May 16, 2007 - To All SAC Members:
I am a 60 year old resident of Quincy. I have lived in Plumas County since 1977 and I worked for the
Plumas N.F. for 35 years until I retired a couple years ago. What I see happening now with the OHV
Planning Process does not surprise me. The Forest Service has provided guidelines from the Washington
and Regional Offices and now the Plumas National Forest has taken those guidelines and has developed
its own policy.
In this case, the OHV Plan Team Leader here on the Plumas is making decisions and creating policies for
the plan that do not follow the general guidelines provided by the other Offices. And so we are being stuck
with restrictions that are or will restrict our uses of the Plumas National Forest which we have enjoyed for
many years without creating damage to the resources of the Forest. That is why we have joined together in
the Sierra Access Coalition (SAC). We are working and hoping that as a group we can have a positive
influence over the outcome of this OHV Planning Process.
Where I am coming from in this letter, is that I am a disabled person and I am seeking some assistance from
within SAC. I know that there are other Disabled folks who have joined SAC and use the Plumas N.F. I have
found that in the last U.S. Census it was determined that 25% of the citizens in Plumas County have at least
one Disability. That accounts for about 5,000 c people in Plumas County. I am guessing that many of those
folks use the Plumas N.F. for one reason or another and drive on the Forest’s roads.
I have paralysis in both of my legs and can only get around by using a walker or by using a wheelchair.
Neither method is functional or practical in the Forest. If the proposed OHV rules are adopted I as well many
others in Plumas county will be restricted to using only certain Forest Roads and will not be able to enjoy
the views, picnics, fishing, hunting, woodcutting, or relaxation in the places where we have in the past. I do
own a Quad and I have and I am currently riding it on the Forest Roads and to locations where I can enjoy
the scenery, picnics, fish, relax and other pursuits. And I do this without creating resource damage.
In doing some research on the Internet, I have found out that the Plumas National Forest, a unit within the
US Forest Service, which is an Agency of the Executive Branch of the Federal Government may be violating
a Federal Law and Discriminating against those of us who are disabled. If the proposed OHV Plan with the
proposed restriction is in fact put into law, we, the Disabled, will not be able utilize all of the features of the
National Forest as able bodies people can.
Now the Plumas is placing me into a "Separate Class of Individuals". This prohibits me from participating in
activities and uses of the National Forest that in the past I have enjoyed. This I believe is Discrimination.
I have found an ACT (a Law); called the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 that may help us, the Disabled, stop the
Plumas OHV Planning Process from implementing the Restrictions that prohibit me and others I am sure,
from enjoying the pleasures that we have had on the Forest in the past. The basis of the Rehabilitation Act
states the following: "The Rehabilitation Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in programs
conducted by Federal agencies, in programs receiving Federal financial assistance, in Federal
employment, and in the employment practices of the Federal contractors. The standards for determining
employment discrimination under the Rehabilitation Act are the same as those used in title 1 of the
Americans with Disabilities Act." The majority of the Law speaks to discrimination in employment., but in
Section 504 of the Act, it states the following: "no qualified individual with a disability in the United States
shall be excluded from, denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or
activity that either received Federal financial assistance or is conducted by any Executive agency or the
United States Postal Service." And to repeat myself, the US Forest Service is in the Department of
Agriculture which is an agency within the Executive Branch of the Federal Government.
I am alone at this point and in need of some help and advice. I do not have the resources to pursue this
mater in a legal method. I have written letters to the OHV Plan Leader in the Regional Office in Vallejo,
California and to the Plumas OHV Plan Team Leader, but I have not received a response from either party.
I am wondering if there are others of there in SAC who are experiencing the same situation that I am. Is
there someone who might have a suggestion on how I should proceed from this point? I believe that the
REHABILITATION ACT is a strong tool that we can use in protecting our rights as disabled citizens and
everyone else’s rights to use the Forest in a Prudent manner too. Please respond if you have ideas.
--Rex Fisher - Quincy, CA