Wyden Co-Sponsors Bipartisan Bill to Keep Ski Fees Local
On Feb. 10, Sen. Ron Wyden — alongside numerous Republican colleagues from the House and Senate — announced he is co-sponsoring legislation that would keep ski fees local by allowing National Forests to keep a portion of annual fees paid by ski areas operating on U.S. Forest Service lands.
Ski areas currently operating on forest lands pay fees to the Forest Service, averaging more than $40 million annually, according to a press release. The Ski Hill Resources for Economic Development Act (SHRED) would establish a framework for local National Forests to keep a portion of the ski fees to offset the impact of recreational use.
“Oregon is rich in natural splendor and outdoor recreation opportunities,” Wyden said in a press release. “It’s important to nurture this wealth of public lands by ensuring recreational funds that are paid locally stay local. This will help us better address Oregon’s specific needs around wildfire mitigation, visitation impacts and housing shortages.
—Julianna LaFollette
$6 million
—The amount of jury-awarded damages PacifiCorp owes to 1,500 individual plaintiffs, many of whom lost homes in the 2020 Labor Day fires, from the Feature story, “After the Inferno”
“We are living in a time of wildfire, and the risks are overwhelming. We need the utilities to be there.”
—Rep. Pam Marsh (D-Ashland), from the Feature story, “After the Inferno”
This article appears in The Source Weekly February 13, 2025.
MAKE LOCAL JOURNALISM HAPPEN
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
