HR 7603 Re-checks Congress.gov for new actions and updates the bill's status, and fills in any sponsors, committees, or related bills that are missing. It does not re-pull sponsors/cosponsors/committees/related — those rarely change — and it skips all work if nothing has changed upstream, so it's cheap to click.
To amend the Act of August 28, 1937 (commonly referred to as the ``O&C Act'') with respect to timber production.
Summary
This bill amends the O&C Act of 1937 to establish timber production as the primary purpose of O&C lands, with secondary purposes including economic stability, watershed protection, recreation, and wildfire risk reduction. It requires the Secretary of the Interior to meet or exceed fire protection standards applicable to adjacent Oregon lands and enter into fire protection agreements with Oregon and forest protective associations. The bill also defines timberlands and requires the Secretary to revise resource management plans within two years to designate timberlands in accordance with these amendments.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.
Sponsor (1)
- Rep. Bentz, Cliff [R-OR-2] (R-OR)
Actions (2)
- Feb 20, 2026 Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources. · house
- Feb 20, 2026 Introduced in House
Similar bills (6)
Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.
Full text
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 20, 2026
Mr. Bentz introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources
A BILL
To amend the Act of August 28, 1937 (commonly referred to as the “O&C Act”) with respect to timber production.
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 “O&C Renewal Act of 2026”.
SEC. 2. TIMBER PRODUCTION AFFIRMED AS PRIMARY PURPOSE OF O&C LANDS.
The first sentence of the Act of August 28, 1937 (43 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.; commonly referred to as the “O&C Act”) is amended by striking “sustained yield” and all that follows through the colon and inserting “sustained yield. The primary purpose with respect to the use of such lands shall be for permanent timber production carried out in accordance with the principle of sustained yield to generate revenues to support county government services. The secondary purposes with respect to the use of the land are to contribute to the economic stability of local communities and industries, protect watersheds, regulate water flow, provide recreational opportunities, and reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires:”.
SEC. 3. FIRE PROTECTION FOR O&C LANDS.
Section 5 of the Act of August 28, 1937 (43 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.; commonly referred to as the “O&C Act”) is amended by striking “Provided” and all that follows through the period at the end and inserting “Provided, The Secretary shall, with respect to such timberlands (1) meet or exceed the fire protection standards and capacity and readiness applicable to lands adjacent to such timberlands that are under the jurisdiction of the State of Oregon; (2) enter into fire protection agreements with the State of Oregon and applicable forest protective associations to meet the requirements under paragraph
(1); and (3) provide compensation for services provided under any agreement entered into pursuant to paragraph (2).”.
SEC. 4. DEFINITION OF TIMBERLANDS.
Title I of the Act of August 28, 1937 (43 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.; commonly referred to as the “O&C Act”) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“SEC. 6. DEFINITION OF TIMBERLANDS.
“For purposes of this Act, the term ‘timberlands’ shall include lands bearing or capable of bearing a growth of timber not less than 300,000 feet board measure on each 40-acre subdivision.”.
SEC. 5. REVISION OF RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLANS.
Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall issue a record of decision revising each resource management plan relating to the lands under the Act of August 28, 1937 (43 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.; commonly referred to as the “O&C Act”) and designating timberlands in accordance with the amendments made by this Act. <all>
Comments