Comment period on forest-lands sale extended to May 1

Montana's congressional delegation opposes proposal to sell 300,000 acres

The public comment period has been extended for an initiative that would sell off national forest lands to pay for a federal program that provides funding to counties and schools.

Mark Rey, Department of Agriculture undersecretary, announced Wednesday that the comment period, which expires today, would be extended to May 1. He said the extension was prompted by requests from lawmakers and the public.

The proposal has attracted about 4,000 comments, and about three quarters of those comments were submitted as form letters, Rey said.

"There is a great deal of interest in this proposal and we want to ensure that the public has ample opportunity to provide its input," Rey said in a national teleconference Wednesday. "As we indicated from the beginning, this is a transparent process to encourage the public to provide specific information on the list of Forest Service parcels proposed for sale."

The Bush administration in February proposed selling off 300,000 acres of national-forest lands that are isolated from large and contiguous national forests. Rey has maintained that the tracts on the list are also expensive and difficult to manage and "no longer meet national forest system needs."

The list includes 29 tracts on the Flathead National Forest totaling 2,928 acres, and 35 tracts on the Kootenai National Forest totaling 3,819 acres. Most of the lands are isolated and surrounded, but local conservation and outdoors groups maintain they do have public values. The list includes tracts along the Flathead River, on the Big Mountain and in parts of the Swan Valley where the Forest Service has been a major player in land acquisition or conservation easement projects aimed at preserving wildlife habitat and recreation access.

Rey has acknowledged that lands on the list may have public values. The legislation includes provisions that give states or local governments or land trusts the right of first refusal to purchase tracts that are considered valuable public assets.

Rey maintains the land sales are the only option for generating about $800 million - the revenue needed to reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act. That law, passed in 2000, was aimed at providing stable subsidies to counties and schools that had been receiving 25 percent of revenues that mostly were generated by a declining Forest Service timber program. Counties across the country, including Flathead and Lincoln counties, have relied on the funding for their road-maintenance programs.

The Department of Agriculture estimates that at current market values, about half the acreage on the list would need to be sold to generate $800 million, which would provide just half the funding that has been provided to counties and schools during the past five years.

Rep. Denny Rehberg, R-Mont., this week joined a chorus of people who were concerned about the looming deadline for public comments.

"Montana is home to more than 14,000 acres of public lands that could be eligible for sale," Rehberg said. "Public lands are part of Montana's heritage and many Montanans are justifiably concerned that the sale of these lands will have a long-term, negative impact on public land access for sportsmen and women. It's vital the public have adequate time to comment before a final decision is made on an issue of such importance."

Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., has been urging Montanans to oppose the measure. Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., also has spoken out against it.

Rey has acknowledged that many Western lawmakers are opposed to the land sale program but said it was the only way to pay for a program that is broadly supported.

"In order to fund the reauthorization in a budget-deficit environment you either have to find spending cuts or revenue raisers," he said. "There are a number of ideas that we considered. We are open to alternatives. That's always the case. It's now been two months (since the proposal was announced) and so far, nary an alternative has emerged."

Information about the program, including the list of tracts that would be offered for sale, can be found on the Internet at www.fs.fed.us. Comments can be sent to USDA Forest Service, SRS Comments, Lands 4S, 1400 Independence Ave. SW, Mailstop 1124, Washington, D.C., 20250-0003.

Comments can be sent by email to SRS_Land_Sales@fs.fed.us.

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com