Federal officials today assured a Senate committee that the Obama administration supports continuing timber safety net payments to rural counties, including Douglas County. During a hearing in front of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell said the administration is committed to a five-year extension that President Barack Obama included in his proposed budget. Future safety net payments, however, likely will be allocated differently than in the past, with a higher percentage of the funds going to restoration projects on federal lands, Tidwell suggested. He also said payments to counties are expected to gradually diminish …