July 30, 2015 - Congressman Tom McClintock (R-CA) and Congressman Mark Amodei (R-NV) introduced legislation yesterday to address catastrophic wildfire and invasive species threats to Lake Tahoe and the Tahoe Basin. The Federal Lands Subcommittee chaired by McClintock had already considered the preliminary draft of H.R. 3382, “Lake Tahoe Restoration Act of 2015,” on July 14th, putting it on a fast track for House passage.
“For the last eight years, Tahoe legislation has been introduced in the Senate and has not moved off the Senate floor,” McClintock said. We have carefully crafted this bill to fit within the budget parameters set by Congress after extensive input from local fire districts and have targeted it to address the two most immediate environmental threats to the Tahoe Basin,” McClintock said. “I believe this bill has an excellent prospect for passage out of the House.”
The bill:
--- Expedites collaborative fuel reduction projects consistent with the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit land and resource management plan.
--- Prioritizes post-fire erosion abatement to protect lake water quality.
--- Guarantees that funds generated by timber sales and other fee-based revenues will stay in the Tahoe Basin to provide for further fuels management and other improvements.
--- Authorizes an additional $4 million annually to accomplish this goal, with priority given to those jurisdictions that have already adopted defensible space plans.
--- Supplements and expands the current inspection regimen of boats launched into the Lake and provides fee supported private, local, and state inspection and decontamination stations.
--- Expedites the sale of obsolete urban lots held by the federal government and acquisition of in-fill parcels within the National Forest for better land management.
--- Fully involves local governments in land acquisition decisions that directly impact their communities.
--- Promotes tourism by prioritizing public access to the federal lands.
Source: Congressman Tom McClintock
