BILL HR 1995

RE: "Woolsey Farmland Condemnation Act" HR 1995


Release of the 1999 Private Property Congressional Vote Index



ATT: Natural Resources Legislative Aid/Press Secretary



The Pt. Reyes National Seashore expansion bill, HR 1995, will take under threat of condemnation 38,000 acres of important farmland and convert it into Federal ownership while ultimately eliminating over 90 historically significant farm families. Over 90% of these families oppose HR 1995.



The farm families inside the Pt. Reyes expansion area state that Rep. Woolsey is deliberately misleading her constituents and Congress about the purposes of her "Pt. Reyes National Seashore Farmland Protection Act" The farmers call it by a more appropriate title: the "Woolsey Farmland Condemnation Act." Rep. Woolsey’s HR 1995 will endanger farmland, not protect it.



The League of Private Property Voters will release its 1999 Private Property Congressional Vote Index approximately October 15th. Included in the vote tally will be co-sponsorship of HR 1995, the "Woolsey Farmland Condemnation Act." Any Member of Congress not wishing to have HR 1995 count against their score must NOT BE LISTED AS A CO-SPONSOR ON SEPT. 15, 1998. The issues are:



HR 1995 will force over 90 farm families to sell to the Park Service, destroying the unique farming culture that survives after the Park Service already nearly wiped out individual private land ownership in the original Pt. Reyes area. Farmland is threatened by expansion of the park;

HR 1995 will gradually convert 38,000 acres of productive farmland into government land;

HR 1995 allows, and even encourages, condemnation using eminent domain of private land;

The Woolsey Farmland Condemnation Act does not save anything. Development is virtually impossible because the park expansion zone has already been saved through voluntary easements, the Williamson Act, the California Coastal Commission and aggressive county land use plans;

HR 1995 penalizes historically significant farm families for solid environmental stewardship; and

HR 1995 will gradually eliminate the unique farming and ranching ecosystem by putting other small businesses out of business and eliminating hundreds of jobs. There needs to be a critical mass of farmers to keep suppliers and vendors in business.

Sincerely,

Chuck Cushman

Chairman, LPPV