In a 3 to 2 vote this week, Lane County Commissioners Pat Farr, Ryan Ceniga and David Loveall restored the county’s membership in the Association of O&C Counties (AOCC). This vote is a win for responsible forest management and the hard working people who steward them, and a loss for anti-forestry groups that pressured previous commissioners into dropping the county’s membership in 2019.

This vote matters. Lane County has more than 277,000 acres of O&C lands that are managed by the Bureau of Land Management. This federal agency is required by law to manage these lands and share revenues from sustainable timber harvests with Lane County and 17 other western Oregon counties to support public services.

Lane County’s role in AOCC is important because revenues from O&C lands is essential for the county to deliver quality public services. These revenues help keep sheriff’s deputies on the road.  They also support education and public health, among other services. Lane County’s involvement in AOCC helps ensure these revenues are available for the county to meet the basic needs of all citizens. It also ensures the county has a seat at the table in working proactively with state and federal partners on forest management, wildfire prevention and a number of other issues that affect us as citizens.

Join us in thanking our Commissioners for supporting good forestry and family-wage jobs in Lane County:
Commissioner Ryan.Ceniga: Ryan.Ceniga@lanecountyor.gov
Commissioner Pat Farr: Pat.FARR@lanecountyor.gov
Commissioner David Loveall: David.Loveall@lanecountyor.gov

AOCC gives the county an effective voice on issues relating to the management of the O&C forest lands, the jobs these lands support, and the millions of dollars they provide for the county budget without tax increases.

Once again, we thank these three Commissioners for their leadership and support.