"A U.S. Senate committee hearing Tuesday revealed the dramatically differing views regarding the potential benefits of the Fix Our Forests Act, a bipartisan proposal that critics say would lead to logging of old-growth trees and weaken the country's environmental laws.

At the same time, proponents believe the act will lead to healthier forests and wildlife. A similar measure passed the House of Representatives early this year.

Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), John Curtis (R-Utah), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), and Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) say their measure would help combat catastrophic wildfires, restore forest ecosystems, and make federal forest management more efficient. 

“The status quo around wildfires isn’t working and far too many Americans have paid the price,” said Padilla. “The families I’ve met who have lost everything to the devastation in Los Angeles and in wildfire disasters across the country deserve action. That’s why we’re coming together to confront this crisis and rethink how we prevent and respond."

But Anna Medema, the Sierra Club’s associate director of legislative and administrative advocacy for forests and public lands, maintained that the legislation is a "handout to the timber industry.""

Kurt Repanshek reports for National Parks Traveler October 21, 2025. [2]