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S 1314 108th Congress Senate Public Lands and Natural Resources Administrative remedies Appropriations Commerce Community development Competitive bidding Depressed areas Economics and Public Finance Emergency Management Environmental Protection Environmental assessment Families Federal aid to Indians Federal-Indian relations Federal-local relations Federal-state relations Fire fighters Fire prevention Forest conservation Forest ecology

Collaborative Forest Health Act

Introduced: June 23, 2003 See on congress.gov
 Everywhere this bill has been 4 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Jul 22, 2003
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 108-140.
Jun 23, 2003
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. (text of measure as introduced: CR S8363-8365)
Jun 23, 2003
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S8362-8363)
Jun 23, 2003
Introduced in Senate
 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Collaborative Forest Health Act - Permits the Secretaries of Agriculture and the Interior (the Secretaries) to find that a proposed hazardous fuels reduction project that meets certain criteria shall not require an environmental assessment or an environmental impact statement.

Directs the Secretaries to identify projects implemented under this section through a collaborative framework to reduce hazardous fuels. Sets a limit of 20 million acres for projects implemented under this section (not including the existing hazardous fuels reduction program).

Prohibits, except in extraordinary circumstances, timber sales and log skidding machines in at-risk communities and the nearby vicinities and in certain municipal watersheds.

Excludes the provisions of this Act relating to expedited planning and implementation from applying to certain Federal lands.

Directs the Secretaries to take certain actions to ensure that the agencies are implementing projects pursuant to this Act that reduce the risk of unnaturally intense wildfires and improve forest health.

Directs the Secretaries to expend at least 70 percent of the hazardous fuels operations funds provided annually only on projects in at-risk communities and nearby vicinities or within municipal watersheds.

Directs the Secretaries to jointly: (1) establish a commission to complete an assessment of the positive or negative impacts and effectiveness of projects implemented under this section; (2) earmark funds for the conduct of a systematic information gathering program on certain insect types that have caused large-scale damage to forest ecosystems; and (3) disburse funds to reduce the risk of wildfire to structures and restore burned areas on tribal lands.

Allows the Secretaries to make cost-share grants to various entities for the removal, transport, and disposal of hazardous fuels around homes and properties.

What's happening now July 22, 2003

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 108-140.

 Committees of jurisdiction 1