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Bill would exempt very small timber sales from DNRC hazard-reduction agreement process
Summary
House Bill 79 would exempt small commercial log sales (defined in the bill as up to two truckloads or 10,000 board feet) from the DNRC Hazard Reduction Agreement (HRA) bond-and-tracking process; DNRC and wood-products groups said the change reduces paperwork while preserving environmental safeguards.
House Bill 79 would create an exemption for very small timber sales from the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation's Hazard Reduction Agreement (HRA) bond and tracking process, Representative Curtis Cochran told the Natural Resources Committee.
Under current statute, a landowner or contractor who sells logs commercially after fuels reduction must enter an HRA and DNRC collects a performance bond held until slash and fire hazards are abated. DNRC Division Administrator Sean Thomas explained the proposal: the bill would allow a formal DNRC exemption for up to two loads of logs (defined in the draft legislation as up to 10,000 board feet) so the sawmill would not need to withhold money or DNRC would not collect a bond for those very small sales.
Thomas said the change is intended to reduce paperwork and bring small-volume logs to mills rather than leaving them piled or burned on site. He told the committee the process would still require landowners or contractors to contact DNRC and comply with streamside management zone and best-management practices. Mark Vesser, DNRC forest-practice program manager, and industry witnesses including Julia Altimus of the Montana Wood Products Association and Jason Todd Hunter of the Montana Logging Association supported the bill and said it would help loggers move small, otherwise marginal loads to markets.
Representative Cochran and DNRC described the exemption as a paperwork and red-tape reduction that still preserves DNRC oversight for environmental protections when applicable. Committee members asked procedural questions about how the HRA documentation and sawmill tracking interact and whether contractors typically obtain the HRA on a landowner's behalf; DNRC said logging contractors often handle the paperwork for landowners.
Representative Cochran closed by urging a "do pass." The transcript records the hearing and questions but does not record any committee vote or amendment in the provided excerpt.
