Sec. 7. Applicability of expedited procedures and authorities of Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 to emergency hazardous fuels reduction projects

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Subject to subsections

(b)through (e), title I of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 ( 16 U.S.C. 6511 et seq. ) (including the environmental analysis requirements of section 104 of that Act ( 16 U.S.C. 6514 ), the special administrative review process under section 105 of that Act ( 16 U.S.C. 6515 ), and the judicial review process under section 106 of that Act (16 U.S.C. 6516)), shall apply to all emergency hazardous fuels reduction projects developed under section 6. Section 322 of Public Law 102–381 ( 16 U.S.C. 1612 note; 106 Stat. 1419) shall not apply to Forest Service emergency hazardous fuels reduction projects. In applying title I of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 ( 16 U.S.C. 6511 et seq. ) to emergency hazardous fuels reduction projects, the Secretary concerned shall make the following modifications: The authority shall apply to the entire high-risk area, including land that is outside of a wildland-urban interface area or that does not satisfy any of the other eligibility criteria specified in section 102(a) of that Act (16 U.S.C. 6512(a)). All projects and activities of the Secretary concerned, including necessary connected actions (as described in section 1508.25(a)(1) of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations), of the emergency hazardous fuels reduction project shall be deemed to be an authorized hazardous fuel reduction project for purposes of applying the title. The Secretary is not required to study, develop, or describe more than the proposed agency action and a no-action alternative in the environmental assessment or environmental impact statement prepared pursuant to section 102(2) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 ( 42 U.S.C. 4332(2) ) for an emergency hazardous fuels reduction project, except that, if an at-risk community has adopted a community wildfire protection plan (as defined in section 101(3) of the Healthy Forest Restoration Act of 2003 ( 16 U.S.C. 6511(3) )) that includes the land covered by the proposed agency action, but the proposed agency action does not implement the recommendations in the plan regarding the general location and basic method of treatments, the Secretary shall evaluate the recommendations in the plan as an additional alternative to the proposed agency action. All projects and activities carried out as part of an emergency hazardous fuels reduction project in a designated high-risk area shall be consistent with standards and guidelines contained in the land and resource management plan or land use plan for the unit of the National Forest System or public lands for which the designation is made, except that the Secretary concerned may modify such standards and guidelines to correspond with a specific high-risk area designation. Any decision required to be made under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 ( 42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq. ) with respect to any project or activity to be carried out as part of an emergency hazardous fuels reduction project in a high-risk area shall not be delegated to a State forester or any other officer or employee of the State in which the emergency hazardous fuels reduction project will be carried out. If a project or activity to be carried out as part of an emergency hazardous fuels reduction project in a high-risk area involves the removal of insect-infected trees or other hazardous fuels within 500 feet of utility or telephone infrastructure, campgrounds, roadsides, heritage sites, recreation sites, schools, or other infrastructure, the project or activity is categorically excluded from the requirement to prepare an environmental assessment or an environmental impact statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) so long as the project or activity is otherwise conducted consistently with agency and departmental procedures and the applicable land and resource management plan or land use plan.

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