Audit Report to The Congress of The United States: Administration of Forest Management Activities by Bureau of Indian Affairs, Portland, Oregon, Area Office, Department of The Interior, November 1956

GAO reviewed the administration of forest management activities by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Portland Oregon, Area Office, Department of the Interior. We found that: (1) there is an absence of current reliable forest inventories upon which to base the development of management plans; (2) BIA has undervalued timber sold under long-term contracts on the Quinault Reservation; (3) log values used in timber appraisals are low; (4) profit and risk allowances in appraisals and reappraisal of Indian timber are greater than the allowances made on other Government-owned timber sold in the same area; (5) there are inadequate controls over logs moving from the woods to scaling points; (6) long-term, large-volume sales deter competition for Indian timber; (7) there is inadequate check-scaling activity; (8) there is a need for completion of access road systems on the Warm Springs and Yakima reservations; (9) timber sale contracts do not specify the location of access roads or minimum construction standards; and (10) BIA fails to recover administrative expenses from timber sale receipts.