[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4945 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4945
To require the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a pilot program
for the establishment and use of a pre-fire-suppression stand density
index, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
September 22, 2022
Mr. Lee introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a pilot program
for the establishment and use of a pre-fire-suppression stand density
index, 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 ``Catastrophic Wildfire Prevention Act
of 2022''.
SEC. 2. PILOT PROGRAM.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Area of the national forest system.--The term ``area of
the National Forest System'' means all or a portion of a unit
of the National Forest System that is located west of the 100th
meridian.
(2) Pilot program.--The term ``pilot program'' means the
pilot program established under subsection (b).
(3) Pre-fire-suppression stand density index.--The term
``pre-fire-suppression stand density index'' means an estimate
of the naturally occurring or ecologically balanced stand
density index of a forest, as developed from historical surveys
or appropriate scientific inference, before fire suppression
regimens became common practice.
(4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service.
(5) Stand density index.--The term ``stand density index''
means an expression of relative stand density based on the
predictable relationship between average tree size and trees
per unit area in dense stands.
(6) Treatment.--The term ``treatment'' means--
(A) a mechanical treatment of hazardous fuels;
(B) a stewardship end-result contracting project;
(C) restoration services; or
(D) timber harvesting.
(b) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish a pilot program
under which the Secretary shall--
(1) collaborate with State or local forest management
agencies--
(A) to identify areas of the National Forest System
for potential selection under paragraph (3) for
inclusion in the pilot program; and
(B) to research and establish a pre-fire-
suppression stand density index for each area of the
National Forest System identified under subparagraph
(A);
(2) evaluate how closely each pre-fire-suppression stand
density index established under paragraph (1)(B) reflects
current forest conditions and current published resource
management objectives established by the Secretary for the
applicable area of the National Forest System; and
(3) select, in consultation with State or local forest
management agencies, not fewer than 8 areas of the National
Forest System identified under paragraph (1)(A) with respect to
which the area and neighboring communities may benefit from
using a pre-fire-suppression stand density index as a benchmark
for treatments by--
(A) reducing the chances of catastrophic wildfire;
(B) increasing forest health;
(C) increasing forest resilience;
(D) increasing ecological diversity; or
(E) improving such other criteria as the Secretary,
in consultation with State or local forest management
agencies, determine to be appropriate.
(c) Implementation.--Not later than 2 years after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall begin to conduct treatments
on areas of the National Forest System selected under subsection
(b)(3), and update applicable land and resource management plans to
include objectives and benchmarks, in accordance with the applicable
pre-fire-suppression stand density index established under subsection
(b)(1)(B).
(d) Selection of Areas.--In selecting areas of the National Forest
System for inclusion in the pilot program under subsection (b)(3) and
conducting treatments under subsection (c), the Secretary shall--
(1) give priority to an area--
(A) within the wildland-urban interface (as defined
in section 101 of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act
of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6511));
(B) constituting a community watershed;
(C) vulnerable to erosion;
(D) hosting multiple-use activities;
(E) critical to supporting wildlife or plant
species health; or
(F) with respect to which a treatment is necessary
to prevent catastrophic wildfire; and
(2) select a geographically diverse sample of areas of the
National Forest System, which shall include not fewer than 3
areas of the National Forest System in the southwest United
States.
(e) Funding.--The Secretary shall carry out this section using
funds otherwise made available to the Secretary for fuels reduction
treatments.
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