Ranchers, inholders and co-ops crossing federal land
Check what your SF-299 needs for a road, line or other use on national forest or BLM land: map, use details, fees and the next steps. Free.
ePlan fills in
How it works
What you get
The check is free. The paperwork after it is drafted at the Categorical exclusion memo (or short EA) in the agency's format door.
Modeled on: Standard Form 299 (GSA, rev. 10/2023) and 43 CFR 2804.12
From public data
is the Forest Service's own estimate of the time to prepare one SF-299 application; it expects about 2,753 applicants a year
Source: Forest Service notice, Federal Register, April 16, 2026
Draft a NEPA categorical exclusion memo or short environmental assessment for a federally funded project, in the agency's format. Free to read.
Questions
Yes. The Forest Service uses SF-299 and supporting information to evaluate proposals and applications for special use authorizations on National Forest System land. It estimates each application takes about 8 hours to prepare.
BLM encourages a pre-application meeting at the field office with jurisdiction. Staff can identify routing and other constraints, check for designated corridors, tentatively schedule processing and explain processing costs and rent.
Usually. The Forest Service charges nothing for applications that take it 1 hour or less to process. Above that, fees follow categories of staff time, starting with Category 1 for more than 1 and up to 8 hours.
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What are you proposing, and where?
Answer it and ePlan opens the Categorical exclusion memo (or short EA) in the agency's format door with your answer filled in.