Tim- yes, your predictions were right! But I am pretty sure (99%) the Forest Service will stay a standalone agency. Why did the Forest Service (2026) put in for an analysis before consolidation? The Forest Service fire suppression positions and contracts employ more than 3/4 of all fire wildfire resources available in the United States of America. I don’t think combining agencies DOI and USFS will streamline things. For example, the BIA Bureau of Indian Affairs are a sovereign nation- is defined as a political entity that possesses the ultimate authority to govern itself without external interference. This concept is fundamental in international relations and law, establishing the framework for how states interact and maintain order on BIA Land, therefore they will always manage their own land, Not the United States Wildland Service. The department of the interior does not have the capacity to govern all of the fire resources in the United States. Nor do they have the framework or retention rate to sustain operations. Just wait until the next administration to put things back to the way they were normal BLM and normal USFS, before trying to consolidate and cut corners.
You would have to convert all the Forest Service land, programs. assets and people to DOI, (reality) that's nearly impossible.
Tim- yes, your predictions were right! But I am pretty sure (99%) the Forest Service will stay a standalone agency. Why did the Forest Service (2026) put in for an analysis before consolidation? The Forest Service fire suppression positions and contracts employ more than 3/4 of all fire wildfire resources available in the United States of America. I don’t think combining agencies DOI and USFS will streamline things. For example, the BIA Bureau of Indian Affairs are a sovereign nation- is defined as a political entity that possesses the ultimate authority to govern itself without external interference. This concept is fundamental in international relations and law, establishing the framework for how states interact and maintain order on BIA Land, therefore they will always manage their own land, Not the United States Wildland Service. The department of the interior does not have the capacity to govern all of the fire resources in the United States. Nor do they have the framework or retention rate to sustain operations. Just wait until the next administration to put things back to the way they were normal BLM and normal USFS, before trying to consolidate and cut corners.
You would have to convert all the Forest Service land, programs. assets and people to DOI, (reality) that's nearly impossible.
https://www.fs.usda.gov/sites/default/files/fs_media/fs_document/FY24-forest-system-stats.pdf