H.R. 8474

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8474 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8474

To amend the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 to provide 
States and communities with additional assistance to plant and maintain 
trees, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

April 23, 2026

Ms. Brown (for herself, Ms. Matsui, Mr. Thompson of California, Ms. 
Norton, Mrs. Sykes, and Ms. Titus) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To amend the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 to provide 
States and communities with additional assistance to plant and maintain 
trees, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Neighborhood Tree Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds that--
(1) the presence of a healthy and well-maintained urban 
forest can--
(A) support--
(i) the physical and mental health of 
community residents;
(ii) the regulation of air quality;
(iii) the mitigation of the urban heat 
island effect;
(iv) the reduction of energy demand; and
(v) stormwater management; and
(B) provide other benefits;
(2) according to research of the Forest Service, the 
estimated value of benefits described in paragraph (1) exceeds 
$18,000,000,000;
(3) the maintenance and management of an urban forest 
offers additional opportunities relating to workforce 
development, job creation, and enhancement of property values;
(4) urban forest canopy cover is inequitably distributed 
among racial groups and income levels, exacerbating disparities 
in exposure, for example, to the urban heat island effect and 
in related health risks or financial burdens relating to 
cooling;
(5) the effects of historical discriminatory policies, such 
as redlining, continue to have effects on urban environments;
(6) a recent analysis shows that--
(A) urbanized neighborhoods with mostly people of 
color have 33 percent less tree canopy on average than 
majority white neighborhoods; and
(B) low-income neighborhoods have 41 percent less 
tree cover than neighborhoods with low rates of 
poverty;
(7) additional analyses of cities in the United States 
found that--
(A) communities primarily inhabited by United 
States-born, white populations contain more than twice 
the urban forest canopy cover of communities primarily 
inhabited by racial and ethnic minorities; and
(B) there were elevated land temperatures in 
formerly redlined areas compared to their nonredlined 
counterparts, by an average 2.6 degrees Celsius and up 
to 7 degrees Celsius; and
(8) to reduce disparities in the enjoyment of the social, 
environmental, and economic benefits of healthy and well-
maintained urban forests and manage risks relating to heat 
exposure and other urban stressors, the Federal Government 
should accelerate actions to enhance the health and resilience 
of urban forests, with investment in priority communities.

SEC. 3. NEIGHBORHOOD TREE FUND.

Section 9 of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 (16 
U.S.C. 2105) is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsections (h) and (i) as subsections 
(i) and (j), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after subsection (g) the following:
``(h) Neighborhood Tree Fund.--
``(1) In general.--Consistent with the purposes described 
in subsection (b), the Secretary shall establish the 
Neighborhood Tree Fund (referred to in this subsection as the 
`Fund').
``(2) Assistance.--The Secretary shall use amounts from the 
Fund to provide assistance to eligible entities described in 
paragraph (3) to increase and improve the overall health of the 
tree canopy in a community.
``(3) Eligibility.--An entity that is eligible to receive 
assistance under paragraph (2) is--
``(A) a State;
``(B) an Indian Tribe; and
``(C) a local unit of government, approved 
organization, or local community tree volunteer group 
described in subsection (b)(4).
``(4) Requirements.--The Secretary, in consultation with 
the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, shall establish 
requirements for the receipt of assistance under paragraph (2), 
including requirements with respect to--
``(A) engagement with communities and stakeholders;
``(B) the conduct of a tree canopy assessment;
``(C) the use of climate change science in the 
design of a project using the assistance;
``(D) the conduct of site preparation and tree 
species selection; and
``(E) the conduct of monitoring and maintenance to 
ensure the successful establishment of the tree canopy.
``(5) Priority.--The Secretary shall give priority to the 
provision of assistance under paragraph (2) to eligible 
entities that propose projects that--
``(A) include and prioritize tree planting and tree 
maintenance in--
``(i) a census tract with a poverty rate of 
not less than 20 percent, as measured by the 5-
year data series available from the American 
Community Survey of the Bureau of the Census 
for the period of 2014 through 2018, including 
such a census tract that includes an area that 
was designated as `hazardous' or `definitely 
declining' in maps drawn by the Home Owners' 
Loan Corporation; or
``(ii) a community or neighborhood with 
lower tree canopy and higher maximum daytime 
summer temperatures compared to surrounding 
communities or neighborhoods, as determined by 
the Secretary, based on publicly available 
information;
``(B) optimize outcomes for climate mitigation and 
resilience for the purpose of public health, as 
determined by the Secretary; or
``(C) advance community-led urban agroforestry or 
tree-based local food production to increase green 
infrastructure, reduce urban heat, and improve 
environmental and public health outcomes.
``(6) Limitations on use of amounts for community tree 
assessments.--Not more than 10 percent of the amount made 
available under paragraph (7) for a fiscal year may be used for 
the development of community tree assessments.
``(7) Authorization of appropriations.--There are 
authorized to be appropriated for deposit into the Fund, for 
use by the Secretary to carry out this subsection, not less 
than--
``(A) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2025;
``(B) $200,000,000 for fiscal year 2026;
``(C) $400,000,000 for fiscal year 2027;
``(D) $600,000,000 for fiscal year 2028; and
``(E) $700,000,000 for fiscal year 2029.''.

SEC. 4. NATIONAL URBAN AND COMMUNITY FORESTRY ADVISORY COUNCIL 
COMPOSITION.

Section 9(g)(2)(A) of the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 
1978 (16 U.S.C. 2105(g)(2)(A)) is amended--
(1) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking ``15'' 
and inserting ``16'';
(2) in each of clauses (i) through (viii), by striking the 
comma at the end and inserting a period;
(3) in clause (ix), by striking ``, and'' at the end and 
inserting a period; and
(4) by striking clause (x) and inserting the following:
``(x) 3 members who are not officers or 
employees of any governmental body and who have 
expertise and have been active in urban and 
community forestry, of whom--
``(I) 1 is a resident of a 
community with a population of less 
than 50,000 as of the most recent 
census; and
``(II) 1 is a resident of a low-
income community, as determined by the 
Secretary.''.
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