Washington DC – Today, Oregon’s U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley urged the Senate to keep the government’s promise to rural communities in Oregon, 40 other states and Puerto Rico by passing legislation that would provide vital funding for schools, law enforcement and essential road repairs.
Desde que los pagos a través de la Ley de Escuelas Rurales Seguras (SRS) expiraron el año pasado, Wyden y Merkley han estado trabajando para reautorizar el programa para garantizar que los condados reciban un pago la próxima primavera que les brinde certeza para financiar servicios críticos del condado en áreas rurales.
But congressional leaders blocked their efforts, citing the contention that increased timber management could somehow replace the SRS payments. In doing so they ignored estimates from the Forest Service concluding that logging on public lands would have to increase by 400 percent in order for timber revenues to match what counties have received in SRS investments.
“The notion that these investments in rural communities could be killed and replaced with logging alone is disconnected from reality,” dijo Wyden. “I will continue to pursue a comprehensive, reality-based approach to get these counties the funding they have long relied on. That comprehensive approach includes creating jobs in the woods through responsible forest management, including hazardous fuels reduction and sustainable biomass production, increasing outdoor recreation opportunities, boosting renewable energy jobs, and promoting our state’s growing agricultural diversity, from raspberries to industrial hemp, all while protecting clean air and clean water for all Oregonians.”
“We need to honor the promise to these counties. We need to address the Secure Rural Schools program that provides a strong foundation and a strong commitment to the promise made to rural forested counties,” dijo Merkley. “We need to act, and we need to act now.”
Over the last two years, Republican leaders have blocked the senators’ numerous bipartisan bills and amendments to extend SRS, including their Secure Rural Schools and Payments in Lieu of Taxes Repair Act of 2015, as well as amendments to the 2015 national transportation bill, the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act, the North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act of 2016, and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
Más recientemente, Wyden y Merkley buscaron extender este programa vital incluyéndolo en el proyecto de ley que debe aprobarse a fin de año para financiar al gobierno, así como en un proyecto de ley de la conferencia sobre energía que se estancó en el Congreso esta semana. Pero debido a la inacción del liderazgo del Congreso, los pagos que los condados recibieron en la primavera de 2016 serán los últimos hasta que el liderazgo del Congreso acuerde extender estos programas cruciales.
Last year’s SRS funds were paid to the counties in March 2016 and include payments from the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service. In Oregon, 33 counties received a total of $95 million in Secure Rural Schools payments this year. Over its lifetime the program has brought almost $4 billion to Oregon’s timber counties and schools all across the state.
Wyden fue coautor de la legislación SRS original en 2000 con el entonces senador. Larry Craig, republicano por Idaho.
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