A Year After DOGE Cuts, Wyoming’s U.S. Forest Service Workers Face Staffing Shortages and Organizational Uncertainty
Why It Matters
Wyoming’s national forests cover more than 9 million acres of public land, making the U.S. Forest Service one of the most consequential federal agencies in the state. More than a year after the Department of Government Efficiency triggered sweeping layoffs and reorganizations across federal agencies, Forest Service employees and retirees in Wyoming say understaffing, maintenance backlogs, and erratic directives from Washington continue to strain day-to-day operations.
With nearly 50% of Wyoming’s land managed by the federal government, disruptions to land management agencies carry broad consequences for recreation, conservation, and local economies that depend on public lands access.
What Happened
On the first day of his second term, President Donald Trump signed an executive order establishing the Department of Government Efficiency, directing the program to identify and eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse across the federal government. The Forest Service was among the hardest-hit agencies, with several district offices in Wyoming’s eight national forests experiencing significant staff reductions in early 2025.
The Shoshone National Forest’s Washakie District office in Lander temporarily closed in February 2025 due to insufficient staffing following the job cuts. Retired Forest Service employee Bill Lee, a Lander resident who worked seasonal jobs with the agency for four decades, described the approach as using “a shotgun instead of a scalpel.”
More recently, agency-wide emails have added to a sense of unease among staff. A Wyoming-based Forest Service employee, speaking anonymously to wyofile.com out of fear of retribution, described receiving an overtly Christian Easter message from Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins — an email the employee called “crazy inappropriate” given the diversity of religious beliefs among federal workers. The following day, another communication announced a major agency reorganization, including moving headquarters to Salt Lake City, replacing nine regional offices with state-based ones, and consolidating dozens of research stations under a single organization headquartered in Colorado.
“These announcements are coming out without any real thought behind the impact that they will have,” the Wyoming employee told wyofile.com. The employee added that even if major disruptions cease, “the changes that have been made are long lasting, and they’re going to be really hard to reverse.”
By the Numbers
9 million+ acres of national forest managed by the Forest Service in Wyoming.
5,860 Forest Service employees lost during the first half of 2025, representing approximately 16% of the agency’s total workforce, according to the USDA’s Office of Inspector General.
50% of Wyoming’s total land area is managed by the federal government for public use.
2,000 summer seasonal employees are being hired nationwide for the 2026 season — a figure Lee described as more symbolic than substantive given ongoing shortfalls.
An internal federal report surfacing in December 2025 flagged critical vacancies, depleted staff, unfunded contracts, and chaotic communication as threats to the agency’s recreation amenities.
Zoom Out
The Forest Service cuts were part of a broader federal workforce reduction that touched agencies ranging from the State Department to Health and Human Services to the Environmental Protection Agency. DOGE was formally disbanded by the end of 2025, but its effects on agency capacity remain visible across the country.
Western states with large percentages of federally managed land — including Wyoming, Idaho, Nevada, and Utah — have faced disproportionate impacts from staffing reductions at land management agencies. Human trafficking concerns and workforce data challenges in Wyoming reflect similar strains on the state’s capacity to monitor and manage public-facing services with limited resources.
Supporters of government efficiency reforms argue the Forest Service, like many federal agencies, had become top-heavy, a point Lee himself acknowledged. The debate centers not on whether reform was needed, but on whether the implementation was measured enough to preserve operational continuity.
What’s Next
The Forest Service is actively recruiting up to 2,000 seasonal employees for the 2026 summer season. However, veterans of the agency say the hiring push falls short of addressing systemic shortfalls in permanent staffing and institutional knowledge.
The announced agency reorganization — relocating headquarters and consolidating regional offices — remains ongoing, with implementation details still emerging. Wyoming employees and retirees like Lee and volunteers like Barb Gustin, who helped staff the Lander office during the height of the disruptions, say they will continue monitoring the situation heading into a second challenging field season.
Residents and outdoor recreation advocates across Wyoming are encouraged to stay civically engaged as federal land management policy continues to evolve under the current administration.