CONTRACT MODIFICATIONS.

SEC. 301. CONTRACT MODIFICATIONS. (a) Definitions.—As used in this section, the term “Secretary” means the Secretary of Agriculture. The term “TLMP” means the Tongass National Forest Land Management Plan, completed March, 1979, and amended Winter 1985–1986. The term “contracts” means the long-term timber sale contracts numbered 12–11–010–1545 and A10fs-1042 between the United States and the Alaska Pulp Corporation, and between the United States and the Ketchikan Pulp Company, respectively. (b) Finding.—The Congress hereby finds and declares that it is in the national interest to modify the contracts in order to assure that valuable public resources in the Tongass National Forest are protected and wisely managed. Modification of the long-term timber sale contracts will enhance the balanced use of resources on the forest and promote fair competition within the southeast Alaska timber industry. (c) Unilateral Changes.—The contracts are hereby modified to: (1) assure that all timber sale planning, management requirements and environmental assessment procedures regarding the contracts are consistent with procedures for independent national forest timber sales, pursuant to the National Forest Management Act of 1976 (Public Law 94–588), the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and other applicable laws; (2) eliminate the practice of harvesting a disproportionate amount of old-growth timber by limiting the volume harvested over the rotation in volume classes 6 and 7, as defined in TLMP and supporting documents, so that the proportion of volume harvested in these classes within a contiguous management area does not exceed the proportion of volume currently rep-resented by these classes within the management area; 104 STAT. 4431 (3) assure that all timber offered under each contract be substantially harvested within three years or the Secretary shall withhold further offerings pursuant to such contract, unless harvesting has been delayed by third-party litigation; (4) assure that the Secretary determines the location and size of sale units and the timing of timber harvests; (5) allow rejection of timber offered under the contracts. Upon rejection of any timber offered, the Secretary may re-offer such timber to any qualified bidder under independent national forest timber sales. If the rejected timber is subsequently sold within 12 months, that amount of timber shall be subtracted from the volume remaining under the appropriate contract; (6) assure that utility logs offered under the contracts shall be counted against contract volume requirements. As used in this paragraph, the term “utility log” means the same as it does in the official Log Scaling and Grading Rules, Northwest Log Rules Advisory Group, January 1, 1982; (7) assure that purchaser road credits are provided under the contracts in a manner consistent with independent national forest timber sale procedures; (8) assure that the price of timber offered under the contracts shall be adjusted to be comparable with that of independent national forest timber sales, with stumpage rates and profit-ability criteria comparable to those of independent purchasers in competitive sales; and (9) assure that timber offered under the contracts meets economic criteria consistent with that of independent national forest timber sales. (d) Certification to Congress.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary is directed to make the necessary revisions to the text of the contracts to reflect the modifications to such contracts made by subsection (c) of this section. The Secretary shall promptly, and in no event later than ninety days after the date of enactment of this Act, transmit the text of the modified contracts to the Congress together with a certification that these revisions are in compliance with the modifications made by subsection (c). Until such time as the Secretary transmits the text of the modified contracts to the Congress, but no later than ninety days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary is authorized to conduct timber sale operations on the Tongass National Forest in accordance with the provisions of the contracts as they existed on the day before the date of enactment of this Act. At such time as the Secretary transmits the modified contracts to Congress, or ninety days after the date of enactment of this Act, whichever is sooner, the Secretary shall conduct timber sale operations on the Tongass National Forest only in accordance with the provisions of the modified contracts. (e) Study.—Within one year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit a study to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources in the Senate and to the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs in the House of Representatives which includes the following: (1) an assessment of whether the Secretary can meet the provisions of the National Forest Management Act of 1976 (Public Law 94–588), the Multiple-Use Sustained Yield Act of 1960 (16 U.S.C. 528 et seq.) and other laws applicable to the management of the national forests while providing the volume of timber required by the modified contracts. In conjunction 104 STAT. 4432with such assessment, the Secretary shall also provide such recommendations as the Secretary deems appropriate regarding reductions in the volume of timber required by the modified contracts, and (2) an analysis of the potential impacts of eliminating the two contract areas provided for in the modified contracts, including, but not limited to, an assessment of the following factors: (A) the effect on supply and demand, and price of timber within Southeast Alaska; (B) effects on the availability of timber to purchasers of independent timber sales; (C) effects on the availability of timber to be owners of the modified contracts; and (D) effects on fish and wildlife and other non-commodity resources within the Tongass National Forest. (f) The Secretary shall take such other actions in management of the Tongass National Forest as may be necessary to meet the provisions of subsection (c). (g) GAO Audit.—The Comptroller General of the United States shall, on a continuing basis, audit the actions taken by the Secretary to revise the text of the contracts pursuant to the modifications made pursuant to subsection (c). Within thirty days after the Secretary^ transmittal of the contracts and certification to the Energy and Natural Resources in the Senate and to the Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs in the House of Representatives, and in no event later than one hundred and twenty days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit a report to such Committees describing the revisions made by the Secretary to the contracts and stating whether, in the opinion of the Comptroller General, the revised contracts are in compliance with the requirements of this section.