SAVE OUR SEQUOIAS ACT

SAVE OUR SEQUOIAS ACT

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 47 (Monday, March 16, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 47 (Monday, March 16, 2026)] [House] [Pages H2503-H2509] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SAVE OUR SEQUOIAS ACT Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2709) to improve the health and resiliency of giant sequoias, and for other purposes, as amended. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 2709 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Save Our Sequoias Act''. (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as follows: Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. Sec. 2. Definitions. Sec. 3. Shared stewardship agreement for giant sequoias. Sec. 4. Giant sequoia lands coalition. Sec. 5. Giant sequoia health and resiliency assessment. Sec. 6. Giant sequoia emergency response. Sec. 7. Giant sequoia reforestation and rehabilitation strategy. Sec. 8. Giant sequoia strike teams. Sec. 9. Giant sequoia collaborative restoration grants. Sec. 10. Giant sequoia insect monitoring and technology. Sec. 11. Stewardship contracting for giant sequoias. Sec. 12. Giant sequoia emergency protection program and fund. SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. In this Act: (1) Assessment.--The term ``Assessment'' means the Giant Sequoia Health and Resiliency Assessment required by section 5. (2) Coalition.--The term ``Coalition'' means the Giant Sequoia Lands Coalition codified under section 4(a). (3) Collaborative process.--The term ``collaborative process'' means a collaborative process as described in section 4003(b)(2) of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (16 U.S.C. 7303(b)(2)). (4) Covered national forest system lands.--The term ``covered National Forest System lands'' means the proclaimed National Forest System lands reserved or withdrawn from the public domain of the United States covering the Sequoia National Forest and Giant Sequoia National Monument, Sierra National Forest, and Tahoe National Forest. (5) Covered public lands.--The term ``covered public lands'' means-- (A) the Case Mountain Extensive Recreation Management Area in California managed by the Bureau of Land Management; and (B) Kings Canyon National Park, Sequoia National Park, and Yosemite National Park in California managed by the National Park Service. (6) Giant sequoia.--The term ``giant sequoia'' means a tree of the species Sequoiadendron giganteum. (7) Protection project.--The term ``Protection Project'' means a Giant Sequoia Protection Project carried out under section 6. (8) Reforestation.--The term ``reforestation'' means the act of renewing tree cover, [[Page H2504]] taking into consideration species composition and resilience, by establishing young trees through-- (A) natural regeneration; (B) natural regeneration with site preparation and vegetation competition control; or (C) planting or direct seeding. (9) Rehabilitation.--The term ``rehabilitation'' means any action taken during the 5-year period beginning on the last day of a wildland fire to repair or improve fire-impacted lands which are unlikely to recover to management-approved conditions. (10) Relevant congressional committees.--The term ``relevant Congressional Committees'' means-- (A) the Committees on Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Appropriations of the House of Representatives; and (B) the Committees on Energy and Natural Resources, Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, and Appropriations of the Senate. (11) Responsible official.--The term ``responsible official'' means an employee of the Department of the Interior or Forest Service who has the authority to make and implement a decision on a proposed action. (12) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of the Interior. (13) Secretary concerned.--The term ``Secretary concerned'' means-- (A) the Secretary of Agriculture, with respect to covered National Forest System lands, or their designee; and (B) the Secretary of the Interior, with respect to covered public lands, or their designee. (14) Strategy.--The term ``Strategy'' means the Giant Sequoia Reforestation and Rehabilitation Strategy established under section 7. (15) Strike team.--The term ``Strike Team'' means a Giant Sequoia Strike Team established under section 8. (16) Tribe.--The term ``Tribe'' means the Tule River Indian Tribe of the Tule River Reservation, California. SEC. 3. SHARED STEWARDSHIP AGREEMENT FOR GIANT SEQUOIAS. (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after receiving a request from the Governor of the State of California or the Tribe, the Secretary shall enter into or expand an existing shared stewardship agreement or enter into a similar agreement with the Secretary of Agriculture, the Governor of the State of California, and the Tribe to jointly carry out the short-term and long-term management and conservation of giant sequoias. (b) Participation.-- (1) In general.--If the Secretary has not received a request from the Governor of the State of California or the Tribe under subsection (a) before the date that is 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall enter into the agreement under subsection (a) and jointly implement such agreement with the Secretary of Agriculture. (2) Future participation.--If the Secretary receives a request from the Governor of the State of California or the Tribe any time after entering into the agreement with the Secretary of Agriculture under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall accept the Governor of the State of California or the Tribe as a party to such agreement. SEC. 4. GIANT SEQUOIA LANDS COALITION. (a) Codification.--The Coalition is the entity established under the charter titled ``Giant Sequoia Lands Coalition Charter'' (or successor charter) signed during the period beginning June 2, 2022 and ending August 2, 2022 by each of the following: (1) The National Park Service, representing Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. (2) The National Park Service, representing Yosemite National Park. (3) The Forest Service, representing Sequoia National Forest and Giant Sequoia National Monument. (4) The Forest Service, representing Sierra National Forest. (5) The Forest Service, representing Tahoe National Forest. (6) The Bureau of Land Management, representing Case Mountain Extensive Recreation Management Area. (7) The Tribe, representing the Tule River Indian Reservation. (8) The State of California, representing Calaveras Big Trees State Park. (9) The State of California, representing Mountain Home Demonstration State Forest. (10) The University of California, Berkeley, representing Whitaker's Research Forest. (11) The County of Tulare, California, representing Balch Park. (b) Duties.--In addition to the duties specified in the charter referenced in subsection (a), the Coalition shall-- (1) produce the Assessment under section 5; (2) observe implementation, and provide policy recommendations to the Secretary concerned, with respect to-- (A) Protection Projects carried out under section 6; and (B) the Strategy established under section 7; (3) facilitate collaboration and coordination on Protection Projects, particularly projects that cross jurisdictional boundaries; (4) facilitate information sharing, including best available science as described in section 5(d) and mapping resources; and (5) support the development and dissemination of educational materials and programs that inform the public about the threats to the health and resiliency of giant sequoia groves and actions being taken to reduce the risk to such groves from high-severity wildfire, insects, and drought. (c) Administrative Support, Technical Services, and Staff Support.--The Secretary shall make personnel of the Department of the Interior available to the Coalition for administrative support, technical services, development and dissemination of educational materials, and staff support that the Secretary determines necessary to carry out this section. (d) Public Meeting Requirement.-- (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Coalition shall provide for public observation at no less than one meeting annually. (2) Closed sessions.--The Coalition may close portions of a meeting as provided in paragraph (1) to the public only when discussion will involve-- (A) sensitive law enforcement, security, or emergency response matters, the public disclosure of which would compromise public safety; or (B) confidential commercial information, private property information, or landowner information. SEC. 5. GIANT SEQUOIA HEALTH AND RESILIENCY ASSESSMENT. (a) In General.--Not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Coalition shall submit to the relevant Congressional Committees a Giant Sequoia Health and Resiliency Assessment that, based on the best available science-- (1) identifies-- (A) each giant sequoia grove that has experienced a-- (i) stand-replacing disturbance; or (ii) disturbance but continues to have living giant sequoias within the grove, including identifying the tree mortality and regeneration of giant sequoias within such grove; (B) each giant sequoia grove that is at high risk of experiencing a stand-replacing disturbance; (C) lands-- (i) contiguous or adjacent to giant sequoia groves that are at risk of experiencing high-severity wildfires that could adversely impact such giant sequoia groves; or (ii) in which the placement of fuel breaks could reduce the risk of high-severity wildfires that could adversely impact giant sequoia groves; and (D) each giant sequoia grove that has experienced a disturbance and is unlikely to naturally regenerate and is in need of reforestation; (2) analyzes the resiliency of each giant sequoia grove to threats, such as-- (A) high-severity wildfire; (B

Referenced legislation: HR2709, HR2709