Reducing 9 regional offices to 5, laying off 10% of employees, and cutting the budget by 34%, is "dismantling"? The article fails to mention the U.S. Forest Service's budget has doubled in the last 6 years from $4.7 billion in 2018 to $9.3 billion in 2024.

Yes, you can pick a better word if you want.

    Positive spin: consolidation, efficiency, right-sizing, focus, sustainability
    Negative spin: downsizing, austerity, retrenchment, contraction, gutting

I would say that for something that is good for the public, that cutting it back is not a good thing.

Remember, they are not making land any more, so once it's no longer forest / public areas, it's gone.

Mainly categorical wildfire-related funding. It's a shell of what it was, we've been cutting it for 40 years. Most ranger stations run skeleton crews.