119-s476

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 476 Introduced in Senate

    (IS) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 S. 476

 To direct the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the 
Interior to carry out activities to provide for white oak restoration, 
 and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

 February 6 (legislative day, February 5), 2025

 Mr. McConnell (for himself and Mr. Warner) introduced the following 
 bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
 Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To direct the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of the 
Interior to carry out activities to provide for white oak restoration, 
 and for other purposes.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``White Oak Resiliency Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITION OF LAND-GRANT COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY.

 In this Act, the term ``land-grant college or university'' means--

    (1) an 1862 Institution (as defined in 

section 2 of the 
 Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 
 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7601));

    (2) an 1890 Institution (as defined in that section); and

    (3) a 1994 Institution (as defined in 

section 532 of the 
 Equity in Educational Land-Grant Status Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 
 301 note; Public Law 103-382)).

SEC. 3. WHITE OAK RESTORATION INITIATIVE COALITION.

    (a) In General.--There is established the White Oak Restoration 
Initiative Coalition (referred to in this section as the 
``Coalition'')--

    (1) as a voluntary collaborative group of public, State, 
 private, and nongovernmental organizations to carry out the 
 duties described in subsection

    (b) ; and

    (2) in accordance with the charter entitled ``White Oak 
 Initiative Coalition Charter'' adopted by the White Oak 
 Initiative Board of Directors on March 21, 2023 (or a successor 
 charter).

    (b) Duties.--In addition to the duties specified in the charter 
described in subsection

    (a)

    (2) , the duties of the Coalition are--

    (1) to coordinate public, State, local, private, and 
 nongovernmental restoration of white oak in the United States;

    (2) to make program and policy recommendations with respect 
 to--
        (A) changes necessary to address Federal and State 
 policies that impede activities to improve the health, 
 resiliency, and natural regeneration of white oak;
        (B) adopting or modifying Federal and State 
 policies to increase the pace and scale of white oak 
 regeneration and resiliency of white oak;
            (C) options to enhance communication, coordination, 
 and collaboration between forest land owners, 
 particularly for cross-boundary projects, to improve 
 the health, resiliency, and natural regeneration of 
 white oak;
            (D) research gaps that should be addressed to 
 improve the best available science on white oak;
        (E) outreach to forest landowners with white oak or 
 white oak regeneration potential; and
        (F) options and policies necessary to improve the 
 quality and quantity of white oak in tree nurseries; 
 and

    (3) to submit the report under subsection
            (c) .
            (c) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Coalition shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture, 
Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate and the Committee on Natural 
Resources and the Committee on Agriculture of the House of 
Representatives a report describing the activities of the Coalition 
during the period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, 
including the recommendations described in subsection

    (b)

    (2) .
            (d) Administrative Support, Technical Services, and Staff 
Support.--The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of 
Agriculture shall make such personnel available to the Coalition for 
administrative support, technical services, and development and 
dissemination of educational materials as the Secretaries determine to 
be necessary to carry out this section.

    (e) Nonapplicability of Federal Advisory Committee Act.--Chapter 10 
of title 5, United States Code, shall not apply to the Coalition.

    (f) Private Funding of White Oak Restoration Projects.--The 
Secretary of Agriculture may make available funds to the Coalition to 
carry out this section from funds in the accounts established pursuant 
to 

section 1241

    (f) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 
3841

    (f) ).

SEC. 4. FOREST SERVICE PILOT PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the 
Chief of the Forest Service, shall establish and carry out 5 pilot 
projects in national forests to restore white oak in those national 
forests through white oak restoration and natural regeneration 
practices.

    (b) National Forests Reserved or Withdrawn From the Public 
Domain.--At least 3 pilot projects required under subsection

    (a) shall 
be carried out in national forests reserved or withdrawn from the 
public domain.
            (c) Authority To Enter Into Cooperative Agreements.--The Secretary 
of Agriculture may enter into cooperative agreements to carry out the 
pilot projects required under subsection

    (a) .

SEC. 5. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR WHITE OAK ASSESSMENT AND PILOT 
 PROJECTS.

    (a) 

=== Definitions. ===
-In this section:

    (1) Covered land.--The term ``covered land'' means land 
 under the administrative jurisdiction of the Secretary, 
 including a unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System and 
 abandoned mine land.

    (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
 of the Interior.

    (b) Assessment.--

    (1) In general.--As soon as practicable after the date of 
 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall carry out an 
 assessment of covered land to evaluate--
        (A) whether white oak is present on the covered 
 land; and
        (B) the potential to restore white oak forests on 
 the covered land.

    (2) Use of information.--In carrying out the assessment 
 under paragraph

    (1) , the Secretary may use information from 
 sources other than the Department of the Interior, including 
 information from--
        (A) the White Oak Restoration Initiative Coalition 
 established by 

section 3

    (a) ; and
        (B) the Chief of the Forest Service.

    (3) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the 
 appropriate committees of Congress, and make publicly available 
 on the website of the Department of the Interior, a report 
 describing the results of the assessment carried out under 
 paragraph

    (1) .
            (c) Pilot Projects.--

    (1) In general.--As soon as practicable after the date on 
 which the Secretary submits the report required under 
 subsection

    (b)

    (3) , the Secretary shall establish and carry out 
 5 pilot projects on various areas of covered land, the purpose 
 of which is to restore and naturally regenerate white oak.

    (2) Authority to enter into cooperative agreements.--The 
 Secretary may enter into cooperative agreements to carry out 
 the pilot projects required under paragraph

    (1) .

SEC. 6. WHITE OAK REGENERATION AND UPLAND OAK HABITAT.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture (referred to in 
this section as the ``Secretary'') shall establish a nonregulatory 
program to be known as the ``White Oak and Upland Oak Habitat 
Regeneration Program'' (referred to in this section as the 
``Program'').

    (b) Duties.--In carrying out the Program, the Secretary shall--

    (1) draw upon the best available science and management 
 plans for species of white oak to identify, prioritize, and 
 implement restoration and conservation activities that will 
 improve the growth of white oak within the United States;

    (2) collaborate and coordinate with the White Oak 
 Restoration Initiative Coalition to prioritize white oak 
 restoration initiatives;

    (3) adopt a white oak restoration strategy that--
        (A) supports the implementation of a shared set of 
 science-based restoration and conservation activities 
 developed in accordance with paragraph

    (1) ;
        (B) targets cost-effective projects with measurable 
 results; and
            (C) maximizes restoration outcomes with no net gain 
 of Federal full-time equivalent employees; and

    (4) establish the voluntary grant and technical assistance 
 program in accordance with subsection

    (e) .
            (c) Coordination.--In establishing the Program, the Secretary, 
acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, shall consult with--

    (1) the heads of Federal agencies, including--
        (A) the Director of the United States Fish and 
 Wildlife Service; and
        (B) the Chief of the Natural Resources Conservation 
 Service; and

    (2) the Governor of each State in which restoration efforts 
 will be carried out pursuant to the Program.
            (d) === Purposes ===
-The purposes of the Program include--

    (1) coordinating restoration and conservation activities 
 among Federal, State, local, and Tribal entities and 
 conservation partners to address white oak restoration 
 priorities;

    (2) improving and regenerating white oak and upland oak 
 forests and the wildlife habitat such forests provide;

    (3) carrying out coordinated restoration and conservation 
 activities that lead to the increased growth of species of 
 white oak in native white oak regions on Federal, State, 
 Tribal, and private land;

    (4) facilitating strategic planning to maximize the 
 resilience of white oak systems and habitats under changing 
 climate conditions;

    (5) engaging the public through outreach, education, and 
 citizen involvement to increase capacity and support for 
 coordinated restoration and conservation activities for species 
 of white oak; and

    (6) increasing scientific capacity to support the planning, 
 monitoring, and research activities necessary to carry out such 
 coordinated restoration and conservation activities.

    (e) Grants and Assistance.--

    (1) In general.--To the extent that funds are available to 
 carry out this section, the Secretary shall establish a 
 voluntary grant and technical assistance program (referred to 
 in this subsection as the ``grant program'') to achieve the 
 purposes of the Program described in subsection
            (d) .

    (2) Administration.--
        (A) In general.--The Secretary shall enter into a 
 cooperative agreement with the National Fish and 
 Wildlife Foundation (referred to in this subsection as 
 the ``Foundation'') to manage and administer the grant 
 program.
        (B) Funding.--After the Secretary enters into a 
 cooperative agreement with the Foundation under 
 subparagraph
        (A) , the Foundation shall--
            (i) for each fiscal year, receive amounts 
 to carry out this subsection in an advance 
 payment of the entire amount on October 1, or 
 as soon as practicable thereafter, of that 
 fiscal year;
            (ii) invest and reinvest such amounts for 
 the benefit of the grant program; and
            (iii) otherwise administer the grant 
 program to support partnerships between the 
 public and private sectors in accordance with 
 this section.

    (3) Application of national fish and wildlife foundation 
 establishment act.--Amounts received by the Foundation to carry 
 out the grant program shall be subject to the National Fish and 
 Wildlife Foundation Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.), 
 excluding 

section 10

    (a) of that Act (16 U.S.C. 3709

    (a) ).

SEC. 7. WHITE OAK TREE NURSERY SHORTAGES.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of 
the Forest Service, shall develop and implement a national strategy to 
increase the capacity of Federal, State, Tribal, and private tree 
nurseries to address the nationwide shortage of white oak tree 
seedlings.

    (b) Elements.--The strategy required under subsection

    (a) shall--

    (1) be based on the best available science and data, as 
 established by land-grant colleges and universities that have 
 demonstrated--
        (A) scientific expertise relating to white oak;
        (B) the ability to rapidly transfer technologies to 
 the stave industry;
            (C) geographic proximity to concentrated areas of 
 white oak; and
            (D) support for regional economic development; and

    (2) identify and address--
        (A) regional shortages of bareroot and container 
 white oak tree seedlings;
        (B) regional white oak reforestation opportunities 
 and the seedling supply necessary to fulfill those 
 opportunities;
            (C) opportunities to enhance white oak seedling 
 diversity and close gaps in seed inventories; and
            (D) barriers to expanding, enhancing, or creating 
 new infrastructure to increase nursery capacity for 
 white oak tree seedlings.

SEC. 8. WHITE OAK RESEARCH.

    (a) Research.--The Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the 
Chief of the Forest Service, shall enter into a memorandum of 
understanding with a land-grant college or university to conduct 
research on--

    (1) white oak genes with resistance and stress tolerance;

    (2) white oak trees that exhibit vigor for the purpose of 
 increasing survival and growth;

    (3) establishing a diverse white oak seed bank capable of 
 responding to stressors;

    (4) providing a sustainable supply of white oak seedlings 
 and genetic resources;

    (5) reforestation of white oak through natural and 
 artificial regeneration; and

    (6) the best methods for white oak reforestation on 
 abandoned mine land sites.

    (b) Consultation.--In carrying out the research under subsection

    (a) , the land-grant college or university may consult with such States, 
nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, and other 
scientific bodies as the land-grant college or university determines to 
be appropriate.

SEC. 9. NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE.

    (a) Partnerships.--

    (1) In general.--The Secretary of Agriculture, acting 
 through the Director of the National Institute of Food and 
 Agriculture, shall enter into a partnership with an eligible 
 entity described in paragraph

    (2) to conduct research on 
 improving white oak species resiliency, health, and 
 preservation, including research on--
        (A) population-scale sequencing;
        (B) stress response traits;
            (C) seedling physiology and performance; and
            (D) white oak product development.

    (2) Eligible entity.--An eligible entity referred to in 
 paragraph

    (1) is a land-grant college or university that has 
 demonstrated--
        (A) scientific expertise relating to white oak;
        (B) the ability to rapidly transfer technologies to 
 the stave industry;
            (C) geographic proximity to concentrated areas of 
 white oak; and
            (D) support for regional economic development.

    (b) Priorities.--The Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the 
Director of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, shall 
prioritize research relating to the resistance of white oak to disease, 
pest, heat, and drought in cultivated, new, and old-growth white oak 
timber stands.

SEC. 10. NATURAL RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE INITIATIVE.

 The Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the 
Natural Resources Conservation Service, shall establish an initiative 
on white oak--

    (1) to re-establish white oak forests where appropriate;

    (2) to improve the management of existing white oak forests 
 to foster natural regeneration of white oak; and

    (3) to provide technical assistance to private landowners 
 to re-establish, improve management of, and naturally 
 regenerate white oak.

SEC. 11. AUTHORITIES.

 To the maximum extent practicable, to carry out activities under 
this Act and the amendments made by this Act, the Secretary of the 
Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall use the authorities 
provided under this Act and those amendments, in combination with 
authorities under other provisions of law, including--

    (1) good neighbor agreements under 

section 8206 of the 
 Agricultural Act of 2014 (16 U.S.C. 2113a); and

    (2) stewardship contracting projects under 

section 604 of 
 the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 6591c).
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