Forest Service Reorganization
As part of the USDA reorganization plan, the Forest Service is realigning its organizational structure to strengthen local leadership, streamline operations, and improve mission delivery. The changes include moving headquarters to Salt Lake City, transitioning to a state-based leadership model, building a network of Operations Service Centers, and unifying the agency’s research program.
The transition will occur in phases to ensure continuity of operations and to give employees time and clarity as decisions are made. Full details: USDA Prioritizing Common Sense Forest Management, Moves Forest Service Headquarters to Salt Lake City.
Agency Senior Executive Structure Available
This marks a major milestone and establishes the initial foundation that will guide the next phase of organization build-out, including development of key structures, roles, and guidance needed to fully implement the agency’s reorganization model later this fall when fire activity subsides. This milestone brings the experience and urgency this moment demands, and will help deliver a more agile, accountable agency – one capable of meeting the challenges facing our forests and communities for generations to come.
Research and Development Facilities Evaluation Decision
Press Release: Forest Service completes national facilities review, identifies more than $16M in savings
In addition to the previously announced 20 retained facilities, 41 additional facilities will be retained.
The facilities decision includes reducing the building footprint at 23 research locations.
The decision addresses building and maintenance costs but does not affect the science that happens in the field, in the lab, and in collaboration with partners. The agency’s place-based research and development activities will continue as planned throughout the nation.
All of the agency’s existing experimental forests and ranges will remain open and operational.
The Forest Service will also proceed with the previously announced regional office shifts in Atlanta, Milwaukee and Portland. As with research facilities, employees will continue their work at local facilities.
The Forest Service is currently completing its evaluation of other facilities associated with the National Forest System and other operations of the agency. Once complete, this plan will provide a long-term strategy for facilities management agency wide.
Retained Facilities:
Retained facilities are locations that will host state office or service centers, that are operational spaces for the National Forest System, operate under zero-cost arrangements, have critical research and infrastructure, and/or are part of the experimental forest network.
*Indicates this facility is part of the original 20 identified for retention.
| CITY | STATE | CITY | STATE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anchorage | AK | *Missoula | MT |
| Juneau | AK | Franklin | NC |
| Auburn | AL | *Asheville; Durham | NC |
| Monticello | AR | *Lincoln | NE |
| *Flagstaff | AZ | Bartlett (housing only) | NH |
| Fort Bragg | CA | *Durham | NH |
| Mt. Shasta | CA | Reno | NV |
| *Placerville; Riverside | CA | New York | NY |
| Arcata | CA | *Delaware | OH |
| *Fort Collins | CO | *Corvallis; La Grande | OR |
| *Athens | GA | New York | NY |
| Volcano | HI | Williamsport | PA |
| Hilo | HI | Irvine (Warren) | PA |
| Boise | ID | Huger | SC |
| Moscow | ID | *San Juan | PR |
| Lexington | KY | Clemson | SC |
| Tioga (Pineville) | LA | *Knoxville | TN |
| Westfield | MA | Rapid City | SD |
| L'Anse | MI | Cedar City | UT |
| Houghton | MI | Logan | UT |
| Ely | MN | Ogden | UT |
| *St. Paul | MN | Blacksburg | VA |
| Grand Rapids | MN | Logan | UT |
| Columbia | MO | Ogden | UT |
| Leland (Stoneville) | MS | Burlington | VT |
| Saucier | MS | *Olympia | WA |
| Columbia | MO | Seattle | WA |
| Oxford | MS | Wenatchee | WA |
| Starkville | MS | *Madison; Rhinelander | WI |
| Hungry Horse | MT | *Morgantown | WV |
| Bozeman | MT |
Twenty-three facilities will close. Staff will continue their research work at alternate local facilities. Decisions were based on occupancy, use, cost, and availability of alternate local commuting options for impacted staff.
| CITY | STATE |
|---|---|
| Huntsville | AL |
| Chico | CA |
| Fresno | CA |
| Hat Creek | CA |
| Anderson (specific outbuildings only) | CA |
| Ansonia | CT |
| Hamden | CT |
| Tallahassee | FL |
| Evanston | IL |
| Baltimore | MD |
| East Lansing | MI |
| Wellston/Harrietta | MI |
| Albuquerque | NM |
| Cortland | NY |
| Lakeville | NY |
| McArthur | OH |
| Portland | OR |
| Long Pond | PA |
| York | PA |
| Nacogdoches | TX |
| Prairie Du Chien | WI |
| Wisconsin Rapids | WI |
| Princeton | WV |
Setting the Record Straight on the Forest Service Reorganization
Some recent claims about this work are inaccurate. Here are the facts.
Fact: The Forest service is not shutting down any of its experimental forests and ranges. They are important assets to the Forest Service and the broader science community, and research on them will continue.
Fact: The Forest Service has approximately 30,000 employees, and only around less than 200 are expected to need to relocate, mostly from the Washington, D.C., office. Employees whose positions are relocated will receive information about their options, which may include:
relocating to another local office within their commuting area;
relocating to Salt Lake City, Fort Collins, or a newly established service center;
exploring other available positions within the agency;
considering other federal opportunities; or
retirement or other separation decisions.
The Forest Service recognizes that relocation or separation decisions are significant. Employees will have the time, resources, and support needed to fully evaluate their options throughout the transition.
Fact: This is not part of the plan and has never been discussed. All federal authorities remain fully intact. No authorities are being shifted, reduced, or transferred. The reorganization does not change any of these authorities.
Fact: The reorganization does not eliminate scientific positions, cancel research programs, or reduce our national research footprint.
Fact: There is a job for every existing employee in the reorganization.
This effort is about moving capacity where it is needed most: in the field. Our forests and districts urgently need additional staffing and decision authority to better serve the public and care for our forests and grasslands. Moving our headquarters west and establishing a state‑based model will bring senior leadership and staffing capacity closer to the majority of the 193 million acres of national forests and grasslands we manage, and to the communities confronting wildfire risk, forest health challenges, and growing recreation demand. We support our employees, especially those who may be asked to move, and will help them make the best decisions for themselves and their families.
Fact: The Forest Service’s facilities footprint is extensive and significantly larger than can be supported under current congressional appropriations, which are declining for facilities — approximately $37 million less in FY 2026 compared to FY 2025. Deferred maintenance has grown to $3 billion, and retaining a footprint we cannot adequately maintain would not be responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars. To operate efficiently and to invest in safe, functional workspaces for employees, the Forest Service must reduce its overall facilities footprint. This approach ensures resources are directed to the locations and buildings that best support mission delivery and long‑term sustainability. Additionally, it's important to note that staffing and facilities are funded separately, and closing a facility does not mean the work stops. In many cases staff will move to another local facility, service center, or forest office. This reorganization is focused on rebuilding staff capacity at the field level to deliver the work that builds forest health and improves visitor services.
FOREST SERVICE FACILITIES OVERVIEW
An asterisk (*) indicates a location that will serve more than one facility function (for example, a State Office combined with an Operations Service Center or technical center).
STATE OFFICES
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|
OPERATIONS SERVICE CENTERS
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NATIONAL TRAINING CENTER
Vallejo, CA
BUSINESS SUPPORT SERVICE CENTER
Albuquerque, NM*