Governor Writes Ag Committee in Support of Forestry Provisions

Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper is urging the House Ag Committee to support the forestry provisions of the farm bill proposed by Chairman Frank Lucas and Ranking Member Collin Peterson. In a letter to the committee - Hickenlooper writes that many Western states have experienced a particularly devastating and tragic wildfire season. He says many of the provisions under the forestry section would be helpful in addressing the conditions that lead to disastrous wildfires.

Hickenlooper specifically highlights proposals for extending the authorization of stewardship contracting, reauthorizing and expanding the good neighbor authority, identifying critical areas that are at high risk of catastrophic wildfire and then applying streamlined review and implementation processes for thinning projects, and directing the U.S. Forest Service to perform some analysis on the condition of the national forest and the allocation of resources. The Colorado Governor also suggests adding a provision to require the Forest Service to provide Congress with an action or implementation plan on how it is addressing fire threats and suppression response.

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