Senators warn Forest Service cuts to research and state grants will weaken forest health and on‑the‑ground services

Senators on the Appropriations Subcommittee pressed U.S. Forest Service Chief Schultz over proposed cuts and eliminations in the president's FY26 budget request that would shift or eliminate funding for state and private forestry, forest and rangeland research, and several cooperative grant programs.

Ranking Member Jeff Merkley and other senators said the budget "cancels funds to develop techniques to neutralize invasive species," cuts collaborative landscape programs and research, and reduces support for state and volunteer fire capacity grants. Senator Merkley said the cuts "would be massive damage to our force" and urged the agency to maintain research and collaboration programs used to detect pests, support restoration and reduce wildfire risk.

Chief Schultz said the FY26 proposal seeks to "refocus" the Forest Service on active forest management and shift some work to states, land‑grant universities and other partners. He told the committee the agency is "moving toward a budget that's not have funding for those" research lines and will rely more on states, universities and private sector research. On the Southwest Ecological Restoration Institutes (SWERI) specifically, Schultz said the agency cut $3 million in FY25 and that SWERI has "$23,000,000 on hand in prior appropriation dollars"; he added the FY26 request does not include resources for SWERI and said future work would depend more on universities and other grant funding.

Senators repeatedly pressed why formula grants for state and volunteer fire capacity were reduced in FY25 appropriations materials and whether those funds would be delivered to states. Schultz said three formula grants were "in the process of being provided to the states" and affirmed the agency's intention "to have all 3 of those grants go out here shortly." He also said agency accounting decisions have shifted roughly $43,250,000 from program grants into salaries and expenses to cover costs associated with the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP) and accrued leave payments.

Separately, Senator Martin Heinrich and others raised contracting delays and their consequences for visitors and firefighters. Heinrich said contract approvals were taking too long, causing trash and toilet maintenance problems at recreation sites. Schultz acknowledged the agency recently instituted new review processes for contracts, grants and agreements and said the Forest Service has worked to resolve backlog issues and improve card limits and other purchasing authorities.

Why it matters: Senators said the programs targeted for cuts — research, cooperative state grants, landscape restoration and volunteer fire assistance — underpin long‑term forest health, invasive species response and rural firefighting capacity. Members said shifting those responsibilities to states or the private sector will not always be realistic or timely, especially in underfunded rural areas.