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districts would present an undue hardship on their constituents. 

 I hope that once they have heard all of the information presented 

 at the hearing today, that they will work with me to improve any 

 current deficiencies in this bill and join me in support of it. 

 All Americans are affected by current management policies in the 

 Sequoia National Forest even though they do not reside within the 

 districts containing the Sequoia National Forest . The concerns 

 of the many southern Califomians and citizens from the other 

 states in this nation who come to the Sequoia National Forest to 

 enjoy all of the recreational opportunities available within this 

 forest should also be considered. 



The Forest Service's own records show the recreational value 

 of Sequoia National Forest to be substantially greater than the 

 timber value. In fact we are losing money on the timber program 

 in this forest. 



Mr. Chairman, I ask that the estimates provided to me by the 

 Congressional Budget Office be entered into the record. Item one 

 indicates that implementation of H.R. 2153 would result in a 

 timber program savings of about $6 million dollars annually. 



In spite of the greater recreational value, most of the 

 budget for this forest is used to support clearcutting of timber. 

 This skewed distribution of resources should be corrected. We 

 should be investing scarce taxpayer dollars in areas where they 

 will produce the greatest benefit for the most people. This bill 

 is a step in that direction. By redirecting the budget of the 

 Sequoia National Forest to greater support and development of the 

 recreational uses of this area, more people can enjoy this unique 



