Legislative Hearing on: Discussion Draft of H.R. ___ (Rep. Hurd), “Fostering Opportunities to Restore Ecosystems through Sound Tribal Stewardship Act” or the “FORESTS Act.”
2025-05-20
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Source: Congress.gov
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Subcommittee on Federal Lands will come to order. Without objection, the chair is authorized to declare a recess of the subcommittee at any time. The subcommittee is meeting today to consider a discussion draft of legislation entitled the Fostering Opportunities to Restore Ecosystems through Sound Tribal Stewardship Act, or the Forest Act. sponsored by Representative Hurd. I ask unanimous consent that the following members be allowed to participate in today's hearing from the dais, the gentle lady from Oregon, Ms. Hoyle, and the gentleman from Colorado, Mr. Hurd. Without objection, so ordered. Under Committee Rule 4F, any oral opening statements at hearings are limited to the chairman and the ranking minority member. I therefore ask unanimous consent that all other members' opening statements be made part of the hearing record if they are submitted in accordance with Committee Rule 3, Parent O, without objection, so ordered. I'll now recognize myself for an opening statement. Today, the Subcommittee on Federal Lands will consider draft legislation that expands tribal participation in cross-boundary forest management. Offered by my colleague from Colorado, Representative Hurd, the Forest Act, harnesses the profound knowledge and experience of tribes to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire and make forests more resilient to drought, insects, and disease. Much like the bipartisan Fix Our Forests Act, which overwhelmingly passed the House earlier this year, this discussion draft continues committee Republicans' efforts, this Congress, to advance innovative, collaborative solutions that increase the pace and scale of active forest management and empower non-federal partners. Catastrophic wildfires have burned an average of seven million acres annually, destroyed countless homes and businesses, obliterated wildlife habitat, and most tragically resulted in fatalities of both civilians and wildland firefighters. Yet the federal response to this crisis has been woefully inadequate.
For decades now, federal land managers have been preoccupied have been preoccupied with promulgating misguided preservationist policies and fending off extreme environmentalist lawsuits. In the process, these agencies have lost sight of their most important responsibility, reducing wildfire risk through active force management. Just take a look at the chart behind me. You've seen this chart before.
It shows that as federal land management agencies stopped harvesting timber, there was a substantial increase in the acres burned in catastrophic wildfires. We know what needs to be done. There's broad scientific consensus that active management, including mechanical thinning and prescribed burning, can restore health to our forests and reduce the intensity and destructiveness of wildfires. Yet federal spending on suppression continues to soar while prudent management efforts remain mired in bureaucracy.
The Forests Act offers a different path, one rooted in tribal partnerships, innovation, and leadership. That's why I'm supportive of provisions in the Forests Act that enhance good neighbor authority a critical tool that has dramatically increased cross-boundary management work. My home state of Wisconsin is a leader in GNA, and I was proud to support fixes to this program through the Explore Act that allowed tribes to retain receipts from timber sales for further management work. A major barrier to forest restoration, especially in the West, is the disappearance of sawmill infrastructure. Since 2000, more than 1,500 sawmills have closed or drastically curtailed their operations. Near federal lands, the lack of reliable supply is consistently cited as a main driver of closures. Without a market for low value and hazardous fuels material, critical force management stall. This creates a vicious cycle where federal agencies struggle to manage their force and supply enough timber to local mills. Those mills shut down and federal land managers having an even harder time getting management work done with no place nearby to process hazardous fuels coming off the forest. The Forest Act tackles this problem head on by directing the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management to establish tribal sawmill demonstration projects aimed at processing salvaged timber and reducing hazardous fuels in our most fire prone areas. The Forest Act accomplished this by offering 20 year stewardship contracts and adding the retention and expansion of sawmill infrastructure as a goal under stewardship contracting authorities. Modeled on a demonstration project with a Washoe tribe in California following the Calder fire, this provision has the potential to create tribal jobs, revitalize rural economies, and reduce wildfire risk on federal lands. I want to thank all the witnesses for joining us today and sharing their expertise.
I thank the Chairman. Thank you to our fellow committee members for joining us today, to our witnesses. Look forward to your testimony. It's always good to be back in the subcommittee.
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