AFRC sent a letter to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee expressing our concerns and recommendations regarding S. 1262, the Oregon Recreation Enhancement (ORE) Act. The legislation proposes a 60,000-acre expansion of the Rogue Wilderness, a new 98,000 acre Rogue National Recreation Area, and a new 30,000 acre Molalla National Recreation Area.
These same proposals were included in the Oregon Wildlands Act but were stripped out of the final public lands omnibus bill (S. 47) passed by the Congress and signed by President Trump just two months ago. S. 47 (the public lands omnibus) – now law – already provides additional congressional “protections” for the Rogue, Molalla, Frank Moore, and established the Devil’s Staircase Wilderness. The ORE Act was introduced on May 1. The Committee held a hearing on May 14. In public testimony, both the Forest Service and BLM expressed serious concerns about the bill and its impact on recreation and active management.