A tree in Itasca County Vicki Olson | For MPR News 2014

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is asking the Legislature for another $4 million in the next two years to manage the state's forests.

The DNR oversees the harvesting of roughly 40,000 acres of forest every year on state lands. The additional money will help the DNR better deal with invasive species, diseases, climate change and other threats to the forest, said DNR forestry director Forrest Boe.

"The way we do that is making sure our forests are healthy, taking out the undesirable trees, making sure we have the right amount of trees and a good variety of trees on the landscape," Boe said.

The Legislature is still working on the state budget. The House proposal is only about a quarter of what the DNR wants. The Senate hasn't come out yet with its recommendations. The Legislature must wrap up all its budget decisions by May 18.