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ROWs through federal lands are potentially liable for fires on American Public Power Association Position federal lands caused by vegetation outside the ROWs that fall The Association was actively involved in the development of the or otherwise disrupt electric transmission and distribution lines language of H.R.2358,and strongly supported it when it was and facilities.Electric utilities,including public power utilities, marked up in June 2015,as expressed in a letter of support to continuously encounter opposition and lengthy delays from the House Committee on Natural Resources.APPA also sup- some USFS and BLM personnel to remove the potentially ported the addition of the text of H.R.2358 to H.R. 8,as well harmful vegetation.This includes such processes as redundancy as the language added to that text by Rep. Cramer's amendment in reviews,contradicting policies between agency offices,and during House consideration of H.R. 8.While the Senate energy lack of timely decision-making related to the removal of the bill,S.2012,the Energy Policy Modernization Act of 2015,did vegetation. not include similar language,the Association strongly encour- In the meantime,poorly managed vegetation continues to in- aged the conferees to keep the vegetation management language teract with power lines.The USFS reported 232 and 113 wild- in an energy bill conference report;but was ultimately unsuc- fires,respectively in 2012 and 2013,caused by contact between cessful when the conference was unable to reach an agreement. power lines and trees on its lands.To address this continuing Electric utilities need to be able to keep the lights on and help problem,the House Committee on Natural Resources approved minimize wildfires through proper management of vegetation legislation(H.R.2358)by Reps. Ryan Zinke(R-MT)and Kurt management. Schrader(D-OR),in the 114th Congress,that sought to amend the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 to en- hance the reliability of the electricity grid and reduce the threat American Public Power Association Contact of wildfires to and from electric transmission and distribution Cory Toth,Government Relations Director 202-467-2939/ facilities on federal lands by facilitating vegetation management ctoth@publicpower.org on such lands.H.R.2358 was approved by the Natural Resourc- es Committee in June 2015. When the House Rules Committee met to consider H.R. 8, the North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act,in the 114th Congress,it added the text of H.R.2358 to it.The vegetation management language was amended on the House floor through an amendment by Rep.Kevin Cramer(R-ND) in December 2015.It would have authorized voluntary vegetation management within 150 feet of the exterior boundary of the ROW near structures.It also would have prevented the sale of that vegetation being cut or trimmed and limit legal liabilities for utilities.The House and Senate could not resolve their differences on energy legislation,so the legislation,and the ac- companying vegetation management language,died at the end of the 114th Congress. s6 PubucPower.org 198