Statement on H.R. 8790, Fix our Forests Act

I rise in opposition to H.R. 8790, the Fix Our Forests Act. This legislation would undermine some of the fundamental protections for our public lands, wildlife, and the role of public input in our land management decisions. 

I appreciate that my colleagues who support this legislation are concerned with the very real problems of hazardous fuel build-up in our national forests and increased wildfire risk to our communities. I share these concerns. I have heard from county officials, tribal leaders, utility companies, wildland firefighters, and others about the need to do more to address our forest health and protect communities from wildfire threats 

That is why I was proud to help pass historic investments in our nation’s forests through Congress, which are now being implemented by the Biden-Harris administration. 

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) invested about $3 billion in the Forest Service to reduce the risk of wildland fire and restore ecosystems in support of the Wildfire Crisis Strategy, and to conduct research to help us develop better tools and strategies for everything from prescribed burns and post-burn restoration to addressing the impacts of climate change and invasive species. The Inflation Reduction Act invested an additional $5 billion for fuels and forest health treatments to protect communities from wildfire, for competitive grants to non-Federal forest landowners, and for the agency’s State and Private Forestry programs. These funds are currently being used to reduce hazardous fuels, more efficiently process environmental reviews, sustain healthy working forests. 

The BIL also created the Wildland Fire Mitigation and Management Commission. One year ago, the Commission released a comprehensive, consensus-based set of recommendations to Congress to more efficiently and effectively address the nation’s wildfire crisis.

I wish that the legislation we were considering today had remained focused on those recommendations, some of which are reflected in the bill. 

Unfortunately, H.R. 8790 also contains provisions that drastically increase exemptions to the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NEPA, enacted in 1970, is one of our most important environmental protections. It ensures that the federal government comprehensively reviews possible environmental impacts prior to making decisions relative to permitting, infrastructure development, or land management. I strongly oppose the drastic increase to categorical exclusions from NEPA and the ESA that are included in this legislation. Removing scientific analysis and an examination of the impacts of logging or other activities on our federal lands is not the solution. 

I encourage my colleagues to join me in voting against H.R. 8790, and instead focus on bringing forth consensus solutions that will address our wildfire crisis without diminishing the protections for our public lands and stifling the input of science and citizen voices.