County Board Of Commissioners Propose Transferring the Ownership of Certain Coos Bay Wagon Road Lands from the BLM to the Coquille Indian Tribe
Coos County Board of Commissioners Regular Meeting:
Tuesday, April 05, 2022, at 9:30 AM
The Owen Building in the Large Conference Room
225 N. Adams Street, Coquille, Oregon 97423
E-mail: bbrooks@co.coos.or.us
To attend virtually, use the following link: https://meet.goto.com/678476053
It is listed as Action Item AE on the Agenda
On April 5th at the regular board meeting, the county commissioners are going to discuss a proposal to transfer certain CBWR lands from the Bureau of Land Management to the Coquille Indian Tribe. It is a controversial idea considering the Supreme Court has ruled that Indian Reservations are a sovereign country and do not have to follow the laws of the feds, or the states.
What that means is Indian Tribes can make up their own laws and they do not have to obey contractually binding legal agreements. They are not bound by any of the rules and laws that the rest of us Americans have to follow. It is a two-tiered justice system, so it would be a bad idea to enter into any agreement with any Indian Tribe.
Another reason it is a bad idea to allow the Indians to manage the land is that once they have it in their possession for a certain time, they can claim it as their hereditary land. Then they have no obligation to share the natural resources with the county.
On March 07, 1996, the Coos County Board of Commissioners put a Referral on the ballot asking the voters to advise if the county should support the Coquille Tribal Forest Plan and Land Transfer. The Coquille Tribe has proposed 59,105 acres of United States public land be transferred from the BLM to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, so the forest would be managed by the coquille Tribe under Federal law. The Coquille Forest Land Transfer would also require a vote of the US Congress. The local measure failed with 85% of the county voters voting NO on transferring the ownership of the CBWR lands to the Coquilles.
The railroad companies that were once granted the CBWR land had it taken back by the US Government because they violated the terms set by the feds. The feds mismanaged the land while it was under the authority of the BLM, and they have broken their promises to the county. Since they have broken their agreements, the county should acquire ownership of this land and use it for the benefit of the people living in Coos and Douglas Counties…Rob Taylor.
Call Commissioner
Robert "Bob" Main at
(541) 396-7540
Email: bmain@co.coos.or.us
Call Commissioner
John Sweet at
(541) 396-7541
Email: jsweet@co.coos.or.us
Call Commissioner
Melissa Cribbins at
(541) 396-7539
Email: mcribbins@co.coos.or.us
1996 Referral on the transfer of the ownership of the CBWR lands
1996 Election Results
Timeline for the CBWR
1866 ~ The Coos Bay Wagon Road Lands (CBWR) were originally granted to the Oregon & California Railroad in 1866. They include odd-numbered sections in a six-mile swath between Coos Bay and Roseburg. The grant, which was intended to finance the construction of a military road between the two towns, was forfeited by the railroad for violating grant provisions identical to those that caused the revestment of the Oregon and California Railroad Revested Lands
1872 ~ Wagon and stage lines congregated around the railheads and created links to the surrounding settlements, which often included upgrading rough tracks to take regular service, and coach service required fairly good roads. They even made new roads from scratch that included the Coos Bay Wagon Road, new-built in 1872, running from the Roseburg depot (now a brewpub) to the southeastern end of Coos Bay's magnificent natural harbor, then just being developed.
February 26, 1919, ~ Federal legislation was enacted to reconvey to the United States approximately 73,583 acres of land in Coos and Douglas counties that had been conveyed by the United States to the Coos Bay Wagon Road.
1937 ~ Congress enacted the Oregon and California Revested Lands Sustained Yield Management Act of 1937 (43 U.S.C. § 1181f), directing the Secretary of Interior to manage the reconveyed Coos Bay Wagon Road lands for permanent forest production under the principle of sustained yield, to provide a permanent source of timber supply, protect watersheds, regulating stream flow, and contributing to the economic stability of local communities and industries. The act also directed the secretary to provide recreational facilities and establish a formula to pay revenues from forest production on the reconveyed lands to Coos and Douglas counties in lieu of taxes in proportion to the relative assessed value of the reconveyed lands in each county.
March 07, 1996, ~ The Coos County Board of Commissioners put a Referal on the ballot asking the voters to advise if the county should support the Coquille Tribal forest Plan and Land Transfer. The Coquille Tribe has proposed 59,105 acres of United States public land be transferred from the BLM to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, so the forest would be managed by the coquille Tribe under Federal law. The Coquille Forest Land Transfer required a vote of Congress. The measure failed with 85% of the voters voting NO on transferring the ownership of the CBWR lands to the Coquilles.
2011 ~ U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar endorsed a demonstration timber sale pilot project on federal forest lands along Coos Bay Wagon Road in coordination with two professors. The pilot project was intended to demonstrate certain ecosystem principles. These principles include variable retention regeneration harvest (clearcutting with retention patches) in the Oregon Coast Range. Under the terms of the demonstration project, the Coquille Tribe and the Coos Bay District BLM will work together to plan and implement the project. The resulting timber sales were intended to comply with all BLM requirements, however, the resulting timber sale was protested by conservation groups alleging violations of the National Environmental Policy Act and the Federal Land Policy and Management Act.
2011 ~ A group of local stakeholders proposed a way to increase the revenues generated from the CBWR to provide Coos County with a stable amount of funding. The proposal, which would require federal legislation, was supported by the Coos County Board of Commissioners and would keep the CBWR in BLM ownership. However, management of the timber on 51,000 acres would be transferred to the Coquille Indian Tribe and managed under the National Indian Forest Resources Management Act. Fifty percent of timber revenues would be given to Coos County. The other fifty percent would pay for forest management and restoration and investment in local economic development.
April 16, 2019, ~ The Board of Commissioners voted in favor of seeking a federal judgment requiring, in part, that the DOI meet its statutory duties under the 1939 Coos Bay Wagon Road Act (1939 Act). For many years, DOI has failed to convene a committee designed by the 1939 Act to fairly appraise Coos Bay Wagon Road lands. Convening this committee every ten (10) years is an unconditional requirement of the 1939 Act. DOI’s failure has wrought tangible harm and forced the County to make difficult financial decisions. The County views this lawsuit as a last resort after years of efforts to bring DOI into compliance. While this litigation continues, Coos County will not provide further comments. “All we are asking the federal government to do is comply with their own law,” stated Commissioner Robert “Bob” Main. “Since we have been asking them for over six years, we have no other choice than to believe they aren’t listening.”
December 13, 2021, ~ The Board of Commissioners approved a non-binding Interim Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Coquille Indian Tribe wherein the parties pledged to collaborate and explore a proposal for the federal government to transfer certain CBWR Lands in Coos County into the Tribe’s management. The MOU also envisioned that the parties would explore entering into a binding and enforceable agreement to, amongst other things, share any revenue generated from CBWR Lands transferred by the federal government to the Tribe.
April 05, 2022, ~ Coos County Board of Commissioners will discuss the proposal described in the MOU from December 13, 2021.
References:
Follow The Money: O&C (stanford.edu)
Blog Pacifica - The Old Coos Bay Wagon Road, One of Oregon's Most Scenic Drives