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HJM004.....................................................by STATE AFFAIRS
FORESTS - Stating findings of the Legislature and urging the legislatures
of all western states to consider adoption of resolutions working toward
the development of a federal bipartisan, long-term solution that addresses
sustainable management of federal forest lands to stabilize payments, which
help support roads and schools, to forest communities throughout the
western United States; to provide projects that enhance forest ecosystem
health and provide employment opportunities; and to improve cooperative
relationships among those who use and care about the lands the federal
government manages.
02/27 House intro - 1st rdg - to printing
02/28 Rpt prt - to 2nd rdg
03/01 2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/02 3rd rdg - ADOPTED - 65-0-5
AYES -- Anderson, Andrus, Barrett, Bayer, Bedke, Bell, Bilbao, Black,
Block, Bock, Bolz, Brackett, Bradford, Chadderdon, Chavez, Chew,
Collins, Crane, Edmunson, Eskridge, Hagedorn, Hart, Harwood, Henbest,
Jaquet, Killen, King, Kren, Labrador, Lake, LeFavour, Loertscher,
Luker, Marriott, Mathews, McGeachin, Mortimer, Nielsen, Nonini,
Pasley-Stuart, Patrick, Pence, Raybould, Ring, Ringo, Roberts,
Ruchti, Rusche, Sayler, Schaefer, Shepherd(2), Shepherd(8), Shirley,
Shively, Smith(30), Smith(24), Snodgrass, Stevenson, Thayn, Trail,
Vander Woude, Wills, Wood(27), Wood(35), Mr. Speaker
NAYS -- None
Absent and excused -- Boe, Clark, Durst, Henderson, Moyle
Floor Sponsor - Edmunson
Title apvd - To Senate
03/05 Senate intro - 1st rdg - to St Aff
03/20 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 10th Ord
03/21 10th Ord - ADOPTED - voice vote
Floor Sponsor - Pearce
Title apvd - to House
03/21 To enrol - Rpt enrol - Sp signed
03/22 Pres signed - To Secretary of State
]]]] LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ]]]]
Fifty-ninth Legislature First Regular Session - 2007
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL NO. 4
BY STATE AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
1 A JOINT MEMORIAL
2 TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES IN CONGRESS
3 ASSEMBLED, TO THE CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION REPRESENTING THE STATE OF IDAHO
4 IN THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES AND TO THE LEGISLATURES OF THE STATES
5 OF ALASKA, ARIZONA, CALIFORNIA, COLORADO, HAWAII, MONTANA, NEVADA, NEW
6 MEXICO, OREGON, UTAH, WASHINGTON AND WYOMING.
7 We, your Memorialists, the House of Representatives and the Senate of the
8 State of Idaho assembled in the First Regular Session of the Fifty-ninth Idaho
9 Legislature, do hereby respectfully represent that:
10 WHEREAS, it has long been the intent and policy of the federal government
11 to hold rural communities harmless from the creation of federal lands and in
12 1906 the Committee on Public Lands recognized that the presence of federal
13 lands could create hardship for many counties as they provided little revenue
14 or commerce at that time; and
15 WHEREAS, in 1908, the federal government promised rural counties twenty-
16 five percent of all revenues generated from the multiple-use management of the
17 newly created national forests to support public roads and public schools; and
18 WHEREAS, in recent decades, the forest resources have not been managed in
19 a manner to produce long-term sustainable revenue to share with schools and
20 counties; and
21 WHEREAS, in 2000, Congress passed Public Law 106-393, the Secure Rural
22 Schools and Community Self-Determination Act. The Act restored historical pay-
23 ment levels previously made to states and counties from the federal government
24 for road and school purposes because of declining levels of actual forest
25 receipts; and
26 WHEREAS, the reauthorization and appropriation of the Secure Rural Schools
27 and Community Self-Determination Act is pending before the United States Con-
28 gress, and Idaho counties are on record as being strongly supportive of a
29 fully funded approval of this Act; and
30 WHEREAS, federal land managers continue to be faced with funding short-
31 ages. In the event the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination
32 Act is not reauthorized and appropriated, counties will be faced with higher
33 property taxes or a reduction in services and, even if the Act is reauthorized
34 and appropriated, it will likely be the last time, and the state of Idaho must
35 seek a long-term solution; and
36 WHEREAS, in 2006, House Joint Memorial No. 21 was adopted by the members
37 of the Second Regular Session of the Fifty-eighth Idaho Legislature to provide
38 one option to address the problem of declining forest receipts by urging Con-
39 gress to support federal legislation transferring management of National For-
40 est System lands within Idaho to the state of Idaho to be managed for the ben-
41 efit of the rural counties and schools; and
42 WHEREAS, in February 2007, a concurrent resolution was introduced in the
43 Idaho House of Representatives and will be voted on by the First Regular Ses-
44 sion of the Fifty-ninth Idaho Legislature authorizing Idaho's Legislative
2
1 Council to appoint an interim committee to undertake and complete an assess-
2 ment of the decline in receipts on National Forest System lands, which have
3 historically been shared with counties. The goal of the interim committee's
4 recommendations will be to develop a federal, bipartisan, long-term solution
5 that addresses sustainable management of federal forest lands to stabilize
6 payments to Idaho's forest counties, which help support roads and schools, and
7 to provide projects that enhance forest ecosystem health, provide employment
8 opportunities, and improve cooperative relationships among those who use and
9 care about the lands the federal government manages. The resolution calls for
10 the interim committee to work in cooperation and coordination with the state
11 of Idaho, its counties, its school and highway districts, along with the rec-
12 ognized Indian tribes of the state of Idaho. The resolution also provides that
13 the interim committee address National Forest System lands, but only those
14 lands that do not have special designations. The interim committee is directed
15 to formulate a solution that will protect all valid existing rights, existing
16 public access and activities, including hunting, fishing and recreation, and
17 that will not be construed to interfere with treaties or any other obligations
18 to the Indian tribes, commitments to county governments, or the General Mining
19 Law or Taylor Grazing Act.
20 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the members of the First Regular Session
21 of the Fifty-ninth Idaho Legislature, the House of Representatives and the
22 Senate concurring therein, that the legislatures of all western states should
23 consider the adoption of similar resolutions, working toward the development
24 of a federal, bipartisan, long-term solution that addresses sustainable man-
25 agement of federal forest lands to stabilize payments to forest counties
26 throughout the western United States, which help support roads and schools,
27 and to provide projects that enhance forest ecosystem health and provide
28 employment opportunities, and to improve cooperative relationships among those
29 who use and care about the lands the federal government manages.
30 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Chief Clerk of the House of Representa-
31 tives be, and she is hereby authorized and directed to forward a copy of this
32 Memorial to the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Represen-
33 tatives of Congress, the congressional delegation representing the State of
34 Idaho in the Congress of the United States and to the Legislatures of the
35 states of Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Montana, Nevada, New
36 Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 17121
This is a joint memorial urging all western states and Congress
to unify in their efforts to work toward the development of a
combined state and federal, bipartisan, long term solution that
addresses sustainable management of federal forest lands to
stabilize payments to forest counties throughout the western
United States, which help support roads and schools, and to
provide projects that enhance forest ecosystem health and provide
employment opportunities and to improve cooperative relationships
among those who use and care about our public lands.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact.
Contact:
Speaker Lawerence Denney
Rep. Mike Moyle
Rep. Scott Bedke
Rep. Ken Roberts
Rep. Clete Edmunson
Phone: 332-1000
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE HJM 4