The impact of natural disasters on forest landowners can be devastating. A family might spend 30 years nurturing a timber stand, only to lose it to a hurricane in a few short hours. In 2024, Hurricane Helene, a category four storm, caused $1.28 billion in timber damage across Georgia. Nearly 9 million acres of forestland were affected, with 88 percent being privately owned. For many families, these losses reflect generations of investment, and recovery is costly.
America’s working forests provide crucial benefits. They support rural jobs, offer wildlife habitats, maintain clean water, encourage recreation, and contribute renewable wood products. Sustaining these forestlands requires disaster recovery tools and returns on timberland investments.
The House Committee on Agriculture has advanced solutions to these challenges, aiming to ensure the sustainability of America’s working forests for generations. In 2026, the House passed the Farm, Food, and National Security Act, also known as the farm bill. This includes a forestry title addressing issues in national and non-federal forests. The bill proposes reforms to improve management, partnerships, the forest products industry, and forest health.
As the Senate Agriculture Committee advances its version, a final bill is necessary before year-end. Additionally, the Emergency Conservation Program Improvement Act was passed, allowing eligible nonindustrial private forest landowners to receive advance payments for emergency restoration. This provides vital financial relief before official aid arrives.
However, recovery also demands strong timber markets and financial capacity to replant. Emergency assistance cannot replace the loss of local mills or the costs of beginning a new growth cycle. As mills close and demand shifts, landowners, loggers, and truckers face market challenges. These ongoing hurdles weaken rural communities, prompting migration to urban areas.
Without viable timber returns, landowners struggle to maintain forestry. Robust markets are essential. The bipartisan Wildfire Reduction Market Expansion Act proposes to modernize the Renewable Fuel Standard’s definition of renewable biomass. This would include low-value woody material from forest management and hazardous-fuel reduction. New markets for these materials can offset management costs, turn disposal problems into opportunities for forest products, and aid in renewable energy production.
Replanting after disasters also requires updated resources. Currently, timberland owners can deduct up to $10,000 annually in qualified reforestation expenses, with additional costs amortized over seven years. This limit dates back to 2004. Costs of site preparation, seedlings, and planting have since increased. Hurricanes like Helene impose expenses well beyond this limit. The bipartisan Save America’s Family Forests Act seeks to raise the reforestation deduction to $30,000 annually and allow up to $500,000 in immediate deductions for reforestation following federally declared disasters. Adjusting this tax provision facilitates quicker reinvestment, acknowledging that forest establishment costs precede harvest incomes.
The House Committee on Agriculture has established a foundation for a resilient timber economy and responsible resource stewardship. Cooperation across Congress, including committees on energy policy and taxation, is essential for progress. Economic recovery, timber markets, and reforestation are interconnected challenges. Congress must respond accordingly.
Reauthorizing a new farm bill and advancing the Save America’s Family Forests Act and Wildfire Reduction Market Expansion Act offer opportunities to strengthen support for landowners. Completing these initiatives will help maintain productive forests, preventing industry decline due to inadequate government backing.
Ensuring future generations benefit from healthy, resilient forests relies on enabling landowners to recover from disasters, find timber markets, and afford replanting. This is vital for keeping America’s working forests productive.
Authored by Glenn “GT” Thompson, Chair of the House Committee on Agriculture, and Scott Jones, CEO of the Forest Landowners Association.
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