WASHINGTON, D.C. – Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) has introduced legislation into the 118th Congress that would change the chief of the U.S. Forest Service from a career appointment by the Secretary of Agriculture to a Senate-confirmed appointment by the president.
“The Forest Service oversees nearly 200 million acres of public land,” according to Lee.
“That’s an areas larger than the state of Texas that directly impacts the livelihoods and lifestyles of million of Americans, including thousands in Utah.”
Lee’s idea is by no means a new one – the notion of elevating the role of chief of the Forest Service to a presidential appointment has been floated before, but never enacted. In his new role as chair of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Lee may have the horsepower to finally bring his Forest Service Accountability Act to a vote in the Senate.
Given the incoming Trump administration’s announced intention to reduce the federal government’s bureaucracy, however, it seem doubtful that Lee’s idea would receive much support from the White House.
After management of federal forest reserves was transferred from the Department of the Interior to the Department of Agriculture in 1905, the Forest Service was established to bear the responsibility to maintain the health, diversity and productivity of the country’s forests and grasslands for the benefit of current and future generations.
The agency manages about 25 percent of federal lands, including 155 national forests, 20 national grasslands and 222 research and experimental forests.
Seven of the aforementioned national forest are located in Utah.
“From grazing and recreation to timber harvesting and wildfire management,” Lee says, the chief of the Forest Services has an immense influence on the daily lives of Americans.
Lee’s staff in the Senate argue that the change of status is necessary in recognition of the need for updated oversight that aligns with the agency’s significant impact on public lands and natural resources management.
The Forest Service Accountability Act would make the agency’s chief subject to appointment by the president and the advice and consent of the Senate, giving Congress and the American people a say in the leadership of the Forest Service for the first time.
Lee’s proposal also establishes qualification criteria, requiring that nominees have substantial experience and demonstrated competence in forest and natural resource management; and refers those nominees to the Senate committees on Agriculture and Energy and Natural Resources (which Lee now chairs) for thorough vetting.
“It’s time for this position to be accountable to the people affected by its decisions through their elected representatives in Congress,” Lee concludes.