Limitations on substitution of unprocessed Federal timber for unprocessed timber exported from private lands

Except as provided in paragraph (3) and subsection (c), no person may purchase directly from any department or agency of the United States unprocessed timber originating from Federal lands west of the 100th meridian in the contiguous 48 States if— Notwithstanding paragraph (1)— the 24-month period referred to in paragraph (1)(B) shall not apply to any person who— In the case of the purchase by a person of unprocessed timber originating from Federal lands west of the 119th meridian in the State of Washington, paragraph (1) shall apply only if— Except as provided in paragraph (2), no person may, beginning 21 days after August 20, 1990, purchase from any other person unprocessed timber originating from Federal lands west of the 100th meridian in the contiguous 48 States if such person would be prohibited from purchasing such timber directly from a department or agency of the United States. Acquisitions of western red cedar which are domestically processed into finished products to be sold into domestic or international markets are exempt from the prohibition contained in this paragraph. The Secretary of Agriculture shall, as soon as practicable but not later than 9 months after August 20, 1990, establish, by rule, a limited amount of unprocessed timber originating from Federal lands described in subparagraph (B) which may be purchased by a person otherwise covered by the prohibition contained in paragraph (1). Such limit shall equal— The prohibitions contained in subsections (a) and (b) shall not apply with respect to the acquisition of unprocessed timber originating from Federal lands within a sourcing area west of the 100th meridian in the contiguous 48 States approved by the Secretary concerned under this subsection by a person who— The Secretaries concerned shall, not later than 3 months after August 20, 1990, prescribe procedures to be used by a person applying for approval of a sourcing area under paragraph (1). Such procedures shall require, at a minimum, the applicant to provide— For each applicant, the Secretary concerned shall, on the record and after an opportunity for a hearing, not later than 4 months after receipt of the application for a sourcing area, either approve or disapprove the application. The Secretary concerned may approve such application only if the Secretary determines that the area that is the subject of the application, in which the timber manufacturing facilities at which the applicant desires to process timber originating from Federal lands are located, is geographically and economically separate from any geographic area from which that person harvests for export any unprocessed timber originating from private lands. Except as provided in subparagraph (D), in making a determination referred to in subparagraph (A), the Secretary concerned shall consider the private timber export and the private and Federal timber sourcing patterns for the applicant’s timber manufacturing facilities, as well as the private and Federal timber sourcing patterns for the timber manufacturing facilities of other persons in the same local vicinity of the applicant, and the relative similarity of such private and Federal timber sourcing patterns. Except as provided in subparagraph (D), in making the determination referred to in subparagraph (A), the Secretary concerned shall consider the private timber export and the Federal timber sourcing patterns for the applicant’s timber manufacturing facilities, as well as the Federal timber sourcing patterns for the timber manufacturing facilities of other persons in the same local vicinity of the applicant, and the relative similarity of such Federal timber sourcing patterns. Private timber sourcing patterns shall not be a factor in such determinations in States other than Idaho. In deciding whether to approve or disapprove an application, the Secretary shall not— Determinations made under paragraph (3) shall be reviewed, in accordance with the procedures prescribed in sections 620 to 620j of this title, not less often than every 5 years. In the northwestern private timber open market area— the radius of the circle— a sourcing area holder— With respect to a portion of a sourcing area established before November 14, 1997, that contains Federal timber under contract before November 14, 1997, and is outside the boundary of a new sourcing area established under subparagraph (A)— A sourcing area may be relinquished at any time. A relinquishment of a sourcing area shall be effective as of the date on which written notice is provided by the sourcing area holder to the Regional Forester with jurisdiction over the sourcing area where the processing facility of the holder is located. On relinquishment or termination of a sourcing area, unprocessed timber from private land within the former boundary of the relinquished or terminated sourcing area is exportable immediately after unprocessed timber from Federal land from within that area is no longer in the possession of the former sourcing area holder. The exportability of unprocessed timber from private land located outside of a sourcing area shall not be restricted or in any way affected by relinquishment or termination of a sourcing area. Nothing in this section restricts or authorizes any restriction on the domestic transportation or processing of timber harvested from private land, except that the Secretary may prohibit processing facilities located in the State of Idaho that have sourcing areas from processing timber harvested from private land outside of the boundaries of those sourcing areas.