Forest Service slashes seasonal jobs as it faces hundreds of millions in budget deficits

The U.S. Forest Service is cutting seasonal jobs to deal with an expected budget shortfall. MTPR’s John Hooks looked into potential impacts in Montana, he discussed those with All Things Considered host Elinor Smith.

Elinor: To start off here John, what are the budget issues the forest service is dealing with?

John: Yeah this can get very convoluted very quickly, but in short, the Forest Service is anticipating that the money it will get from congress next year will be well short of what the agency needs to cover current costs.

Elinor: How big is the shortfall?

John: Likely by a few hundred million dollars, regardless of the result of the election.

Now, that could change, but the agency says it has to plan for the most conservative outcome, and make some big cuts in order to ensure it can pay its existing employees.

A forest service spokesperson told me the agency expects impacts of this to reverberate across all national forests but they couldn’t speculate on local impacts.

Elinor: What cuts is the agency making?

John: I’d say there are two areas worth focusing on right now. The agency has announced significant restrictions to its seasonal workforce, and is reviewing, and in some cases canceling, funding agreements it has with outside partners.

In those funding agreements, the Service provides grants to help local governments or nonprofits that do work in national forests. They are a tool the service has increasingly leaned on to try and stretch its dollars.

Elinor: You mentioned seasonal jobs, how many are getting cut?

John: The Forest Service says they employed 100 of these positions across Montana, North Dakota and Northern Idaho in 2023. The Service also funded about 100 jobs in the state since 2022 that are administered through Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks.

A FWP spokesperson told me the agency may get more information in November on what positions it may lose.

But there are some cuts that have already happened.

Elinor: What cuts have already been made?

John: Some partner organizations are seeing cuts. For example, western Montana is going to lose some avalanche forecasters.

Patrick Black is the Executive Director of the West Central Montana Avalanche Foundation, which does forecasts for the Missoula, Seeley-Swan, and Bitterroot regions. He says the Forest Service have typically provided around half of their payroll, as well as government trucks and snowmobiles necessary for their work. But that won’t happen this year.

Black: it was definitely an earth shattering piece of news when it came out that, you know, not only did they not necessarily have any of the things we needed for the season, but they didn’t necessarily know if and when they would again.

Black told me that 95% of avalanche accidents in America occur on Forest Service lands, so having adequately staffed and funded forecasting centers is critical to public safety.

Elinor: Wow, so without that funding, are they going to be able to do their forecasting this year?

John: Black says they’re searching for more funding. But as is, there will likely be less information about avalanche danger in Western Montana.

Black: if we were to have to turn the lights on, so to speak, tomorrow and just go with what we have, everything would be reduced in terms of the frequency of the forecast, the forecast area size itself and the number of employees.

I should add here that there are two other avalanche centers in Montana — in the Flathead and Bozeman/Gallatin region. And, so far, it seems their operations won’t be as affected by these cuts.

Elinor: I’m curious about other seasonal work done on Forest Service land, like firefighting. Will the Forest Service have to cut its firefighting force?

John: The service is adamant that these cuts will not affect firefighting, and that they’re going to hire the same size force as they have in previous years.

But outside of fire, they’re freezing hiring of all temporary seasonal workers.

Elinor: What kind of work do those seasonal positions do?

John: They do things like build and maintain trails, manage campgrounds, open Forest Service roads. Those positions also provide entry-level jobs for people to start careers in forestry.

The service does have a permanent seasonal workforce, which will remain on. But they’ll be strictly limited in the amount of hours.

Elinor: What else are you hearing about the impact of these cuts?

John: There’s still so much uncertainty. Like I mentioned before, the state is still waiting to learn how its staff will be impacted. It’s also created uncertainty for businesses that rely on public land use and recreation.

Emily Adams owns a bike shop in Anaconda and serves as president of the Anaconda Trails Society, a local volunteer group. Forest Service trails, including the Continental Divide Trail, are a big draw for the town.

Adams worries trails won’t get the maintenance they need with a cut in the Forest Service budget. She says the trails society doesn’t have the ability to step in and fill the void if there’s a reduction in Forest Service help.

Adams: we are lucky to have a group of wonderful volunteers, but we don’t have the manpower to to clear everything. So we’re pretty nervous for what the next season brings and not having that assistance. 

Elinor: Well John this has been really informative. I hope you’ll come back and keep us updated as the situation develops,

John: absolutely, my pleasure Elinor.