Christine Drazan Responds To Linn County vs. The State of Oregon Ruling

Canby, Ore. – Christine Drazan issued the following statement in response to the Oregon Court of Appeals decision in Linn County vs. The State of Oregon, which overturned a prior verdict handed down by Linn County jurors in favor of the counties and local taxing districts:

“I am disappointed in today’s decision by the Oregon Court of Appeals. It is important to note that the Court did not issue their ruling based on any of the facts in the case relating to the harm rural communities have suffered by the state unilaterally changing their harvest policies. Those harms are real and are well documented. If we are to begin bridging the urban-rural divide, these issues must be addressed, and the counties compensated accordingly.

“The Court failed to address the underlying issue in this case: whether rural Oregonians must continue to be left holding the bag of economic and social loss based on decisions made by urban political interests. Without addressing this issue, the divisions in our state will only continue to grow as urban interests are elevated above rural interests and negative economic and social impacts fall on those with little political power.”

“The state made a promise to these counties and local governments. That promise has gone shamefully unfulfilled under Democratic leadership. Today’s decision will only serve to reinforce the feeling among many rural Oregonians that our state’s leaders have betrayed them and left them behind.”
 ###