Broad Support for Draft Wildfire Prevention Bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A broad group of stakeholders vocally support the Wildfire Prevention and Mitigation Act of 2017. Local leaders, conservationists, outdoor enthusiasts and others have outlined their support for the draft legislation. The legislative language was released this week by U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY), chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW), with Sens. Orrin Hatch (R-UT), John Thune (R-SD), and Steve Daines (R-MT).

The draft legislation will enhance forest management to more effectively mitigate the severity of catastrophic wildfires. The bill will also provide increased protections for wildlife habitat threatened by wildfires.

On October 25, 2017, the EPW Committee will hold a legislative hearing on the draft Wildfire Prevention and Mitigation Act of 2017.

What They Are Saying About the Legislation:

“In Wyoming, and across the West, catastrophic fires have destroyed people’s homes, devastated wildlife, and claimed lives. State and local forest managers need the flexibility to remove trees and dead wood that fuel these terrible fires. Our bill will provide commonsense tools and cut unnecessary red tape. We must act quickly to address the risk these fires pose to both people and wildlife.” (EPW Committee Chairman John Barrasso)

“I write as CEO of the National Wild Turkey Federation to strongly support the discussion draft of the Wildfire Prevention and Mitigation Act of 2017….The discussion draft contains federal forest management reforms that are science-based, common sense, direly needed, and readily implementable without reducing or constraining the opportunity for public review.” (National Wild Turkey Federation CEO Rebecca Humphries)

“The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Stands in full support of the comprehensive legislation before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee to expedite forest management activities on public lands, discourage litigation that has needlessly stopped necessary forest management projects and improve habitat for greater sage grouse and mule deer.” (Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation President David Allen)

“The association urges the committee to advance the legislation and provide our federal agency partners with the tools necessary to manage our forest resources, wildlife habitat and enhance collaborative resources management opportunities. Increasing certainty will go to great lengths to warding off catastrophic fires and helps ensure a healthy forest, maintain viable wildlife habitats and protect our very critical watersheds and water supplies.” (Wyoming Association of Conservation Districts Executive Director Bobbie Frank)

“The Family Farm Alliance believes enactment of the draft Wildfire Prevention and Mitigation Act of 2017 would improve our Western landscapes, protect our valuable water supplies from the devastating effects of wildfires, and allow agencies to improve habitat and restore ecosystems for the benefit of federally important species to allow continued agricultural use of our public lands.” (Family Farm Alliance Executive Director Dan Keppen).

“As Congress continues to consider a response to the wildfires that defined the summer of 2017 for much of the American West, the undersigned sportsmen’s conservation organizations—who collectively represent many American hunters, anglers and outdoor enthusiasts—write today in support of the draft Wildfire Prevention and Mitigation Act of 2017.” (21 sportsmen’s conservation organizations)

“On behalf of the National Association of Counties, the only organization representing the nation’s 3,069 counties, parishes, and boroughs, I write to express support for recent draft legislation to discourage litigation against land management projects, to promote the active management of our nation’s federal lands and forests, reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire and ensure equitable sharing of forest revenues with county governments.” (National Association of Counties Executive Director Matthew Chase and Western Interstate Region President Joel Bousman)

“We support reforms that enable collaborative, active forest management, streamline the environmental review process, address the unsustainable practice of fire borrowing, and provide an alternative to the current unworkable litigation process. We believe it is critical that both forest management reforms and resolution of the fire borrowing issue are addressed in any legislation to ensure on-the-ground forest restoration activities can proceed at the pace and scale of the problem. We recognize and appreciate that these elements are addressed in the draft Wildfire Prevention and Mitigation Act of 2017. We support the need for the forest management and ecosystem restoration activities identified in this legislation and encourage the committee to continue this laudable effort.” (7 water management stakeholder organizations)

Minority News

Broad Support for Draft Wildfire Prevention Bill

October 24, 2017