Congressman Bentz Warns River Democracy Act Will Result in "Burned and Ruined" Watersheds

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressman Cliff Bentz (R-Ore.) spoke on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives in opposition to S. 192, the River Democracy Act - a bill introduced by U.S. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.)

During his remarks, Congressman Bentz cited several concerns with the legislation raised by county commissioners in his mostly rural district. The most dire concern cited was the level of bureaucracy the bill would place on areas already at risk of wildfire, thereby preventing the treatments necessary to protect watersheds and, ultimately, human lives.

"If passed, this bill would label some 4,700 miles of Oregon rivers, creeks, and streams as 'Wild and Scenic,' although a more appropriate phrase would be: 'just waiting to be burned and ruined," said Bentz. "The overwhelming majority of my sixty-two county commissioners have serious and unanswered concerns about the dangers the act presents. Chief among them is that this designation will prevent what needs to be done to protect these watersheds – placing them in a bureaucratic wasteland where it will take years, if not decades, to initiate and then complete plans that may or may not allow the treatment activities needed right now." 

Congressman Bentz also mentioned several other concerns with the legislation ranging from inadequate local input in the bill's creation and the doubling in size of existing wild and scenic corridors to the lack of protections for sustainable use of the land surrounding the watersheds.

This is not the first time Congressman Bentz voiced his district's concerns with the River Democracy Act. In November 2021, Bentz sent a letter to 62 county commissioners across Oregon's second congressional district detailing the concerns he had heard from many of the commissioners.

To watch Congressman Bentz's remarks on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives, click here. To read Congressman Bentz's remarks as prepared, click here.