Research Essay
Federal Lands in Idaho Should be Managed by Idaho

This year the federal government spent a billion dollars fighting wild fires. The Prepare Act, currently under consideration in Congress, would give funds to local governments for wild fire mitigation. FEMA would provide oversight for any funds directed to the states as the recent fire season was considered a disaster. Prepare, Ready, Equip, and Prevent Areas at Risk of Emergency Wildfires Act of 2013 or the PREPARE Act of 2013, was authored in part by Idaho’s own Senator Crapo and Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado (The Library of Congress, S.1428, .IS, 2013-2014). The federal government is aware that our forests have been mismanaged and this act, in a small way, helps to make up for previous management practices. It does not do enough to mitigate the effects of pests and wildfires that endanger our forests in Idaho. Some of you may know a little about the ownership of federal lands in Idaho. This paper will help you to learn more about this. Some of you may know a lot about ownership of federal lands in Idaho. Perhaps you know someone personally who has dealt with land issues in Idaho. Hopefully, you will learn something new about this topic that persuade you that the State of Idaho needs to assume ownership and oversight of these public lands. I was employed by the timber industry for several years and spent time lobbying on their behalf to keep public lands open for logging. I have researched and read many articles on the subject of transferring federal lands to the states. In this paper, I will give you a brief history of federal lands in Idaho, benefits of Idaho ownership of federal lands, and what we as citizens can do to promote the transfer of lands to Idaho. President Theodore Roosevelt, in 1901, recognized that the forest reserves established in 1891, now the national forests, were a good investment for the nation and that their usefulness could be increased by “thoroughly businesslike management.” (Gifford Pinchon, Breaking New Ground, New York: Harcourt Brace, 1947, 190) About 64% of Idaho is federally owned land, acquired by conquest or purchase by the government and used to encourage settlement and development until about a 100 years ago. So few people settled in Idaho that the government retained ownership of most of the land. This past century the policy has been to retain the land and assign multiple agencies to oversee its management. Multiple agencies, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), The U.S. Forest Service (USDA), and now Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), to name a few. This land is exempt from property taxes so since 1908, policies have been put into place that provided revenue sharing that would help subsidize schools and roads (payment in lieu of taxes – PLITs) (Chapter 69, Title 31 of the United States Code. ). The revenue sharing is determined by county; the counties with the higher percentage of federal property receiving higher percentage of revenues. With management shifts from timber production and mining, to an emphasis on wildlife and fish protection, reduced federal revenue sharing has negatively impacted Idaho’s economy (wildlandfire.com). Nearly twenty years after the shutdown of logging in Idaho, in 1996, the 53rd Legislature of the State of Idaho passed Senate Bill No. 1354, Idaho Code Section 58-104 (10), authorizing the State Board of Land Commissioners "To enter into a joint exercise of powers agreement with the United States Forest Service in the Department of Agriculture, pursuant to Section 67-2328, Idaho Code." In response to this action, the State Board of Land Commissioners appointed a 19-member task force and charged them with examining alternative methods of federal land management in the state (Idaho Land Board). This task force concluded that the ownership of federal lands would not be transferred to the state. Seventeen years have passed since that task force submitted their findings on federal land management. The task force interviewed mainly federal employees, experts in their field, and came to the conclusion that the federal lands were being managed appropriately for multiple use. Emphasis was placed on environmental quality, fish and wildlife habitat and the enhanced stability of community. In the years since this report, the third emphasis has been totally disregarded This year, 2013, the Idaho Legislature formed a task force to identify, analyze and suggest solution for the transfer of federal lands to Idaho. Finding one of their report stated that “The current processes of federal land management have resulted in uncertain decision making, destabilization of resource dependent communities and deterioration in environmental quality on federal lands. In short, the system is broken.” (Idaho State Land Board 2013) Economic and social pressures have transcended genuine forest health considerations and caused land managers to make poor decisions.
“… August 19, 1992, a dozen lightning strikes in the foothills east of Boise, Idaho, sparked a blaze that burned 257,000 acres of forests and rangelands, including large pines. The fire scorched one stream to bedrock, wiping out a population of increasingly rare bull trout. Efforts to protect homes cost more than $24 million. One area, however, didn't burn. When it reached Tiger Creek, the blaze lay low and merely burned off the underbrush in a 2,500-acre stand of ponderosa pines--the only survivors within miles. The Tiger stand had previously been logged to remove the understory of fir and reduce fuels, and prescribed fire had been used to restore and rejuvenate grasses.” (Forests, Fires & Elk by David Stalling)
This is just one instance of the practice of selective logging that allow for healthy forests. I’ve given you a brief history of how the Feds came to own most of Idaho now I will explain what the benefits are, of Idaho ownership of federal lands. Local control equals better stewardship of the land. Idaho has a vested interest in properly managed resources. Environmentalists do not want any logging or mining in Idaho. Anthony Davis, University of Idaho Professor of Native Plant Regeneration and Silviculture says that “Our forests, when properly managed, can be a source of building materials, clean water supplies, and fuel for energy." (Forest Profiles 2013) Areas designated as wilderness or road less would not be touched. The State of Idaho would have to comply within the legal framework already in place such as the Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act and other national laws. (Federal Lands Interim Committee 2013) National Forest Emergency Response Act - Declares that
” …fire hazard and human endangerment in national forests to be designated by the Secretary of Agriculture constitute emergency circumstances. Directs the Secretary to designate (for up to 10 years) at least one national forest in each state that is experiencing conditions that constitute emergency circumstances due to pine beetle infestation, drought, disease, or storm damage and the resulting imminent risk of devastating wildfire that poses significant threat to the economic stability of surrounding areas and the health, safety, and well-being of residents, firefighters, and visitors.” (Library of Congress S.2277.IS)
The federal government have been lousy stewards of the land. They admit, by the submission of several pieces of legislation that mistakes have been made in the management of our resources. The Idaho State Land Board, a for profit entity, is currently managing three million state acres at a profit. Revenues are received from cottage site leasing, commercial leasing, grazing, farming, conservation leasing, and mineral leasing. (Idaho State Land Board) This entity is already in place to manage the federal acreage. Idaho Land Board Mission statement: “To professionally and prudently manage Idaho's endowment assets to maximize long-term financial returns to public schools and other trust beneficiaries and to provide professional assistance to the citizens of Idaho to use, protect and sustain their natural resources.” The state would be charged with creating positive revenue streams from our natural resources to help create more a more vibrant economy in Idaho, while maintaining our natural resources. Selective logging, specified as part of wild fire mitigation, could bring as many as 5100 good paying jobs to Idaho. For each new employment dollar generated, that dollar turns between 2 to 4 times in the local economy, creating other new jobs. Naysayers think that the cost of managing federal lands would be too expensive for the State. The current suggested acreage to transfer is 16,400,000 (Federal Lands Interim Committee 2013). In addition to increased employment and additional funds to our schools, the actual managing of our sustainable resources would save on expenses such as fighting wild fires. Opponents of the state oversight of federal lands would say that in a budget crunch, the state would sell the land. The Indian tribes of Idaho have also opposed the transfer, stating that Idaho could not afford to administer these lands and if anyone is to get the land, it should be the Indians. The Indians have no money for administration and nothing in place to administer these properties. In a budget crunch, the Indians would sell the property. The Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service have opportunities today for land purchase, exchange, donation or sale. The federal government has already, in many cases, traded properties or sold properties that enhanced assets for a few individuals. It is not unusual for a public entity to declare property as surplus and sell it. Folks that owned cabins around McCall Lake and Lake Coeur d’Alene were given the option to allow their leased land to be auctioned off. Hypothetically, they would be the highest bidder or they had the option to continue leasing for $30 to $60 thousand per year. Did I mention that the Idaho Land Board is charged with creating a profit? The language, in the trade agreement, would have to specify when property could be sold, and how it could be sold so as to alleviate those fears that private individuals (say some rich guy from New York) could come to own those lands. According to the Idaho Children’s Defense Fund, in 2011 the annual education expenditure per student in Idaho was $6,469 (Idaho Children’s Defense Fund 2011). Based on the 2013 report to the legislature, just the revenues generated to the state by logging, would increase the funding to our schools by as much as $120,000,000. (Federal Lands Interim Committee 2013) The Forest Service has reauthorized the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act. This act describes the payment-in-lieu-of-taxes that the federal government pays to the states in lieu of property taxes, on federally held lands. The authors of this act admit that there is no federal “industry” left on these lands but rather than allow new logging, they would rather just pay the payment. We should be creating revenue streams on these lands. As it is, these lands are just a drain on the federal budget and for no good reason. I have explained the history of federal land ownership and how Idaho would benefit from the transfer of lands, now I will explain what we, as citizens, can do to promote the transfer of lands to Idaho. Idaho citizens should:
• Participate in the process.
• Attend task force meetings in your area.
• Contact your state and federal congressional representatives and let them know that you want to see Idaho land managed by Idaho. http://www.idaho.gov/government/elected.html I have explained how the State of Idaho could assume ownership and oversight of the federally owned lands in Idaho. Hopefully, I have convinced you that it is in the best interests of the people of Idaho, to make this transfer happen. This year the federal government spent a billion dollars on fighting wild fires The Prepare Act, currently under consideration in Congress, would give funds to local governments for wild fire mitigation. Preventing fires before they start, novel idea but it requires increased timber harvest, something environmentalists do not want. If only Idahoans were in charge of the forest… Let’s not let those wondrous environmental wizards in Washington D.C. be making decisions for you and me.

Works Cited
"31 U.S.C. Chapter 69." U.S. Department of the Interior. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2013.
Chapter 69, Title 31 of the United States Code. http://www.doi.gov/pilt/index.cfm

“Breaking New Ground”. Gifford Pinchon, New York: Harcourt Brace, 1947, 190

"Bill Text - 112th Congress (2011-2012) - THOMAS (Library of Congress)N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2013 http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c112:S.2277

"Forest Profiles - Anthony Davis." Forest Profiles - Anthony Davis. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2013. http://www.idahoforests.org/profiles/davis.html

"Western States Data Public Land Acreage." Western States Data Public Land Acreage. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2013. http://www.wildlandfire.com/docs/2007/western-states-data-public-land.htm

"State of Idaho Department of Lands." Idaho Department of Lands — Federal Lands Task Force. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2013. http://www.idl.idaho.gov/LandBoard/fltf.htm

"The Idaho Forest: Forests, Fires, Elk." The Idaho Forest: Forests, Fires, Elk. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2013. http://www.idahoforests.org/elk.htm

Children’s Defense Fund http://www.childrensdefense.org/child-research-data-publications/data/state-data-repository/cits/2011/children-in-the-states-2011-idaho.pdf
"Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act." Secure Rural Schools. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2013. http://www.fs.usda.gov/pts/

"Idaho.gov - The Official Website of the State of Idaho." Elected Officials. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2013. http://www.idaho.gov/government/elected.html