Dear Secretary Vilsack:

We write to express our concern over the Proposed National Forest System Land Management Planning Rule published in the Federal Register on February 14,2011 (proposed rule) that would affect the management plans of the nation's 155 national forests and 20 grasslands.

With a keen interest in the active management of our nation's federal forest resources and the multiple uses that benefit our global environment and our local rural economies, we were hopeful that this iteration of the planning rule would avoid the cumbersome and inefficient pitfalls that have led to seemingly endless litigation since the issuance of the first planning rule under the National Forest Management Act in 1982. Instead, the proposed rule moves the agency further away from a simple, concise rule that can be understood by both agency personnel and the public and implemented with a minimum amount of contention among stakeholder groups. By adding more process requirements and introducing new technical terms, you are increasing the likelihood that like previous at1empts at reform, the proposed rule will be tied up in courts for years.

Read the entire letter HERE.