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Updated September 10, 2021
Stewardship End Result Contracting: Forest Service and
Bureau of Land Management

Stewardship end result contracting, often called
stewardship contracting, is a Forest Service (FS) and
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) contracting
mechanism that allows these agencies to pursue land
management goals by combining restoration services and
forest product harvesting into a single project (see below).
FS and BLM may trade goods for services in a given
project by applying the value of harvested forest products
toward the value of restoration services. These features
make stewardship contracting an administrative efficiency
tool, through which FS and BLM may reduce the
complexity and cost of implementing restoration projects.
The stewardship contracting mechanism allows FS and
BLM to combine a contract for the sale of forest products
with a contract for restoration services. FS and BLM also
may enter into stewardship agreements, generally if the
project provides mutual benefit to both the partner and the
agency. Projects using either mechanism aim to achieve
specified land management goals on lands in the National
Forest System (NFS), lands managed by FS, or public lands
managed by BLM. Unless otherwise specified, stewardship
project refers to both contracts and agreements.
Project Attrtbutes
Stewardship projects are used to achieve specified land
management goals, or end results. Activities conducted as
part of the project, including restoration services or forest
product harvesting, contribute to these goals, which may
include any of the following (as specified in 16 U.S.C.
§6591c):
* Road and trail maintenance or obliteration to restore or
maintain water quality.
* Soil productivity, habitat for wildlife and fisheries, or
other resource values.
* Setting of prescribed fires to improve the composition,
structure, condition, and health of stands or to improve
wildlife habitat.
* Removing vegetation or other activities to promote
healthy forest stands, reduce fire hazards, or achieve
other land management objectives.

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Watershed restoration and maintenance.
Restoration and maintenance of fish and wildlife.

* Control of noxious and exotic weeds and reestablishing
native plant species.
In pursuit of a project's specified goals, FS and BLM may
engage in restoration services, such as noxious weed
treatment, prescribed fire, or vegetation planting; this is the
services portion of a stewardship contract. Contracts also
include provisions for contractors to harvest and sell

specified forest products, such as timber, within the contract
area, if it also contributes to the goals of the project (e.g.,
selective logging of diseased or insect-infested trees); this is
the goods portion of a stewardship contract. For example, a
contract specifying a desired goal of enhancing migratory
bird habitat may authorize the contractor to cut and sell
certain species (i.e., sell goods) to alter forest stand
composition, install nest boxes, and relocate trails to
improve habitat (i.e., perform services). To execute a
project under the stewardship contracting authority, FS and
BLM enter into a single integrated resource contract or
stewardship agreement for services rendered (services) and
timber or other forest products sold (goods). FS and BLM
award contracts and agreements on a best value basis,
meaning the agencies consider proposal quality, expertise,
past performance, and price in awarding a contract. FS and
BLM may give a procurement preference to contractors that
would promote an innovative use of forest products.
Generally, stewardship contracts must be completed in 10
years. In Section 207 of the FY2018 omnibus
appropriations bill (P.L. 115-141), Congress authorized the
Secretaries of Agriculture and the Interior to extend
contract terms on a one-time basis to 20 years for lands in
specified areas.
Legiklative H istory
Congress first authorized stewardship contracting pilot
projects in the FY1999 omnibus appropriations act (P.L.
105-277) and subsequently extended and expanded the
authority several times. Congress made it permanent in
2014 through Section 8205 of P.L. 113-79 (16 U.S.C.
§6591c). A brief legislative history is below:
* P.L. 105-277, Section 347 (FY1999 omnibus
appropriations act): Authorized FS to enter into 28 pilot
stewardship contracts with private entities, each of up to
10 years in duration. Required nine projects to be in FS
Region 1.
* P.L. 106-113, Section 341 (FY2000 consolidated
appropriations act): Amended P.L. 105-277 to authorize
FS to use agreements as well as contracts.
* P.L. 106-291, Section 338 (FY2001 Interior and Related
Agencies appropriations act): Authorized FS to enter
into 28 additional pilot projects. Required nine projects
to be in FS Region 1 and three to be in FS Region 6.
* P.L. 107-63, Section 332 (FY2002 Interior and Related
Agencies appropriations act): Authorized FS to enter
into 28 additional pilot projects. Required nine projects
to be in FS Region 1 and three to be in FS Region 6.

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