Federal Land Management and Wildfire Policy

The Trump administration has ordered the U.S. Forest Service to move its headquarters from Washington, D.C., to Salt Lake City, Utah, and begin a sweeping reorganization that will eliminate the agency’s long‑standing regional office structure. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced Tuesday that the Forest Service will instead adopt a state‑based model with 15 state directors who will oversee forest supervisors, set priorities, and coordinate with state, tribal and local partners, backed by small in‑state teams for communications and legislative and intergovernmental work. Many administrative functions will be shifted to service centers around the country, while frontline operations like wildfire response are expected to remain in place, with the transition rolling out over the next year. USDA frames the move as a cost‑saving decentralization intended to put top leaders closer to the western landscapes where most national forest acreage and wildfire risk lie and to improve hiring and decision‑making. The relocation extends a broader Trump‑era push to move federal land and agriculture agencies out of Washington, following the earlier BLM headquarters move to Colorado and relocation of USDA research units to Kansas City, a strategy critics have previously warned can hollow out agencies by driving out experienced staff.