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Property rights on minds of Ore. cattlemen

By TAM MOORE Oregon Staff Writer
cappress@charter.net


REDMOND, Ore. – The themes of property rights and limits on government intrusion in private business were decades old, but the issues were new as the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association set policy for 2004 in the concluding sessions of their annual convention.

After two years of bitterness over federal wildlands firefighting policy that seems to ignore use of local landowners and their employees, OCA enlisted banquet speaker Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., to intercede with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.

Walden this week put the cattlemen’s proposal for local wildlands response teams, trained to federal standards, before BLM Director Kathleen Clarke.

“Many of our rural communities rely upon volunteer firefighting to protect their homes, so it only makes sense to extend this concept to fighting fires on federal lands,” Walden said in a Nov. 18 telephone call with Clarke.

Here’s a summary of other OCA policy positions, taken from resolutions passed at their Nov. 8 business meeting:

• Property rights – OCA adopted one resolution urging the Oregon Legislature adopt a law compensating property owners who have land values diminished by government action; another resolution supports an initiative petition seeking to put a takings measure on the November 2004 statewide ballot. Cattlemen also expressed general support for laws limiting government exercise of eminent domain, the condemning of property for utility and road rights-of- way.

• OSU – Following up on Oregon State University’s pledge earlier this year to retain the Department of Rangeland Resources, cattlemen created a task force to monitor actions of an advisory committee to the dean of agriculture as it looks at future research and teaching directions for the department.

• Source verification – OCA voted to find a way to verify the source of all calves born in Oregon in hopes of increasing value of animals when the federal country of origin labeling law takes effect in September 2004.

• Ag water quality – The cattlemen joined with Water for Life in opposing Oregon Department of Agriculture efforts to include references to regulatory statutes in locally developed agricultural water quality plans.

• Water rights ownership – OCA again supported a Water for Life effort to tie water rights, including those held through irrigation districts, to landowners. The 2003 Legislature couldn’t agree on a similar bill.

• Wolves – Members voted to stand ready, through their legal fund, to sue over federal and state policy if it allows gray wolves to remain in the state, and to bring suit against the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission for continuing to leave the wolf on the state endangered species list when it is not resident in the state.

Tam Moore is based in Medford, Ore. His email address is cappress@charter.net.
 
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