S. 2353 — Introduced in Senate

II 118th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 2353 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES July 18, 2023Mr. Luján (for himself and Ms. Lummis) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry A BILL To provide for cost-share waivers for projects carried out in response to wildland fires caused by certain Government actions, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Responsible Wildland Fire Recovery Act. 2. Purpose The purpose of this Act is to ensure that victims of wildland fires resulting from management activities conducted by the Department of Agriculture on National Forest System land are eligible to receive 100 percent funding for the cost of remediating direct and indirect damages under authorized Federal recovery programs. 3. Cost-share waiver for rehabilitation from wildland fires (a) Definitions In this section: (1) Covered matching requirement The term covered matching requirement means a requirement under a program of the Secretary for wildland fire recovery for a State, Indian Tribe, locality, or individual to provide matching funds, in cash, for a project. (2) Covered wildland fire The term covered wildland fire means a wildland fire that the Secretary determines to be a result of management activities conducted by the Secretary on National Forest System land. (3) Secretary The term Secretary means the Secretary of Agriculture. (4) Wildland fire (A) In general The term wildland fire means any non-structure fire that occurs in vegetation or natural fuels. (B) Inclusions The term wildland fire includes wildfire, prescribed fire, and any direct or indirect damage resulting in watershed impairment. (b) Waiver Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary may waive any covered matching requirement for a project in response to a covered wildland fire that is in an area affected by that covered wildland fire.