Schools, Counties, and Logs: Federal Lands Payment Programs in the Pacific Northwest
For nearly a century, school and county government officials in the Pacific Northwest have relied on federal timber sales to fund a portion of their budgets. The link between schools, counties, and federal land management was especially strong when logging of old-growth forests produced bountiful revenues for many rural counties and school districts. However, that linkage has turned from a benefit to a liability for counties due to the precipitous decline in timber production from federal lands during the 1990s.
In 1993, Congress gave many Pacific Northwest counties a ten-year reprieve with guaranteed payments based on a gradually declining percentage of historical federal lands payments. Now Congress is considering proposals that would change the relationship between schools, counties, and federal land management in the Pacific Northwest and elsewhere in the nation. The purpose of this report is to inform and enlighten the public debate over federal lands payments as it pertains to Oregon and Washington.
The Wilderness Society believes that schools and counties should receive adequate and stable federal funding that does not depend on how much timber or other commodities are produced each year on federal lands. The National Forests and other federal lands should be managed to protect their unique ecological and social values for present and future generations. At the threshold of the 21st century, there is no logic to a system that gives local school officials a financial incentive to favor increased logging of National Forests.
This report was prepared by Dr. Mark Lawler, an expert in Pacific Northwest federal forest policy issues. The Wilderness Society’s Resource Economist Carolyn Alkire and Senior Resource Analyst Michael Anderson provided guidance, editing advice, and assistance in obtaining original data. Several agency staff were very helpful in providing data and background materials, including Lori Beckner of the Washington State Auditor’s Office, Richard Haynes of the U.S. Forest Service, and Chris Strebig of the Bureau of Land Management.
