Sec. 2. Forest incentives program
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In this section: The term carbon incentives contract or contract means a 15- to 30-year contract that specifies— the eligible practices that will be undertaken; the acreage of eligible land on which the practices will be undertaken; the agreed rate of compensation per acre; a schedule to verify that the terms of the contract have been fulfilled; and such other terms as are determined necessary by the Secretary. The term conservation easement agreement or agreement means a permanent conservation easement that— covers eligible land that will not be converted for development; is enrolled under a carbon incentives contract; and is consistent with the guidelines for— the Forest Legacy Program established under section 7 of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 ( 16 U.S.C. 2103c ), subject to the condition that an eligible practice shall be considered to be a conservation value for purposes of such consistency; or any other program approved by the Secretary for use under this section to provide consistency with Federal legal requirements for permanent conservation easements.
The term eligible land means forest land in the United States that is privately owned at the time of initiation of a carbon incentives contract or conservation easement agreement. The term eligible practice means a forestry practice, including improved forest management that produces marketable forest products, that is determined by the Secretary to provide measurable increases in carbon sequestration and storage beyond customary practices on comparable land. The term eligible practice includes— afforestation on nonforested land, such as marginal crop or pasture land, windbreaks, shelterbelts, stream buffers, including working land and urban forests and parks, or other areas identified by the Secretary; reforestation on forest land impacted by wildfire, pests, wind, or other stresses, including working land and urban forests and parks; improved forest management, with appropriate crediting for the carbon benefits of harvested wood products, through practices such as improving regeneration after harvest, planting in understocked forests, reducing competition from slow-growing species, thinning to encourage growth, changing rotations to increase carbon storage, improving harvest efficiency or wood use; and such other practices as the Secretary determines to be appropriate.
The term forest incentives program or program means the forest incentives program established under subsection (b)(1). The term Secretary means the Secretary of Agriculture. The Secretary shall establish a forest incentives program to achieve supplemental greenhouse gas emission reductions and carbon sequestration on private forest land of the United States through— carbon incentives contracts; and conservation easement agreements. In selecting projects under this subsection, the Secretary shall provide a priority for contracts and agreements— that sequester the most carbon on a per acre basis, with appropriate crediting for the carbon benefits of harvested wood products; and that create forestry jobs or protect habitats and achieve significant other environmental, economic, and social benefits.
To participate in the program, an owner of eligible land shall— enter into a carbon incentives contract; and fulfill such other requirements as the Secretary determines to be necessary. An owner of eligible land who has been carrying out eligible practices on the eligible land shall not be barred from entering into a carbon incentives contract under this subsection to continue carrying out the eligible practices on the eligible land. A contract shall be for a term of not less than 15, nor more than 30, years, as determined by the owner of eligible land.
The Secretary shall determine the rate of compensation per acre under the contract so that the longer the term of the contract, the higher rate of compensation. An owner or operator shall not be prohibited from participating in the program due to participation of the owner or operator in other Federal or State conservation assistance programs. In developing regulations for carbon incentives contracts under this subsection, the Secretary shall specify requirements to address whether the owner of eligible land has completed contract and agreement requirements.
The Secretary shall provide to owners of eligible land financial incentive payments for— eligible practices that measurably increase carbon sequestration and storage over a designated period on eligible land, with appropriate crediting for the carbon benefits of harvested wood products, as specified through a carbon incentives contract; and subject to paragraph (2), conservation easements on eligible land covered under a conservation easement agreement. The Secretary shall determine the amount of compensation to be provided under a contract under this subsection based on the emissions reductions obtained or avoided and the duration of the reductions, with due consideration to prevailing carbon pricing as determined by any relevant or State compliance offset programs.
Eligibility for financial incentive payments under a carbon incentives contract described in paragraph (1)(A) shall not require a conservation easement agreement. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue regulations that specify eligible practices and related compensation rates, standards, and guidelines as the basis for entering into the program with owners of eligible land. At the discretion of the Secretary, a portion of program funds made available under the program for a fiscal year may be used— to develop forest carbon modeling and methodologies that will improve the projection of carbon gains for any forest practices made eligible under the program; to provide additional incentive payments for specified management activities that increase the adaptive capacity of land under a carbon incentives contract; and for the Forest Inventory and Analysis Program of the Forest Service to develop improved measurement and monitoring of forest carbon stocks.
In establishing the program, the Secretary shall provide that funds provided under this section shall not be substituted for, or otherwise used as a basis for reducing, funding authorized or appropriated under other programs to compensate owners of eligible land for activities that are not covered under the program. The Secretary shall establish and implement protocols that provide monitoring and verification of compliance with the terms of contracts and agreements. At least annually, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report that contains— an estimate of annual and cumulative reductions achieved as a result of the program, determined using standardized measures, including measures of economic efficiency; a summary of any changes to the program that will be made as a result of program measurement, monitoring, and verification; the total number of acres enrolled in the program by method; and a State-by-State summary of the data.
Each report required by this subsection shall be available to the public through the website of the Department of Agriculture. At least once every 2 years the Secretary shall adjust eligible practices and compensation rates for future carbon incentives contracts based on the results of monitoring under paragraph
(1)and reporting under paragraph (2), if determined necessary by the Secretary. Any modeling, methodology, or protocol resource developed under this section— shall be suitable for estimating carbon benefits associated with eligible practices for the purpose of incentives under this section; and may be used for netting by States or emission sources under Federal programs relating to carbon emissions. There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this section.
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Sec. 2
Forest incentives program
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