Idaho Dept. of Lands outlines Good Neighbor Authority and shared‑stewardship results and plans to scale up cross‑boundary work

Idaho Department of Lands Director Dustin Miller and shared stewardship coordinator Arah Andria told the Senate Agricultural Committee that state‑federal collaboration through Good Neighbor Authority (GNA) and shared‑stewardship programs has accelerated timber sales and cross‑boundary fuel treatments, and that the department plans to scale up as federal priorities for increased timber processing and fuels reductions evolve.

Miller said GNA agreements with six of Idaho’s seven national forests have enabled the department to sell about 60 GNA timber sales to date and to deliver roughly 200 million board feet through those sales. He said GNA volume accounted for roughly 18–27% of annual timber sold from partner national forests in recent years and that IDL sold about 46 million board feet via GNA in 2024.

Shared stewardship and county GNA agreements: Arah Andria described how shared stewardship coordinators (Forest Service employees located in IDL offices and funded jointly) help broker county agreements and cross‑boundary projects. Payette National Forest and Adams County signed a county GNA agreement that IDL officials called “landmark,” which helped obligate nearly $1 million for county cross‑boundary fuel reduction projects in 2024 and directly treated hundreds of private acres with mastications, prescribed burns and roadside fuel treatments.

Why it matters: Miller and Andria told the committee the combined approach — commercial GNA sales, county GNA agreements and noncommercial fuels work — increases the pace and scale of treatments that can reduce crown‑fire risk to communities and critical infrastructure. They showed before‑and‑after imagery of treatments that, in one recent incident, contributed to stopping a fire that otherwise threatened nearby homes.

Next steps and federal direction: Officials said a new executive order at the federal level prioritizes expanding timber harvest and processing and that Idaho is preparing to support that work by increasing GNA activity and county partnerships. Miller noted recent Idaho legislation (House Bill 614) that provided the department with continuous appropriation authority to administer forest management activities on federal lands.

Ending: IDL asked legislators to maintain support for shared stewardship and GNA work and to recognize the county agreements and funding that have led to recent on‑the‑ground fuel reductions; committee members thanked IDL presenters and had no recorded votes or motions.