Summary#
This bill would create a new competitive grant program at the U.S. Forest Service called the Mountain Pine Beetle Response Program. The program would let the Secretary of Agriculture award grants to eligible sponsors to carry out emergency response projects on National Forest System lands where mountain pine beetle outbreaks have caused major tree loss. The goal is to restore forest and watershed health and reduce risks to water supplies, infrastructure, and nearby communities.
Key changes:
- Establishes a grant program run by the Forest Service to fund emergency mountain pine beetle response projects on National Forest System lands.
- Lists who can apply (States, local governments, Indian Tribes, certain water districts/utilities, and electric/transmission entities).
- Gives funding priority to projects that protect municipal water supplies and critical infrastructure, reduce wildfire risk in the wildland-urban interface, respond to areas with high beetle-caused tree mortality or low natural regeneration, and align with State forest or watershed plans.
- Lists eligible activities, such as removing and processing beetle-killed trees, thinning and fuels reduction, reforestation, ecological restoration, watershed protection (slope stabilization, sediment/runoff control, flood/erosion mitigation), and planning/monitoring.
- Allows the Secretary to disburse grant funds before or after project completion but requires that all funds be disbursed no later than 30 days after the recipient certifies the project is complete.
What it means for you#
- State and local governments: You can apply for grants to do or sponsor emergency beetle-response work on National Forest System lands within or adjacent to your jurisdiction.
- Indian Tribes: Tribal governments can apply to lead projects on National Forest lands that affect tribal resources or communities.
- Water districts and utilities: Public water, wastewater, and stormwater utilities and water management districts can apply, especially for projects that protect municipal water supplies or watersheds.
- Electric and transmission providers: Eligible electric utilities and transmission organizations can apply for activities that protect critical infrastructure from beetle-caused hazards and wildfire risk.
- Communities near National Forests / Wildland-urban interface residents: Projects prioritizing wildfire risk reduction or water-supply protection could change nearby forest management, such as tree removal, thinning, and restoration work.
- Forest Service operations: The Forest Service would run the grant program, set application rules, and oversee grants on National Forest System lands.
- Contractors and forest industry: Contracts for tree removal, processing, reforestation, and stabilization work could result from awarded projects. The bill does not itself create contracts or set procurement rules.
Expenses#
No publicly available information.
- The bill text does not include a funding amount, an appropriation, or a fiscal note showing estimated costs.
- It is not clear whether Congress would provide new appropriations or how projects would be funded.
- Additional administrative costs for the Forest Service to run the competitive grant program are likely but not estimated in the bill text.
- The bill does not specify cost-sharing, matching funds, or recipient financial responsibilities.
Proponents' View#
- The bill appears intended to speed and target work that addresses serious mountain pine beetle outbreaks on National Forest lands.
- Supporters may argue the program could protect municipal water supplies, critical infrastructure, and communities near forests by funding removal of hazard trees, fuels reduction, and watershed stabilization.
- The grant program could allow coordination between federal land managers and local governments, tribes, and utilities by funding projects that align with state forest or watershed plans.
- Making grants competitive and having selection priorities could focus funds on the most urgent or high-risk locations.
Opponents' View#
- One concern is that the bill does not identify funding levels or a source of money, so it is unclear how many projects could be funded or what the federal cost would be.
- The bill does not require cost-sharing, so it is unclear whether recipients must contribute funds or services; this may affect who can realistically apply.
- It is unclear how the program will coordinate with existing Forest Service programs and authorities, or with state and tribal forest health efforts, which could create overlap or administrative burden.
- The timeline and mechanics for disbursing funds are brief and may raise questions about payment before work is completed, documentation required, and auditing or accountability procedures.
- The program only covers National Forest System lands; private forest owners are not included, which could leave gaps in landscape-level response.