Logging Violators Targeted By Bill Legislation Would Make It Hard For Lawbreakers To Keep Cutting

Foresters who regularly break state forest practice laws would have to clean up all violations and post a bond before getting state permission to log again.

That’s the plan in a bill approved by a House committee Monday; it now heads to the full House for consideration.

The Intermountain Forest Industry Association joined the state Department of Lands to propose tightening loopholes that allow “bad actors” in the state’s public and private timberland to continue logging.

The state would deny crucial permits for foresters with repeated violations of the state Forest Practices Act. Until the timber company addresses all violations of the act to the state’s satisfaction, the producer can’t move on to a new cut under the bill.

The bill is aimed at about a dozen or so frequent Idaho violators of the act, said Joe Hinson, executive vice president of the Coeur d’Alenebased association. The bill would provide further proof that the state strictly enforces the forest act, which fulfills requirements of the federal Clean Water Act, he said.

“If we didn’t do this, someone might think that we aren’t enforcing the acts,” Hinson said. “This was the department’s idea but we wholeheartedly endorse it.”

Those few frequent violators would also need to post a minimum $5,000 bond before getting state permission to harvest more timberland, Hinson said. The bond increases $200 for every acre the company plans to log, rising to a cap of $15,000. Out-ofstate timber companies already are required to post a bond before logging, and would have to post this additional bond if found to be habitually breaking forest practice laws.

“You can’t expect this to take care of everything bad that happens in the forest,” said Winston Wiggins of the state Department of Lands. “This is just a tool to help us stop some of the bad actors out there in the woods, and there are very few of those out there.”

Hinson and Wiggins said the bill was patterned after the way the state qualifies bidders for state timber sales. Those companies with frequent violations may be required to be bonded before cutting again, but improved compliance records could take them off the required bonding list, just as timber companies can be re-qualified as bidders for state timber after improving their forest practice records.

The House Environmental Affairs Committee gave the bill its unanimous support.