Over 70 organizations signed onto a letter drafted and delivered by the National Association of State Foresters to the leaders of the Senate and House Appropriations Subcommittees on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies to recommend funding the Forest Stewardship Program (FSP) for fiscal year 2024 at $22 million, a $9.5 million increase over the FY 2023 enacted level. The Forest Stewardship Program (FSP), administered by the USDA Forest Service (Forest Service) and delivered in partnership with state forestry agencies, cooperative extension services, certified foresters, conservation districts, and other partners, is the primary federal mechanism for supporting those landowners in making sustainable management decisions.
Regardless of who provides the assistance, the end goal is the same: to help landowners achieve healthy, resilient, and productive forests. Well-managed private forests and woodlands offer a number of public benefits, including enhanced wildlife habitat, carbon sequestration, recreational opportunities, watershed protection, and timber production… FSP equips private forest landowners with the unbiased, science-based information they need to sustainably manage their forests now and into the future, helping to keep forests as forests.
Click the link below to read the letter in full.