National Associations Call on Congress to Prioritize Disaster Relief for Private Forest Landowners

Washington, D.C. – The Forest Landowners Association (FLA), along with other national organizations representing forestry and the forest products sector, have called on Congress to include robust disaster assistance for private forest landowners in upcoming relief legislation. In a coalition letter sent to Senate and House Appropriations Committee leaders, these organizations emphasized the critical need for federal support to address the devastation caused by wildfires, hurricanes, floods, pests, and diseases.

“Private forest landowners manage the majority of our nation’s forests, which are essential to the forest products value chain,” said Scott Jones, CEO of the Forest Landowners Association. “The health of these forests is vital to rural economies and achieving our nation’s environmental goals. Without adequate disaster assistance, these working forests and their benefits are at risk of being permanently lost.”

FLA and partners cite the rising frequency of natural disasters and the unique challenges faced by private forest landowners, who lack access to the safety net programs available to other agricultural sectors. Without federal disaster assistance, landowners face the threat of land conversion, leading to the loss of critical environmental and economic benefits such as carbon sequestration, biodiversity, clean water, and rural jobs.

FLA has been a leader in advocating for disaster recovery tools for forest landowners. The letter is one element of a multi-pronged approach to ensure private forest landowners have the tools and resources to recover after a natural disaster hits. In addition to calling for federal disaster relief funds, FLA is leading efforts to advance the Disaster Reforestation Act, which would allow landowners to fully deduct losses after a disaster and improve the Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP) to provide upfront funding for replanting and recovery efforts.

The coalition letter highlights the success of past disaster relief packages, such as those provided after Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Maria, and Michael. The letter calls for Congress to allocate targeted disaster assistance to ensure landowners, mills, and other stakeholders can recover, stabilize, and continue to contribute to the nation’s economy and environment.

About the Forest Landowners Association
The Forest Landowners Association represents multi-generational family businesses that own and manage working forests. FLA is dedicated to advocating for disaster recovery tools, private property rights, access to markets, and tax certainty to ensure the sustainability of America’s working forests and the rural economies they support.