FLA Leads 46-Organization Coalition Urging USDA to Include Forestry in Harvest Fuel Relief Program
The Forest Landowners Association (FLA) joined a coalition of 46 organizations representing 22 states and the national forestry and forest products sectors in urging U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Brooke Rollins to ensure private forest landowners, timber producers, and eligible forestry operations are included in the Harvest Fuel Relief Program.
Click here to read the coalition letter to Secretary Rollins.
In the letter, the coalition highlighted the significant impact of rising diesel and operating costs on forest management, logging, and transportation. These fuel-intensive operations are already facing substantial challenges from declining timber markets, mill closures, and devastating natural disasters.
America’s working forests support rural communities, domestic manufacturing, and multigenerational family forestry businesses. Yet, unlike many other agricultural producers, forest landowners have limited access to federal safety net and risk management programs. Forestry was excluded from USDA’s Farmer Bridge Assistance Program, raising concerns that timber producers could once again be overlooked as USDA provides relief to agricultural producers facing increased fuel costs.
The coalition is urging USDA to explicitly include private forest landowners, timber producers, and eligible forestry operations in the Harvest Fuel Relief Program. Assistance should account for the unique production cycles and fuel-intensive nature of forestry to ensure eligibility criteria designed primarily for annual agricultural crops do not inadvertently exclude timber producers.
FLA encourages timber producers, loggers, and other forestry stakeholders to submit information documenting increased fuel costs directly to USDA at HarvestFuel@usda.gov. These submissions can help demonstrate the financial pressures facing forestry operations and reinforce the importance of including forestry in the program. For additional information, read USDA’s announcement of the Harvest Fuel Relief Program.
FLA will continue working with USDA and coalition partners to ensure America’s working forests and the businesses that sustain them receive equitable consideration for federal assistance.
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