Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA)
The Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program of the USDA Forest Service is the Nation’s
forest census. For over 80 years, FIA has collected, compiled, analyzed, and published State,
regional and national inventory information across all forest ownerships in the United States.
The program uses remote sensing and sampling to track forest health and productivity,
including tree cover, species ranges and diversity, forest land uses, and tree age, size, growth,
mortality, and harvest. FIA data are used for national forest carbon estimates, and to monitor
and model indicators of the health and sustainability of U.S. forests.
FIA customers include the managers of National Forests and Grasslands, state forestry
agencies, wildland fire fighters; policy makers; corporations, consultants, and investors;
researchers; environmental organizations; private land owners; media; and anyone interested in
reliable, current forest data. In FY 2013, states and other cooperators gave $6.7 million in cash
and in-kind support to the FIA program or 10% of total available funds. FIA provided $12.1
million in grants and agreements to help partners develop new inventory methods, collect data,
and conduct analyses.
Recent Forest Service R&D accomplishments include:

FIA data has underpinned hundreds of millions of dollars in economic development in the
forest sector and home-building industries that has provided tens of thousands of jobs
and millions of homes for Americans (a 30+ fold return on investment).

Fifty-eight percent of the Nation’s forests are in private ownerships that supply 92% of
the nation’s forest products. FIA monitors the forest health and productivity as well as
attitudes and objectives of private forest land owners to support development of sound
policies. These forests are also key provides measures that support monitoring
watershed conditions, wildlife habitat and the wildland-urban interface.

In FY 2012, Forest Service R&D implemented FIA annual forest sampling in all 50 states
in response to strong support from State Foresters, fire fighters, and forest industry. The
recent Farm Bill legislation expands the program’s mandate to monitoring urban areas
which will provide seamless urban-wildland interface data to improve fire risk
management efforts.
The FY 2015 President’s Budget supports implementation of the FIA program in all 50
States (except interior Alaska) and the U.S. territories of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin
Islands, and Guam. To maintain the national coverage at the FY 2015 President’s Budget
level, the re-measurement cycle would be extended to 10 years. The ability to leverage
funding with partners will continue at a lower level.