Michael Boren

Michael Boren, the Idaho multimillionaire rancher President Trump picked to oversee the Forest Service a year ago, stepped into that role Tuesday after a long temporary assignment at the Interior Department. Sworn in by Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Boren is now undersecretary of Agriculture for natural resources and environment, a position that looks solely over national forests. Boren’s arrival at USDA was delayed repeatedly — first, by the wait to be confirmed by the Senate and then due to a stint at Interior as acting assistant secretary, a job now held by Troy Finnegan. His shuffle between the agencies in some ways reflects the administration’s direction on forest policy, which seeks to merge much of what the two agencies do. The administration is seeking to move wildfire management from the Forest Service to the Interior Department, and Mike Lee (R-Utah) has proposed moving the entire forest agency to Interior. [to access the full story an E&E News subscription is required]