This is Floyd Wynne with THE VIEW FROM HERE   (11-04-03)

          We’re pleased to see that the County Commissioners are playing a role in all the discussions about the Klamath Indians being given their reservation land back.

          `In a recent story, the Commissioners indicated that they only had an unofficial role in the negotiations that are reportedly going on between the Indians and the Department of the Interior.

          Commissioner Elliot is quoted as saying, “It’s going to be out of our hands, just like it was out of our hands with the original land deal.”

          Well, I remember much about the termination deal of the 1960s.  I was Managing Editor of the Herald and News at that time and covered much of the discussions.

          The Congress passed a termination act, and it is true that the Indians then involved in the reservation had really no say as to whether or not the reservation would be terminated.   

          A number of meetings were held on the subject.  Tom Watters and other local officialsincluding a number of prominent Indians  were involved with the actual procedure.

          Initially they split the reservation land into a number of larger pieces with the idea of timber companies bidding on them.  It was felt that this would result in more money for the Indians.

          There were very few persons interested in bidding on the large parcels.  Weyerhaeuser officials were the first to criticize the effort, and it was decided that if the area could become a national forest it could be managed successfully for thelong range benefit of the county.

          Efforts were made by the termination committee and the end result was the purchase by the Federal government and the establishment of the Winema National Forest.   The Indians received $43,000 each as their portion of the purchase price.  Some opted to put their share into a trust that was administered by the U.S. Bank.  Accordingly an appropriate share of the land value was set aside for that trust which was later dissolved.

          Since the establishment of the National Forest, the county government and the county schools have benefited greatly.

          Mike Long, County fiscal officer, noted that Klamath County received about 16 million dollars last year from the Winema Forest operations.  They received 12.9 million from forest receipts of which 9.7 million went to the county road fund and 3.2 million went to the county schools.

          In addition the county received $350,000 in lieu of taxes on the forest land.  The balance of the 16 million received was from Title 2 and 3 options.

          Now....in the discussions of  whether the Indians should be given some 600,000 acres of land back for a reservation...the question of what happens to the 16 million dollars that goes each year to the county should certainly be front and center in the discussions.

          The commissioners should not just be unofficial players in this reservation discussion....they should be up front on what will happen if the reservation is reconstituted.

          A loss of this magnitude to the county and the schools would be a terrible disaster, and would certainly have a highly detrimental effect on county government as well as on school finances.

          It is not simply a trade of water rights for a reservation....it would represent a gigantic financial blow to the county, and certainly the Department of the Interior as well as the Klamath Indians should realize that there is much more involved than just simply handing over about a third of the county’s useable land without coming to grips on the financial aspects of such a move.

          The Commissioners should absolutely insist on being a big part of any such discussions at the national level.

This is Floyd Wynne and that’s THE VIEW FROM HERE.