Committee hears bill letting small counties use up to 8% for administration of Mormon-cricket block grants

Members of the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Wildfire heard testimony on April 22 on House Bill 3487A, which would allow counties that received funds from a state block grant for grasshopper/Mormon‑cricket suppression to use up to 8% of allocated funds for administrative costs.

Rep. Emily McIntyre (House District 56) described the 2021 infestation that affected roughly 10,000,000 acres across 18 counties and said the block grant was created to help counties respond. She said about $600,000 remains in the block grant and the bill would permit counties with limited staff to use up to 8% of their allocation for administration, modeled on the existing wolf depredation block grant approach.

Brandon Persinger of the Association of Oregon Counties said the original 2021 legislative allocation totaled $5 million for suppression efforts, with $3.8 million earmarked for a cost‑share program for private landowners; an additional $1.25 million was provided in 2024. Persinger said ODA requires substantial reporting and local work, so administrative capacity is necessary to execute the program.

Barry Schulenberger, Lake County commissioner, described Lake County’s use of $100,000 to treat 7,591 acres and said staff had to perform spray planning, collect W‑9s from landowners and prepare reports back to the Oregon Department of Agriculture. He said the county used all funds and returned $4.56 because no administrative allocation was allowed under the prior authorization.

Committee members asked about accountability for administrative spending. Rep. McIntyre said she expects accountability to be addressed through DEQ/ODA rulemaking and follow‑up; Persinger and Schulenberger described typical reporting and documentation steps counties undertake to track expenditures.

Ending notes: The public hearing record closed with no formal committee action recorded that day.