On Thursday, June 15, 2017 at 10:00 AM in 1324 Longworth House Office Building, the Subcommittee on Federal Lands will hold a legislative hearing on a Discussion Draft of the “Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2017” (Rep. Bruce Westerman, R-AR).  Chairman Rob Bishop (R-UT) and Rep. Westerman issued the following statements:

“This draft builds upon the work of the prior Congress to pair forestry reforms with a responsible budget fix and finally address our wildfire crisis. We must give federal agencies the tools to treat federal forests and rangelands at a greater pace and scale and we must end fire borrowing. This framework addresses both,” stated Bishop. “I look forward to working with members of our Committee, Senate colleagues and the Trump Administration to advance this legislation into law.”

“For far too long, our nation’s forests have been fighting a battle for survival. The conflict is not with logging but with the effects of reactive versus proactive management which has resulted in costly confrontations with wildfire, disease and insects,” Westerman said. “This bill provides new tools to the U.S. Forest Service so we can finally begin reducing the risks of wildfires through proper management techniques. I look forward to a continued discussion with my House colleagues and stakeholders on the proper management of our federal forests.”

• Discussion Draft of H.R. ____ (Rep. Bruce Westerman) To expedite under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and improve forest management activities on National Forest System lands, on public lands under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management, and on Tribal lands to return resilience to overgrown, fire-prone forested lands, and for other purposes. “Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2017.”

WHAT:	Subcommittee on Federal Lands legislative hearing on Discussion Draft of the “Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2017”
WHEN:	Thursday, June 15 10:00 AM
WHERE:	1324 Longworth House Office Building

Visit the Committee Calendar for additional information once it is made available. The meeting is open to the public and a video feed will stream live at House Committee on Natural Resources.