The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Forest Service recently announced it was closing a research and development facility in Huntsville.
The move came as part of the Forest Service's reorganization. The agency’s Washington, D.C. headquarters will also be moved to Salt Lake City.
According to the USDA, the shift “represents a structural reset and a common-sense approach to improve mission delivery.”
Alongside the relocation of its headquarters, the Forest Service will begin transitioning to a state-based organizational model that shifts authority closer to the field by organizing leadership around state-level accountability, supported by shared operational service centers and a unified national research enterprise.
Under the new model, 15 state directors will be distributed throughout the country to oversee Forest Service operations within one or more states. State directors will serve as national leaders with primary oversight of forest supervisors, operational priorities, and relationships with states, tribes, and other partners. Each state office will include a small leadership support team responsible for legislative affairs, communications, and intergovernmental coordination.
One of the 15 new Forest Service state offices will be located in Auburn. The Ozarks/Gulf Coast state office in Auburn will serve Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.
"President Trump has made it a priority to return common sense to the way our government works. Moving the Forest Service closer to the forests we manage is an essential action that will improve our core mission of managing our forests while saving taxpayer dollars and boosting employee recruitment," said USDA Secretary Brooke L. Rollins. "Establishing a western headquarters in Salt Lake City and streamlining how the Forest Service is organized will position the Chief and operation leaders closer to the landscapes we manage and the people who depend on them. This includes supporting our timber growers across the country, including those in the Southeast by prioritizing a regional office and promoting policies that boost timber production, lowering costs for consumers. In the past year, we have returned the Forest Service to the leading forestry and fire management organization in the world. Proper forest management means a healthy and productive forest system that provides affordable, quality lumber to build homes right here in America, and it means preserving and protecting the beautiful landscapes we are blessed with across this great country."
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