WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, pressed the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on Trump’s plans to fire an additional 7,000 Forest Service workers responsible for wildfire prevention and watershed restoration.
“We write with strong concerns regarding reports that the U.S. Department of Agriculture may terminate an additional 7,000 Forest Service personnel...These workers are critical in the management of the 193 million-acre National Forest System and are responsible for wildfire prevention, timber production, and watershed restoration,” the senators wrote in a letter to USDA Deputy Under Secretary Kristin Sleeper.
“As extreme weather events — particularly wildfires — grow more frequent and severe, the Forest Service’s work is more important than ever. Such a drastic reduction in staff will harm the Forest Service’s ability to respond to wildfire and make Americans less safe,” the senators continued. “The administration’s reported actions threaten this lifesaving work and raise significant questions about the impact on the Forest Service’s ability to keep towns and critical infrastructure safe from wildfires.”
In their letter, Heinrich and Klobuchar requested Deputy Under Secretary Sleeper answer the following questions:
“Forest Service staff are critical to preventing and stopping wildfires...The Forest Service must remain able to quickly respond to wildfires and other disasters, as well as conduct critical wildfire prevention work,” the senators concluded.
The full text of the letter is here and below:
Dear Deputy Under Secretary Sleeper:
We write with strong concerns regarding reports that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) may terminate an additional 7,000 Forest Service personnel, nearly a quarter of the agency. These workers are critical in the management of the 193 million-acre National Forest System and are responsible for wildfire prevention, timber production, and watershed restoration. As extreme weather events — particularly wildfires — grow more frequent and severe, the Forest Service’s work is more important than ever. Such a drastic reduction in staff will harm the Forest Service’s ability to respond to wildfire and make Americans less safe.
Last month, the USDA reportedly terminated more than 3,000 Forest Service employees. Last week’s Merit Systems Protection Board decision was an important, but temporary, step to rectify the terminations, but USDA has not confirmed that these employees have been reinstated, and great concern remains about the long-term status of these and other Forest Service employees. Because of these men and women, the Forest Service carried out wildfire prevention activities on a record-breaking 4.28 million acres last year and more than 11 million acres in the last three years. The administration’s reported actions threaten this lifesaving work and raise significant questions about the impact on the Forest Service’s ability to keep towns and critical infrastructure safe from wildfires.
Given the importance of this issue, we request additional information, provided no later than March 13, 2025.
Forest Service staff are critical to preventing and stopping wildfires. Earlier this year, they were pivotal in combating the wildfires that raged across Los Angeles and are currently working to protect the wildfire-threatened homes and communities in Georgia and the Carolinas. The Forest Service must remain able to quickly respond to wildfires and other disasters, as well as conduct critical wildfire prevention work. We look forward to your timely response on this important matter.
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