H.R. 3553 — BRUSH Fires Act

This section directs the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, to conduct a study not later than one year after the date of enactment evaluating the effectiveness of wildfire mitigation methods in shrubland ecosystems (covered ecosystems, i.e., chaparral, coastal sage scrub, sagebrush, shrub-steppe, xeric shrubland, and other dryland shrub ecosystems as determined by the Secretary) in reducing wildfire risk and damage severity to communities within or adjacent to such ecosystems. The study must evaluate (1) effectiveness and longevity of hazardous fuels management activities (i.e., vegetation management to reduce wildfire risk), including strategic fuel breaks, and native ecosystem health practices such as invasive species mitigation and native shrub resprouting; (2) Forest Service policies on limiting ember ignitions from public or man-made sources like electrical infrastructure; (3) conditions (e.g., weather, seasonality, topography) affecting method effectiveness; (4) administrative, operational, and budgetary impediments to implementation; and (5) partnerships with non-Federal entities to reduce vulnerability of homes, roadways, and structures to embers, particularly in the wildland-urban interface (as defined in 16 U.S.C. 6511). The Secretary must coordinate with relevant Forest Service entities (e.g., Shrub Sciences Laboratory) and other federal agencies (e.g., Department of the Interior) and may consult non-Federal experts. This section further requires the Secretary to submit a report to the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations, Natural Resources, Agriculture, Energy and Natural Resources, and Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry—and make it publicly available—not later than 90 days after study completion. The report must summarize study results; identify best practices for land managers and areas for further research; compare Forest Service policies to those best practices; and evaluate opportunities to improve coordination with non-Federal entities on wildfire resilience, especially in the wildland-urban interface.