Brown, Ross N.Kilgore, Michael A.2011-06-212011-06-212008-07https://hdl.handle.net/11299/107762County-managed forest land, primarily known as tax-forfeited forest land (TFFL), consists of approximately 2.8 million acres found primarily across northern Minnesota. Although the title to these forest lands is held by the state of Minnesota, state law authorizes county governments to manage these lands for the benefit of local taxing districts. The legal framework that guides the management and use of TFFL also encourages county governments to manage this land base in a manner that provides “public benefits.” County governments have the option to retain TFFL in public ownership and manage for multiple public benefits, or sell the land. The decision whether TFFL should be retained in public ownership for the production of public benefits or returned to private ownership is complex―one that encompasses a variety of economic, social, and political considerations. This report describes the characteristics, uses, and management of 2.7 million acres of countymanaged TFFL in 12 northern counties: Aitkin, Beltrami, Carlton, Cass, Clearwater, Crow Wing, Hubbard, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake, Pine, and St. Louis. These counties collectively manage 96% of the state’s total TFFL acreage. The report describes the results of a survey of recent purchasers of TFFL regarding how the management and use of TFFL has changed following their sale from public to private interests. The report also describes the economic impacts associated with retaining TFFL in public ownership versus selling this land base to private interests.en-USReport