Category: B.I.A. - Coos County Watchdog

Study on Generating Funds for Oregon Common School Trust Lands

4/16/2018

Cascade Policy Institute recently commissioned economist Eric Fruits, Ph.D. to do a comparative analysis of nine Western states with large Common School Trust Land portfolios to determine under what circumstances it might make sense for states to sell these lands and invest the net proceeds into stocks, bonds, and other financial instruments.

Management of Oregon’s 1.5 million acre portfolio of Common School Trust Lands has long been a contentious issue. Twenty-five years ago, Oregon Attorney General Charles S. Crookham issued an opinion clarifying that Common School Trust Lands must be managed primarily for revenue maximization.

But environmental groups have repeatedly lobbied and litigated to eliminate revenue generation from the Trust Lands, claiming that commodity production is an outdated concept. They finally succeeded during 2013-15, when Oregon’s Trust Land portfolio lost $360,000/year in net operating income. Those losses had to be paid for by Oregon public school students.

In his report, A Proposal to Generate Adequate Returns from Common School Trust Lands, Dr. Fruits concluded that revenue generated for schools by the Oregon Common School Trust Lands likely would go up by 600% if the lands were sold and the net income were invested in the existing Common School Fund.

ACTION ALERT: Senate Voting to Relinquish Management of Public Lands ~ HR2647

7/11/2016

Hey Folks,

A bad piece of legislation concerning the management of federal forest land has passed the house and is headed to the Senate. The problem with this legislation is that it ignores the root of the problem and that is federal ownership of state land.

Here is a statement from the Natural Resource committee: “One year ago tomorrow, the House passed the Resilient Federal Forests Act (H.R. 2647) to address the nation's overgrown, fire-prone federal forests. Since then, 8.5 million acres have been destroyed, including 2.3 million acres this year alone.”

The citizens of all 50 states have to call all the Senators on the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry to let them know that the federal government should relinquish all authority and ownership of federal land and allow it to revert back to the prospective county, or state.

The reason Coos County should be very concerned with this bill is that it could allow an Indian tribe the ability to manage federal land in the county, including the O&C lands and the Coos Bay Wagon Road land. The county would lose money to allow some other entity to manage land we are perfectly capable of managing ourselves. Plus, these management agreements erode the sovereignty of both our Nation and the Indian Nations….Rob T.

Link to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry:
www.agriculture.senate.gov
U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, & Forestry
328A Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC, 20510
Phone: (202) 224-2035
Fax: (202) 228-2125

Link to information on HR2647:
https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/2647/all-info

There are 4 summaries for H.R.2647. View summaries
Passed House amended (07/09/2015)
Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2015
TITLE VII--TRIBAL FORESTRY PARTICIPATION AND PROTECTION
(Sec. 701) Interior shall take specified administrative action under the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 within 120 days of receiving a request from an Indian Tribe to enter into an agreement or contract to carry out a project to protect Indian forest land or rangeland (including bordering or adjacent federal land). Interior shall (under current law, may) issue a notice of denial to the Tribe if the request is denied.
(Sec. 702) The Department concerned, at the request of an Indian Tribe, may treat federal forest land as Indian forest land for purposes of planning and conducting forest land management activities under the National Indian Forest Resources Management Act if the federal forest land is located within, or mostly within, a geographic area presenting a feature or involving circumstances principally relevant to that Indian tribe.
The Department concerned and the Tribe, as part of an agreement to treat federal land as Indian forest land, shall:
provide for continued public access (with possible exceptions),
continue sharing revenue generated by the federal forest land with state and local governments,
comply with applicable prohibitions on the export of unprocessed logs harvested from the federal forest land,
recognize all right-of way agreements in place on federal forest land before tribal management activities commence; and
ensure that all commercial timber removed from the federal forest land is sold on a competitive bid basis.
(Sec. 703) Interior and USDA may carry out demonstration projects by which federally recognized Indian tribes or tribal organizations may contract to perform administrative, management, and other functions of programs of the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 through contracts entered into under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act.

TITLE VIII--MISCELLANEOUS FOREST MANAGEMENT PROVISIONS
(Sec. 807) The Northwest Forest Plan Survey and Manage Mitigation Measure Standard and Guidelines shall not apply to any System or public lands.
(Sec. 808) All of the public land managed by the BLM in the Salem District, Eugene District, Roseburg District, Coos Bay District, Medford District, and the Klamath Resource Area of the Lakeview District in Oregon shall be managed pursuant to federal law relating to management of the revested Oregon and California Railroad and reconveyed Coos Bay Wagon Road grant lands under Interior jurisdiction and classified as timberlands and power-site lands valuable for timber. All of the revenue produced from such lands shall be deposited into the Oregon and California land-grant fund, except any revenue required to be deposited into the Coos Bay Wagon Road grant fund.
(Sec. 809) Interior shall develop and consider, a reference analysis and two additional alternatives as part of the revisions of the resource management plans for the BLM's Salem, Eugene, Coos Bay, Roseburg, and Medford Districts and the Klamath Resource Area of the Lakeview District.
This reference analysis shall measure and assume the harvest of the annual growth net of natural mortality for all forested land in the planning area in order to determine the maximum sustained yield capacity of the forested land base and to establish a baseline by which Interior shall measure incremental effects on the sustained yield capacity and environmental impacts from management prescriptions in all other alternatives.
Interior shall develop and consider:
one additional alternative with the goal of maximizing the total carbon benefits from forest storage and wood product storage; and
a second additional alternative that produces the greater of 500 million board feet or the annual net growth on the acres classified as timberland, excluding any congressionally reserved areas.
Interior shall publish the reference analysis and additional alternatives and analyze their environmental and economic consequences in a supplemental draft environmental impact statement.

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A Meeting About Nothing....

Help STOP 2.5 Million-acre Owyhee Monument~Bus Ride Sunday May 22, 2016

5/11/2016

Oregon lawmakers need to hear our voices. Will you join us in Salem for Oregon Legislative Days?

The House Rural Communities Committee is hosting a meeting to discuss the potential monument designation in Malheur County on Monday, May 23.

On Sunday, May 22, around 9 p.m., we will load a bus in Jordan Valley and head to the Oregon Capitol for the meeting. Along the way, we will make a few stops to pick up supporters and so people can stretch their legs and will arrive in Salem by Monday morning in time to attend the 8:30 a.m. meeting.

Following the committee meeting, we will host a news conference on the front steps of the Capitol building. Then we will load the bus and return to eastern Oregon by Monday night.

Are you interested in joining us? Please let us know by noon tomorrow, May 12, by emailing feedback@OurLandOurVoice.com.

We hope to see you there.

Have you signed our petition? Take a moment to tell lawmakers no monument without a vote of Congress.

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Senator Wyden’s O&C Plan will Bankrupt Counties Part #2
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BLM ~ Public Meeting New River Management Plan Wednesday, March 9, 2016

2/24/2016

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NOAA Proposed Recovery Plan for Coho Salmon September 2015
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Senator Wyden’s O&C Plan will Bankrupt Counties Part #2
Senator Wyden's O&C Plan will Bankrupt Counties Part #1

BOC ~ Statement of Interest on Transfer of Elliott State Forest December 7, 2015

2/18/2016

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Public Lands Protest BLM, BIA, USACE, USFWS, USFS Saturday, Feb. 13, 2016

2/6/2016

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Senator Wyden’s O&C Plan will Bankrupt Counties Part #2
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TNC Benefits from States Loss & $450 Million More from Taxpayers for LWCF

12/20/2015

Hey Patriots,

Please tell me?
What the HELL is the matter with Republicans in DC?

Did they get their spines removed?

The US Congress reenacted the Land Water Conservation Fund for three more years. Both houses have a republican majority, yet the party of limited government cannot find the fortitude to stop funneling tax dollars into groups driven by environmental extremism.   The house republicans negotiatiated a deal with the democrats over bans on crude oil exports.

The cost of this green slush fund will top 450 million dollars and part of the money goes for the Bandon Marsh Mosquito Preserve & NWR.

Scroll down after clicking the following link and on the right side of the page there is a list of projects funded by the LWCF, including the Bandon Marsh NWR. http://www.lwcfcoalition.org/oregon.html

The western states will never be free from federal ownership until the money funding these land acquisitions begin to dry up….Rob T.

ARLINGTON, VA | December 16, 2015

Congress has released its omnibus federal spending package, which sets funding levels for government agencies for Fiscal Year 2016. It also contains a number of conservation and environmental provisions that will affect America’s lands, waters, and wildlife, including a three-year reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and funding that program at $450 million next year. The House and Senate are expected to vote on the bill later this week.

The Nature Conservancy released the following statement from its global Managing Director for Public Policy Lynn Scarlett in response to the omnibus bill:

“The omnibus bill shows promise on many of the top conservation issues facing our nation today. The bill includes greater overall funding for critical land and water conservation work that supports secure and prosperous communities across America, and we are grateful for that commitment.

“We are particularly eager to see the Land and Water Conservation Fund continue its critical work for conservation and recreation. The short-term reauthorization of LWCF in the omnibus is helpful progress that will allow continued investment in the lands and waters that sustain our communities, boost our economy and safeguard our environment. And, it will do so with higher funding next year than the program has had for many years. We’re happy to see this vital and successful 50-year-old program continue to deliver important economic, recreation, and natural resource benefits to the American people.

“However, we—and many other Americans from coast to coast—believe we must continue to work toward a fully funded and permanent future for LWCF. Conserving our nation’s lands and waters is not a short-term need; it is a long-term foundation for our future. Congressional leaders on LWCF fought hard for a permanent reauthorization, and we are grateful for their dedication and persistence. We’ll do everything we can to support that continued effort to make a sustainable, long-term future for LWCF become reality.

“In another positive development, the omnibus bill makes enhanced tax deductions for conservation easement donations permanent. This ensures that one of the most effective tools for conserving private working lands across the country will be available for future generations. In addition, dozens of harmful riders that would have undermined environmental law were originally under consideration, but were dropped from the final bill. We appreciate the efforts of members of Congress who steadfastly opposed the riders.

“But we are disappointed this bill did not include a fix for the wildfire funding problem that has plagued forest health and restoration efforts for years. This was a missed opportunity, despite bipartisan support, a great deal of effort from congressional champions and broad consensus that action is urgently needed. We will continue to work with Congress to provide a solution next year.”

“In all, the omnibus bill advances the critical benefits that conservation of lands and waters provide to American communities and families. We are grateful for all of the hard work of our champions in Congress who made this possible. This omnibus is a hopeful signal for the even greater conservation policy progress we believe is necessary and possible in the very near future.

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to conserve the lands and waters on which all life depends. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the web at www.nature.org. To learn about the Conservancy’s global initiatives, visit www.nature.org/global. To keep up with current Conservancy news, follow @nature_press on Twitter.

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Senator Wyden’s O&C Plan will Bankrupt Counties Part #2
Senator Wyden's O&C Plan will Bankrupt Counties Part #1
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US House Introducing Conservation Act to Reform Conservation Slush Fund

11/9/2015

This week the Committee introduced the “Protecting America’s Recreation and Conservation (PARC) Act,” which includes sweeping reforms to update the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). Enacted more than 50 years ago, LWCF has transformed into a special interest slush fund with a lopsided funding ratio. Learn more below.

Earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal editorial board published an article about the breakdown of the LWCF, revealing that funds are used for eminent domain projects. The editorial board posed that “Useful updates would include mandating that more spending go toward states, as well as freeing up cash for chipping away at the upkeep backlog and banning the seizure of property. And why not suspend land acquisitions until the feds can account for everything they own?” Read the full article HERE. Also, in an interview on Thursday with Tim Farley, host of The Morning Briefing on POTUS Sirius XM radio, Chairman Bishop explained how the LWCF has been hijacked by special interests to become a “slush fund.” CLICK HERE to listen.

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Senator Wyden’s O&C Plan will Bankrupt Counties Part #2
Senator Wyden's O&C Plan will Bankrupt Counties Part #1
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Comments from the Cottage Grove 912
A Meeting About Nothing....

County Planning Denies Request for a Vacation Rental Using Bad Reasoning

9/30/2015

CD-15-122 - Staff Report - Amended 9-30-2015
File Size:	273 kb
File Type:	pdf

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BOC ~ Important Public Work Session on Tide Gates Monday September 28, 2015

9/23/2015

Hey Folks,

The Coos County BOC will be having a meeting to discuss Tide Gates in a Work session at 1:30pm Monday September 28, 2015 in the commissioners old meeting room 121. Replacing the old tide gates in the valley is one way to hedge against the expansion of the Bandon Marsh Mosquito Preserve. It is very important that property owners living in the valley attend to assure the property owners are represented.....Rob T.

boc_wk_of_9-28-15_meeting-committee_notice.pdf
File Size:	35 kb
File Type:	pdf

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Open Letter to Rep. Bruce Westerman on Origins of CBWR in H.R. 2647

9/3/2015

From: Rob Taylor
To:      Office of Rep. Westerman, Bruce [R-AR-4]
            https://westerman.house.gov/
Re:      Origins of Sections 702, 808, & 809 of H.R. 2647,
             Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2015

September 2, 2015

To Jordan Garcia Assistant to Representative Westerman,

The following message concerns H.R. 2647 and the Coos Bay Wagon Road Land. The CBWR   land is legally separate from the O&C land, but the two are often lumped together. The people of Coos County have been campaigning for the right to manage the Coos Bay Wagon Road lands ourselves with the authority do decide how best to use these lands. It is a request for the same and equal rights as the Indian tribes. The tribes have a “sovereign nation shield” protecting them from lawsuits by environmentalist groups, which is an advantage to their nation over the private landowners, businesses, states, and local governments in the US.

The County’s general fund would lose about 50% of the proceeds from any timber sales if the county has to pay some other entity to manage property we are perfectly capable of managing ourselves. There was a vote in 1996 asking the voters of Coos County if the Coquille Indian Tribe should manage public lands and it failed by 85% with a large voter turnout. That vote would be about the same today, if the question of land management were on the ballot, because this issue is, and has been, a major contention in the county and in local government for over 100 years.

If the county cannot manage The CBWR property then the U.S. legislature should allow the county to sell it to the highest bidder on the open market, putting it back in the tax base as a benefit to all humankind.

The Federal government owns 53% plus of the state of Oregon, whereas the state of Arkansas has only a mere 9.4% owned by the feds. The Feds do not have the constitutional authority to own any of this land, much less over 50% of a state. The Bill appears to be an attempt by the Republicans in the House of Representatives to use a “politically correct,” federally protected group to hedge against environmental extremism by using their tribal status to circumvent the courts.

To make one group more privileged than another, because of their heritage, is illegal, immoral and repugnant in a Nation that prides itself as equalitarian towards all people, including its own citizens. The agreement with the Indian Nations to acquiesce the management of our own lands instead of defending the Right of Commerce in this county is equally egregious, but this measure is more about obfuscation of the facts.

Fact, the American Indians do not have a real “sovereign nation,” because the US Department of Interior holds all of the lands owned by the Indian Nations in a trust. Fact, the Indian governments will not have any real authority, because the Bureau of Indian Affairs, not the Indians, holds that power,   Fact, most of the tribes are sustained by the hard earned money of the US taxpayer, weakening their own identity and abilities. Fact, these measures are deleterious to the Indian people and go to deteriorate the real sovereignty that is the right of the American Indian to decide their own destiny by owning their own property, and not being subservient to the overreaching and abusive authority of the Department of Interior.

As a Tea Party Republican, you should have known better, Mr. Westerman.

There is still time to work together to remedy this situation.

Official Inquiry:

Where did the wording originate for the portions of H.R.2647 that concern the Coos Bay Wagon Road Land?

Why was the CBWR land added to this bill?

Who did Representative Bruce Westerman, or his staff meet with to discuss adding the language concerning the CBWR land?

Who has Representative Bruce Westerman, or his staff met with from Oregon concerning H.R. 2647, or the sections in H.R. 2647 concerning the O&C Land & CBWR Lands?

Who has Representative Bruce Westerman, or his staff, met with from Oregon, in particularly from Coos County, concerning any public lands?

Where is the authority documented in the US Constitution giving your office, the US Congress, and the federal government to not only own this land, but allow another “sovereign nation” manage those lands?

Link to the Bill in question, H.R. 2647
https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/2647/text

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Outsourcing US Land Management to the Indians
USACE ~ Comment on Permit Application Process Wednesday November 18, 2015
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The Mosquitoes Return to the Coquille Valley
Two Bills on Wetlands in Oregon Legislature SB544 Protects Landowners
ODFW ~ Conservation Opportunity Areas for Stealing Private Property
O&C Land Wyden Bill Still Not Good for Rural Oregon
O&C :Urgent" Public Comment Tell Wyden You Oppose his Deal to Environmentalist
Tribal Forest Management in the Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs
MGX~Lobbyist a Big Waste of #CoosCounty Money for Wagon Road Lands
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Why does the Government Own & Hoard Resources?
Senator Wyden’s O&C Plan will Bankrupt Counties Part #2
Senator Wyden's O&C Plan will Bankrupt Counties Part #1
Senator Whitsett---Oregon: Transfer public lands from feds?
Natural Resources Committee--State Forests Management Superior to Federal Forests
O&C Land---Timber Bill and Log Prices
BLM---Lawsuit expands to lock-up 90 million bd-ft of timber
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A Meeting About Nothing....

Does Advisory Vote Trump a Resolution for Management of the Wagon Road Lands

9/2/2015

6-36 Measure - Coquille Tribal Forest Plan and Land Transfer Advisory Vote
File Size:	418 kb
File Type:	pdf

It was only an ADVISORY VOTE – which is non-binding. Vote totals were Yes = 2, 229; No = 12,701.

Total Voting 14,940 Failed by 85%

Vs.

BOC Resolution Supporting Wagon Rd Management 2008
File Size:	418 kb
File Type:	pdf

Vote of a former Coos County Board of Commissioners.

Total Voting 3 Passed by 100%

Vs.

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Outsourcing US Land Management to the Indians

9/1/2015

September 1, 2015

Outsourcing US Land Management to the Indians

Recently, the US House of Representatives passed the Resilient Federal Forest Act of 2015 and it has wording buried deep in the bill that would have some serious consequences for the people of Coos County, while fundamentally changing the structure of management for the Coos Bay Wagon Road lands.

The following are some excerpts from federal legislation H.R.2647, Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2015, which pertains to the management of the National Forest System and public lands. The Sections that should be of most concern is Section 702, and Sections 808, and 809, which relates to the management of lands in Coos County.

In Section 702, it authorizes supposedly independent Indian Nations to include US National Forest Lands and public lands in the forest management plans of the individual tribes. The legislation imposes some weak limitations on any other designations for using the land other than stated in the legislation, neutralizing the ability of any of the Indian Nations who may try to usurp the property. The problems with these restrictions are the legal interpretations of the law, especially when dealing with a sovereign nation.

SEC. 702. Management of Indian forest land authorized to include related National Forest System lands and public lands.

Section 305 of the National Indian Forest Resources Management Act (25 U.S.C. 3104) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

“(c) Inclusion of certain National Forest System land and public land.--

“(1) AUTHORITY.—At the request of an Indian tribe, the Secretary concerned may treat Federal forest land as Indian forest land for purposes of planning and conducting forest land management activities under this section if the Federal forest land is located within, or mostly within, a geographic area that presents a feature or involves circumstances principally relevant to that Indian tribe, such as Federal forest land ceded to the United States by treaty, Federal forest land within the boundaries of a current or former reservation, or Federal forest land adjudicated to be tribal homelands.

“(2) REQUIREMENTS.—As part of the agreement to treat Federal forest land as Indian forest land under paragraph (1), the Secretary concerned and the Indian tribe making the request shall--

“(A) provide for continued public access applicable to the Federal forest land prior to the agreement, except that the Secretary concerned may limit or prohibit such access as needed;

“(B) continue sharing revenue generated by the Federal forest land with State and local governments either--

“(i) on the terms applicable to the Federal forest land prior to the agreement, including, where applicable, 25-percent payments or 50-percent payments; or

“(ii) at the option of the Indian tribe, on terms agreed upon by the Indian tribe, the Secretary concerned, and State and county governments participating in a revenue sharing agreement for the Federal forest land;

“(C) comply with applicable prohibitions on the export of unprocessed logs harvested from the Federal forest land;

“(D) recognize all right-of-way agreements in place on Federal forest land prior to commencement of tribal management activities; and

“(E) ensure that all commercial timber removed from the Federal forest land is sold on a competitive bid basis.

“(3) LIMITATION.—Treating Federal forest land as Indian forest land for purposes of planning and conducting management activities pursuant to paragraph (1) shall not be construed to designate the Federal forest land as Indian forest lands for any other purpose.

“(4) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection:

“(A) FEDERAL FOREST LAND.—The term ‘Federal forest land’ means--

“(i) National Forest System lands; and

“(ii) public lands (as defined in section 103(e) of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702(e))), including Coos Bay Wagon Road Grant lands reconveyed to the United States pursuant to the first section of the Act of February 26, 1919 (40 Stat. 1179), and Oregon and California Railroad Grant lands.

“(B) SECRETARY CONCERNED.—The term ‘Secretary concerned’ means--

“(i) the Secretary of Agriculture, with respect to the Federal forest land referred to in subparagraph (A)(i); and

“(ii) the Secretary of the Interior, with respect to the Federal forest land referred to in subparagraph (A)(ii).”.

Section 808, discusses land in Western Oregon under the authority of the Bureau of Land Management. It provides for the deposit of revenue from the Oregon & California Grant land, which are subject to provisions of title II of the 1937 O&C Act. It excludes the Coos Bay Wagon Road fund according to the provisions in a succeeding Act passed in 1939, which defines the separations of the Wagon Road lands from the O&C Lands. The distinction gives the government of Coos County the ability to collect revenue from the resources on the Wagon Road land without having to share the money with other members of the O&C Act, but only if the county is allowed to harvest it without the interference of lawsuits by environmental extremist.

SEC. 808. Management of Bureau of Land Management lands in western Oregon.

(a) General rule.—All of the public land managed by the Bureau of Land Management in the Salem District, Eugene District, Roseburg District, Coos Bay District, Medford District, and the Klamath Resource Area of the Lakeview District in the State of Oregon shall hereafter be managed pursuant to title I of the of the Act of August 28, 1937 (43 U.S.C. 1181a through 1181e). Except as provided in subsection (b), all of the revenue produced from such land shall be deposited in the Treasury of the United States in the Oregon and California land-grant fund and be subject to the provisions of title II of the Act of August 28, 1937 (43 U.S.C. 1181f).

(b) Certain lands excluded.—Subsection (a) does not apply to any revenue that is required to be deposited in the Coos Bay Wagon Road grant fund pursuant to sections 1 through 4 of the Act of May 24, 1939 (43 U.S.C. 1181f–1 through f–4).

In Section 809, it devises a scheme to allow the Secretary of the Interior to develop an analytical plan with two additional alternatives on the management of the land to present to the people of Western Oregon. All the options the Secretary will present to the public will be a list of bounded choices, so no matter what the public decides the Department of Interior will get their desired outcome. These tactics eliminate all other options for using this property

SEC. 809. Bureau of Land Management resource management plans.

(a) Additional Analysis and Alternatives.—To develop a full range of reasonable alternatives as required by the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the Secretary of the Interior shall develop and consider in detail a reference analysis and two additional alternatives as part of the revisions of the resource management plans for the Bureau of Land Management’s Salem, Eugene, Coos Bay, Roseburg, and Medford Districts and the Klamath Resource Area of the Lakeview District.

(b) Reference Analysis.—The reference analysis required by subsection (a) shall measure and assume the harvest of the annual growth net of natural mortality for all forested land in the planning area in order to determine the maximum sustained yield capacity of the forested land base and to establish a baseline by which the Secretary of the Interior shall measure incremental effects on the sustained yield capacity and environmental impacts from management prescriptions in all other alternatives.

(c) Additional Alternatives.--

(1) CARBON SEQUESTRATION ALTERNATIVE.—The Secretary of the Interior shall develop and consider an additional alternative with the goal of maximizing the total carbon benefits from forest storage and wood product storage. To the extent practicable, the analysis shall consider--

(A) the future risks to forest carbon from wildfires, insects, and disease;

(B) the amount of carbon stored in products or in landfills;

(C) the life cycle benefits of harvested wood products compared to non-renewable products; and

(D) the energy produced from wood residues.

(2) SUSTAINED YIELD ALTERNATIVE.—The Secretary of the Interior shall develop and consider an additional alternative that produces the greater of 500 million board feet or the annual net growth on the acres classified as timberland, excluding any congressionally reserved areas. The projected harvest levels, as nearly as practicable, shall be distributed among the Districts referred to in subsection (a) in the same proportion as the maximum yield capacity of each such District bears to maximum yield capacity of the planning area as a whole.

(d) Additional Analysis and Public Participation.—The Secretary of the Interior shall publish the reference analysis and additional alternatives and analyze their environmental and economic consequences in a supplemental draft environmental impact statement. The draft environmental impact statement and supplemental draft environmental impact statement shall be made available for public comment for a period of not less than 180 days. The Secretary shall respond to any comments received before making a final decision between all alternatives.

(e) Rule of construction.—Nothing in this section shall affect the obligation of the Secretary of the Interior to manage the timberlands as required by the Act of August 28, 1937 (50 Stat. 874; 43 U.S.C. 1181a–1181j).

In conclusion, the people of Coos County should be contacting their federal Senator and the Senators of the public lands committee to demand that H.R.2647 exclude public lands in America from the management of any sovereign nation other than the US government, including an Indian Nation. The Senate should know that our county government is capable of managing these lands, if the county had the same protections from lawsuits that are the advantage of the Indian Nations.

Moreover, the US Federal government should allow the county to sell these lands on the open market, and all other land owned by the US Federal Government should be reverted to the state of origin, so those lands can go back into production for the betterment of humankind.

https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/2647/text

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Stop DOI's Demand for Permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund

4/10/2015

Hey Folks,

The LWCF is what the USFWS used to purchase land in the Bandon Marsh and other land acquisitions. Please call or fax the Public Lands Committee in the US House of Representative and tell them not to give ANY funding to the Land & Water Conservation Fund.....Rob T.

Committee on Natural Resources United States House of Representatives

1324 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515

Phone: (202) 225-2761

Fax: (202) 225-5929

This week, Secretary Jewell visited Georgia and Virginia to highlight the need for full and permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which is key to protecting America's special places, preserving our country's history and providing recreation opportunities for all. Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma was named the best national wildlife refuge by USA Today, and Washington's iconic cherry blossoms are set to peak this weekend. Plus, more this week at Interior.

Watch this week's episode.

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ODFW ~ Permit for the Winter Lake/China Creek Project, Messerle Named Manager

12/31/2014

Hey Folks,

Check out page 16 and you will notice that Fred Messerle is the new project manager. Funny, Steve Denny never mentioned a 6 million dollar position for the former commissioner when he was presenting the project to the public, but that is how the Old Boy's Club works. The Nature Conservancy, the Army Corp of Engineers, The Bureau of Indian Affairs, and of course, The US Fish and Wildlife all have a piece of this project and it is benefiting only the few who will make millions off of public tax dollars and the few who will get to use it for mitigation. The rest of us will have to learn to live with mosquitoes......Rob T.

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BIA ~ DOI Boasting About a Half Million Acres Taken Off the Tax Roll, so the rest pay

12/1/2014

Hey Folks,

I worked for and support Indian Sovereignty, if that means they are self sufficient, not dependent on the tax payers of the American Government. However, the origins of these tribes are questionable, plus the country's tax payers have to pay for the nearly half million acres that has been given to the Indians this year alone and taken off the tax roll.

Plus, the Indians lost the American Indian Wars and to the victor goes the spoils, so they should consider themselves very lucky. Most governments just eliminate their enemy. Unfortunately, the BIA is using these people's desire to be independent as a way to have authority over natural resources and the Indians might want to reconsider dealing with a government that has broken most of its treaties with Indians in the past.

We have two Coos County commissioners working to acquiesce their responsibility as representatives of Coos County citizens and give that authority to local Indian Tribes. The Tribal Twosome, Cribbins and Sweet, refuse to release a questionnaire given to them from the tribe, so one wonders what they are telling the tribe that they won't tell us? What backroom deals are being made in the name of the people?.....Rob T.

This week, the White House is welcoming hundreds of tribal leaders from across the country to the sixth annual White House Tribal Nations Conference. The conference provides leaders from the 566 federally recognized tribes the opportunity to interact directly with President Obama and members of the White House Council on Native American Affairs. It also builds upon the President’s commitment to strengthen the government-to-government relationship with Indian Country and to improve the lives of Native Americans.

2014 has been a year of continued progress when it comes to the Obama Administration’s trust relationship with the Nation’s first people. We’ve seen the beginnings of a transformation on Indian education reform, progress on energy and economic development, and the Administration is working to address climate change impacts on Tribal Nations. The Department of the Interior put together a video that highlights some of this ongoing work in Indian Country.

Click here to watch “2 014: A Year of Progress in Indian Country.”

We look forward to engaging with everyone who plans to attend the conference and to those who follow along online throughout the week. Regards,

Tim Fullerton
Director of Digital Strategy
U.S. Department of the Interior
www.instagram.com/USInterior

P.S. To watch the conference online, visit www.doi.gov/live starting Wednesday, December 3 beginning at 8:30am EST.

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Tribal Forest Management in the Subcommittee on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs

11/6/2014

Chairman Hastings:
Committee Stands Ready to Work With the Senate on Solution to Improve Federal Forest Management
Stresses need for solution that helps forest communities across the U.S.

WASHINGTON, D.C., April 10, 2014 - At a Full Committee hearing today on “Tribal Forest Management: A Model for Promoting Healthy Forests and Rural Jobs,” House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Doc Hastings (WA-04) in his opening statement stressed the need for the Senate to take action on House-passed legislation to restore active forest management. Last September, the House passed H.R. 1526, The Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities Act, which renews the federal government’s commitment to manage federal forests for the benefit of rural schools and counties and to improve forest health This bill, which creates over 200,000 jobs, is still waiting for action in the Democrat-controlled Senate. Meanwhile, our federal forests remain unhealthy and rural counties lack stable funding for services such as education and infrastructure.

Excerpts from Chairman Hastings’ Opening Statement:

"I will remind everyone that last year this Committee heard from a number of witnesses – including tribal governments – about the problems that characterize the federal forests under Forest Service management. This committee continues to take a strong interest in addressing these issues in a comprehensive way.

Over the last two decades, federal regulations and lawsuits have essentially shut down our national forests and have led to a rapid decline in timber sales and loss of associated jobs. Inadequate forest management has stripped rural counties of necessary funds to pay for vital services, including schools and emergency responders.

In addition, this lack of active forest management has caused significant degradation of forest health and left our forests increasingly susceptible to wildfires. As the IFMAT report notes, these poorly managed Forest Service lands often present significant wildfire threats to tribal forests. Congress attempted to address this issue under the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004, which allows tribes to propose hazardous fuels reduction projects on adjacent Forest Service lands. Yet this authority is rarely used, in part due to the uncertainties that come with the Forest Service’s seemingly endless environmental regulatory process.

I must point out that it’s been over six months since the House passed comprehensive legislation addressing these issues, and the Senate still has failed to act. H.R. 1526, the Restoring Healthy Forests for Healthy Communities Act, is a bipartisan bill that would create over 200,000 jobs, provide stable funding for counties to use for education and infrastructure, improve local management of our federal forests, and help reduce the risk of wildfire. It’s well past time for the Democrat-controlled Senate to get off the sidelines and take action to help our rural communities and save our national forests.

This Committee stands ready to work with the Senate on this issue. What we will not do, however, is accept a piecemeal approach that takes care of a few but leaves everyone else behind. The challenges facing our rural communities due to the neglect of our national forests will only be remedied with a national approach.”

Click here to read the full opening statement.

###

Printable PDF of this document
Contact: Committee Press Office 202-226-9019

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INTERNATIONAL CODE COUNCIL

Commissioner Candidate Refuses to Disclose Answers to a Questionnaire

9/14/2014

Published September 8, 2014

Commissioner Candidate Refuses to Disclose Answers to a Questionnaire

Does nondisclosure mean a candidate is deceitful?

Recently, the Coos County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a Memorandum of Understanding allowing the Coquille Indian Tribe to add 84.3 miles of county road inventory to the Tribal Transportation Program, obligating the county to more regulation in exchange for federal funding.

In the MOU it states, “Allowing the Tribe to include these roads on the TTP Inventory simply allows the Tribe the opportunity to provide potential funding to future roadway improvement projects.”

Coquille Tribe Letter, Tripp, to Coos County, Rowe, May 12, 2014
File Size:	94 kb
File Type:	pdf

MOU Between Coos County & Coquille Indian Tribe August 5, 2014
File Size:	139 kb
File Type:	pdf

What the MOU does not entail is that the commissioners may have eliminated the ability of the county’s Road Department to scrutinize road improvement projects, because they obligated the road repairs to the will of a third party. It may even cause delays in scheduling repairs that should receive a higher priority. The tribe will have the choice of setting the timing of these projects and the arrangement gives them the ability to choose the companies that will receive the contracts---all of which eliminates the county’s economic flexibility. The tribe will also be able to use the federal money to leverage the management of the Wagon Road lands and other timber issues.

The money comes from the Federal Highway Administration, so the taxpayers of Coos County are still paying for the improvements. The only difference is the money is coming from a much larger taxing pool.

Many in the public objected to this covert agreement between the county and the tribe, especially when all three county commissioners had to recuse themselves from the first vote, until upon receiving legal counsel. During the campaign for commissioner, Mellissa Cribbons promised to recuse herself from all votes concerning the Coquille Indian Tribe, since she was one of their former lobbyists. Unfortunately, in the end, all three commissioners voted in favor of the deal showing the real value of political promises.

It would have been beneficial for the voter to know this information about the candidates before casting their ballots.

The only commissioner up for reelection this fall is incumbent, John Sweet, so it was disconcerting that upon request, he still refuses to release his answers to a questionnaire from the Coquille Indian Tribe, which was given to all the commissioner candidates during the last election cycle. Why would a candidate oppose releasing these answers? What is Mr. Sweet hiding?

The lack of disclosure goes against the integrity of the candidate. These answers are very important for the voter, because the questions from the tribe cover several important issues that the BOC will face in the future. The Coquille Indian Tribe functions as a sovereign government and the distinction allows them certain legal abilities that are not granted to other organizations, and certainly not advantageous to the county. It is this point the commissioners should be very carefully to consider, while negotiating with this group or any foreign nation.

The questionnaire from the Coquille Indian Tribe covered a variety of topics with seventeen questions.

Coquille Indian Tribe Candidate Questions 2012
File Size:	1195 kb
File Type:	pdf

Question 3:   If forced to make budget cuts, what programs would you try to protect? (How do we express our interest?)

Question 4:   For many years, Coos County and the Coquille Indian Tribe have worked to develop a cooperative approach (see www.wagonroad.org) to the management of the federal Coos Bay Wagon Road lands. Our Proposal would generate and sustain thousands of jobs and make Coos County self-sufficient from federal timber “safety net” payments. Do you support enactment of this proposal by the U.S. Congress? Please explain the reasons for your answer.

Question 6:   What is your position on Indian Gaming and its future in Oregon? Do you support the right of Oregon’s Tribe to offer gaming?

Question 7:   What changes, if any, would you make to the Federal Endangered Species Act to make it more effective in recovering species and minimizing its impact to rural economies?

Question 9:   Western Oregon tribes were terminated in the 1950’s and lost their land base. To this day, these tribes struggle to regain a fraction of their traditional territory and place it in trust with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. This process is laborious and the backlog of trust applications is significant. Trust land is exempt from Oregon property taxes. Would you support changes in law to improve the process for Oregon tribes to have lands placed into trust? Why or why not?

Question 14: What is your position on making the Oregon Reservation Enterprise Zone program a permanent law?

All of these are good questions and everyone deserves to know how the candidates answered. However, the fact Commissioner Sweet refuses to present his answers may not mean he is deceitful, but it does appear to be inappropriate, and some might say, “The appearance of impropriety is impropriety.”

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#CoosBay Uses Urban Renewal Money for Confederate Tribe Private Development

8/10/2014

Hey Folks,

Another Economic Development/"Corporate Welfare" project paid for by the people of Coos Bay, The Central Planners on the city's Urban Renewal Agency are going to use public monies for the purpose of developing a piece of UR property, so an Indian Tribe can build a high end hotel to compliment the new Indian Casino that will be built in the same area.... As well, The Casino is going to be built on land in a trust and it will not be taxed. Oregonians cannot own a Casino, becasue it is unconstitutional, so why should we subsidize another groups Casino?

In the following files is one edition of the Agreement between the city's Urban Renewal Agency and the Confederate Tribes. There may be future modifications to the contract. The American Indians have been fighting for Tribal sovereignty for decades and they demand to be treated like any independent Nation, so why is this tribe asking for the city to foot the bill of developing one of their projects?

Would the people of Coos Bay be happy to have China or Russia use our public money to fund one of their country's development projects, especially one that promoted a vice?. Vices are not crimes and should not be criminalized, but in the same vein, they should not be promoted either.....Rob T.

Coos Bay's Agreement of Disposition of Property for Development:

Hollering Place - Disposition of Property for Dev. - City Signed Exhibit I
File Size:	2999 kb
File Type:	pdf

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Letter to Editor---BOC Gave 84.3 Miles of #CoosCounty Roads to Coquille Indian Tribe

8/10/2014

Editor,

Just another silly 'did you know' question.

On August 5th Commissioners Cribbins, Sweet, and Main gave 84.3 miles of our Coos County Roads into the Coquille Indian Tribe Transportation Inventory.

Approximately 23 different roads are impacted. The exact multiple locations on each road were requested several times, verbally and in writing, since July 1st. The requests were summarily ignored. And don't bother to look in the BOC August 5th Agenda or on the BOC Coos County web site because the information, including the list of road areas and the agreement, is not there. You can, however find the MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) and the list of road names with their mileage in the July 1st Commissioner Meeting Agenda pages 18-21.

Why the multiple small areas of road locations are needed specifically by the Tribe for their school buses and getting to work (per the MOU) was not explained. What 'up-grades' (that the county would be required to maintain) and 'economic development' federal funds (per the MOU) they would then be qualified to apply for was additionally not addressed.

What will the Bureau of Indian Affairs with Indian trust lands rules be?

How many Tribal laws, (such as no firearms) and federal strings would then be in effect?

The question of why the good-condition, asphalted 8 continuous miles of the Fairview
Road are needed was ignored.

No answers, no explanations, and no commissioner discussion followed. Just the aye, aye, aye vote.

This is not about the Tribe. It is about the infrastructure and finances of Coos County being used to divide our community into special interest groups against each other.

Divide and Conquer?

Why are the commissioner-signed agreements such as this agreement, the ORC (Oregon Resources Corp.) open ended agreement, the Bay Area Enterprise Zone Agreement, the CEP Agreement, disposal of the solid waste facility agreement, etc, etc not on the County site for the citizens to see, both before and after they sign? There are many very experienced knowledgeable retired citizens in Coos County who can, viewing past
history, read these agreements much better than the establishment few.

Vote for the “Voice of the Voters” Home Rule Charter in November and bring some
common sense and stability back to Coos County.

Jaye Bell
Coquille, Oregon 97423

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