After week-long deliberations, a jury sided with 14 counties in a $1.06 billion class action lawsuit against the state of Oregon.
With financial backing from the timber industry, Linn County led the case against the state and the Oregon Department of Forestry. Benton, Clackamas, Columbia, Coos, Josephine, Klamath, Lane, Lincoln, Marion, Polk, Tillamook and Washing counties joined Linn as well as 151 special taxing districts.
“The win should mean more sustainable logging, jobs, and economic vitality,” said Marion County Commissioner Sam Brentano. “The reality is the state robbed rural counties of revenues to pay for services and it needs to come back. That would be wonderful, and it would be fair.”
The Nov. 18 decision came on the heels of a four-week trial at the Linn County Court in Albany. The counties sued the state for breach of contract, claiming inadequate timber harvest over the last two decades had cost loss of jobs and revenue. State attorneys countered that the counties wanted to allow clear-cutting of state forests without caring about endangered species.
The case stems from the Forest Acquisition Act of 1941 passed that allowed the state to designate about 1,000 square miles of land from 15 counties as state forests, managing the land “to secure the greatest permanent value.” The counties were to receive the lion’s share of logging revenues, which they claim has not happened.
The state’s failure to maximize timber harvest has cost counties an estimated $35 million per year.
“While we are disappointed in last week’s verdict, we believe there are strong arguments to be made on appeal, and we plan to appeal this decision,”said Fred Boss, Oregon DOJ’s deputy attorney general.
