Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 1526. While I support efforts to find consistent funding for rural schools, this bill goes too far, increasing logging to unsustainable levels and undermining the existing environmental laws that protect our public lands.

H.R. 1526 creates ``timber production zones'' in every national forest that must meet timber volume targets set at half of what the forest grows each year. Ultimately, this would require logging and road building in currently protected, roadless areas and would limit public input and scientific and judicial review. The bill also creates an expedited environmental review process for governor-designated ``high risk areas,'' that could open roadless areas to grazing and timber harvests. Finally, the bill authorizes ``community forest designation areas'' that devolve forest management from the federal government to state boards. This would reverse 100 years of forest management precedent and limit or eliminate access for recreation, hunting, and fishing.

Our national forests are a public resource and must be sustainably managed for generations to come. Today's bill would undermine that mission, and I urge a no vote.

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