WASHINGTON — A threat to veto a bill that provides funds to timber counties endangers more than $1 million in each North Olympic Peninsula county.
President Bush said Wednesday that he will veto a bill that would extend for four years the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act.
That bill put $1.3 million into Jefferson County coffers, and $1.1 million into Clallam County’s in 2007.
Clallam County Administrator Jim Jones still had hopes that the funds could continue, given the issue’s broad bipartisan support and repeated resurrection.
In the past, the appropriation has been attached to a war-funds bill and sales of federal lands and oil leases.
However, Frank Gifford, Jefferson County public works director, had a gloomier outlook.
Jefferson had leveraged its funds, which it used for its roads department, into $4 million more by using it as match money for grants, Gifford said.
The loss of that $5.3 million won’t be just money, he said.
