Walden talks drought relief, education funding, mental health

“In the Klamath Basin, now we were successful in getting language inserted that will open the door for significant drought relief funding, especially for water pumping and some land idling,” Walden said. “With the kind of water year we’re facing the Klamath Basin, this will be especially important to make up in a drought year.”

Walden took questions from media outlets phoning in for the press teleconference, including the Herald and News.

Walden said the dollar amount estimated for drought relief – between $10 million and $12 million – has yet to be officially determined, citing laws keeping legislators from earmarking specific funds for specific projects.

“We’re in a lot of discussions with the Bureau of Reclamation, the Department of Interior, with Alan Mikkelsen on a regular basis,” Walden said. “I and my staff have been meeting with all of the players in the Basin.”

Resource discussions

A Walden staffer spent more than two hours speaking with the Klamath Tribes, at their request, recently regarding resources in the Basin, Walden said.

Walden also visited the Basin to discuss drought relief for Basin irrigators in recent weeks.

“I think everyone realizes they’re aren’t any real winners right now in the Basin,” Walden said. “Everybody’s suffering – one side or another.”

Walden said he’s had very productive discussions with Sen. Jeff Merkley and especially with Sen. Ron Wyden about trying to come together with people in the Basin to find longterm solutions that can also pass through Congress and bring certainty for all parties – Klamath Tribe, fish, and farmers and ranchers.

“This is a big undertaking clearly, and many people have tried to approach it in the past, none of which have made it over the line,” he said. “… With all this litigation, there has to be a better path forward and we are committed to working with people in the Basin to find that path.”

Secure Rural Schools

Walden also announced that, as part of the Omnibus bill, Klamath County received an estimated $6 million in Secure Rural Schools funding. Jackson County received $3 million in SRS funding.

Walden said $426 million was approved for SRS funding nationwide, made possible by the sale of 8 million barrels of oil out of the strategic petroleum reserve under the jurisdiction of the Energy and Commerce committee, wherein Walden serves as chairman.

Walden also addressed themes of March For Our Lives, held in Washington, D.C. and across the country, including in Oregon.

“I certainly understand why kids and parents were upset,” Walden said. “I am, too. I just can’t imagine what’s happened in the intervening time from when somebody like me was in school. The only guns around were rifles when kids went, you know, hunting after school for birds or deer … Nobody thought about bringing one into school and doing violence.”

Mental health funding

A significant part of the Omnibus appropriation bill addresses mental health funding for communities across the U.S.

“I think in terms of background checks, in terms of other things that we’ve passed here, we’re all committed to trying to find a safer path forward,” Walden said.

Walden said 80 percent of minors who are planning to do a violent act tell somebody about it first.

“There’s funding and programs here that will help bring better mental health services, especially to our communities and even more especially to younger people,” Walden said.

“We would amend the Department of Justice program to allow state and local justice programs to use existing grant funds to develop and operate school-based mental health crisis intervention teams. The funding bill we just passed has $75 million in it to help with state and local grants to help with that.”

Also included is $10 million for active shooter training for law enforcement, and the Omnibus a 2.4 percent increase for American troops, which Walden said is the largest increase for military in eight years.