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Title II — Forest management

S. 140 · 119th Congress · Jan 16, 2025 · Lineage

II Forest management

Sec. 201 Vegetation management, facility inspection, and operation and maintenance relating to electric transmission and distribution facility rights-of-way

(a)
Hazard trees within 50 feet of electric power line— Section 512(a)(1)(B)(ii) of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1772(a)(1)(B)(ii)) is amended by striking “10” and inserting “50”.
(b)
Permits and agreements with owners and operators of electric transmission or distribution facilities— Section 512 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1772) is amended—
(1)
in the section heading, by striking “managment” and inserting “management”;
(2)
by redesignating subsections (j) and (k) as subsections (k) and (l), respectively; and
(3)
by inserting after subsection (i) the following:

“(j) Permits and agreements with owners and operators of electric transmission or distribution facilities

“(1) In general—In any special use permit or easement on National Forest System or Bureau of Land Management land provided to the owner or operator of an electric transmission or distribution facility, the Secretary concerned may provide permission to cut and remove trees or other vegetation from within the vicinity of the electric transmission or distribution facility without requiring a separate timber sale, if that cutting and removal is consistent with—

“(A) the applicable plan;

“(B) the applicable land and resource management plan or land use plan; and

“(C) other applicable environmental laws (including regulations).

“(2) Use of proceeds—A special use permit or easement that includes permission for cutting and removal described in paragraph (1) shall include a requirement that, if the owner or operator of the electric transmission or distribution facility sells any portion of the material removed under the permit or easement, the owner or operator shall provide to the Secretary concerned any proceeds received from the sale, less any transportation costs incurred in the sale.

“(3) Effect—Nothing in paragraph (2) shall require the sale of any material removed under a permit or easement that includes permission for cutting and removal described in paragraph (1).”

Sec. 202 Timber sales on National Forest System land

Section 14(d) of the National Forest Management Act of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 472a(d)) is amended, in the first sentence, by striking “$10,000” and inserting “$55,000”.

Sec. 203 Categorical exclusion for high-priority hazard trees

(a)
Definitions— In this section:
(1)
High-priority hazard tree— The term high-priority hazard tree means a standing tree that—
(A)
presents a visible hazard to people or Federal property due to conditions such as deterioration of or damage to the root system, trunk, stem, or limbs of the tree, or the direction or lean of the tree, as determined by the Secretary;
(B)
is determined by the Secretary to be highly likely to fail and, if it failed, would be highly likely to cause injury to people or damage to Federal property; and
(C)
is—
(i)
within 300 feet of a National Forest System road with a maintenance level of 3, 4, or 5;
(ii)
along a National Forest System trail; or
(iii)
in a developed recreation site on National Forest System land that is operated and maintained by the Secretary.
(2)
High-priority hazard tree activity—
(A)
In general— The term high-priority hazard tree activity means a forest management activity that mitigates the risks associated with high-priority hazard trees, which may include pruning, felling, and disposal of those high-priority hazard trees.
(B)
Exclusions— The term high-priority hazard tree activity does not include—
(i)
any activity conducted in a wilderness area or wilderness study area;
(ii)
any activity for the construction of a permanent road or permanent trail;
(iii)
any activity conducted on Federal land on which, by Act of Congress or Presidential proclamation, the removal of vegetation is restricted or prohibited;
(iv)
any activity conducted in an area in which activities described in subparagraph (A) would be inconsistent with the applicable land and resource management plan; or
(v)
any activity conducted in an inventoried roadless area.
(3)
Secretary— The term Secretary means the Secretary of Agriculture.
(b)
Categorical exclusion—
(1)
In general— Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall develop a categorical exclusion (as defined in 111 of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4336e)) for high-priority hazard tree activities.
(2)
Administration— In developing and administering the categorical exclusion under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—
(A)
comply with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); and
(B)
apply the extraordinary circumstances procedures under section 220.6 of title 36, Code of Federal Regulations (or successor regulations), in determining whether to use the categorical exclusion.
(3)
Project size limitation— A project carried out using the categorical exclusion developed under paragraph (1) may not exceed 3,000 acres.

Sec. 204 Intervenor status

(a)
In general— For purposes of a civil action relating to a qualified project described in subsection (b), a unit of local government or an Indian Tribe shall be—
(1)
entitled to intervene, as of right, in any subsequent civil action; and
(2)
considered to be a full participant in any settlement negotiation relating to the qualified project if the unit of local government or Indian Tribe, as applicable, intervenes.
(b)
Description of qualified project— A qualified project referred to in subsection (a) is a project that—
(1)
is located on Federal land adjacent, or with sufficient minimum contacts, as determined by the Secretary concerned, to the land under the jurisdiction of the unit of local government or Indian Tribe, as applicable;
(2)
has been approved by the Secretary concerned; and
(3)
(A)
reduces the risk posed by wildfire, insect, or disease; or
(B)
generates revenue from the harvesting of timber.

Sec. 205 Utilizing grazing for wildfire risk reduction

(a)
In general— Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary concerned shall develop and submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives a strategy to analyze and identify opportunities to use livestock grazing as a wildfire risk reduction tool on Federal land, consistent with the laws applicable to the Secretary concerned.
(b)
Inclusions— The strategy developed under subsection (a) shall include an analysis of—
(1)
opportunities—
(A)
to increase the use of any authorities applicable to livestock grazing, including modifications to grazing permits or leases to allow variances;
(B)
to use targeted grazing to reduce hazardous fuels;
(C)
to integrate advanced technologies to dynamically adjust livestock placement;
(D)
to increase the use of livestock grazing to eradicate invasive annual grasses and as a post-fire restoration and recovery strategy, as appropriate; and
(E)
to facilitate and expedite the temporary use of vacant allotments during extreme weather events or natural disasters; and
(2)
any other opportunities determined to be appropriate by the Secretary concerned.
(c)
Effect on existing grazing programs— Nothing in this section affects—
(1)
any livestock grazing program carried out by the Secretary concerned as of the date of enactment of this Act; or
(2)
any statutory authority for any program described in paragraph (1).