Quiet meetings turn
intense
The usually calm Oregon State Land Board, SLB, meetings have
produced a lot of attention since environmental lawsuits brought forest
management activity to a screeching halt on the Elliott State Forest.
Over 50 protesters set up outside of the SLB meeting on
December 10, 2013 as Governor John Kitzhaber, Secretary of State Kate Brown and
State Treasurer Ted Wheeler decided to take competitive bids on 2,700 acres of
the 93,000 acre Elliott State Forest, ESF.
Constitutional
Requirement
Historically, the ESF has supported the state’s Common
School Fund, as directed by Oregon’s Constitution. However, due to the
litigation over the Marbled Murrelet, a small seabird that may use a tree on
the ESF for a nest, incoming revenue has ground to a halt. In fact, so far in
2013 the Common School Fund has paid over $3,000,000 to support the ESF! This
is something the Treasurer’s Office and school funding advocates loathe.
A DEMOCRATIC Process
Governor John Kitzhaber allowed all of the protesters a try
at testifying before the SLB. Many of the commenters were disgusted by the
notion that Oregon would cut trees to help fund schools. Historically, public
forests at the national and state level have always supported schools, not to
mention roads and public safety.
Forest management activities were not the only thing that
confounded the protesters, several that spoke decried the fact that the three
Democrats, Governor Kitzhaber, Secretary of State Brown and State Treasurer
Wheeler that compose the State Land Board were adopting a strategy that puts a
price on the ESF. “It’s a LIE that Democrats protect the environment!!!”
What it used to be
Making a return visit to the SLB was former Elliott State
Forest Manager Jerry Phillips. As he told the SLB, Phillips spent 33 years on
the ESF, 19 as Manager. During his
time on the ESF, the forest brought in $300 million for the Common School Fund.
Phillips spent much of his time on the Elliott working out land
exchanges, which needed State Land Board approval, to increase the size of the
93,000-acre forest. The 2,700 acres that were approved for the initial bidding
process included tracts that Phillips added.
News Coverage of the State Land Board Decision
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