[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 62 (Thursday, April 29, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2804-S2805]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. WYDEN (for himself, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Merkley, Mr. 
        Specter, Mrs. Hagan, and Mr. Harkin):
  S. 3279. A bill to reauthorize the national small business tree 
planting program, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Small 
Business and Entrepreneurship.
  Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Small Business 
Environmental Stewardship Assistance Act of 2010, a companion bill to 
the legislation introduced in the House by another member of the Oregon 
delegation, Congressman Schrader. I am pleased to launch this 
legislation in the Senate and am joined today by Senator Merkley from 
my home State, as well as Senators Stabenow, Specter, and Harkin.
  Trees provide numerous benefits to our communities--from cleaner air 
to energy efficiency to more beautiful city streets. But trees and 
green spaces are also good for business and good for green job 
creation. Beyond the most obvious benefits of trees, studies have shown 
that businesses thrive in green, attractive, pedestrian-oriented retail 
environments. And this legislation will help America's small businesses 
and communities plant trees and enhance those kinds of environments. As 
a Senator from Oregon--a State that grows many of the trees that 
beautify cities around our Nation, including some of the very trees 
that grace the Capitol grounds--I also know how critical jobs in our 
nursery and landscaping sector can be. In my State, the industry 
provides 21,000 jobs and helps provide over $2 billion worth of 
economic activity.
  This bill would reauthorize the National Small Business Tree Planting 
Program, which existed for several years in the 1990s. Between 1991 and 
1994, more than 18,000 green industry firms were employed to plant more 
than 23 million trees across the country through the Small Business 
Administration program. This program had numerous successes, including 
in my home State where 109 tree planting

[[Page S2805]]

grants were administered between 1991 and 1994. Nearly 11,700 shade, 
landscape, and riparian area trees were planted.
  The program would be authorized at $50 million a year between fiscal 
years 2011 and 2015. The funding provides grants to State forestry 
agencies to enable communities to plant trees around retail 
storefronts, rental housing units, and other public areas. This program 
requires a 25-percent match for any grant received under the program, 
including in-kind contributions such as the cost or value of providing 
care and maintenance for a period of 3 years after planting. Having a 
match requirement ensures that both private and community investments 
are made for the installation and care of trees funded by this program 
Ultimately, this program will lead to healthier, greener more vibrant 
communities and result in green jobs. I look forward to working with 
Senate cosponsors, the nursery industry, State foresters, and the 
bill's other supporters to advance this legislation to the President's 
desk.
                                 ______