On March 6, 2025, the United States Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry held a legislative hearing for the highly controversial H. R. 471 “Fix Our Forests Act”. Unfortunately, the Senate has moved forward with the House version of the bill, retaining its problematic provisions.
The legislative hearing brought in pro-timber witnesses from organizations like the National Association of Forest Service Retirees, Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians, Megafire Action, and Board of County Commissioners Gunnison County, Colorado.
California Senator Adam Schiff underscored the bill’s fundamental flaws. He noted that the bill prioritizes timber harvesting over fire mitigation. This critique echoes the concerns of ForestWatch and many other groups who have been trying to educate members of Congress about the issue. Prior to the legislative hearing, we circulated a large community opposition letter highlighting sections of the bill that would allow logging proposals to bypass critical bedrock environmental laws, restrict scientific input, and limit public engagement.
During the hearing, Senator Booker asked witness Jonathan Houck to expand on his written testimony which states: “NEPA analyses are not the main barrier to timely forest management. Indeed, in most cases, “the Forest Service takes as long or longer to award first contracts and roll out initial activities than to comply with the 1970 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and that NEPA compliance accounts for approximately one-fifth of planned implementation time”. He further confirmed that in his experience “contracting and getting resources on the ground after the environmental analysis is done” is the issue for delays.
This important testimony counters the rhetoric from many pro-timber industry advocates and supporters of the bill who are strongly advocating for the dismantling of bedrock environmental laws.
How you can help
You can take action by writing or calling your senator and asking them to oppose this harmful legislation. Senators need to hear from you to empower them to speak against this bill. If passed, this legislation would fast-track projects like the Pine Mountain logging and chaparral removal project, making it easier to move forward without your input. We will continue to keep you updated as this legislation progresses.
Link to our Action Center
Link to Legislative Hearing Webpage
Comments are closed.