Robert Smith: “This is, as has been identified, a very small land exchange which can assist in a time of need, a very small county in…”

“This is, as has been identified, a very small land exchange which can assist in a time of need, a very small county in the southern part of the State of Oregon in the southeast suffering from what we have suffered from in the West in many areas, the problem with the lack of timber receipts because we cannot harvest timber any longer for various reasons, including the spotted owl and other Federal management objections. Just to give an example, this little county received about $6.5 million in 1993 from forest receipts. Now it is receiving about $1.2 million from forest receipts. And with 75 percent of the county owned by the Federal Government, we can see the pinch that results in how in the world these people can provide for their infrastructure. One opportunity is with a little more tourism. One of those opportunities is with this land exchange, which could in fact expand the ski area. I thank both of my friends for helping in this effort for a very good group of people and a very small county in America.”