On Thursday, the House Committee on Natural Resources and House Committee on Agriculture each reported H.R. 2936, the Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2017, favorably to the Committee of the Whole. H.R. 2936 was originally introduced by Representative Bruce Westerman (R-Arkansas) and includes provisions that end fire borrowing and improve forest health. The bill, similar to ones adopted in recent years by the House of Representative, aims to ease environmental regulations that inhibit forest management activities on national forests, Tribal lands, and forests under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management.
Representative Westerman is Chair of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight & Investigations, and his bill now enjoys 18 co-sponsors, including Representatives Doug LaMalfa (R-Butte), Tom McClintock (R-Placer), and David Valadao (R-Kings). The bill does not draw the same level of bipartisan support found in recent forestry proposals in the Senate as only two of the 18 cosponsors are Democrats. Environmental groups have criticized certain measures that undo the National Environmental Policy Act and restrict the ability of citizens to challenge federal forest management decisions in court. Democrats suggest this bill is designed to benefit business interests, but supporters of the bill argue “there is no downside to a healthy forest.”