Washington, D.C. – The following is a prepared statement by Jill Lancelot, President of Taxpayers for Common Sense (TCS) on the Bush Administration Roadless Rule proposal:

By announcing its intent to dismantle the Roadless Area Conservation Rule, the administration is abrogating its fundamental responsibility as the economic steward of the National Forest System. The U.S. Forest Service has consistently drained our nation’s Treasury, having lost billions on under-priced timber sales and wasteful forest road construction. In addition, the Forest Service faces a massive maintenance backlog on existing forest roads that currently exceeds $10 billion. The administration’s decision opens up more land for logging, but does nothing to solve the culture of waste, fraud, and abuse at the Forest Service. Instead, this new policy will only increase the number of taxpayer subsidized new roads and other timber subsidies.

Contact: Erich W. Zimmermann
(202) 546-8500 x110