SACRAMENTO, CA – February 12, 2015 – The Rural County Representatives of California (RCRC) announced today that 23 of California’s rural counties have adopted resolutions urging Congress to immediately reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 (SRS). SRS funding mitigates the impact to county governments and schools from the reduction of timber harvesting production on federal forest lands. California’s rural communities have come to rely on SRS funding – more than $33 million statewide (annually) – to support public schools and critical road programs.
“SRS is a critical funding source for California’s forested counties, and the other RCRC Officers and I look forward to advocating on behalf of reauthorization during our trip to Washington D.C. later this month,” said Lee Adams, RCRC Chair and Sierra County Supervisor. “Failure to either extend the program or make needed policy changes for the management of our forests is resulting in many school districts cutting vital education programs, and leaving counties with the inability to maintain a healthy county road system.”
Through RCRC, 23 rural California counties have adopted resolutions urging Congress to immediately reauthorize SRS. These counties represent more than 54 percent of California’s federally managed land, and more than $27 million in annual SRS funding. SRS expired on September 30, 2013, resulting in a loss of funding in 2014 and future years to support critical programs in schools and counties across forested areas of the United States. California’s forested counties and schools located within those counties are dependent upon federal revenue-sharing programs such as SRS for maintaining local roads, and for providing vital education services.
The 23 rural California counties that have adopted individual resolutions so far this year include Alpine, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, El Dorado, Humboldt, Imperial, Inyo, Lake, Lassen, Madera, Mariposa, Modoc, Mono, Nevada, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Tehama, Trinity, Tuolumne, and Yuba. It is anticipated that additional counties will be adopting resolutions in the coming weeks.
Earlier today, Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Mike Crapo (R-ID) introduced a bipartisan bill to extend SRS.
Source: Rural County Representatives of California
