Sponsors (4)
The bill boosts demand for U.S. mass timber—supporting rural timber economies, encouraging forest restoration, and increasing environmental transparency—while likely raising federal project costs, reducing market opportunities for some non-timber suppliers, and adding procurement compliance burdens.
Small U.S. timber manufacturers and sawmills will see increased demand because federal construction and renovation projects will prioritize U.S.-made mass timber and wood products.
Rural communities and tribal lands will gain market incentives for forest restoration and wildfire-risk reduction because projects sourcing wood from restoration and wildfire‑protection forestry create demand for those management activities.
Taxpayers and federal employees will have greater transparency about environmental impacts because the bill requires cradle-to-gate lifecycle assessments and a public report on innovative wood used in federal buildings.
Taxpayers and federal project owners may face higher construction costs because prioritizing U.S.-sourced wood can limit supplier pools and raise material prices for federal projects.
Non-forest domestic suppliers and manufacturers of alternative building materials (including some small businesses) will face reduced market opportunities because preference requirements favor timber-based products.
Contractors and federal contracting offices will incur additional administrative and compliance burdens because verification and certification requirements add paperwork, slow procurement, and may increase costs.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Directs federal building procurement to prioritize U.S.-sourced mass timber and innovative wood products from responsible and restorative forestry, and requires a cradle-to-gate lifecycle assessment and report.
Requires the General Services Administration and the Department of Defense to prioritize use of U.S.-sourced mass timber and other innovative wood products when contracting for construction, alteration, acquisition, or lease of federal public buildings, including military facilities. Contracting officials must favor materials from responsible sources and from forest restoration, wildfire-protection management, or underserved forest owners (including Tribal and small family forests), and seek documentation verifying those supply claims. Directs GSA, working with USDA, to complete a cradle-to-gate whole-building lifecycle assessment (following ISO 14044 and 14020) of new federal buildings using innovative wood products within 180 days of enactment and to submit a public report to Congress within 180 days after finishing that assessment. One short provision provides the act's official short title but does not authorize funds or change other statutes.
Introduced March 24, 2025 by Jeff Merkley · Last progress March 24, 2025