Environmental groups propose plan to replace federal forest payments to Oregon counties

A coalition of environmental groups, hoping to head off congressional action they believe would increase unsustainable logging, propose a three-prong approach for replacing federal forest payments to hard-hit Oregon counties. The groups called Wednesday for "shared responsibility" in solving the severe budget problems facing 18 rural Oregon counties that are among those that lost federal payments last year. They said the state, federal government and the counties themselves could each provide a third of the estimated $110 million needed annually to sustain services: The state would increase the harvest tax assessed to private forest owners to $9.21 per 1,000 board feet from $3.21, and disperse revenue to the counties. Federal management of 2.6 million acres of what's known as the O&C forestland would be transferred from the Bureau of Land Management to the U.S. Forest Service, with savings from the consolidation going to the counties. County voters would be asked to approve property tax increases. Many counties now have extremely low tax rates and collect much less than is allowed under state property tax limitations. The proposal is an alternative to bipartisan legislation expected soon from Democratic Reps. Peter DeFazio and Kurt Schrader, and Republican Rep. Greg Walden. Details haven't been outlined, but the Oregon congressmen propose dividing the O&C forestland into two trusts. Half would be preserved and half would be managed for timber production and county revenue...more

Raise taxes on industry, raise taxes on private property and change management to an even more bureaucratic agency - what a great way to create economic development.