Commissioner Craig Pope, on behalf of AOC, joined a panel before the Joint Ways & Means Subcommittee on Natural Resources, to urge the Legislature to correct the Governor’s Recommended 2017-19 Budget, which would eliminate all state funding for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Wildlife Services program.
For the current 2015-17 biennium, the state has provided over $1 million to curb costly wildlife damage in rural and urban communities. In contrast, 26 county governments have supplied $2.6 million over the same time span. Since wildlife falls under the jurisdiction of the state, the state bears considerable responsibility to provide resources for this function.
AOC joins the Oregon Farm Bureau, Oregon Sheep Growers Association, Oregon Hunters Association, Oregon Cattlemen’s Association, Oregon Seed Council, Oregonians for Food & Shelter, and Oregon Forest & Industries Council, on a letter being circulated that makes the case for continued state partnership in the program.
Contributed by: Gil Riddell | AOC Public Land & Natural Resources Policy Manager