[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2604 Introduced in Senate (IS)]








109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2604

To address the forest and watershed emergency in the State of Colorado 
 that has been exacerbated by the bark beetle infestation, to provide 
   for the conduct of activities in the State to reduce the risk of 
     wildfire and flooding, to promote economically healthy rural 
   communities by reinvigorating the forest products industry in the 
State, to encourage the use of biomass fuels for energy, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 7, 2006

  Mr. Allard introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
       referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To address the forest and watershed emergency in the State of Colorado 
 that has been exacerbated by the bark beetle infestation, to provide 
   for the conduct of activities in the State to reduce the risk of 
     wildfire and flooding, to promote economically healthy rural 
   communities by reinvigorating the forest products industry in the 
State, to encourage the use of biomass fuels for energy, 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 ``Headwaters 
Protection and Restoration Act''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
Sec. 4. Measures to address forest and watershed emergencies in 
                            Colorado.
Sec. 5. Response to emergency events on public land in Colorado.
Sec. 6. Availability and use of emergency event procedures.
Sec. 7. Measures to improve the long-term health of the forests.
Sec. 8. Assistance to communities and private landowners.
Sec. 9. Reports.
Sec. 10. Authorization of appropriations.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) the vast natural resources of the State of Colorado are 
        threatened by the serious risk of catastrophic wildfire, 
        subsequent flooding, and destruction of, or damage to, 
        watersheds posed by the 1,500,000 acres of trees that have been 
        killed by bark beetles and the additional 6,300,000 acres of 
        hazardous fuels that have accumulated over the 20 years 
        preceding the date of enactment of this Act;
            (2) well over \1/2\ of the 14,500,000 acres of national 
        forest land in the State is at increased risk of catastrophic 
        wildfire;
            (3) the risk is greatly compounded by several years of 
        drought and the fact that the most serious bark beetle 
        infestations include 3 of the 4 major watersheds in the State, 
        which poses a grave threat to communities and the mountain 
        reservoirs that supply the drinking water of the State;
            (4) threats to the watersheds of the State could translate 
        to problems in other Western States downstream;
            (5) Colorado could be called ``the Headwaters State'', 
        because the State is the origin point of major rivers flowing 
        both east and west and the source of a vast amount of the water 
        of the United States;
            (6) the Colorado Rocky Mountains create the headwaters for 
        4 regional watersheds that eventually supply water to 
        approximately 19 Western States;
            (7) the State has already experienced major damage to 
        municipal water reservoirs from repeated flooding and watershed 
        damage and destruction after catastrophic wildfires that have 
        cost hundreds of millions of dollars;
            (8) in addition to the risk to public health and safety, 
        the economic health of the State is threatened by the loss of 
        healthy green forests, which are essential to the mountain 
        tourism industry of the State;
            (9) the Federal agencies that manage the majority of the 
        affected land need to adopt an accelerated pace to reduce the 
        public health and safety risk as soon as possible;
            (10) additional funds are necessary to accomplish the 
        needed work, but merely increasing funding would not address 
        the larger problem facing the State, which is the lack of 
        necessary forest product industry to adequately handle the 
        amount and variety of material requiring removal from the 
        forests;
            (11) the long years of reduced harvesting and thinning of 
        forests in the State have led to a precipitous decline in 
        forest businesses to the extent that there are very few forest 
        businesses remaining in the State that have the infrastructure 
        and ability to process the varied forest products that result 
        when harvesting does occur;
            (12) although the State has an ample potential supply of 
        wood and a high demand for sawn wood products, the State 
        actually imports more than 90 percent of its timber and wood 
        products;
            (13) the reliance on imported timber and wood products is 
        directly related to the lack of a consistent supply of raw 
        material from national forests, losses in mill locations, and 
        the decline in processing facilities, especially for post and 
        pole size material, in the State;
            (14) the absence of an adequate market for small diameter 
        materials and wood chips is a serious problem as the need to 
        thin forests of hazardous fuel grows across the State;
            (15) steady, judicious, and effective forest management 
        over time is a much better and more cost effective strategy 
        than dealing with the management of catastrophic events under 
        emergency circumstances;
            (16) in the few years preceding the date of enactment of 
        this Act, 3 major Colorado fires cost the Federal Government 
        $125,000,000 for suppression and emergency restoration actions, 
        not including the value of destroyed timber, habitat loss, and 
        devastated landscapes and destruction of private property;
            (17) additional benefits of sound forestry management 
        include--
                    (A) reducing the magnitude of the crisis during the 
                next bark beetle epidemic;
                    (B) creating a market sufficient to provide jobs in 
                rural areas; and
                    (C) reducing the amount of wood imported into the 
                State; and
            (18) to address the immediate crisis and the longer-term 
        need for more effective forest management in the State, it is 
        necessary to--
                    (A) provide financial assistance;
                    (B) assure a sustained harvest of forest products;
                    (C) establish a self-sustaining Forest Health Fund 
                for the State;
                    (D) reestablish adequate forest processing 
                infrastructure in the State;
                    (E) develop a diversified forest products market 
                and encourage woody biomass industry to supply a 
                reliable source of renewable energy; and
                    (F) encourage the woody biomass industry to supply 
                a reliable source of renewable energy by removing a 
                requirement for a full permit review that is a 
                disincentive for power companies that may want to 
                switch to cogeneration using woody biomass.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) At-risk community.--The term ``at-risk community'' has 
        the meaning given the term in section 101 of the Healthy 
        Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6511).
            (2) Emergency event.--The term ``emergency event'' means 
        any drought, insect or disease outbreak, natural disaster (such 
        as a landslide, mudslide, tornado, windstorm, snow or ice 
        storm, rain storm, high water, or wind-driven water), or any 
        fire, flood, or explosion, regardless of cause, that the 
        Secretary concerned determines has caused or will cause damage 
        of significant severity and magnitude to Federal land or 
        adjacent non-Federal land.
            (3) Emergency event procedures.--The term ``emergency event 
        procedures'' means any procedures that as, determined by the 
        Secretary concerned under section 6, may be employed to 
        facilitate the response to emergency events on Federal land or 
        adjacent non-Federal land in the State during the period of 
        fiscal years 2007 through 2011.
            (4) Fund.--The term ``Fund'' means the Colorado Forest 
        Health Fund established by section 7(c)(1).
            (5) 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).
            (6) Municipal water supply system.--The term ``municipal 
        water supply system'' has the meaning given the term in section 
        101 of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 
        6511).
            (7) Secretary concerned.--The term ``Secretary concerned'' 
        means--
                    (A) with respect to National Forest System land, 
                the Secretary of Agriculture--
                            (i) acting through the Forest Supervisor of 
                        the applicable unit of the National Forest 
                        System for the purposes of sections 5 and 6; 
                        and
                            (ii) acting through the Chief of the Forest 
                        Service for the purposes of any other section; 
                        and
                    (B) with respect to land managed by the Bureau of 
                Land Management (including land held for the benefit of 
                an Indian tribe), the National Park Service, or the 
                United States Fish and Wildlife Service, the Secretary 
                of the Interior.
            (8) Small business concern.--The term ``small business 
        concern'' has the meaning given the term in section 3 of the 
        Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632).
            (9) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of Colorado.
            (10) Wildland-urban interface.--The term ``wildland-urban 
        interface'' has the meaning given the term in section 101 of 
        the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6511).

SEC. 4. MEASURES TO ADDRESS FOREST AND WATERSHED EMERGENCIES IN 
              COLORADO.

    (a) Emergency Event Procedures.--During the period of fiscal years 
2007 through 2011, in response to watershed and forest emergencies, the 
Secretary concerned shall consider the use of the emergency event 
procedures for the State in accordance with sections 5 and 6.
    (b) Hazardous Fuel Reduction and Bark Beetle Response Projects.--
The Secretary concerned may carry out projects in the State to--
            (1) reduce hazardous fuels; or
            (2) prevent the spread of bark beetles to adjacent trees 
        that are in danger of being infested.

SEC. 5. RESPONSE TO EMERGENCY EVENTS ON PUBLIC LAND IN COLORADO.

    (a) Emergency Event Proposals.--With respect to each emergency 
event, the Secretary concerned may--
            (1) prepare an emergency event proposal that contains 
        proposed projects to respond to the emergency event; or
            (2) receive and consider a similarly-prepared proposal 
        from--
                    (A) the Governor of the State;
                    (B) the State Forester;
                    (C) a Water Conservation District; or
                    (D) an at-risk community.
    (b) Emergency Event Evaluations.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary concerned may conduct an 
        emergency event evaluation in response to--
                    (A) an emergency event that--
                            (i) may require emergency event procedures; 
                        and
                            (ii) affects--
                                    (I) a municipal water supply 
                                system;
                                    (II) a wildland-urban interface; or
                                    (III) other public or private 
                                property that the Secretary concerned 
                                determines has caused or will cause 
                                damage of significant severity and 
                                magnitude to Federal land or adjacent 
                                non-Federal land; or
                    (B) a request for an emergency event evaluation for 
                an affected area described in subparagraph (A)(ii) from 
                1 of the entities described in subsection (a)(2)(B).
            (2) Notification.--Concurrently, upon initiating the 
        emergency event evaluation under paragraph (1), the Secretary 
        shall notify--
                    (A) affected public agencies;
                    (B) affected local governments and entities;
                    (C) affected communities;
                    (D) affected water conservation districts; and
                    (E) other affected parties.
    (c) Determination.--
            (1) In general.--For each emergency event evaluation 
        conducted under subsection (b)(1), the Secretary concerned 
        shall make a determination of whether a project proposed under 
        subsection (a) should be developed and carried out using 
        emergency event procedures.
            (2) Considerations.--In making a determination under 
        paragraph (1), the Secretary concerned shall consider, at a 
        minimum, the following:
                    (A) The necessity of promptly responding to the 
                emergency event.
                    (B) The threat to public health and safety.
                    (C) The threat to municipal water supplies.
                    (D) The likelihood of substantial loss of adjacent 
                private and public property or other substantial 
                economic losses.
            (3) Priority.--In making a determination under paragraph 
        (1), the Secretary concerned shall give priority to projects in 
        or adjacent to an area that is covered by a completed community 
        wildfire protection plan.
            (4) Deadline.--Not later than 30 days after the date on 
        which the Secretary concerned determines that an emergency 
        event evaluation should be conducted, the Secretary concerned 
        shall--
                    (A) complete the emergency event evaluation; and
                    (B) issue a determination.
            (5) Notification.--On issuance of a determination under 
        paragraph (4)(B), the Secretary concerned shall simultaneously 
        provide notice of the determination to--
                    (A) affected public agencies;
                    (B) affected local governments and entities;
                    (C) affected communities;
                    (D) affected water conservation districts; and
                    (E) other affected parties.
    (d) Relation to Appeals Reform Act.--Section 105 of the Healthy 
Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6515) is amended by adding 
at the end the following:
    ``(d) Relation to Appeals Reform.--Nothing in section 322 of the 
Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 
1999 (Public Law 102-381; 16 U.S.C. 1612 note) shall be construed to 
require administrative review procedures different from, or in addition 
to, the procedures established by regulations issued pursuant to this 
section and section 6 of the Headwaters Protection and Restoration Act 
for administrative review of an authorized emergency event project 
carried out in the State of Colorado during fiscal years 2007 through 
2011 in accordance with the Headwaters Protection and Restoration 
Act.''.

SEC. 6. AVAILABILITY AND USE OF EMERGENCY EVENT PROCEDURES.

    (a) Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--If the Secretary concerned determines 
        under section 5(c) to use emergency event procedures for a 
        project, the Secretary shall develop and carry out the project 
        in accordance with this section.
            (2) Applicable law.--Except as otherwise provided in this 
        Act, the Secretary concerned shall comply with the National 
        Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4331 et seq.), any 
        regulations promulgated to carry out that Act, and other 
        applicable laws in designing and conducting emergency event 
        projects.
            (3) Limited consideration of alternatives.--If the 
        Secretary concerned determines under section 5(c)(1) to use 
        emergency event procedures to conduct a project proposed under 
        section 5(a), the Secretary concerned is not required to study, 
        develop, or analyze any alternatives other than the proposed 
        agency action and the alternative of no action in designing the 
        project.
    (b) Required Consultation.--
            (1) Compliance with endangered species act of 1973.--
                    (A) In general.--Except as otherwise provided in 
                this Act, the Secretary concerned shall comply with 
                section 7 of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 
                U.S.C. 1536) in carrying out this Act.
                    (B) Deadline for completion.--If the consultation 
                required under this paragraph is not completed by the 
                date on which the decision document is issued under 
                subsection (c), the applicable biological assessment 
                from the land management agency shall be considered to 
                be sufficient for the purposes of section 7 of the 
                Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536).
            (2) Other required consultation.--
                    (A) In general.--Any consultation required under 
                any other laws, such as the National Historic 
                Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470 et seq.), may proceed 
                simultaneously with the design of an emergency event 
                project, or portion of an emergency event project, for 
                which emergency event procedures under this section are 
                used.
                    (B) Incorporation.--To the extent feasible, 
                practicable, and consistent with the response 
                objectives of an emergency event project, the results 
                of any consultation required under subparagraph (A) 
                shall be immediately incorporated into the emergency 
                event project.
    (c) Issuance of Decision Document.--Not later than 90 days after 
the date on which the Secretary concerned makes a determination under 
section 5(c)(1) to develop and carry out an emergency event project, or 
portion of an emergency event project, using emergency event 
procedures, the Secretary concerned shall--
            (1) complete the emergency event procedures for that 
        emergency event project, or a portion of the emergency event 
        project, under this section; and
            (2) issue a concise decision document that contains the 
        rationale for the agency decision.
    (d) Implementation.--The Secretary concerned shall implement the 
emergency event procedures as soon as practicable after the issuance of 
the decision document under subsection (c), subject only to the 
availability of funds for the emergency event procedures.
    (e) Limitations on Treatments.--For the purposes of responding to 1 
or more of the events described in section 5(b), treatment of stands 
carried out as part of a project for which emergency event procedures 
are authorized under this section shall be limited to--
            (1) reducing hazardous fuels; or
            (2) preventing the spread of bark beetles to adjacent trees 
        that are in danger of being infested.

SEC. 7. MEASURES TO IMPROVE THE LONG-TERM HEALTH OF THE FORESTS.

    (a) Program.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary concerned, in cooperation 
        with the Colorado State Forester, shall carry out a program in 
        the State to--
                    (A) ensure the long-term health of forests in the 
                State; and
                    (B) reduce the risk of catastrophic fire, flooding, 
                and watershed destruction.
            (2) Requirements.--Under the program, the Secretary 
        concerned, in cooperation with the Colorado State Forester and 
        other applicable State agencies, shall, at a minimum--
                    (A) assess priorities in the State for use of 10-
                year stewardship contracts to initiate revitalization 
                of the forest product industry; and
                    (B) otherwise cooperate with the Colorado State 
                Forest Service and the forest products industry in 
                Colorado to assist in the development of new markets 
                and marketing of the forest products industry.
    (b) Financial Assistance for Stewardship Projects and Small 
Businesses.--The Secretary concerned shall--
            (1) consistently use authority under the Healthy Forests 
        Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.), stewardship 
        contracts, and other long-term contracts to ensure a sustained 
        supply of raw wood materials in the State;
            (2) provide financial assistance for the upfront costs of 
        long-term stewardship projects in areas in which timber values 
        do not provide for recovery costs; and
            (3) provide grants and low-cost loans to eligible small 
        business concerns in the forest product industry in the State 
        for the costs of start-up activities, converting equipment, and 
        modifying facilities to enable the small business concerns to 
        use wood from forests in the State.
    (c) Forest Health Fund.--
            (1) Establishment.--There is established in the Treasury of 
        the United States a fund, to be known as the ``Colorado Forest 
        Health Fund'', consisting of--
                    (A) such amounts as are appropriated to the Fund 
                under paragraph (2) or any other law; and
                    (B) any interest earned on investment of amounts in 
                the Fund under paragraph (3).
            (2) Transfers to fund.--Notwithstanding any other provision 
        of law, beginning in fiscal year 2007 and each fiscal year 
        thereafter, there are appropriated to the Fund an amount equal 
        to 50 percent of the proceeds from the Forest Service sales of 
        timber in the State.
            (3) Expenditures from fund.--On request by the Secretary of 
        Agriculture, the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer from 
        the Fund to the Secretary of Agriculture such amounts as the 
        Secretary of Agriculture determines are necessary to carry out 
        measures to improve forest health and reduce hazardous fuels in 
        the State.
            (4) Investment of amounts.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretary of the Treasury 
                shall invest such portion of the Fund as is not, in the 
                judgment of the Secretary of the Treasury, required to 
                meet current withdrawals.
                    (B) Interest-bearing obligations.--Investments may 
                be made only in interest-bearing obligations of the 
                United States.
                    (C) Acquisition of obligations.--For the purpose of 
                investments under subparagraph (A), obligations may be 
                acquired--
                            (i) on original issue at the issue price; 
                        or
                            (ii) by purchase of outstanding obligations 
                        at the market price.
                    (D) Sale of obligations.--Any obligation acquired 
                by the Fund may be sold by the Secretary of the 
                Treasury at the market price.
                    (E) Credits to fund.--The interest on, and the 
                proceeds from the sale or redemption of, any 
                obligations held in the Fund shall be credited to and 
                form a part of the Fund.
            (5) Transfers of amounts.--
                    (A) In general.--The amounts required to be 
                transferred to the Fund under this section shall be 
                transferred at least monthly from the general fund of 
                the Treasury to the Fund on the basis of estimates made 
                by the Secretary of the Treasury.
                    (B) Adjustments.--Proper adjustment shall be made 
                in amounts subsequently transferred, to the extent 
                prior estimates were in excess of or less than, the 
                amounts required to be transferred.
    (d) Research.--To improve the long-term health of forests in the 
State, the Secretary of Agriculture shall--
            (1) provide financial assistance in the form of grants to--
                    (A) the Colorado Wood Program of Colorado State 
                University for the conduct of research and development 
                and marketing of forest products;
                    (B) the Forest Restoration Institute at Colorado 
                State University, including assistance for the conduct 
                of research in higher elevation forests; and
                    (C) any other entities that the Secretary of 
                Agriculture determines to be appropriate; and
            (2) acting through the Rocky Mountain Research Station, 
        collaborate with the Forest Restoration Institute at Colorado 
        State University in the conduct of research on and the 
        development and transfer of broader landscape treatment 
        strategies and ways to integrate best science with community 
        needs.
    (e) Air Permit Revision Exemption.--Section 504 of the Clean Air 
Act (42 U.S.C. 7661c) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(g) Revisions.--Notwithstanding the regulations promulgated under 
section 502(b)(10), if a permittee seeks to use renewable forest 
biomass to supplement the energy sources authorized under the permit--
            ``(1) revision and review of the entire permit shall not be 
        required; and
            ``(2) any review and revision of the permit shall be 
        limited to consideration of the new use.''.
    (f) Permanent Authority for Federal and State Cooperative 
Restoration and Protection in Colorado.--Section 331 of the Department 
of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001 (114 
Stat. 996; 118 Stat. 3102) is amended by striking subsection (e).

SEC. 8. ASSISTANCE TO COMMUNITIES AND PRIVATE LANDOWNERS.

    (a) Cost-Share Grant Program for Private Landowners.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall provide 
        to the Colorado State Forest Service financial assistance under 
        the Community and Private Land Fire Assistance Program 
        established under section 10A of the Cooperative Forestry 
        Assistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2106c) to establish a grant 
        program in accordance with paragraph (2).
            (2) Requirements.--As a condition of receiving funds under 
        paragraph (1), the Colorado State Forest Service shall 
        establish a grant program under which any private landowner in 
        the State may apply to the Colorado State Forest Service for a 
        grant on a cost-share basis to improve forest health conditions 
        on the land of the private landowner, including conditions 
        relating to insects, diseases, and hazardous fuels.
            (3) Cost share requirement.--A private landowner applying 
        for a grant under paragraph (2) shall agree to provide 50 
        percent of the cost of the grant.
            (4) Prioritization.--Priority shall be given to grant 
        applications from private landowners in areas that have 
        completed community wildfire protection plans.
    (b) Grants for the Colorado Fuels for Schools.--The Secretary of 
Agriculture shall provide grants to the State for the Colorado Fuels 
for Schools program under section 210 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 
(42 U.S.C. 15855)--
            (1) to conduct studies at eligible schools in rural 
        communities to determine the feasibility of installing and 
        operating biomass boilers at the schools and other public 
        buildings; and
            (2) to assist eligible schools and other public buildings 
        in rural communities in the installation and operation of 
        biomass boilers.

SEC. 9. REPORTS.

    The Secretary concerned shall submit to Congress a report on the 
implementation of sections 4(c) and 6 not later than November 30, 2007, 
May 31, 2008, and each November 30 and May 31 thereafter through 2011.

SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act for 
the period of fiscal years 2007 through 2011, $227,000,000, of which--
            (1) $150,000,000 shall be made available to the Secretary 
        of Agriculture to carry out sections 4(b) and 6;
            (2) $12,000,000 shall be made available to the Secretary of 
        the Interior to carry out sections 4(b) and 6;
            (3) $2,500,000 shall be made available to the Secretary of 
        Agriculture to carry out section 5;
            (4) $500,000 shall be made available to the Secretary of 
        the Interior to carry out section 5;
            (5) $2,000,000 shall be made available for the conduct of 
        assessments under section 7(a)(2)(A);
            (6) $10,000,000 shall be made available for assistance 
        under section 7(b)(2);
            (7) $5,000,000 shall be made available for grants under 
        section 7(b)(3);
            (8) $4,000,000 shall be made available for low-cost loans 
        under section 7(b)(3);
            (9) $5,000,000 shall be made available to provide 
        assistance under section 7(d)(1)(A);
            (10) $3,000,000 shall be made available to provide 
        assistance to the Forest Restoration Institute at Colorado 
        State University under section 7(d)(1)(B);
            (11) $2,000,000 shall be made available to provide grants 
        under section 7(d)(1)(C);
            (12) $3,000,000 shall be made available to carry out 
        section 7(d)(2);
            (13) $15,000,000 shall be made available for assistance 
        under section 8(a); and
            (14) $10,000,000 shall be made available for grants under 
        section 8(b).
                                 <all>