By Alice Campbell
Getting timber payments into President Barack Obama's proposed budget is a good first step, but the fight's not over, Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., told people who gathered Saturday at North Bend City Hall.
Obama's inclusion of $328 million for the first five years is a 'small step," Merkley said.
The fight to keep the payments in the budget will not be easy, he said, and all of Oregon's congressional delegation must work together.
Besides pushing for the timber payments, Merkley said Congress must examine options to create a sustainable payment base.
'We've got to look at all options on that front."
Some options include creating a trust for the environmentally more sensitive lands and then creating a system to manage the rest, he said.
Biomass benefits
Merkley also said he's working to change the way people view biomass.
'I'm a huge advocate of biomass," he said.
Progress is being made to change how it is viewed, he said.
Merkley said he hopes to decrease dependence on foreign oil, but he opposes drilling off the Oregon Coast. The small amount of oil located there isn't worth the risk to fisheries and the tourism industry, he said.
However, biomass could be part of the solution, he said.
Also, the creating a market for biomass would help forest health, he said. People could afford thinning second-growth timber if it were profitable, he said.
To spur growth in the housing sector also would help the timber industry, he said.
Creating programs to help homeowners make energy-efficient renovations will create jobs, Merkley said. Such work can't be shipped overseas, he added.
Other issues
Other issues Merkley addressed included:
Infrastructure: Not investing in infrastructure means a weaker country, he said. However, appropriations for dredging and repairing the Bandon and the Coos Bay jetties were not funded, Merkley said. Other projects that did not receive funding included the South Coast Interagency Narcotics Team, the International Port of Coos Bay's business center incubator, and the Coos Historical and Maritime Center.
Social Security and pensions: The Social Security system is solvent for the next 26 years, Merkley said, and no proposal exists to reduce retirement benefits of those already retired.
He and other members of Congress do not receive cost of living increases, and he may support a bill to cut off Congressional salaries if the government shuts down.
Veterans affairs: Not enough is done to help veterans, Merkley said, and homelessness among young and old veterans is surging.
Merkley said he is working to bring Roseburg's Veterans Affairs medical facility up-to-date and to reinstall its intensive care units, he said.
Home foreclosures and mortgages: Already, he has been successful in banning hidden payments to mortgage originators who steered people into high-risk mortgages, and in prohibiting lenders from using prepayment penalties to keep homeowners from refinancing, Merkley said.
Campaign donations: For corporations to be allowed to give unlimited, secret donations is 'a dagger poised at the heart of American democracy," Merkley said.
Rural health care: Community clinics are 'extremely popular," Merkley said, adding he thinks funding for local clinics, like the Waterfall clinic system, can be saved. Despite popularity, Merkley said, it will be a fight to keep the funds.