William R. Richardson: “I rise in support of the Yates-Vento amendment. As my colleagues know, this amendment would strike provisions in the…”

“I rise in support of the Yates-Vento amendment. As my colleagues know, this amendment would strike provisions in the bill which mandate specific levels of timber salvage sales on Federal lands in fiscal years 1995 and 1996. The Yates-Vento amendment would maintain common sense in American land use planning. It would strike the bill's dangerous salvage sale provisions and ensure that Congress doesn't allow the raiding of the Treasury and the pillaging of the environment just to hand a bonus check to the timber industry. Our distinguished colleagues Sid Yates and Bruce Vento have warned that this provision is a timber lobbyist's dream. But it is more than that. It is a taxpayer's nightmare. As Mr. Yates noted during last week's markup, no funds will be returned to the Treasury from the salvage sales, since all receipts will go into the Salvage Fund or to individual counties. The loses to the U.S. Treasury will require subsequent supplemental appropriations and new funding to cover the costs. The bill ignores our current fiscal problems and encourages timber to be cut at any cost, stating in section c(5) that salvage activities 'shall not be precluded because the costs of such activities are likely to exceed revenues derived from such activities.' This means that even if salvage sales don't make money, they will continue, because Congress has said that protecting the timber industry is more important than protecting the environment or safeguarding the U.S.…”