Alan James

Alan James serves as Chief Acquisition Officer for the Tahoe National Forest, overseeing the full lifecycle of procurement activities critical to the U.S. Forest Service’s mission of ecological stewardship and public safety. In this role, he directs strategic sourcing for forest management, wildfire mitigation, infrastructure resilience, and resource conservation initiatives. His portfolio encompasses complex, mission-critical acquisitions ranging from forestry support services to heavy civil engineering projects, ensuring compliance with federal acquisition regulations while aligning contracting decisions with the agency’s environmental and operational priorities. He works closely with field staff, environmental specialists, and engineering teams to translate technical requirements into solicitation documents that drive mission success. Mr. James maintains a broad network of vendor partnerships, primarily with firms specializing in forestry support activities, civil engineering, and infrastructure construction. While no single contractor dominates his award profile, he consistently engages contractors with proven expertise in wildland fire response, trail and road maintenance, and watershed protection. His procurement approach emphasizes performance-based contracting, requiring measurable outcomes in habitat restoration, erosion control, and public infrastructure reliability. He prioritizes vendors with field experience in rugged, ecologically sensitive terrains and a track record of adherence to NEPA and other environmental compliance standards. His contracting patterns reflect a strong preference for open competition, with 85% of acquisitions conducted without set-asides. Nevertheless, he actively promotes small business participation, allocating 5% each to Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses and total small business set-asides under FAR 19.5, along with 5% to 8(a) competed contracts. This balanced approach ensures market diversity while maintaining competitive rigor and mission readiness. Mr. James’s primary procurement focus lies in NAICS 115310 (Support Activities for Forestry), which accounts for over half of his portfolio, followed by 237990 (Other Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction) and 237110 (Water and Sewer Line Construction). He routinely procures services such as prescribed burning, invasive species control, forest road rehabilitation, and erosion control structures, demonstrating deep technical familiarity with land management operations and natural resource infrastructure.