Wisconsin Administrative Code
Department of Natural Resources
NR 1-99 - Fish, Game and Enforcement, Forestry and Recreation
Chapter NR 1 - Natural Resources Board Policies
Section NR 1.26 - Contracting with cooperating foresters for timber sale establishment

(1) PURPOSE. The department may contract with private cooperating foresters to assist the state in the harvesting and sale of timber from state forest lands to meet the annual allowable timber harvest established under s. 28.025, Stats.

(2) DEFINITION. "Cooperating forester" has the meaning given in s. NR 1.21(2) (b).

(3) CONTRACTED TASKS. Tasks included in cooperating forester contracts for state land timber harvests may include updating of forest reconnaissance, marking of trees and harvest boundaries, estimating volume, preparing maps, recommending timber sale contract terms or operational specifications, providing data on cutting notices and reports, scaling cut products, and inspecting active harvests. The department shall determine which of these services are appropriate to contract for on individual timber sales.

(4) DEPARTMENT TASKS. The department shall select areas to harvest, determine silvicultural harvest systems to be applied, and define any additional timber sale procedures or precautions necessary to achieve objectives in approved master plans or other department policies. The department shall review and approve cutting notices and reports, prepare contracts, advertise for timber sale bids, award sales, receive stumpage payments and performance bonds, and administer timber sale contracts. The department shall monitor the performance of cooperating foresters contracting on state forest timber harvests for quality of service and conformance to department standards.

(5) BIDS FOR SERVICES AND PAYMENTS TO COOPERATING FORESTERS. Cooperating foresters shall be compensated at the department's choice of a rate per hour, acre or project established by bids. When a need for timber sale assistance is identified, the department shall issue a request for bids to cooperating foresters serving the area. Bids shall include labor, travel, equipment and any supplies such as marking paint not identified as being provided by the department that a contractor would need to do the work. Timber sale assistance contract awards shall be determined on price alone unless additional evaluation criteria such as specialized training or experience are included in the request for bids.

(6) METHOD TO ALLOT TIMBER SALE REVENUE. As provided in s. 28.05, Stats., payments to cooperating foresters for timber harvesting and selling assistance on state-owned land shall be paid from an allocation of timber sale proceeds. The department of natural resources shall make periodic requests to the department of administration for allocations of funding to the cooperating foresters appropriation, s. 20.370(2) (cy), Stats. The size of the requested allocation shall be based on outstanding purchase requisitions for the contracted timber harvest assistance. The appropriation shall be split-funded with the proportionate splits coming from the administrative function accounts where the timber sale revenues are deposited.