Budget Bill Analysis
All Eyes on Forest Issues

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After sifting through hundreds of pages of legislation, here's a complete breakdown of budget issues important to forestry. Visit here for a table detailing line item by line item funding. The entire 1999 Appropriations Bill can be found on (http://thomas.loc.gov/). The bill provides $500 billion in funds for the Agriculture, Interior, Commerce, State and Transportation agencies.

 

Research

• Productivity Research Issue: The final package dropped Senate Language designed to reduce funding for programs not directly related to enhancing forest and rangeland productivity. However, report language does provide direction to the Forest Service research program stating that the FS is to "diligently monitor project selection and ongoing programs to ensure that efforts are directly related to the Forest Service mission, yield maximum benefits for the costs involved, and result in practical applications."

• Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA): The spending bill includes a $6 million increase for FIA to move the program toward conducting annualized inventories.

 

State and Private Forestry

• The Stewardship Incentives Program is not funded for FY 1999.

• There were significant increases for other Cooperative Forestry programs.

 

National Forest System

• Land Management Planning received $40 million, and bill language allowed more forests to move forward with plan revisions.

• The Forest Service has to offer (not sell) 3.6 bbf of timber.

• Road Maintenance is now shifted to the Reconstruction and Construction line item.

• General administration is funded at $2.8 million below the request, and the GA line item is to be terminated in FY 2000 with funds distributed to other programs.

 

Wildland Fire Management

• Report language requires that prescribed burns on lands with a timber base must be evaluated for commercial wood product removal prior to burning. The language is significantly softened from the original Senate language.

• Earmarks include at least $12 million for hazardous fuel management in California. $3 million for the Quincy Library Group Plan (which was included in the bill) and $2 million for treatments near Lake Tahoe.

 

Reconstruction and Construction

• Large earmarks include $6 million for an Auburn University research facility, and $4.9 million for Grey Towers (Gifford Pinchot's ancestral home).

• Road Reconstruction and Construction is funded $10 million above FY 1998.

• Road Maintenance and Decommissioning is $14.9 million above FY 1998, allowing up to $15 million to be spent on road decommissioning and $4.3 million for the Clean Water Action Plan.

• Trail Reconstruction and Construction includes funding $2.3 million above FY 1998 (a full $16.4 million above the Administration's request.)

 

Management of Federal Land for Subsistence Uses

• A new budget area to provide funds for Alaska subsistence uses.

 

Important Report and Bill Language

• Budget Restructuring — Report language requires any new budget structure must be coordinated with the Appropriations Committees prior to submission in the President's Budget Proposal.

• Indirect Costs and General Administration — According to report language, the FS is to eliminate it General Administration Line Item in FY 2000. Bill language requires the FS to establish definitions for indirect expenses, consistently used definitions agency wide, display indirect costs in explanatory budget notes, show indirect expenses for various trust funds, and indirect expenses for trust funds will capped at 20% in FY 2000.

• Land Management Plan Revisions (Sec. 321) — Forest Plan Revision Moratorium language modified to allow more forests to proceed with plan revision, the bill drops the Senate provision that would have kept plans in effect after the 15 year mandatory revision date.

• Watershed Restoration and Enhancement Agreements (Sec. 323) — Authority extended through FY 2001.

• Recreation Fee Demonstration Program (Sec. 327) — Extended through 2001.

• Timber Purchaser Road Credits (Sec. 329) — Eliminated.

• Road and Trail Fund (10% Fund) (Sec. 332) — The focus of the account should be reducing the backlog of road and trail reconstruction and maintenance needs, especially where such actions can improve forest health and reduce the risk of fire.

• Stewardship Contracting (Sec. 347) — The bill modifies the original Senate language to allow for 28 pilot projects, and includes monitoring provisions.

• Trappers Loop Road (Sec. 348) — The government must provide $15 million in Forest Service and Federal Highway funds.

• Western Red Cedar (Alaska) (Sec. 350) — The bill modifies Senate language and drops the residual value appraisals.

• Grizzly Bear Introduction (Sec. 352) — The government can not introduce grizzly bears into the Selway-Bitteroot area of Idaho and Montana in FY 1999.

• Interior Columbia Basin Ecosystem Management Project (report language) — Calls for new approach and direction. The Forest Service expects to delay the project for at least 12 months.

• Title IV — Includes the Herger-Feinstein Quincy Library Group Forest Recovery Act .

• Title V — Would transfer the TVA's Land Between the Lakes Natural Resource Area (LBL) to the Forest Service if appropriations for LBL drop below $6 million in the future.

• Title VI — Includes Land Exchanges in the State of Washington.

 

Other Provisions Dropped or Modified

• Chugach Alaska Road Easment — dropped.
• Tongass Timber Provision — dropped.
• Fixed Rock Climbing Anchors in Wilderness Areas — dropped.
• Dam restrictions — dropped.
• Helicopters in wilderness areas — dropped.
• The bill softens road decommissioning restrictions (removal of ghost roads prior to other decommissioning).
• The prescribed burning provisions were softened and included as report language.

 

Visit here for a complete break down of how the Forest Service funds will be allocated.

Visit here to view the original proposals.

If you have questions about the bill please contact Michael Goergen at (301) 897-8720, ext. 116, or goergenm@safnet.org

Society of American Foresters 5400 Grosvenor Lane Bethesda, Maryland 20814	Phone: 301·897·8720 Fax: 301·897·3690 Email: safweb@safnet.org