Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Neighborhood Tree Act of 2026”.
Neighborhood Tree Act of 2026
A BILL
To amend the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 to provide States and communities with additional assistance to plant and maintain trees, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Findings
Congress finds that—
the presence of a healthy and well-maintained urban forest can—
support—
the physical and mental health of community residents;
the regulation of air quality;
the mitigation of the urban heat island effect;
the reduction of energy demand; and
stormwater management; and
provide other benefits;
according to research of the Forest Service, the estimated value of benefits described in paragraph (1) exceeds $18,000,000,000;
the maintenance and management of an urban forest offers additional opportunities relating to workforce development, job creation, and enhancement of property values;
urban forest canopy cover is inequitably distributed among racial groups and income levels, exacerbating disparities in exposure, for example, to the urban heat island effect and in related health risks or financial burdens relating to cooling;
the effects of historical discriminatory policies, such as redlining, continue to have effects on urban environments;
a recent analysis shows that—
urbanized neighborhoods with mostly people of color have 33 percent less tree canopy on average than majority white neighborhoods; and
low-income neighborhoods have 41 percent less tree cover than neighborhoods with low rates of poverty;
additional analyses of cities in the United States found that—
communities primarily inhabited by United States-born, white populations contain more than twice the urban forest canopy cover of communities primarily inhabited by racial and ethnic minorities; and
there were elevated land temperatures in formerly redlined areas compared to their nonredlined counterparts, by an average 2.6 degrees Celsius and up to 7 degrees Celsius; and
to reduce disparities in the enjoyment of the social, environmental, and economic benefits of healthy and well-maintained urban forests and manage risks relating to heat exposure and other urban stressors, the Federal Government should accelerate actions to enhance the health and resilience of urban forests, with investment in priority communities.
Sec. 3 Neighborhood Tree Fund
Section 9 of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2105) is amended—
by redesignating subsections (h) and (i) as subsections (i) and (j), respectively; and
by inserting after subsection (g) the following:
“(h) Neighborhood Tree Fund
“(1) In general—Consistent with the purposes described in subsection (b), the Secretary shall establish the Neighborhood Tree Fund (referred to in this subsection as the Fund).
“(2) Assistance—The Secretary shall use amounts from the Fund to provide assistance to eligible entities described in paragraph (3) to increase and improve the overall health of the tree canopy in a community.
“(3) Eligibility—An entity that is eligible to receive assistance under paragraph (2) is—
“(A) a State;
“(B) an Indian Tribe; and
“(C) a local unit of government, approved organization, or local community tree volunteer group described in subsection (b)(4).
“(4) Requirements—The Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, shall establish requirements for the receipt of assistance under paragraph (2), including requirements with respect to—
“(A) engagement with communities and stakeholders;
“(B) the conduct of a tree canopy assessment;
“(C) the use of climate change science in the design of a project using the assistance;
“(D) the conduct of site preparation and tree species selection; and
“(E) the conduct of monitoring and maintenance to ensure the successful establishment of the tree canopy.
“(5) Priority—The Secretary shall give priority to the provision of assistance under paragraph (2) to eligible entities that propose projects that—
“(A) include and prioritize tree planting and tree maintenance in—
“(i) a census tract with a poverty rate of not less than 20 percent, as measured by the 5-year data series available from the American Community Survey of the Bureau of the Census for the period of 2014 through 2018, including such a census tract that includes an area that was designated as “hazardous” or “definitely declining” in maps drawn by the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation; or
“(ii) a community or neighborhood with lower tree canopy and higher maximum daytime summer temperatures compared to surrounding communities or neighborhoods, as determined by the Secretary, based on publicly available information;
“(B) optimize outcomes for climate mitigation and resilience for the purpose of public health, as determined by the Secretary; or
“(C) advance community-led urban agroforestry or tree-based local food production to increase green infrastructure, reduce urban heat, and improve environmental and public health outcomes.
“(6) Limitations on use of amounts for community tree assessments—Not more than 10 percent of the amount made available under paragraph (7) for a fiscal year may be used for the development of community tree assessments.
“(7) Authorization of appropriations—There are authorized to be appropriated for deposit into the Fund, for use by the Secretary to carry out this subsection, not less than—
“(A) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2025;
“(B) $200,000,000 for fiscal year 2026;
“(C) $400,000,000 for fiscal year 2027;
“(D) $600,000,000 for fiscal year 2028; and
“(E) $700,000,000 for fiscal year 2029.”
Sec. 4 National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council composition
Section 9(g)(2)(A) of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2105(g)(2)(A)) is amended—
in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking “15” and inserting “16”;
in each of clauses (i) through (viii), by striking the comma at the end and inserting a period;
in clause (ix), by striking “, and” at the end and inserting a period; and
by striking clause (x) and inserting the following:
“(x) 3 members who are not officers or employees of any governmental body and who have expertise and have been active in urban and community forestry, of whom—
“(I) 1 is a resident of a community with a population of less than 50,000 as of the most recent census; and
“(II) 1 is a resident of a low-income community, as determined by the Secretary.”