This bill creates a new federal program that allows the Secretary of Agriculture to authorize emergency watershed protection work on National Forest System lands following natural disasters or other damaging events. The law empowers state and local governments, Indian tribes, water districts, and similar entities to carry out erosion control, flood mitigation, and forest recovery measures on federal forest land, with the federal government covering all costs without requiring any matching funds from sponsors. Projects must be completed within two years of the triggering disaster, with an additional three-year period allowed for monitoring and maintenance if needed. The bill also provides liability protections for sponsoring organizations, exempting them from federal indemnification requirements except in cases of willful negligence or reckless conduct. The legislation streamlines the approval process by treating these emergency projects as exempt from standard environmental review procedures, enabling faster implementation when watershed damage threatens downstream communities or water resources.
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