,i  #aagth ,,congress  #ast ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #ecda  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,september #bb1      
#bjba,mr4 ,panetta 7for himself and ,mr4
 ,moore of ,utah7 introduced the        
following bill2 which was referred to   
the ,committee on ,agriculture  ,a      
,,bill  ,to fill vacancies for ,forest  
,service recreation management and      
planning staff in ,national ,forests and
 ,grasslands1 and for other purposes4   
#a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited
 as the ,save ,our ,forests ,act of     
#bjba4  #b4 ,findings ,congress finds   
the following3 7#a7 ,between #bjaf and  
#bjbj1 on average1 #hi percent of       
wildfires in the ,united ,states have   
been human-caused4  7#b7 ,human-caused  
fires tend to occur in or near the      
wildland-urban interface 7as defined in 
section #aja of the ,healthy ,forests   
,restoration ,act of #bjjc 7#af         
,u4,s4,c4 #feaa771 where there is a     
greater risk to people and communities  
and a higher cost to suppress fires4    

7#c7 ,the wildland-urban interface is   
the fastest-growing land use type in the
 ,united ,states1 posing challenges for 
fire management and suppression4  7#d7  
,over the last #aj years1 an annual     
average of #fb1hje wildfires have       
impacted #g1eaf1hee acres4 ,in #bjbj1   
#eh1iej wildfires impacted #aj1abb1ccf  
acres nationwide4 ,approximately #gj    
percent of this acreage impacted        
,federal land1 of which #dh percent 7or 
#d1hjj1jjj acres7 was on ,national      
,forest ,system land4  7#e7             
,additionally1 visitation at ,national  
,forests has increased1 while staffing  
has declined4 ,notably1 in fiscal year  
#bjbj1 the ,forest ,service estimated   
#afh4b million ,national ,forest        
recreation visits1 an increase of over  
#ah4b million recreation visits from    
#bjai1 which amounts to a #ab4a percent 
increase4  7#f7 ,the ,forest ,service   
continues to suffer from chronic        
staffing shortages1 with several        
,national ,forests and ,grasslands      

struggling to maintain their acreage    
with insufficient recreation management 
and planning staff4  #c4 ,filling       
,forest ,service recreation management  
staff vacancies  7a7 ,in general ,the   
,secretary of ,agriculture1 acting      
through the ,chief of the ,forest       
,service1 shall fill vacancies in       
,national ,forests and ,grasslands for  
,forest ,service recreation management  
and planning staff1 including recreation
 technicians1 recreation officers1 and  
natural resource managers4  7b7         
,priority ,in seeking to fill vacancies 
under subsection 7a71 the ,secretary    
shall prioritize filling vacancies in   
,national ,forests and ,grasslands      
that-- 7#a7 are at high or very high    
risk of wildfires2 and  7#b7 are located
 in or near the wildland-urban          
interface4  7c7 ,training and           
certification as a ,forest ,protection  
,officer ,the ,secretary may provide the
 opportunity for any individual who     
fills a vacancy pursuant to subsection  

7a7 to receive training and             
certification as a ,forest ,protection  
,officer4  7d7 ,authorization of        
appropriations  7#a7 ,in general ,in    
addition to other funds that may be     
available to the ,forest ,service for   
the purposes specified in this section1 
there is authorized to be appropriated  
to carry out this section #df1jjj1jjj   
for each of fiscal years #bjbb and      
#bjbc4  7#b7 ,administrative expenses   
,of the amounts available under         
paragraph 7#a7 for each fiscal year1 not
 more than #c percent may be used for   
administrative expenses incurred in     
carrying out this section4