Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Forest Utilization topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Forest Utilization Research Program requests workforce manager after $2 million equipment purchase
Summary
The University of Idaho program asked Joint Finance for partial funding of a workforce development manager to train students on newly acquired advanced logging equipment; director said $2 million in equipment was bought with program proceeds and private support.
The Forest Utilization Research Program at the University of Idaho told the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee it needs a funded workforce development manager to train student employees on recently purchased advanced forestry technology.
Kevin Campbell of the Legislative Services Office presented the FIRR budget to the committee and said the program manages experimental forests, tree farms and training facilities and currently has about 13.28 authorized FTE with a half FTE vacant. Dean Dennis Becker, who directs FIRR as part of the University of Idaho College of Natural Resources, told lawmakers the program recently purchased roughly $2,000,000 in advanced logging technology using logging proceeds and private industry assistance and needs a manager to supervise and train student workers.
"This workforce development manager will be really important for helping us to train those students," Becker said, describing the position the program requested in its FY2026 packet.
Campbell said FIRR consistently spends its appropriations and that roughly 90% of the program’s expenditures are wages and benefits and about 10.6% are operating costs. FIRR received $18,200 ongoing in FY2024 for personnel costs at its Wildland Fire Center and a half FTE in FY2025 for an administrative specialist at a Boise location.
No committee votes were taken on FIRR during this hearing. Becker asked for the committee’s continued support to maintain hands‑on workforce training and said the requested manager will allow the program to train students on equipment the program has already acquired.
