Conversations with the Congressman today

COEUR d'ALENE — Residents of the Lake City have the opportunity today to lead a conversation with First District Congressman Raul Labrador.

Labrador, who is vying for his fourth term in the U.S. House of Representatives this year, will be at McEuen Park from 1 to 2 p.m. today to meet with constituents during one of his "Conversations with the Congressman" events. The conversation in Coeur d'Alene is one of 20 the congressman has held or planned with residents throughout the first district and, according to a news release, is a departure from the more formal town hall meetings Labrador has hosted in the past.

"I'm not using a microphone and we've chosen more intimate venues such as coffee shops and cafes," Labrador wrote in the release. "I'm most interested in hearing from everyday Idahoans — about your concerns on where the country is headed, your ideas for solutions, your hopes for the future."

Today's event in Coeur d'Alene roughly marks the halfway point of Labrador's tour through 19 of Idaho's counties. Although the events are hosted at locations that lend themselves to the informal, "kitchen-table" conversations Labrador intends to have with residents, widespread interest has seen more than 70 people attend conversations held in some Idaho cities.

"I have relied on the people to inspire many of my legislative efforts," Labrador wrote in the release, while citing his forestry bill, the Self-Sufficient Community Lands Act which he adds was "sparked by county commissioners from five rural counties — Boundary, Clearwater, Idaho, Shoshone and Valley."

According to Labrador, a previous article in The Press reported, the commissioners in those communities expressed frustration at having to go to the federal government each year for Payment in Lieu of Taxes, or PILT, payments to replace the revenue they used to get from logging on federal forest lands.

"They are looking for ways to make money from the natural resources they have in their counties like they used to," Labrador told The Press in April. "Some of the richest counties in Idaho used to be these northern counties; some of these smaller counties used to be richer than Ada County."

If passed, the bill would create a pilot project that gives states and counties more of a say in the management of no more than 2 percent of the national forests in the West.

Public land management has been a popular topic of conversation during the previously held conversations, along with federal overreach, public safety, and federal separation of powers.

Labrador will be at Chic-N-Chop, located at 6421 Main St. in Bonners Ferry, from 9 to 10 a.m. today before heading to Coeur d'Alene. After the Coeur d'Alene stop, Labrador will pause the conversations while Congress is in session.

They will resume on Sept. 1 with stops in St. Maries, Moscow and Orofino.