[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 1743]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         KLAMATH COUNTY, OREGON

  (Mr. WALDEN of Oregon asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, this Congress and the last have 
failed to keep the Federal Government's commitment to the people who 
live near our national forests. This breach of faith means Greg Thede, 
the Klamath County school district superintendent, is faced with the 
choice of letting teachers go, not purchasing English and reading books 
for all K-12 programs for nearly a decade, or robbing from the school 
maintenance budget to cover budget shortfalls.
  The Klamath County Sheriff's force of 35 officers, which currently 
patrols a 6,000 square mile area, that is nearly 100 times larger than 
the District of Columbia, my colleagues, will now be protected with no 
backup and by as few as 20 officers.
  Klamath County, Oregon, is no stranger to hardship nor to hard work; 
however, they had to endure much of both in the past few years because 
the Federal Government keeps breaking its commitment to this rural 
community. As Al Switzer, Klamath County commissioner says: ``These are 
America's forests; they just happen to be in Klamath County.''
  It is time for Congress to reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools and 
Community Self-Determination Act, keep faith with rural schools and 
counties, and keep the word of the Federal Government to timbered 
communities.

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