Timber counties in Oregon and California still could see a little more money next year, even if federal in-lieu timber payments are not restored.

But county commissioners aren’t finding ways to spend it yet.

Coos County Commissioner Nikki Whitty said the Board of Commissioners would talk about what the money would pay for once it finds out for sure how much, if any, might be on its way.

Though nothing on the scale of what timber payments have provided the counties, Reps. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., and Norm Dicks, D- Wash., chairman of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, wrote a provision into the 2009 Interior Appropriations Act that will increase payments to Oregon and California Land Act counties, a press release from DeFazio’s office said.

“I am pleased that Oregon counties will receive an additional $9 million in O&C payments,” DeFazio said.  “Nine million isn’t a lot of money compared to what these counties received under the county payments program, but it will help maintain some sheriff’s patrols, jail beds, and other critical county services that are currently scheduled to be cut. It will help mitigate a small amount of the pain.”  

Under the O&C act, counties were to receive 75 percent of timber receipts generated on those lands. That share had been reduced since the 1950s to 50 percent, the press release said. The provision put the figure back up to 75 percent, which will provide Coos County with an additional $531,000 on its O&C payments in fiscal year 2009.