Top Trump department rolls out Christmas tree savings plan: 'Making this season brighter'

FIRST ON FOX: President Donald Trump's Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum is rolling out a Christmas tree and firewood savings plan to "make Christmas affordable again."

The Trump Department of the Interior announced a "holiday affordability effort" that it said would help families save money while enjoying public lands and supporting wildfire prevention during the 2025 and 2026 winter season.

Under the plan, the Bureau of Land Management is reducing firewood and Christmas tree permit fees through Jan. 31. Part of the plan includes a "one dollar, one tree" initiative that reduces Christmas tree permit fees by nearly 100%.

A Department of the Interior official told Fox News Digital that Christmas tree and firewood permit fees would be reduced to $1 per tree or cord. The official said that with the current average cost for an authentic 6- to 8-foot Christmas tree being $90, and the average cost for a cord of wood is $300, the new policy could help save American families at least $400 during the holiday season.

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The department is also opening up new cutting areas in overstocked woodlands, prioritizing locations near communities, military bases, tribal areas and rural counties that would benefit most from additional access.

Additionally, the department is increasing household limits to up to 10 cords of firewood and three Christmas trees, with flexibility to remove those caps in areas with particularly abundant resources.

The department believes the plan will provide "meaningful cost savings for families while promoting forest thinning and hazardous fuel reduction across millions of acres."

A study by the House Committee on Natural Resources published in September found that approximately 117 million acres of federal land are at high or very high risk of wildfire, which is exacerbated by overstocked forests with hazardous dry fuels accumulated from decades of fire suppression, lack of thinking, prescribed burns and mechanical treatments.

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The study said that overstocking makes forests less resilient and seriously increases the risk of out-of-control fires.

The department cast its plan as in line with Trump's mission to lower costs for Americans. It forecasted that the two savings programs would save American families a minimum of $10 million during the Christmas season, as well as expand opportunities for families to gather their own firewood and Christmas trees.

According to the Department of the Interior, state offices will be issuing notices with updated site information and coordinating with community organizations to spread the word.

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"American families deserve real relief and savings during the holidays, and at Interior, we are making certain that they can heat their homes while keeping their traditions alive," Burgum said in a statement to Fox News Digital.  

"The One Dollar, One Tree initiative is a powerful example of how our public lands can deliver lasting benefits for the American people, making this season brighter and more affordable for all," he went on, adding, "Under President Trump, we are making Christmas affordable again."