'Another Attempt To Unfortunately Weaken Bedrock Environmental Laws': Jared Huffman Torches GOP Bill

5 months ago

During a House Natural Resources Committee hearing prior to the congressional recess, Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) spoke about a Republican bill on NEPA's categorical exclusions.

Transcript

00:00Mr. Huffman, you're recognized.

00:02Thank you, Mr. Chair. I oppose this bill as another attempt by the majority to,

00:07unfortunately, weaken bedrock environmental laws. Now, since becoming ranking member of this

00:13committee, one of my top priorities has been working to address the wildfire crisis through

00:17science-based policies that reduce hazardous fuels on our national forests, build more resilient

00:23communities, and ensure the public has a real voice in decision-making. Communities don't just

00:29need resources. They also need to be meaningfully engaged in a transparent process, one that

00:35reflects local knowledge, tribal input, and diverse community needs. That's why I introduced a bill we

00:42call the Community Protection and Wildfire Resilience Act to equip communities with the tools and the

00:47resources necessary to promote safe, resilient, and fire-adapted neighborhoods through a small-d

00:53democratic process, not through top-down mandates or one-size-fits-all formulas. And that's exactly

01:01the opposite of what this bill does. This bill would undermine NEPA under the guise of wildfire

01:07mitigation and fuels reduction, but the truth is NEPA already allows the use of categorical

01:13exclusions for federal actions with limited environmental or public health impact. In fact,

01:19according to the Forest Service, about 85 percent of all forest management projects currently use

01:25those categorical exclusions. So this tool is available where it makes sense. There's no credible

01:31need for broader authority, especially when this administration is already taking a chainsaw to NEPA by

01:38slashing environmental review, sidelining science, and cutting the public out of the process in so many ways.

01:44The purpose of NEPA is simple, to make sure we look before we leap, and that principle is more

01:50important than ever as we confront the escalating impacts of climate change. This bill would override

01:56what remains of the Forest Service's existing review process for forest management projects by mandating

02:03the use of categorical exclusion for projects covering an area up to 10,000 acres, regardless of how large the

02:10public health and environmental impacts are of each project. Now, 10,000 acres, that's about 15 square miles.

02:18It's roughly the size of my hometown, San Rafael, which is a city of about 54,000 people, and it may seem small

02:26compared to the scale of our vast national forest system, but it is a substantial area, certainly large

02:32enough to warrant a more careful and open review process than what a categorical exclusion provides.

02:39But instead, this bill would allow these projects to move forward with minimal review and public input

02:46in every case. I have great interest in increasing the pace and scale of restoration, including through

02:52the use of prescribed fire, cultural burning, and even mechanical thinning, Mr. Chairman, in appropriate

02:58places. But giving the Forest Service a green light to cut corners for significant forest management

03:04projects in every case is not the way to go. Now, I understand that this bill is based on authority

03:10that Congress previously provided for the Lake Tahoe Basin, and I share an interest in improving

03:16environmental review and permitting wherever we can. But as a reminder, that categorical exclusion was part

03:22of a broader package that also included additional funding to address the challenges that that area

03:28faced. You know, Democrats secured more than $5 billion for federal forest management and wildfire

03:35related programs in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the so-called bipartisan infrastructure

03:41bill that most Republicans on this committee voted against, and also another $1.8 billion for fuels and

03:48vegetation treatment in the Inflation Reduction Act that all Republicans voted against. These investments

03:55were supported by another billion dollars for permitting capacity improvement and streamlining. And

04:02these measures made a huge difference. They helped the forest achieve record levels of hazardous fuels

04:08reduction in prescribed burnings, numbers that I should note the Forest Service is nowhere near replicating

04:15this year under the chaotic and demoralizing leadership of the Trump administration. There's a better way forward

04:21here, one that doesn't sideline the public or undermine science for major forest projects. I'll also note

04:29that a version of this bill already passed the House earlier this year. There are better uses of this

04:34committee's time than rehashing the same old proposals again and again. I urge a no vote and yield back.

04:46You

04:48You

04:50You

04:52You

04:54You

04:56You

'Another Attempt To Unfortunately Weaken Bedrock Environmental Laws': Jared Huffman Torches GOP Bill

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended