School district sues Oregon forestry agency over timber revenues [Video]

The lawsuit comes as the state prepares to implement a new Habitat Conservation Plan that could cut back on timber harvests in western Oregon.

PORTLAND, Ore. —

A small school district has sued the Oregon Department of Forestry over declining timber revenues as the state prepares to implement a new management plan for its forests.

The Jewell School District, home to roughly 145 students in Clatsop County, filed the lawsuit in Oregon Circuit Court last week.

In Oregon, revenues from timber harvests on state lands are divided between the counties where they’re harvested and the department.

At the crux of the lawsuit is a provision in the 2010 Northwest Oregon Forest Management Plan that requires the department to “Maintain a budgeting and financial management system that assures that revenues derived from these state forest lands are sufficient to cover the department’s costs.”

John DiLorenzo, an attorney representing the Jewell School District, said the department has failed to comply with the …