Amata-backed forestry bill passed by House

Washington, D.C. — Congresswoman Uifa’atali Amata is welcoming House passage of the bipartisan Fix Our Forests Act, led by Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.), who is the only professional forester in the U.S. Congress, and Rep. Scott Peters (D-California).  Meanwhile, on Saturday, Jan. 25, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem was sworn in at the White House’s Eisenhower Executive Office Building.

The House also passed the forestry bill last year, with Amata’s co-sponsorship, but the legislation had not passed the Senate when the 118th Congress ended, so Chairman Westerman and Rep. Peters rapidly reintroduced the already-vetted bill, as prior hearings had been held on it.

“Our nation’s beautiful forests mean so much to our great country. American Samoa is covered with tropical rainforest, but our firefighters have responded repeatedly to the call to help contain western wildfires, and we have the tragic reminder of the Lahaina wildfire to know even islands are not immune,” said Congresswoman Aumua Amata. “The goal of good forest management is to preserve more trees for the future. Thank you to Chairman Westerman for reintroducing the bipartisan Fix Our Forests Act.”

“Preventing and containing major fires such as the current destruction in Los Angeles through science, study, sensible management, and rapid response readiness have been a constant theme of Chairman Westerman’s leadership,” concluded Amata.

The Fix Our Forests Act promotes federal, state, tribal, and local collaboration; seeks to improve community resilience to wildfire; incentivizes new research; applies state-of-the-art science and tools to treat forests that are at the highest risk of wildfire; reduces burdensome litigation that can delay critical forest projects; and encourages active professional management such as preventing trees in contact with power lines.

Confirmation of Homeland Security Secretary

Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, ,53, a friend and former colleague of Congresswoman Uifa’atali Amata in the U.S. House of Representatives, was sworn in on January 25 in the White House’s Eisenhower Executive Office Building. She left Congress in 2019 to serve as Governor of South Dakota. As Secretary of Homeland Security, she leads a major federal department (DHS) that includes Customs, Immigration and Naturalization, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and more.

“Congratulations to my friend and former colleague, Secretary Noem,” said Congresswoman Amata. “The Coast Guard, FEMA, and other agencies that are part of DHS are important to American Samoa. The Coast Guard has a growing role in the Pacific, and I continue to request the stationing of cutters in our harbor, while FEMA had key response roles in our efforts following the tsunami in 2009 and cyclone Gita in 2018, and preparations for future storms.”

“Secretary Noem is a strong leader whose time serving in Congress and as Governor are a great foundation for the responsibilities of leading DHS, where she will work for President Trump and with the Congress,” continued Amata. “Although the territory’s administration of American Samoa’s border is different than the U.S. borders, DHS will have ongoing roles for our people, ranging from national cybersecurity to individual citizenship or immigration cases.”