Protect National Forests from State Control Agreements

I am writing to urge you to introduce or support legislation that reinforces federal protection of our national forests and reverses the dangerous precedent set by recent shared stewardship agreements. On January 8, 2025, Utah Governor Spencer Cox signed a 20-year agreement with U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz giving Utah significant control over 8 million acres of national forest land. This agreement shifts decision-making authority over logging, grazing, mining, recreation, wildlife, and water management from federal to state hands without transferring formal ownership. Utah follows Montana, which signed on June 30, 2024, and Idaho on December 5, 2024. Idaho's agreement will double timber production on national forest land over the next five years. National forests were created over a century ago specifically to save forests from clear-cutting and safeguard watersheds from pollution. They were designed to be insulated from short-term political pressure and extractive interests. These agreements undermine that foundational purpose by elevating state preferences over national environmental standards and decades of scientific research. I’m also concerned about the erosion of public accountability. Federal land management operates under the National Environmental Policy Act, which requires environmental review, public notice, and opportunities for all citizens to participate. When authority shifts to states, these guardrails weaken and the public process becomes easier to bypass. It is not acceptable to shut the public out of decision-making. National forests provide clean water to millions of Americans, store carbon, sustain wildlife, and offer recreation. Their value lies in what they protect and preserve for all Americans. I urge you to act now through legislation and funding to ensure national forests, and all federal lands, remain under federal stewardship with robust public participation requirements and the protection of robust, science-based environmental quality laws.