Nearly $3 million in revenue generated from timber sales in the Tillamook State Forest in 2022 went to local districts in Banks and surrounding areas in fiscal year 2022, according to data from Washington County.
In total, the county collected $13,349,296.81 from the forest, some of which was then dispersed locally, while some remained in county hands.
According to information obtained by the Banks Post, the Banks School District received $1,236,364.03, while the Vernonia School District, centered in Columbia County but extending into Washington County near Buxton and Timber, received $1,185,565.92.
The Banks Fire District—listed still in a county spreadsheet under the historic name of Tri-City Rural Fire Protection District—was allotted $451,410.51. Banks Fire covers Banks, Timber, Buxton, Hayward and Manning.
Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue, which covers much of Washington County, including parts of the Roy and Mountaindale communities, received $381,761.53.
Other districts that saw checks were Portland Community College, the Port of Portland, Forest Grove Rural Fire Protection District, the Forest Grove, Gaston, and Hillsboro school districts, and the Northwest Regional Education Service District.
In total, timber sales in the Tillamook State Forest and nearby forests generated $30.5 million for taxing districts in Washington, Tillamook, and Columbia Counties in fiscal year 2022, the Oregon Department of Forestry said.
The state manages more than 357,000 acres of forestland spanning portions of western Washington County and nearly half of Tillamook County, and a separate tract in Columbia County administered by ODF’s Forest Grove District.
Chas Hundley is the editor of the Banks Post and sister news publications the Gales Creek Journal and the Salmonberry Magazine. He grew up in Gales Creek and has a cat.