Continued Rapid Ohia Death Response Act of 2025

Floor Speech

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Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 375) to require the Secretary of the Interior to partner and collaborate with the Secretary of Agriculture and the State of Hawaii to address Rapid Ohia Death, and for other purposes.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 375

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 ``Continued Rapid Ohia Death Response Act of 2025''. SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:

(1) Rapid ohia death.--The term ``Rapid Ohia Death'' means the disease caused by the fungal pathogen known as Ceratocystis fimbriata that affects the tree of the species Metrosideros polymorpha.

(2) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of Hawaii. SEC. 3. COLLABORATION.

The Secretary of the Interior shall partner and collaborate with the Secretary of Agriculture and the State to address Rapid Ohia Death. SEC. 4. SUSTAINED EFFORTS.

(a) Transmission.--The Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the United States Geological Survey, and the Chief of the Forest Service, acting through the Forest Service Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry, shall continue to conduct research on Rapid Ohia Death vectors and transmission.

(b) Ungulate Management.--The Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, shall continue to partner with the Secretary of Agriculture, the State, and with local stakeholders to manage ungulates in Rapid Ohia Death control areas on Federal, State, and private land, with the consent of private landowners.

(c) Restoration and Research.--The Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the Forest Service, shall continue to provide--

(1) financial assistance, including through agreements with the Secretary of the Interior--

(A) to prevent the spread of Rapid Ohia Death; and

(B) to restore the native forests of the State; and

(2) staff and necessary infrastructure funding to the Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry to conduct research on Rapid Ohia Death.

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Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask that all Members be given 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H.R. 375, the bill now under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, Representative Tokuda's legislation, the Continued Rapid Ohia Death Response Act of 2025, is important legislation that directs the Secretary of the Interior to partner and collaborate with the Secretary of Agriculture and the State of Hawaii to address rapid ohia death.

Rapid ohia death is a fungal disease that has ravaged Hawaii's ohia tree population. The ohia tree is important ecologically and culturally to Hawaii. Ohias play an important role in regulating water flow in addition to preventing soil erosion.

If the loss of ohia trees continues, there could be significant economic impacts, including lost tourism revenue and increased water treatment and erosion control costs. Unfortunately, there is currently no cure that can help the afflicted trees.

H.R. 375 helps address rapid ohia death by focusing Federal and State agencies' efforts on detection, prevention, and restoration to combat this disease.

I thank Representative Tokuda for her work on this legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time. House of Representatives, Committee on Agriculture, Washington, DC, January 15, 2025. Hon. Bruce Westerman, Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources, Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. Chairman: This letter confirms our mutual understanding regarding H.R. 375, the ``Continued Rapid Ohia Death Response Act.'' Thank you for collaborating with the Committee on Agriculture on the matters within our jurisdiction.

The Committee on Agriculture will forego any further consideration of this bill. However, by foregoing consideration at this time, we do not waive any jurisdiction over any subject matter contained in this or similar legislation. The Committee on Agriculture also reserves the right to seek appointment of an appropriate number of conferees should it become necessary and ask that you support such a request.

We would appreciate a response to this letter confirming this understanding with respect to H.R. 375 and request a copy of our letters on this matter be published in the Congressional Record during Floor consideration. Sincerely, Glenn ``GT'' Thompson, Chairman. ____ House of Representatives, Committee on Agriculture, Washington, DC, January 15, 2025. Hon. Glenn ``GT'' Thompson, Chairman, Committee on Agriculture, Washington, DC.

Dear Mr. Chairman: I write regarding our mutual understanding of H.R. 375, the ``Continued Rapid Ohia Death Response Act.''

I recognize that the bill contains provisions that fall within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Agriculture and appreciate your willingness to forgo further consideration of the bill. I acknowledge that the Committee on Agriculture will not formally consider H.R. 375 and agree that the inaction of your Committee with respect to the bill does not waive any jurisdiction over the subject matter contained therein.

I am pleased to support your request to name members of the Committee on Agriculture to any conference committee to consider such provisions. I will ensure that our exchange of letters is included in the Congressional Record during floor consideration of the bill. I appreciate your cooperation regarding this legislation. Sincerely, Bruce Westerman, Chairman.

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Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, again, I thank the gentlewoman from Hawaii (Ms. Tokuda) for her work on this bill.

Mr. Speaker, before a lot was understood about the science of forestry, Teddy Roosevelt, maybe our original conservationist in America, understood that trees were the lungs of the Earth. They breathe in carbon dioxide; they breathe out oxygen, but he also understood that trees are kind of like the kidneys of the Earth. They are extremely important to protect watersheds. They are extremely important to maintain our ecosystems. It is what we are looking at today with the ohia tree and the importance that it has to Hawaii's ecosystem, to the people there, and to the economy.

When we talk about an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, figuring out what is happening to these trees and stopping that will save tens of millions if not billions of dollars in the future if damage is done to the watershed there in Hawaii.

It is another example of how having a healthy resilient forest benefits everyone. We are not necessarily talking about wildfire. We are not talking about a tree that has timber value, but it has tremendous value in the ecosystem and the economy there in Hawaii.

This legislation, again, will help focus Federal and State resources on conserving one of Hawaii's most important species.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

The yeas and nays were ordered.

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