Democratic lawmakers approached the February short session intending to create sustainable wildfire funding but their options have narrowed as the state nears another wildfire season with inadequate funding.
The Oregon Department of Forestry and State Fire Marshal’s Office currently have $87 million for the next two seasons, compared with the $220 million for wildfire the agencies had two years ago.
And now, halfway through the session, only two of three Democratic proposals for sustainable wildfire funding will move on. House Bill 4133, proposed by Sen. Elizabeth Steiner, D-Portland, would cut the per-acre fees that timber and ranch landowners pay to the state while increasing taxes on timber harvest and two other taxes for the first time in 15 years to account for inflation. Up to $6 million in revenue would be generated from the tax adjustment while the reduction in per acre fees could cost the state up to $12 million, according to a Capital Chronicle analysis of the proposal. The bill will get a public hearing in the House Committee on Revenue on Thursday morning and possibly a vote. Part of the proposal that would have imposed a $10 fee on all Oregon property holders, to raise up to $20 million per year for wildfire programs, was dropped prior to the session.
Another proposal, from Sen. Jeff Golden, D-Ashland and Rep. Paul Holvey, D-Eugene, would refer a ballot measure to Oregonians, to tax timber companies on the value of their harvests to help pay for state wildfire prevention and protection.
“It’s very clear to me we are stumbling into the future without an adequate source of funding for wildfire,” Golden previously told the Capital Chronicle.
Senate Bill 1593 has been on life support in the Senate Finance and Revenue Committee since the beginning of the session, but Golden confirmed Wednesday evening that it will get a hearing next week in the committee, though a date has not yet been set. The first public hearing scheduled for the bill was abruptly canceled on Tuesday.
A third proposal from Rep. Paul Evans, D-Monmouth, that would have referred a ballot measure to Oregonians on a property tax increase for wildfire funding is effectively dead, according to Evans’ newsletter. House Joint Resolution 201 drew more than 1,400 written comments, with 99% in opposition. In-person testimony over the bill largely came from Oregonians concerned about paying higher taxes.
Evans said not all was lost.
“The good news is that we now have a lot of people talking about the need for a comprehensive funding plan – now we must find the will to act upon it,” he wrote.
by Alex Baumhardt, Oregon Capital Chronicle
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