This morning, the House Appropriations Committee passed an FY13 Interior Appropriations bill funding programs at EPA, DOI and the USDA Forest Service. Although the bill was passed today, it is not expected that there will be a vote on the bill in either the House or Senate. The most likely scenario is a continuing resolution [read more]
A bill introduced by Senators Ron Wyden of Oregon and Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico to speed the conctracting of air tankers to fight wildfires has passed out fo the Senate and is on its way to the House. Currently there is a requirement that Congress be notified 30 days before certain contracts are awarded, [read more]
The House Ag Committee wrapped up hearings on the 2012 Farm Bill last week and NASF President Randy Die represented the Association's priorities at a hearing that took place on Friday. Other groups also shared their opinions on the Bill and what's important to them as the House subcommittees worked through their titles In a [read more]
In response to the Senate Agriculture Committee's adoption of their version of the 2012 Farm Bill, NASF released a statement, finding that the bulk of the legislation is consistent with their platform. "While no Farm Bill can be perfect, we greatly appreciate the Committee providing many of the tools necessary for improving and maintaining the [read more]
NASF recently signed on to a letter to the Senate Agriculture Committee urging support for the inclusion of permanent reauthorization of the Stewardship Contracting Authority in the 2012 Farm Bill. Stewardship contracting offers forest managers the use of innovative contracting methods to achieve forest management objectives, increase and diversify job opportunities, and lengthen work seasons. [read more]
NASF and the members of the Forests in the Farm Bill Coalition recently sent a letter to the leadership of the Senate Agriculture Committee, recommending priorities for the 2012 Farm Bill. According to the coalition, the bill should include a focus on four key areas that will better enable forest conservation on private forests: improving [read more]
During a recent Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources hearing on wildfire management policy, USDA Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwel cited research from within the agency linking fires and climate change. "Throughout the country, we're seeing longer fire seasons, and we're seeing snowpacks that, on average, are disappearing a little earlier every spring," as [read more]
The fiscal 2012 appropriations bill approved yesterday by the House Agriculture, Rural Development, FDA and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee would completely eliminate the Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP) and would also cut mandatory farm bill conservation spending by more than $1 billion. The bill would slash the Department of Agriculture budget by $2.6 billion relative [read more]
More than 100 scientists signed a letter to House (PDF) and Senate (PDF) leaders this week expressing their concerns about the Environmental Protection Agency's "Tailoring Rule" and other policies that equate emissions from biomass energy with fossil fuel emissions. According to the Society of American Foresters, the letter reaffirmed the sentiment of many members of [read more]
NASF will be among members of the Partner Caucus on Fire Suppression Solutions on Friday, April 23, as they brief congressional staffers on the FLAME Act and the Contingency Reserve Fund as proposed in the President's FY11 budget. The Federal Land Assistance, Management, and Enhancement Act (FLAME Act) was signed into law October 30, 2009. [read more]
