
        buffers in the Chesapeake Bay watershed;
            (3) to assist in developing and carrying out projects and 
        partnerships in the Chesapeake Bay watershed;
            (4) to promote the protection and sustainable management of 
        forests in the Chesapeake Bay watershed;
            (5) to develop communication and education resources that 
        enhance public understanding of the value of forests in the 
        Chesapeake Bay watershed;
            (6) to conduct research, assessment, and planning 
        activities to restore and protect forest land in the Chesapeake 
        Bay watershed; and
            (7) to contribute to the achievement of the goals of the 
        Chesapeake Bay Agreement.
    (b) Office; Coordinator.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall--
                    (A) maintain an office within the Forest Service to 
                carry out the program; and
                    (B) designate an employee of the Forest Service as 
                Coordinator of the program.
            (2) Duties.--As part of the program, the Coordinator, in 
        cooperation with the Secretary and the Chesapeake Bay Program, 
        shall--
                    (A) provide grants and technical assistance to 
                restore and protect forests in the Chesapeake Bay 
                watershed;
                    (B) enter into partnerships to carry out forest 
                restoration and conservation activities at a watershed 
                scale using the resources and programs of the Forest 
                Service;
                    (C) in collaboration with other units of the Forest 
                Service, other Federal agencies, and State forestry 
                agencies, carry out activities that contribute to the 
                goals of the Chesapeake Bay Agreement;
                    (D) work with units of the National Forest System 
                in the Chesapeake Bay watershed to ensure that the 
                units are managed in a manner that--
                            (i) protects water quality; and
                            (ii) sustains watershed health;
                    (E) represent the Forest Service in deliberations 
                of the Chesapeake Bay Program; and
                    (F) support and collaborate with the Forestry Work 
                Group for the Chesapeake Bay Program in planning and 
                implementing program activities.
    (c) Eligible Entities.--To be eligible to receive assistance under 
the program, an entity shall be--
            (1) a Chesapeake Bay State;
            (2) a political subdivision of a Chesapeake Bay State;
            (3) a university or other institution of higher education;
            (4) an organization operating in the Chesapeake Bay 
        watershed that is described in section 501(c) of the Internal 
        Revenue Code of 1986 and is exempt from taxation under section 
        501(a) of that Code; or
            (5) any other person in the Chesapeake Bay watershed that 
        the Secretary determines to be eligible.
    (d) Grants.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall make grants to 
        eligible entities under the program to carry out projects to 
        protect, restore, and manage forests in the Chesapeake Bay 
        watershed.
            (2) Federal share.--The Federal share of a grant made under 
        the program shall not exceed 75 percent, as determined by the 
        Secretary.
            (3) Types of projects.--The Secretary may make a grant to 
        an eligible entity for a project in the Chesapeake Bay 
        watershed that--
                    (A) improves habitat and water quality through the 
                establishment, protection, or stewardship of riparian 
                or wetland forests or stream corridors;
                    (B) builds the capacity of State forestry agencies 
                and local organizations to implement forest 
                conservation, restoration, and stewardship actions;
                    (C) develops and implements watershed management 
                plans that--
                            (i) address forest conservation needs; and
                            (ii) reduce urban and suburban runoff;
                    (D) provides outreach and assistance to private 
                landowners and communities to restore or conserve 
                forests in the watershed;
                    (E) implements communication, education, or 
                technology transfer programs that broaden public 
                understanding of the value of trees and forests in 
                sustaining and restoring the Chesapeake Bay watershed;
                    (F) coordinates and implements community-based 
                watershed partnerships and initiatives that--
                            (i) focus on--
                                    (I) the expansion of the urban tree 
                                canopy; and
                                    (II) the restoration or protection 
                                of forest land; or
                            (ii) integrate the delivery of Forest 
                        Service programs for restoring or protecting 
                        watersheds;
                    (G) provides enhanced forest resource data to 
                support watershed management;
                    (H) enhances upland forest health to reduce risks 
                to watershed function and water quality; or
                    (I) conducts inventory assessment or monitoring 
                activities to measure environmental change associated 
                with projects carried out under the program.
            (4) Chesapeake bay watershed foresters.--Funds made 
        available under section 6 may be used by a Chesapeake Bay State 
        to employ a State watershed forester to work with the 
        Coordinator to carry out activities and watershed projects 
        relating to the program.
    (e) Study.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary, in consultation with the 
        Council, shall conduct a study of urban and rural forests in 
        the Chesapeake Bay watershed, including--
                    (A) an evaluation of the state, and threats to the 
                sustainability, of forests in the Chesapeake Bay 
                watershed;
                    (B) an assessment of forest loss and fragmentation 
                in the Chesapeake Bay watershed;
                    (C) an identification of forest land within the 
                Chesapeake Bay watershed that should be restored or 
                protected; and
                    (D) recommendations for expanded and targeted 
                actions or programs needed to achieve the goals of the 
                Chesapeake Bay Agreement.
            (2) Report.--Not later than 1 year after amounts are first 
        made available under section 6, the Secretary shall submit to 
        the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives 
        and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of 
        the Senate a report that describes the results of the study.

SEC. 5. WATERSHED FORESTRY RESEARCH PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary, in cooperation with the Council, 
shall establish a watershed forestry research program for the 
Chesapeake Bay watershed.
    (b) Administration.--In carrying out the watershed forestry 
research program established under subsection (a), the Secretary 
shall--
            (1) use a combination of applied research, modeling, 
        demonstration projects, implementation guidance, strategies for 
        adaptive management, training, and education to meet the needs 
        of the residents of the Chesapeake Bay States for managing 
        forests in urban, developing, and rural areas;
            (2) solicit input from local managers and Federal, State, 
        and private researchers, with respect to air and water quality, 
        social and economic implications, environmental change, and 
        other Chesapeake Bay watershed forestry issues in urban and 
        rural areas;
            (3) collaborate with the Chesapeake Bay Program Scientific 
        and Technical Advisory Committee and universities in the 
        Chesapeake Bay States to--
                    (A) address issues in the Chesapeake Bay Agreement; 
                and
                    (B) support modeling and informational needs of the 
                Chesapeake Bay program; and
            (4) manage activities of the watershed forestry research 
        program in partnership with the Coordinator.
    (c) Watershed Forestry Research Strategy.--Not later than 1 year 
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in 
collaboration with the Northeastern Forest Research Station and the 
Southern Forest Research Station, shall submit to Congress a strategy 
for research to address Chesapeake Bay watershed goals, including 
recommendations for implementation and leadership of the program.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out the program 
$3,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2006 through 2012, of which--
            (1) not more than $500,000 shall be used to conduct the 
        study required under section 4(e); and
            (2) not more than $1,000,000 for any fiscal year shall be 
        used to carry out the watershed forestry research program under 
        section 5.

SEC. 7. REPORT.

    Not later than December 31, 2007, and annually thereafter, the 
Secretary shall submit to Congress a comprehensive report that 
describes the costs, accomplishments, and outcomes of the activities 
carried out under the program.
                                 <all>