,,ii #aaith ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #ebij ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,august #f1 #bjbf,mr4 ,bennet 7for himself and ,mr4 ,hickenlooper7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,agriculture1 ,nutrition1 and ,forestry ,a ,,bill ,to direct the ,secretary of ,agriculture to issue competitive grants and enter into cooperative agreements to respond to and address mountain pine beetles1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,emergency ,mountain ,pine ,beetle ,response and ,coordination ,act4 #b4 ,mountain ,pine ,beetle ,response ,program 7a7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,indian ,tribe ,the term ,indian ,tribe has the meaning given the term in section #d of the ,indian ,self-,determination and ,education ,assistance ,act 7#be ,u4,s4,c4 #ecjd74 7#b7 ,mountain pine beetle response project ,the term mountain pine beetle response project means a project that-- 7,a7 is carried out on ,national ,forest ,system land for purposes of restoring forest health in an area that experienced1 or is experiencing1 a mountain pine beetle outbreak resulting in significant tree mortality2 and 7,b7 may include the following activities3 7i7 ,removal of beetle-killed or beetle-infested hazard trees consistent with the applicable forest plan4 7ii7 ,processing of beetle-killed or beetle-infested hazard trees4 7iii7 ,forest thinning and other fuels reduction of plant debris associated with mountain pine beetle mortality to alter or clear fuels created by the outbreak and address a public safety1 critical infrastructure1 or watershed health need4 7iv7 ,reforestation1 including tree planting4 7v7 ,ecological restoration designed to promote biodiversity4 7vi7 ,watershed protection and stabilization measures1 including-- 7,i7 slope stabilization2 7,,ii7 sediment and runoff control2 7,,iii7 flood and erosion mitigation2 and 7,,iv7 planning1 monitoring1 and technical assistance for purposes of maintaining watershed health4 7#c7 ,national ,forest ,system ,the term ,national ,forest ,system has the meaning given the term in section #aa7;a7 of the ,forest and ,rangeland ,renewable ,resources ,planning ,act of #aigd 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #afji7;a774 7#d7 ,program ,the term ,program means the ,mountain ,pine ,beetle ,response ,program established under subsection 7b74 7#e7 ,secretary ,the term ,secretary means the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 acting through the ,chief of the ,forest ,service4 7#f7 ,sponsor ,the term sponsor means-- 7,a7 a ,state or local government2 7,b7 an ,indian ,tribe2 7,c7 a water management district1 a water conservation district1 a special district1 or a public water1 wastewater1 and stormwater utility2 and 7,d7 an electric utility1 transmitting utility1 or ,transmission ,organization 7as those terms are defined in section #c of the ,federal ,power ,act 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #gif77 or an electrical transmission provider4 7#g7 ,wildland-urban interface ,the term wildland-urban interface has the meaning given the term in section #aja of the ,healthy ,forests ,restoration ,act of #bjjc 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #feaa74 7b7 ,program establishment ,the ,secretary shall establish a competitive grant program1 to be known as the ,mountain ,pine ,beetle ,response ,program1 under which the ,secretary may issue a grant to a sponsor for use in carrying out a mountain pine beetle response project4 7c7 ,selection 7#a7 ,eligibility ,to be eligible to receive a grant under the ,program1 a sponsor shall submit to the ,secretary an application at such time1 in such form1 and containing such information as the ,secretary may require1 including a description of the mountain pine beetle response project proposed to be carried out with the grant funds4 7#b7 ,selection priority ,in selecting an applicant to receive a grant under the ,program1 the ,secretary shall give priority to applicants that propose to carry out a mountain pine beetle response project-- 7,a7 designed to protect municipal water supplies and critical infrastructure2 7,b7 designed to reduce wildfire risk to communities in the wildland-urban interface2 7,c7 focused on an area that has experienced1 or is experiencing1 a mountain pine beetle outbreak resulting in high tree mortality or low natural ecological regeneration2 and 7,d7 that aligns with a ,state forest action plan or watershed strategy4 7d7 ,disbursement ,in disbursing grant funds awarded to a grant recipient under the ,program1 the ,secretary-- 7#a7 may disburse all or part of those grant funds to the recipient at any time during the period beginning on the date on which the grant is awarded and ending #cj days after the date on which the ,secretary receives the written notification described in paragraph 7#b72 and 7#b7 shall ensure that all of those grant funds are disbursed not later than #cj days after the date on which the ,secretary receives written notification from the recipient attesting that the mountain pine beetle response project for which the grant was awarded is complete4 #c4 ,cooperative agreements to address mountain pine beetle infestations 7a7 ,definition of covered entity ,in this section1 the term covered entity means each of the following3 7#a7 ,the ,governor of a ,state4 7#b7 ,an ,indian ,tribe4 7#c7 ,a county or municipal government4 7#d7 ,the chief executive officer of a political subdivision of a ,state4 7b7 ,cooperative agreement authorization ,the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 acting through the ,chief of the ,forest ,service1 may enter into a cooperative agreement with a covered entity to provide for activities to support the detection1 treatment1 and mitigation of mountain pine beetle infestations on land subject to the jurisdiction of the ,secretary or that covered entity1 which may include the following3 7#a7 ,coordinated monitoring and data sharing4 7#b7 ,joint planning and implementation of projects4 7#c7 ,processing beetle kill or infested trees4 7#d7 ,increasing wood processing and workforce development capacity4 7#e7 ,hazard reduction in areas affected by mountain pine beetle infestations1 consistent with the applicable forest plan4 7c7 ,technical assistance 7#a7 ,monitoring and management ,on request of a covered entity that is party to an agreement entered into under subsection 7b71 the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 acting through the ,administrator of the ,animal and ,plant ,health ,inspection ,service1 shall provide to that covered entity technical assistance requested with respect to the monitoring and management of mountain pine beetle infestations1 including with respect to-- 7,a7 detection2 7,b7 spread dynamics2 and 7,c7 mitigation strategies4 7#b7 ,workforce and wood processing ,on request of a covered entity that is party to an agreement entered into under subsection 7b71 the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 acting through the ,under ,secretary for ,rural ,development1 shall provide to that covered entity technical assistance requested with respect to-- 7,a7 workforce capacity2 7,b7 wood processing infrastructure2 7,c7 market creation and development for the byproducts of beetle kill or infested trees1 including-- 7i7 mass timber2 7ii7 facilitating wood energy innovation2 and 7iii7 affordable housing construction2 and 7,d7 other matters relating to processing beetle kill or infested trees4