Salem, Oregon – U.S. Senator Ron Wyden is urging the Trump administration to address growing concerns in rural Oregon over a recently passed Republican budget bill that could impact vital county revenues.
In letters sent to U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz and Acting Bureau of Land Management Director Bill Groffy, Wyden called for immediate clarification that the legislation, signed into law last month at the president’s request, will not disrupt decades-old revenue-sharing agreements tied to forest management. These arrangements have long provided rural counties with significant funding for roads, schools, law enforcement, and other essential services.
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Wyden’s appeal comes after his proposed amendment to section 50301 of the bill was rejected by Senate Republicans. The amendment would have explicitly ensured that revenue from timber sales and long-term timber contracts on federal lands continued to be shared with the counties. Without that language in the final bill, Wyden warned, some local leaders now fear federal agencies could interpret the law in a way that eliminates or reduces these payments.
“This has caused considerable angst among counties,” Wyden wrote in his letters to Schultz and Groffy. “Communities are afraid you may misinterpret section 50301 as overriding revenue sharing.”
The senator emphasized that a simple, public commitment from both the Forest Service and BLM to maintain current revenue-sharing practices would resolve these concerns. He asked the agencies to confirm their position in writing by September 8, 2025.
The outcome of this request could have a significant impact on rural communities that rely heavily on federal forest revenue to balance their budgets. In many of these areas, local tax bases are limited, and funds from timber-related activities represent a critical source of income. Without them, counties could face difficult choices about cutting public services.
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Wyden’s push underscores a long-standing tension between federal budget priorities and rural economic stability. As the September deadline approaches, attention will focus on how the Forest Service and BLM respond, and whether they will reassure Oregon’s rural communities that this new budget will not strip away one of their most important lifelines.
The letter to the Forest Service is here. The letter to BLM is here.
