BOISE, ID – Governor Brad Little hosted a wildfire preparedness roundtable this week alongside Lieutenant Governor Scott Bedke and federal officials from the Trump administration. The meeting was held in advance of the 2025 wildfire season and coincided with the Governor’s annual trail ride, a two-day event bringing together state and federal officials, ranchers, and stakeholders to discuss natural resource policy.
Participants in the roundtable included senior representatives from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), including DOI Deputy Secretary Kate MacGregor, USDA Deputy Undersecretary Kristin Sleeper, Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz, DOI Acting Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management Adam Suess, and Andrew Mott, assistant to the DOI deputy secretary.
The event focused on coordination between state and federal agencies to improve initial response times and enhance fire prevention efforts. Federal officials emphasized a full-suppression approach to federally managed fires and highlighted the importance of partnerships with local land users, such as ranchers and loggers, in wildfire response.
Discussion topics included land management strategies intended to reduce wildfire risk, such as forest thinning, prescribed burns, and grazing. Idaho’s implementation of programs like the Good Neighbor Authority and Shared Stewardship was noted by federal representatives as a model for collaborative land management.
Governor Little referenced recent policy efforts, including his “Make Forests Healthy Again Act,” and noted alignment with federal initiatives such as the “Freeing Our Forests Act,” which aim to accelerate forest management practices. According to participating officials, both state and federal agencies are pursuing new reforms and increasing the use of existing authorities to carry out more projects on the ground.
In addition to wildfire and fuels management, the trail ride featured discussions on broader natural resource topics including federal regulations, sage grouse conservation, energy development, and intergovernmental policy collaboration.
Officials present at the roundtable expressed support for continued state-federal cooperation and praised Idaho’s role in advancing land management reforms.
