Hart writes check for timber

ATHOL - Idaho Rep. Phil Hart said he sent a $2,450 check on Monday to the state, trying to clear up a 1996 case in which he was accused of taking timber from state school endowment land to build his log home in Athol.

When asked if the payment was an admission of guilt, Hart said: "I just want to settle the issue in people's minds. For me, that's important. Beyond that, I have no other comment."

Hart, who has served Idaho's third legislative district since 2004, said the check is based on the 1996 "fair market value" of the logs.

"My logging experience back in 1996 was an expensive lesson in the school of hard knocks," he said in a press release. "I was mistaken to have done what I did and will never make that mistake again. And just this past week, I have learned more about this case that I did not understand at the time."

Hart said he spoke with someone experienced in the logging industry to come up with the figure to send to the state, but decline to say who that was.

The Idaho Department of Lands in 1996 determined that the trees Hart cut illegally from the property near Spirit Lake were worth $2,443, but Hart was ordered to pay $7,328 because the penalty for stealing such timber is three times the value.

Hart, believing at the time that he had the right to cut the logs, appealed, but lost three times in what the court called "frivolous" moves. With the costs for his appeals, the state filed a lien against Hart for $22,827. Although the lien is outstanding, it's no longer enforceable since more than five years have passed since the judgement.

Hart said he paid $5,000 in 1996 through forfeiting a bond he put up when he appealed.

Hart said he believes the payment on Monday is going above and beyond to clear up any questions.

"I believe (the timber) has been paid for several times," he said. "But I just want to make sure there's no questions as to whether that timber has been paid for."

Hart said he believes he has been a political target with the timber issue.

"There's a variety of opinions about this, and it all goes back to the primary election and who the winners and losers were," he said. "There have been some who have been agitated, and I have been on the receiving end of it, but that's OK. I think it's important to clear this issue up, so I hope it becomes settled."

The timber front is the latest in a flurry of issues to hit Hart.

The IRS recently filed two tax liens totaling $292,934 against the Sarah Elizabeth Hart Trust, the trust that owns Hart's Athol home, identifying Hart as nominee. Another two liens worth $3,906 were also filed against Alpine Northwest Trust, which owns Hart's business, Alpine Engineering.

The tax liens are for unpaid taxes, interest and penalties that span 1997-2004, as well as 2006 and 2008.

Hart said he isn't worried, even with the nearly $300,000 in liens filed against him last year for several years of boycotting income tax.

The legislator said the recently filed liens are duplicates of liens previously filed against him.

A House Ethics Committee dismissed two charges against Hart related to his tax issues last month and earlier this summer. One charge was for conflict of interest and other for abusing his legislative privilege to delay his tax cases.

The committee voted in favor of removing Hart from the Revenue and Taxation Committee, which the house speaker will eventually decide.