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Notes regarding public input proposed Badlands wilderness
February 11, 2005
Notes regarding Public Input on the Proposed Badlands Wilderness Designation
There are two spreadsheets tallying citizen input received at the Commissioners’ Office – one is input received prior to the deadline announced by the Commissioners (February 11 at 5:00 p.m.); the other, short list is input received after the deadline and before the list was finalized (February 15). Anything received after February 15 will be forwarded to the Bureau of Land Management in Prineville.
Because of the complicated nature of the issue, the input was designated as either “pro” or “against” the proposed Badlands wilderness designation. Please note that every effort was made to interpret the sender’s opinion. A few letters, e-mails, faxes and voicemail messages were lengthy or unclear as to where the sender stood on the issue, or the sender indicated support or opposition with various conditions that made their opinion hard to interpret. If a sender’s stance on this issue inadvertently ended up in the wrong column, we apologize.
The letters, e-mails, faxes, voicemails and verbal comments shown on the lists are those that were provided to the Board’s staff so that we could log them in. Verbal testimony provided at the January 31 hearing is also included. If someone indicated he or she was representing a group of people, since there is no way to verify that information, only the stance of the person testifying at the hearing is listed. If someone sent a fax and an e-mail, their comments were only counted once. If more than one person submitted comments on the same fax, letter or e-mail – for instance, married persons – they are listed separately.
Only Commissioner DeWolf forwarded e-mails and voicemails that came directly to him on this issue to staff, and he started forwarding them only after the public hearing on January 31. The other Commissioners did not forward calls or e-mails to staff; some of these comments might have also been given to Commissioner DeWolf, but others may not have. Therefore, if a caller or sender contacted only Commissioner Luke or Commissioner Daly, those comments might not be included on the tally sheet.
Simply stated, the tally of the citizen input received at the Commissioners’ office shows a total of 1,032 in favor of the proposed Badlands wilderness designation, and 225 against.
Please note that the minutes of the public hearing have been posted to the County website without the numerous exhibits attached (items given to the recording secretary at the public hearing on January 31). The exhibits have been scanned separately and in batches because of the size of some of the documents. The exhibits are listed at the end of the minutes so those people who want to view the exhibits will be able to look at only those that interest them.
The letters, faxes and e-mails listed on the tally sheets are available for viewing at the Commissioners’ office, along with a copy of the minutes should anyone have a problem opening the minutes or exhibits on his or her computer.
Copies of all of the input, as well as a copy of the tally sheets, minutes and exhibits, have been forwarded to the Bureau of Land Management Office in Prineville. Copies of the tally sheets and minutes have been provided to the staffs of Senators Smith and Wyden and Congressman Walden. At this point they have indicated they do not require copies of the letters and e-mails.
The Commissioners are reviewing the vast amount of information on this issue, and plan to announce their opinion sometime mid-March. The exact date has not been set, but it will likely be at a regularly scheduled Board meeting. Please watch for this as an agenda item on the Board’s calendar on the County website, www.deschutes.org/commissioners/calendar.
If you have questions, please contact the Board’s staff at 388-6570, or via e-mail at bonnieb@co.deschutes.or.us. Thank you.
There are two spreadsheets tallying citizen input received at the Commissioners’ Office – one is input received prior to the deadline announced by the Commissioners (February 11 at 5:00 p.m.); the other, short list is input received after the deadline and before the list was finalized (February 15). Anything received after February 15 will be forwarded to the Bureau of Land Management in Prineville.
Because of the complicated nature of the issue, the input was designated as either “pro” or “against” the proposed Badlands wilderness designation. Please note that every effort was made to interpret the sender’s opinion. A few letters, e-mails, faxes and voicemail messages were lengthy or unclear as to where the sender stood on the issue, or the sender indicated support or opposition with various conditions that made their opinion hard to interpret. If a sender’s stance on this issue inadvertently ended up in the wrong column, we apologize.
The letters, e-mails, faxes, voicemails and verbal comments shown on the lists are those that were provided to the Board’s staff so that we could log them in. Verbal testimony provided at the January 31 hearing is also included. If someone indicated he or she was representing a group of people, since there is no way to verify that information, only the stance of the person testifying at the hearing is listed. If someone sent a fax and an e-mail, their comments were only counted once. If more than one person submitted comments on the same fax, letter or e-mail – for instance, married persons – they are listed separately.
Only Commissioner DeWolf forwarded e-mails and voicemails that came directly to him on this issue to staff, and he started forwarding them only after the public hearing on January 31. The other Commissioners did not forward calls or e-mails to staff; some of these comments might have also been given to Commissioner DeWolf, but others may not have. Therefore, if a caller or sender contacted only Commissioner Luke or Commissioner Daly, those comments might not be included on the tally sheet.
Simply stated, the tally of the citizen input received at the Commissioners’ office shows a total of 1,032 in favor of the proposed Badlands wilderness designation, and 225 against.
Please note that the minutes of the public hearing have been posted to the County website without the numerous exhibits attached (items given to the recording secretary at the public hearing on January 31). The exhibits have been scanned separately and in batches because of the size of some of the documents. The exhibits are listed at the end of the minutes so those people who want to view the exhibits will be able to look at only those that interest them.
The letters, faxes and e-mails listed on the tally sheets are available for viewing at the Commissioners’ office, along with a copy of the minutes should anyone have a problem opening the minutes or exhibits on his or her computer.
Copies of all of the input, as well as a copy of the tally sheets, minutes and exhibits, have been forwarded to the Bureau of Land Management Office in Prineville. Copies of the tally sheets and minutes have been provided to the staffs of Senators Smith and Wyden and Congressman Walden. At this point they have indicated they do not require copies of the letters and e-mails.
The Commissioners are reviewing the vast amount of information on this issue, and plan to announce their opinion sometime mid-March. The exact date has not been set, but it will likely be at a regularly scheduled Board meeting. Please watch for this as an agenda item on the Board’s calendar on the County website, www.deschutes.org/commissioners/calendar.
If you have questions, please contact the Board’s staff at 388-6570, or via e-mail at bonnieb@co.deschutes.or.us. Thank you.
