[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 148 (Wednesday, September 13, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E838]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           ACCURATELY COUNTING RISK ELIMINATION SOLUTIONS ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                              HON. ED CASE

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 12, 2023

  Mr. CASE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 1567, 
the Accurately Counting Risk Elimination Solutions (ACRES) Act of 2023.
  Drought conditions and invasive grasses throughout the country in 
recent years have compounded the threat of wildfires, and the recent 
wildfires on Maui serve as a tragic reminder of how serious the risks 
are. These wildfires devastated a vibrant community and serve as a 
stark warning sign of the reality of such risks.
  Federal lands are particularly vulnerable to wildfires, as they alone 
experience a fifth of the country's wildfires every year. To combat 
this danger, the ACRES Act will help mitigate the risk of wildfires 
across the country by mandating that our Department of Agriculture and 
Department of the Interior conduct more accurate risk assessment 
tracking of dry invasive grasses on our federal lands. This will help 
prevent wildfires before they start. This legislation will also mandate 
that data collection processes involved in wildfire risk assessments be 
updated and standardized across both departments to ensure that their 
cooperation will be seamless and efficient.
  Each department will also be required to submit a report of the 
number of acres of federal lands that underwent a risk assessment every 
year and provide critical information on wildland-urban interface and 
wildfire risk. The ACRES Act will add an extra layer of oversight and 
public transparency to ensure the accuracy of wildfire risk 
assessments, allowing for more effective wildfire prevention.
  This legislation will be especially helpful in Hawaii, which has 
large public land holdings and currently suffers from a higher risk of 
wildfires due to vast swaths of land being overrun by dry invasive 
grasses, directly linking to fires across my state every year. This 
commonsense bill will enable us to reduce hazardous fuels and protect 
our communities from this threat.
  I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to help advance smart 
data collection and protect our public lands from wildfire by 
supporting this bill.

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