On the recordMay 18, 2018
This amendment and existing authority in the base bill establishes so-called pilot programs on three national forests in New Mexico. The pilot would exempt all logging activity from environmental review and establish an untested arbitration system for anyone who wants to object to an unauthorized project. While we are told that this is necessary to promote forest health and mitigate wildfire, this sets a dangerous precedent, with the potential to do lasting environmental damage to over 3 million acres of national forests. What this amendment calls a pilot program would upend critical environmental safeguards and limit public participation in forest management decisions. This is more like a management reorientation project than a pilot project. The omnibus bill passed less than 2 months ago, included a bipartisan compromise to fix the wildfire budget and update forest management authorities. The Forest Service has the tools it needs to restore our national forests. Unfortunately, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle would rather use the threat of wildfire to roll back bedrock laws to increase commercial logging. This doesn't make sense in New Mexico, or any other State. Mr. Chairman, I urge a ``no'' vote on the amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.
