H.R. 1820 — FLASH Act

This section defines, for purposes of this subtitle, (1) applicable fire and sanitation regulations as specified fire- and sanitation-related provisions of titles 36, 43, and 50 of the Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of enactment, that apply to lands under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Interior or National Forest System lands; and (2) waste as any refuse, garbage, rubbish, trash, debris, or litter left or created by humans and disposed of without authorization from the administering federal agency or outside a waste collection receptacle.

This section directs the Secretary concerned, in coordination with the Secretary of Homeland Security, to establish and implement within 90 days of enactment policies and protocols to prevent and mitigate environmental degradation on covered Federal lands, National Forest System lands, or lands under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Interior caused by aliens without lawful immigration status crossing the southern border or encamping there. In developing such policies, the Secretary concerned must consider and seek to implement best practices to (1) reduce trash accumulation, particularly in ecologically sensitive areas; (2) address destruction of sensitive natural and archaeological resources; and (3) address destruction of wildlife habitat.

This section requires the Secretary concerned to submit reports to the appropriate congressional committees on waste collected on covered federal lands and on National Forest System lands or lands under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Interior used for housing aliens without lawful immigration status, illegal encampments, or illegal narcotics cultivation (including cannabis). The first report is due not later than 180 days after enactment, with subsequent reports due annually not later than 90 days after the end of each fiscal year. Each report must include (1) total waste collected (in pounds) and collection costs, broken down by agency, region, or other appropriate unit; (2) suggestions to reduce environmental degradation from waste; (3) data from federal, state, local, nonprofit, and volunteer sources on waste amounts and collection events; (4) total acres of wildlife habitat impacted by waste; (5) any unauthorized trails or roads discovered; (6) number of wildfires started by unauthorized human activity, including by aliens without lawful immigration status; and (7) other information demonstrating waste amounts. In preparing the reports, the Secretary concerned must collaborate with and verify data from state, local, nonprofit, and volunteer entities assisting in waste collection and must protect the privacy of data submitters.

This section subjects aliens without lawful immigration status to criminal penalties and fines authorized under applicable fire and sanitation regulations for violations committed on covered Federal land. It requires the Secretary concerned to promulgate regulations within one year of enactment escalating such penalties and fines by the lower of (1) doubling the maximum term of imprisonment and fines or (2) raising them to the greatest extent possible without exceeding one year of imprisonment or a $250,000 fine. The section further directs the Secretary to enforce existing such regulations and to submit reports to the appropriate congressional committees within 180 days of enactment and for each fiscal year thereafter detailing total fines collected.

This section establishes Trespass Cannabis Cultivation Site Response Initiatives to be carried out separately by the Secretary of Agriculture (through a designated Forest Service branch) and the Secretary of the Interior (through a designated Department of the Interior branch) to detect, assess, monitor, and remediate environmental contamination—including hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants, improper pesticides (i.e., cancelled, improperly applied, or intentionally misused pesticides), and refuse—from trespass cannabis cultivation on federal lands under their jurisdiction. (Covered response actions include detection, identification, assessment, monitoring, and cleanup; the Secretary concerned bears responsibility except where a potentially responsible party is required to act under CERCLA section 122.) The section authorizes the Secretaries to enter reimbursable or other agreements with other federal agencies, state or local governments, Indian tribes, adjacent property owners, or nonprofit conservation organizations for assistance in carrying out the initiatives, including cross-fiscal-year agreements of up to three years that specify safety, data, monitoring, assessment, and reporting requirements. Such agreements may not reimburse regulatory enforcement or alter site cleanup standards or levels inconsistent with the Secretary's determined future land use; they also entitle sureties on related procurement bonds to the same indemnification and liability standards as contractors. State fees and charges on disposal of contaminants apply to these response actions.

This section revises criminal penalties under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) for private applicators or other persons who knowingly violate the Act. It sets a general penalty of a fine not more than $1,000, imprisonment not more than 30 days, or both; and, if the violation occurs during commission of an offense under 18 U.S.C. 1361 (i.e., willfully injuring or depredating U.S. property), an additional term of imprisonment not more than 10 years on top of penalties under that section.

This section establishes an enhanced criminal penalty of up to a $250,000 fine or 20 years imprisonment (or both)—in addition to the existing general penalty of up to a $500 fine or 6 months imprisonment (or both)—for violations of national forest protection rules that involve illegal cannabis cultivation on public lands using pesticides not compliant with the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). (Thus, the Secretary of Agriculture's authority under 16 U.S.C. 551 to protect national forests from destruction, regulate their use, and enforce related rules now includes this targeted deterrent against environmentally harmful illegal grows.)

This section establishes penalties of a fine up to $250,000, imprisonment up to 20 years, or both for any person who violates the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA; 7 U.S.C. 136 et seq.) in connection with the illegal cultivation of cannabis on federal land. It specifies that such penalties apply in addition to any other federal or state penalties. The section defines "federal land" as land or interests therein administered by the Department of the Interior through the Bureau of Indian Affairs (except land held in trust for Indian tribes), Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, or U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

This section establishes the Southern Border Fuels Management Initiative within the Department of the Interior, to be implemented not later than one year after enactment, to conduct vegetation management along the U.S.-Mexico border. The Initiative requires reducing hazardous fuels and invasive species, installing fuel breaks, setting annual acreage treatment targets, and prioritizing federal lands with border roads constructed under section 101 of the Act, in coordination with the Forest Service, U.S. Border Patrol, and state, local, or Tribal law enforcement, for purposes of reducing wildfire risk, improving landscape resilience, enhancing border operational control, and increasing law enforcement visibility and safety. The section authorizes $3,660,000 annually for FY2026 through FY2032 and terminates the Initiative seven years after enactment.

This section directs the Secretary concerned (i.e., of the Interior or Agriculture), in coordination with the Secretary of Homeland Security, to establish and implement, within 90 days of enactment, policies and protocols to mitigate wildland fires ignited by aliens without lawful immigration status and environmental degradation on covered federal lands caused by such aliens crossing the southern border. In developing the protocols, the Secretary concerned must consider measures to (1) reduce trash accumulation, particularly in ecologically sensitive areas; (2) prevent fire ignitions in high-risk areas threatening life, property, wildlife habitat, infrastructure, watersheds, or water sources; (3) address destruction of sensitive natural and archeological resources; and (4) address wildlife habitat destruction. It further requires the Secretary concerned to submit to the appropriate congressional committees, within one year of enactment, a report describing the policies and protocols, cataloging reported incidents (including acres burned, number of fires and degradation incidents, remediation costs, aliens connected and apprehended, and affected areas such as congressionally designated natural resource protections), and identifying additional needed resources or authorities; and requires the Comptroller General, within two years of enactment, to update its November 2011 report entitled “Federal Agencies Could Better Utilize Law Enforcement Resources in Support of Wildland Fire Management Activities” with information on each border state.