April 2012 Articles

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American Forest Foundation

American Forest Foundation Joins National Association of State Foresters in Request to House Appropriations Committee; Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and related Agencies
In testimony today before the Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies, of the House Appropriations Committee, theAmerican Forest Foundation (AFF) and the National Association of State Foresters (NASF) reminded committee members that most of America’s forests are owned by families and individuals, not the federal government, and not corporations. For this reason, Congress needs to continue to support programs that provide private forest owners with technical assistance to help them make the best decisions to help advance forest conservation in America.
In his testimony Tom Martin, AFF President and CEO, pointed out that, “Family forest owners are facing a ‘perfect storm’ of threats. Wildfires, invasive species and other insects and diseases, pressures from development, shrinking forest products markets, and ownership changes make it harder than ever to keep America’s forests healthy and productive. It is therefore essential we ensure these families have tools, technical information, and policy support to keep their forests as forests, for current and future generations.”
The USDA Forest Service’s Forest Stewardship Program provides the nation’s 10 million private forest owners access to the information they need to be good stewards of their forests. The program enjoys broad support from landownersacross the country as evidenced by the more than 1,200 signatures from private forest owners asking for continued support of the program. The letter noted that the program “represents a smart investment in the health of our environment and our economy.” Despite the fact that family forest owners are the largest ownership group in America, 5.22 percent of the USDA Forest Service budget is focused on these lands.
“The Forest Stewardship Program is the most extensive family forest-owner assistance program in the country,” said Ken Pimlott, California State Forester and Director of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), also testifying at the hearing on behalf of NASF. “State Foresters fully appreciate the difficult choices that come with spending decisions. But we hope that the Subcommittee will consider the impact of reductions in forestry programs on family forest owners who own 251 million acres of forestland—and the impact on all Americans who benefit from well-managed, working forests—and keep the current investments intact for FY 2013.”
In Thursday’s testimonies, AFF and NASF urged the Subcommittee to work to maintain funding levels for the US Forest Service’s Forest Stewardship Program, Forest Health Cooperative Lands Program, Forest Inventory and Analysis Program, Research and Development Program, Conservation Education Initiative, and EPA’s Office of Environmental Education.
Contact : Sarah McCreary at 202-624-5417 or smccreary@stateforesters.org Jennifer Jones at 202-463-5188 r jjones@forestfoundation.org
Keep the Forest in the Family – 2012 Campaign to Fix the Estate Tax When you talk with Tree Farmers, one of the things you hear over and over again is talk about the future: a deep desire to pass on the family land to future generations. However, the federal estate tax law puts in jeopardy the ability of families to pass their Tree Farms on to their children and grandchildren. Are you concerned about how a federal estate tax bill could affect your Tree Farm? If Congress does not act on the estate tax in 2012, the temporary estate tax levels will expire—dropping the exemption level from $5 million to $1 million and skyrocketing the rate from 35 percent to a whopping 55 percent. The U.S. Forest Service estimates that 400 percent more family forest owners could be affected by the estate tax if that happens. Tree Farmers are urging Congress to act on the estate tax this year before their temporary “patch” expires: Make the current estate tax levels permanent so family forest owners can plan for the future; And, fix an estate tax tool in existing law that penalizes forest owners for harvesting timber.