Road closure plan for Oregon's largest national forest targets a nearly 4,000-mile network

LA GRANDE (3/15/2012) -- Starting in June, passenger cars, ATVs, dirt bikes and four-wheel-drive rigs can no longer travel on almost 4,000 miles of roads in Oregon's largest national forest.  ✧ The final plan for Wallowa-Whitman National Forest -- to be entered today into the Federal Register -- is already drawing opposition. People have 45 days to appeal.  ✧ Earlier versions of the policy triggered one of the most vocal resistance efforts in the state, with more than 6,000 people signing petitions urging the U.S. Forest Service to leave all the forest's roads open. Read more: OregonLive.com Read More......

Oregon Ways and Means hearings on roads begin April 19th

(Hat tip: Pat Dysart) Oregon Legislative Assembly: (SALEM) – House Co-Chairs Peter Buckley and Dennis Richardson and Senate Co-Chair Richard Devlin announced today that the Oregon Legislature’s Joint Ways and Means Committee will hold four public budget hearings around the state over the next three weeks.

The hearings will begin at the Sylvania campus of Portland Community College, 5-7 p.m., Tuesday, April 19, (full schedule attached) and will include stops in Bend, Medford, and Newport with video conferencing hook-ups to Pendleton and Coos Bay.

"Two years ago, input from people across the state helped to guide our decisions on the programs we should protect,” said Buckley (D-Ashland). This year, in even tougher budget conditions, I am counting on the citizens of Oregon to shine a light on the path they want us to take to help Oregon emerge from this economic recession."

“The Legislature faces very difficult decisions as we work to pass a balanced state budget. I encourage citizens to attend these very important hearings to share their ideas, priorities and concerns,” said Richardson (R-Central Point).

“The public process is crucial to our decisions on how to balance this budget and protect critical services that Oregonians rely on,” said Devlin (D-Tualatin). “The Legislature is the people’s branch of government and I am committed to making sure this budget isn’t written behind closed doors.”

The co-chairs released their budget outline in late March. It can be found at http://www.leg.state.or.us/comm/lfo/2011_13CoChairBudget.pdf.

Contacts:

Robin Maxey, (503) 986-1605

Steve Lindsley, (503) 986-1210

NOTE: This concerns which programs are deleted from the State Budget in case you are interested in attending. SEIU will be there. Others? Read More......