Padilla, Curtis Introduce Bipartisan, Bicameral Save Our Sequoias Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senators Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), co-chair of the Senate Wildfire Caucus, and John Curtis (R-Utah) introduced the Save Our Sequoias Act, bipartisan, bicameral legislation to protect giant sequoias from the growing threat of wildfires, insects, and disease. Representatives Vince Fong (R-Calif.-20) and Scott Peters (D-Calif.-50) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives.

Giant sequoias, the world's largest trees, are found in roughly 70 groves across 37,000 acres in California. Over the last century, dangerous fuel buildups around giant sequoia groves have led to massive destruction from increasingly intense wildfires. In the last decade, nearly 20% of these iconic trees have been lost.

This bill would enhance interagency coordination, accelerate forest restoration efforts, and provide important resources to land managers to guard these ancient trees from further destruction. It would help reverse the damage caused by catastrophic wildfires and restore the resilience of giant sequoias groves - which provide critical ecological, scientific, and cultural benefits.

"For millennia, giant sequoia trees have been a cornerstone of California's rich natural heritage, offering stunning recreation opportunities, vibrant natural habitats, and critical protections from wildfires and climate change," said Senator Padilla. "However, immense fuel buildups, forest mismanagement, increasingly long wildfire seasons, and other threats from insects and disease have decimated nearly a fifth of these ecological marvels in the past decade alone. We must work across the aisle to strengthen the resiliency of these groves to ensure these California icons endure for generations to come."

"Wildfires across the nation are burning longer and hotter than ever before, due to outdated forest management policies and increased fuel build-up," said Senator Curtis. "Land managers need the tools, coordination, and resources to reduce wildfire risk, restore forests, and ensure the next generation of growth can flourish. The Save Our Sequoias Act is an important complement to our broader bipartisan effort to manage and maintain our vibrant natural resources."

"California's Giant Sequoia groves are a symbol of our state's natural heritage in the Central Valley, and we need to take immediate action to preserve them for future generations," said Representative Fong. "I was proud to lead this bipartisan bill in the House and thank Senator Padilla for spearheading this important effort in the Senate. This legislation will return resilience to our forests by streamlining science-based management and enhancing collaboration between state, federal, and tribal partners. Our iconic Giant Sequoias are a true national treasure and must be protected."

"For generations, the majestic giant sequoia has provided innumerable cultural, environmental, and recreational benefits to humans," said Representative Peters. "Unfortunately, insufficient land management and climate change have led to increasingly severe fires that threaten the survival of giant sequoias and the stability of the climate. In just one year, the California wildfires that threaten the Sequoias contributed more to climate change than the state's entire power sector. Our Save Our Sequoias Act charts a new path forward in federal forest and wildfire policy to combat climate change and ensure the giant sequoias stand safely in their natural habitat for years to come."

Speeding up science-based forest treatments will boost resilience, improve water and air quality, reduce carbon emissions, and protect vital habitats. Specifically, the Save Our Sequoias Act would:

• Establish a comprehensive reforestation strategy to regenerate giant sequoias in groves destroyed by recent wildfires, helping to ensure their long-term survival.
• Codify existing emergency procedures and maintain robust scientific analysis to accelerate necessary forest treatments.
• Codify the Giant Sequoia Lands Coalition, an ongoing collaboration between federal, state, Tribal, and local land managers.
• Establish a Giant Sequoia Health and Resiliency Assessment to prioritize forest management projects, track progress, and study the trees' health and resiliency over time.
• Create a protection fund through the National Park Foundation to promote the resiliency of giant sequoia groves.

The Save Our Sequoias Act is endorsed by groups including Save the Redwoods League and the Tule River Tribe.

"Save the Redwoods League is grateful for Senator Padilla's leadership to advance restoration and reforestation efforts across the giant sequoia range, where nearly 20% of mature giant sequoias have perished in recent years due to extreme wildfires," said Ben Friedman, Director of Government Affairs and Public Funding at Save the Redwoods League. "By officially declaring this crisis as an emergency, this bill will help Save the Redwoods and our Giant Sequoia Lands Coalition partners boost the fire resilience of the most at-risk groves. We look forward to working with Senators Padilla and Curtis to pass science-driven legislation that provides the resources necessary to accelerate much-needed restoration work for these iconic forests."

"The Tule River Tribe is thankful to Senator Padilla for introducing this bipartisan legislation," said Chairman Neil Peyron, Tule River Tribe. "The bill empowers resourceful experts and stewards to employ critical resiliency efforts to combat the very real threat of fire that plagues our sacred Sequoia groves."

In the aftermath of the catastrophic Southern California fires, Padilla has introduced more than a dozen bills to help prevent and respond to future wildfires. Last year, he and Senator Curtis introduced the Senate version of the Fix Our Forests Act, bipartisan legislation to combat catastrophic wildfires, restore forest ecosystems, and make federal forest management more efficient and responsive. Last January, Padilla introduced a suite of bipartisan bills to strengthen wildfire recovery and resilience, including the Wildland Firefighter Paycheck Protection Act, the Fire Suppression and Response Funding Assurance Act, and the Disaster Housing Reform for American Families Act. In February, Padilla introduced bipartisan legislation to create a national Wildfire Intelligence Center to streamline federal response and create a whole-of-government approach to combat wildfires. He also announced another package of three bipartisan bills to bolster fire resilience and proactive mitigation efforts, including the Wildfire Emergency Act, the Fire-Safe Electrical Corridors Act, and the Disaster Mitigation and Tax Parity Act. On the one-year anniversary of the Los Angeles fires, Padilla and Senator Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) announced bipartisan legislation to establish a new grant program to help local communities defend themselves from the growing danger of wildfires.

Full text of the bill is available here.

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