By Bryan Navarro
GRANTS PASS, Ore. -- Millions of dollars from the federal government for forest lands protected from logging are no longer being paid out, spelling potential budget problems and major cutbacks for counties that depend on the money.
Inside Anne Basker Auditorium, Rep. Peter DeFazio (D) U.S. Congressman of District 4, and Rep. Greg Walden (R) U.S. Congressman of District 2, answered questions from the media while dozens of voters looked on.
To a crowd of supporters and critics, congressmen from both sides of the aisle painted a picture of the impending crisis.
"Bottom line," said DeFazio, "Curry County might no longer exist. Minimally, if it continues to exist, there would be no law enforcement, no jail. There'd be a sheriff; that'd be it."
"This is a very, very stark situation. This is a desperate situation," said Walden.
Local lawmakers are fighting on two fronts, one in the Senate and one in the House. First, in the Senate, a short-term fix that would temporarily extended timber payments at a lower level; second, in the House, a long-term plan that would make counties self-sufficient. Both Democrats and Republicans would support that proposal, but they've yet to come to an agreement about how to manage the forests.
Once an agreement is reached and a plan is in place that future bill still faces an uphill battle in Washington. The short-term plan is up against opposition in the Senate. Jackson County Commissioner John Rachor said it may take one county to fail before there's decisive action.
Both Congressmen say there's no timetable for when the agreement will move forward in Washington, but say if and when it does, it will go through the conventional and traditional legislative process.
The Bureau of Land Management announced they had made the final timber payments to "O&C" counties last week. The payments have been a way to pay back counties that are unable to log forestlands owned and protected by the federal government.
Douglas County received the most in the state of Oregon, just under $11 million. Jackson and Josephine counties each received close to six million dollars each, and Klamath County was paid a little more than one million. Jackson County has said it has $40 million in reserves to make up for the loss.
