State foresters applaud permanent appointment of Jaelith Hall-Rivera

The National Association of State Foresters applauds Jaelith Hall-Rivera’s permanent appointment as head of the USDA Forest Service’s State and Private Forestry Branch.

WASHINGTON—The nation’s 59 state and territorial foresters were thrilled to hear last week from USDA Forest Service Chief Randy Moore that Jaelith Hall-Rivera has accepted the permanent role of deputy chief of the agency’s State and Private Forestry (S&PF) Mission Area. Hall-Rivera has served as acting in this position since last year.

“Jaelith has been a terrific partner to state foresters for many years now. We couldn’t be more pleased for her or happy to continue our work together to improve the health, resiliency, and productivity of America’s forests,” said Christopher Martin, NASF president and Connecticut state forester. “Jaelith played an important role in advancing the 2018 wildfire funding fix through Congress, which ended ‘borrowing’ from state and private forestry accounts to pay for wildfire suppression. She has also been a crucial advocate for state foresters’ outcome-based performance measures initiative that, to date, has helped boost annual appropriations for key state and private forestry programs.”

In a letter to Forest Service employees on September 10, Chief Moore said Jaelith “will maintain and build on the agency’s strong relationships with state foresters, private landowner organizations, and many other partners in the state and private forestry community.” Moore also shared that Jaelith’s career in natural resources policy and management has spanned more than 20 years.

Jaelith launched her federal career in 2001 with the Government Accountability Office as an analyst in the Natural Resources and Environment Division in Seattle, Washington. In 2006, she moved to the non-profit sector as a wildfire policy analyst at The Wilderness Society. Two years later, she accepted a position with the Forest Service Fire and Aviation Branch, then became deputy area budget coordinator for S&PF, and by 2018, was named associate deputy chief for S&PF. She holds a bachelor’s degree in forestry and political science from Northern Arizona University and two master’s degrees — one in public administration and another in environmental science — from Indiana University.

Media Contact: Whitney Forman-Cook at wforman-cook@stateforesters.org or 202-624-5417

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