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http://www.omniture.com --> Sections Home Page Local News AP News Blogs Archives Business Classifieds Event Calendar Forums Life Opinion Obituaries Multimedia Photo Gallery Readers Photo Gallery Sports Tempo Weather Road Cams Special Coverage 2006 Britt Festivals --> Shop Our Valley AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Search Our Valley Special Sections Distinctly Northwest Readers' Choice Homelife Magazine Joy Magazine Oregon Golf Info Oregon Wine Info Other Publications Local Links Ashland News eSouthernOregon Newspapers In Education Personals Moving Here Movie Listings TV Listings Volunteer Customer Service Advertise With Us Media Kit Place Classified Ad Contact Us FAQ's Home Delivery Site Map --> Email Story to a Friend February 18, 2007 Meeting addresses timber payments Leaders outline ways communities will suffer without funds By John Darling for the Mail Tribune A proposed seven-year extension of county timber payments will not win support among Western members of Congress unless Oregon's historically huge share is significantly reduced, Rep. Greg Walden yesterday told commissioners from several area counties who gathered for a public discussion in Medford Saturday afternoon. "My read on it is that, to get the votes in the House and Senate, members of Congress from other Western states are going to have to have more (money)," Walden said in an interview. "Oregon has been getting $280 million out of the $400 million and they're saying, wait a minute, how come you get so much?" The money is the 25 percent share of timber sales, paid to counties in a formula set up in 1908 and heavily timbered Jackson County has been getting $24 million a year. A seven-year extension of the program expired last year. Oregon always gave more to the fund than it got, until 1991, when harvesting declined, he said. Passage of a new extension, HR17, is "within reality," said Walden, noting that "the message is getting though because the crisis is getting worse." Unless the legislation is taken seriously in Congress soon, Walden said he plans "scorched earth" dilatory tactics similar to a filibuster, including calling for an adjournment after each vote, as permitted by rules. Advertisement Commissioners of Jackson, Josephine, Klamath and Lake Counties read a painful litany of expected cuts to a sympathetic Walden, with Josephine County Commissioner Josephine County Commissioner Jim Raffenburg noting that a looming 60 percent cut in the general fund and potential failure of a May tax measure would mean the sheriff's office will have only 30 jail beds, down from 262, and one patrol car on the road at any time, with four hours a day not covered. "People are angry. They're already frustrated at the low level of law enforcement," Raffenburg said in an interview. "Any sane person knows when there is no authority, things can get out of hand. This is something we've never seen in this country before. When people are without recourse, they use their own resources. We're entering uncharted territory." If timber money is lost, Jackson County and the neighboring four counties will no longer be able to contribute their $152,000 toward the Medford firefighting tanker base and, unless the federal government steps in with funds to run it, it will close, with disastrous results for area forests, said Jackson County Commissioner Jack Walker. "The federal government is going to have to pay for it one way or the other, or close it," Walker said in an interview. Jackson County Commissioner C.W. Smith noted that, with snowpack at 50 to 70 percent of normal, fire season will start earlier. "It's a major threat to millions of fire-prone acres," he said. It's much more of a threat to endangered species than logging, he added. Saying "we have met the enemy and he is us," Smith added, "Congress and the Senate need to understand they are the enemy and our forests are in horrible shape with fire load." Raffenburg and others bemoaned the large sums of federal money sent to help people overseas, while U.S. communities suffer. Jackson County Sheriff Mike Winters said, "This country spends hundreds of millions in foreign aid for Africa. Why don't we take care of our people first? It (timber payments) is a commitment made to our people." Rocky McVey, executive director of the Association of Oregon Counties, questioned the $4.6 billion budgeted by the Department of Agriculture for low-cost rural home loans. It doesn't make sense to buy rural homes if they don't have roads going to them, money for schools and law enforcement along with it, McVey said. The commissioners said that if timber payments cease, one solution that could keep local economies on an even keel is a return to sustained yield harvest of Oregon's plentiful timber, at levels of the mid-20th century. Timber receipts are often called "fat" or "welfare for counties," but Lake County Commissioner Brad Winters said, "We're not fat. We're just trying to survive and keep our doors open, and I'd like to see a return to sustainable harvesting with good management." "We lived off O&C (timber) revenues for 70 or 80 years and now we're being forced to look at options," said Walker. "But the ideas we're trying to push now all push up against the Endangered Species Act. All available revenue sources are tapped out and voters have rejected a sales tax many times." Commissioner John Elliott of Klamath County said he would gladly give up the payments if workers could be put back in the mills and be bringing home checks, as they were from 1920 to 1985, when Oregon wood went into homes all over the country. His fellow commissioner, Al Switzer, said a passing train in Roseburg is most often filled with Canadian lumber and it's "quite an event when we see one from Roseburg Lumber. We're just not cutting timber." One solution is increasing the harvest of fire-prone, small-diameter timber, said Smith, adding that not just timber interests, but even environmental organizations are starting to want to talk and they're concerned about the impact of fire hazards. Walden told commissioners he's "not ready yet to throw a wrench in the gears," and he hopes other members of Congress will understand that "when Teddy Roosevelt created these forest reserves in 1900, the federal government realized it needed to be a good neighbor and offset the counties' costs." John Darling is a freelance writer living in Ashland. E-mail him at [email protected]. Would you like to respond to this story? If so Click Here to visit our forums. Advertisement Copyright © 1997-2007 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback online casinos news Home Security Systems Online Casino Reviews Fundraisers UK Homeowner Loans Casinos Canada Cord Blood Banking Entertainment Guide Texas Electric Choice Compare Electric rates in Texas Windermere Van Vleet Trunks, Footlocker Men's Clothing Debt Help