Gov. Little, Forest Service chief, Lands director sign historic agreement to increase management of Idaho forests

Boise, Idaho - Governor Brad Little joined U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz and Idaho Department of Lands (IDL) Director Dustin Miller today to renew and expand Idaho's Shared Stewardship agreement with the federal government to increase the pace and scale of management activities on Idaho forests.

"Idaho's early leadership with the Good Neighbor Authority laid the groundwork for an even more ambitious model - Shared Stewardship. We are building on a foundation of cooperation and resource-sharing and expanding that work across entire landscapes and ownership boundaries. I am confident that our continued efforts and partnerships will deliver lasting benefits for Idaho's forests and our rural communities. Idaho once again is leading the nation in collaborative, innovative approaches to improving forestlands in Idaho, and we're just getting started," Governor Little said.

"Idaho's forests are some of the most important working lands in America, and this agreement is exactly the kind of partnership we need to keep them healthy and productive," "For too long, federal red tape and hands-off policies left our forests overgrown and our communities at risk. Under President Trump's leadership, we are fixing that. By doubling timber production through Good Neighbor Authority and speeding up active management, we're protecting Idaho families, supporting rural jobs, and making our forests stronger for generations to come," U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said.

"We are excited for the next chapter of shared stewardship with the State of Idaho. This agreement will help us double the timber volume on National Forest System lands that is offered by the state through the Good Neighbor Authority, all while reducing wildfire risk across the state. By working hand-in-hand with the Idaho Department of Lands, we will design and implement timber harvest, thinning, and restoration projects that actively manage our forests and protect the communities and adjacent lands that depend on them," U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz said.

"Today marks an exciting new chapter in the State of Idaho's Shared Stewardship work with the U.S. Forest Service and private landowners. This agreement presents new opportunities to significantly expand timber production and reduce wildfire risks across the most threatened forests in Idaho. The collaboration we're embracing with our partners will give a boost to rural communities, strengthen forest health, and protect the people and places that depend on these lands," IDL Director Dustin Miller said.

The new agreement establishes a strengthened framework for collaboration between the U.S. Forest Service and the State of Idaho. It outlines an expanded, long-term strategy to advance forest restoration, increase active management, and reduce wildfire risk across Idaho's forests and nearby communities.

The new agreement deepens and broadens joint efforts to increase timber production, accelerate restoration activities, and expand the pace and scale of forest health projects on Idaho's national forests and adjacent state and private lands.

It builds upon the progress achieved under the landmark 2018 Shared Stewardship agreement and reaffirms both partners' commitment to proactively manage Idaho's landscape in the face of longer, more intense fire seasons.

Under the terms of the new agreement, the Forest Service and the State of Idaho commit to increasing annual sustainable timber sale volume to up to 100 million board feet within five years, doubling current output through the use of the Good Neighbor Authority.

This expanded production supports President Donald Trump's Executive Order 14225: Immediate Expansion of Timber Production and contributes to the Forest Service's national goal of increasing timber harvest levels on national forests by 25% by fiscal year 2028.

The agreement also calls for the development of a more comprehensive, statewide Good Neighbor Authority agreement.

This enhanced framework will help identify additional funding opportunities, improve project planning and coordination, and establish clear targets and outcomes for all GNA activities across Idaho's seven national forests.

The new structure is intended to streamline processes, strengthen accountability, and ensure that shared stewardship investments deliver measurable results on the ground.

The Shared Stewardship model emphasizes an outcome-driven, cross-boundary approach to addressing Idaho's most pressing forest health challenges, including wildfire risk, insect and disease outbreaks, and degraded forest conditions.

Through shared planning, design, implementation, and decision-making, the State of Idaho and the U.S. Forest Service will continue to work together to create resilient landscapes, support rural economies, and protect the natural resources that Idahoans depend on.

The full signed agreement can be found at this link: https://gov.idaho.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2025-shared-stewardship-agreement.pdf

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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT SHARED STEWARDSHIP AND GOOD NEIGHBOR AUTHORITY IN IDAHO

Overview

Idaho was the first state in the nation to sign a Shared Stewardship Agreement with the U.S. Forest Service in 2018. Since then, Idaho has led the country in cross-boundary forest management-expanding active treatments, timber production, and restoration across federal, state, and private lands. The 2025 Idaho Shared Stewardship Agreement renews and expands this commitment to build healthier, more resilient forests and communities.

Purpose

• Expand sustainable timber production.
• Accelerate landscape-scale restoration.
• Increase the pace and scale of fuel-reduction treatments on high-risk forestlands statewide.
• Support the goals of Executive Order 14225, USDA Secretary's Memo 1078-006, and Governor Little's EO 2025-04 - Make Forests Healthy Again Act.

Key Achievements

• Over 209 million board feet sold through 64 Good Neighbor Authority (GNA) timber sales across 16,500 acres of federal land, generating $21 million in receipts.
• Seven cross-boundary teams established in counties statewide, assisting private forest owners with thousands of acres of fuel-reduction projects.
• Strategic creation of larger, more effective fuel breaks across federal, state, and private ownerships to protect at-risk communities.

2025 Commitments

• Use all available tools to increase the pace and scale of active management.
• Engage partners-including tribes, local governments, universities, utilities, and forest industries-to align priorities and outcomes.
• Develop new county, tribal, and agency-level GNA agreements.
• Achieve a target of 100 million board feet annually from National Forest lands within five years.
• Coordinate priorities through the Idaho Forest Action Plan, Community Wildfire Protection Plans, and National Forest 5-Year Vegetation Management Plans.

About the Idaho GNA Program

Since launching in 2016, IDL has developed one of the nation's most comprehensive GNA programs-working with the Forest Service and BLM to restore forest and watershed health. IDL now holds GNA agreements with all seven National Forests and BLM, encompassing 32 million acres of federal lands statewide.