Bill would empower states to manage forests

Forest policy reform bill

Last month my bill empowering states to show they can do a better job managing our public forests was approved in the House Natural Resources Committee.

The idea for reform was brought to me shortly after I took office in 2011. County officials from both parties were deeply frustrated by their frequent trips to Washington to beg Congress to appropriate funds to compensate for the fact that federal land ownership restrains economic growth and undermines the local tax base.

Once-thriving communities saw their economies crash and public services cut because the Forest Service broke its promise of multiple-use management. Timber harvests dropped 80 percent over the last 30 years.

Since 1990, more than 400 mills have closed and more than 35,000 forestry workers lost their livelihoods.

Not incidentally, we saw a record 10.1 million acres burn nationwide in 2015, with over 750,000 acres charred in Idaho.

The commissioners from five Idaho counties presented a fantastic idea: Give states and local advisory committees a chance to manage a small portion of federal forests, earn revenue and revive their economies.

The result is my bill, H.R. 2316, the Self-Sufficient Community Lands Act, to establish pilot projects for management of up to 2 percent of the 193 million acres in the National Forest System.

That’s the bill approved in committee last month. A similar measure passed the House on a bipartisan vote in 2013. I’m excited about moving the bill through the House again and get a vote in the Senate now controlled by Republicans.

We added two provisions during committee consideration. The first requires advisory committees to develop management plans for each community forest demonstration area and to take public comment on the proposals. The second requires an assessment of compliance with state forestry and environmental laws, watershed health, soil quality, wildlife habitat and forest health.

After an initial assessment within two years of startup, reviews must be completed and published at least once every five years.

The bill also preserves access for hunting, fishing and other recreation, protects tribal rights and exempts national parks, monuments and wilderness. The land remains in federal ownership and can’t be sold, as some critics have claimed.

Idahoans and others in the West know something those in the East often fail to grasp. We cherish the beauty of our landscape. We built our states to preserve a way of life for future generations. And we’re confident that the people on the ground will do a better job caring for the landscape they love.