[5] The major divisions of the agency are the Chief's Office, National Forest System, State and Private Forestry, Business Operations, as well as Research and Development.

In 1876, Congress formed the office of Special Agent in the Department of Agriculture to assess the quality and conditions of forests in the United States.

The agency's ecosystem approach to management integrates ecological, economic, and social factors to maintain and enhance the quality of the environment to meet current and future needs.

Through implementation of land and resource management plans, the agency ensures sustainable ecosystems by restoring and maintaining species diversity and ecological productivity that helps provide recreation, water, timber, minerals, fish, wildlife, wilderness, and aesthetic values for current and future generations of people.

There are five deputy chiefs for the following areas: National Forest System, State and Private Forestry, Research and Development, Business Operations, and Finance.

The system provides places for long-term science and management studies in major vegetation types of the 195 million acres (790,000 km2) of public land administered by the Forest Service.

Wildfire suppression and prevention programs comprise nearly 50% of the Forest Service’s overall budget and, during the peak fire season, it employs approximately 10,000-15,000 wildland firefighters.

As part of that mission, LEOs carry firearms, defensive equipment, make arrests, execute search warrants, complete reports, and testify in court.

To cover the vast and varied terrain under their jurisdiction, they use modified 4x4 pickup trucks, Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptors, special service SUVs, horses, K-9 units, helicopters, snowmobiles, ATVs, ROVs, dirt bikes, and boats.

All field agents are required to travel a great deal and usually maintain a case load of ten to fifteen ongoing criminal investigations at one time.

An example of the latter would be large scale wildfire liability cases in which the government is seeking civil restitution for major damage to National Forest Lands.

They must volunteer to become FPOs, pass an additional background check performed by LEI, and attend an initial training plus yearly recertification to maintain their authority.

It provides assistance by helping sustain the United States' urban and rural forests and their associated communities from wildland fires, insects, disease, and invasive organisms.

[20][21] Approximately 537 staff are employed in the program and is administered through National Forest System regions and the Northeastern Area of the United States.

Research employs about 550 scientists and several hundred technical and support staff, located at 67 sites throughout the United States and in Puerto Rico.

Research focuses on informing policy and land management decisions and includes addressing invasive insects, degraded river ecosystems, or sustainable ways to harvest forest products.

The researchers work independently and with a range of partners (formerly through a National Partnership Office),[22] including other agencies, academia, nonprofit groups, and industry.

The program also promotes sustainable land management overseas and brings important technologies and innovations back to the United States.

Furthermore, areas designated as wilderness by acts of Congress, prohibit logging, mining, road and building construction and land leases for purposes of farming and or livestock grazing.

The Forest Service also manages Grey Towers National Historic Site in Milford, Pennsylvania, the home and estate of its first Chief, Gifford Pinchot.

Smokey Bear has appeared in innumerable TV commercials; his popular catch phrase, "Only YOU can prevent forest fires"—later changed to wildfires—is one of the most widely recognized slogans in the United States.

The following are important operational features of the National Fire Plan: In August 2014, Tom Vilsack, the Secretary of Agriculture, announced that the agency would have to put $400 to $500 million in wildfire prevention projects on hold because funding for firefighting was running low as the fiscal year ended.

The decision was meant to preserve resources for fighting active fires burning in California, Oregon, Washington and Idaho.

These impacts can be compounded by fire suppression, development in the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI), and non-climate informed timber harvest and reforestation practices.

[28]The foundational question pertained to climate adaptation: "How should the Forest Service adapt current policies and develop new policies and actions to conserve and manage the national forests and grasslands for climate resilience, so that the Agency can provide for ecological integrity and support social and economic sustainability over time?"

"[28] In the spring of 2023, the USDA proposed a change to its regulations to allow for the "responsible deployment of" carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration on National Forests lands.

Because of continuing development elsewhere, the large size of National Forests have made them de facto wildlife reserves for a number of rare and common species.

In recent decades, the importance of mature forest for the spotted owl and a number of other species led to great changes in timber harvest levels.

In 1999, President Clinton ordered a temporary moratorium on new road construction in the National Forests to "assess their ecological, economic, and social values and to evaluate long-term options for their management.

[44] A 2017 draft report describing the legal basis which provides federal land managers a scope of decision making authority exceeding that of state fish and game departments has proven unexpectedly controversial.