Sponsors (9)
The bill mobilizes federal, state, tribal, and private partners to accelerate white oak restoration, seedling supply, and coordination—benefiting rural communities, tribes, and ecosystems—but relies on limited-duration pilots and appropriations that raise costs, capacity strains, and risks of uneven or short-lived results.
Rural communities, private landowners, tribes, and nearby towns will see expanded on-the-ground white oak and upland-oak restoration that improves forest health, biodiversity, and reduces wildfire risk.
Federal, state, tribal, and local agencies get clearer authorities and incentives to coordinate and use existing tools together, which should speed landscape-scale restoration and reduce duplication.
Private landowners, tribes, nonprofits, and land-grant institutions gain grants, technical assistance, and cooperative-agreement options to carry out restoration and genetics work, lowering barriers to participation.
Taxpayers and the federal budget could face increased costs or reallocation pressures because multiple provisions rely on appropriations, CCC funds, and new program spending that may divert funds from other priorities.
Most authorities and programs are time-limited (7-year sunsets), creating uncertainty and likely insufficient continuity for long-lived white oak restoration and long-term research impacts.
Implementation may strain agency and partner capacity—the bill adds workload while limiting federal FTE increases and may require agencies to reallocate staff or incur short-term administrative costs.
Based on analysis of 10 sections of legislative text.
Establishes coordinated federal programs, pilots, grants, research partnerships, and a nursery capacity strategy to restore white oak and expand seedling supply, with most authorities sunsetting after 7 years.
Introduced March 27, 2025 by Garland H. Barr · Last progress March 27, 2025
Creates a coordinated federal initiative to restore white oak forests, expand seedling nursery capacity, and support restoration on Federal, Tribal, State, and private lands. It forms a voluntary multi‑stakeholder coalition, directs the Forest Service and Interior to run restoration pilot projects and land assessments, establishes a non‑regulatory restoration and grant program administered with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, requires a national nursery capacity strategy, authorizes research partnerships, and creates an NRCS white oak initiative. Most program authorities sunset seven years after enactment.