EVENTS
DC Fly-In March 31 - April 3, 2025
The pendulum is swinging! The new Administration and Congress have ushered in a whirlwind of activity, with a strong emphasis on timber. The most substantial and comprehensive bill “Fix our Forests Act” has passed the House with strong bipartisan support and is expected to be introduced in the Senate in the next couple of weeks. This Bill addresses a lot of issues and challenges that the timber and forest products industries have been pursuing. The Executive Order addressing Alaska’s natural resources specifically mentions timber as well. The discussions regarding the California wildfires is focusing on forest management. The Future Logging Careers Act will be introduced in the House and Senate soon with bipartisan sponsorship. The Logger Relief Act is being prepared for introduction and sponsorship support. The timing is right for advancing the timber industry agenda. In anticipation of this opportunity the American Loggers Council preemptively invested in and developed the “Road Map To Recovery” as a resource to guide Congress and the Administration and outlines the priority Issues and Actions to support the American timber and forest products industries. This resource was a collaborative effort by the membership of the American Loggers Council and went through multiple iterations and is an example of collectively networking and communicating to provide a uniform focus and message. Copies will be available in DC, but members are welcome to expand upon these talking points with their own “one pagers”. A PDF copy is available, click here. Additionally, to enhance the effort, the American Loggers Council is cost-sharing lobbying services with the American Biomass Energy Association (a member and sponsor) to multiply the messaging and presence in Congress and with the Administration. This 6 month investment provides another value to our members and will contribute to advancing our agenda and legislative / policy success. The American Loggers Council has been engaged with the Trump Transition Team and has provided input regarding potential appointments, particularly regarding the USDA / U.S. Forest Service leadership. We are pleased to announce that the Undersecretary of Natural Resources and Environment (which oversees the US Forest Service), Michael Boren has been nominated as well as the Deputy Undersecretary, Kristen Sleeper and the Chief of Staff, Tom Schultz have been appointed. This leadership team represents a strong knowledge of public forest management needs complimented by a perspective on the role that the private business (logging and forest products) provides in accomplishing forest management goals and objectives. All of these developments and efforts have laid the groundwork for the American Loggers Council 2025 DC Fly-In scheduled for March 31 – April 3. A room block has been secured at the Capitol Hilton, 1001 16th Street NW, Washington DC 20036, Phone: 202-393-1000. When making reservations use this link https://book.passkey.com/go/alc25 the rate is $359/night. For reservations made by phone mention to the hotel code SRP:91D. The location of the Hilton Capitol is central to much of the work that will be done, but those attending are welcome to secure lodging at other sites. We have secured another room block at the Holiday Inn Capitol for March 31-April 3. Room Rate is $289.00 for single and double occupancy. Rate does not inclue the D.C. sales tax, currently at 15.95%.
The agenda is falling into place. As of this moment the agenda will be as follows: Monday, March 31stArrival Day; No events scheduled Tuesday, April 1st8:30am - 9:30am Breakfast, Briefing and Breakfast Speaker at the Capitol Visitors Center (Not far from the Hilton and puts us in the Capital building beteewn the House and Senate Offices) 9:30am - 12:00pm Hill Visits 12:00pm - 1:00pm Lunch at the Capitol Visitors Center Meeting Room along with a Luncheon Speaker 1:00pm - 5:00pm Hill Visits Wednesday, April 2nd7:00am - 8:00am Breakfast at the Capitol Hilton 8:00am - 4:00pm Hill Visits 5:30pm - 7:00pm Congressional Reception at the USDA Headquarters, Whitton Building. Invitations will be sent the week of March 3rd to each state to forward on to their respective Congressional offices. Congressional Leadership Awards will be presented. Dignitary Addresses. Thursday, April 3rd7:00am - 8:00am Breakfast at the Capitol Hilton 9:00am - 12:00pm Board of Directors Meeting will be held at 250 Massachussetts Ave. NW, second floor conference room Note: There are some potential requests pending, ie - the White House that may require adjustments to the agenda. Members are encouraged to setup Congressional and Agency meetings on the 1st and 2nd of April, as well as before and after if they choose. Again, we are proud to cohost this event with our partners at the American Biomass Energy Association. This Fly-In represents the last best opportunity for the timber industry to advance the agenda that we have been pursuing for years. Please plan on attending and lending your voice to the effort. There is not a registration fee for members to attend, but we will need a head count. Please email [email protected] to let us know if you will be attending. |
Respectfully, Scott Dane |