Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (March 16, 2017)
3A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, MARCH 16, 2017 Legislators seek ways to make ODOT more accountable By PARIS ACHEN Capital Bureau SALEM — Four former chairmen of the Oregon Trans- portation Commission said Wednesday that the commis- sion should regain authority over the state transportation director. The suggestion was one of a handful the former chair- men gave as ways to enhance accountability for Department of Transportation projects and contracts. The chairmen were invited to speak with a new subgroup of the Legislature’s Joint Com- mittee on Transportation Pres- ervation and Modernization. The committee is charged with crafting a transportation pack- age worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Legislative leaders hope to pass the package this session. About a month ago, the lead- ers of the transportation pack- age committee asked state Rep. Andy Olson, R-Albany, to lead a team of four other lawmakers to come up with policy recom- mendations for making ODOT more accountable for the agen- cy’s spending. The group invited the former commission chairmen Wednes- day to gain insight on how to improve accountability at the department. The meeting was initially closed to the public, but Olson allowed a reporter to attend Wednesday. The committee’s four other topic work groups have held public meetings at the Capitol since the beginning of the session. Olson said he initially closed the meetings out of concern that the public eye would dis- courage frankness, but legisla- tive leaders have committed to keeping the process open and transparent. The Department of Trans- portation has been criticized for its history of projects that have been overdue and over bud- get. A recent $1 million man- agement performance audit by New York-based McKinsey & Co. was intended to respond to that criticism and show ODOT is prepared to effectively man- age an influx of new highway funding. Lack of accountability The firm’s report, released in January, portrayed an agency lacking in dissent and account- ability, wasting money and needing greater oversight and guidance. Two weeks before that, Transportation Commission Chairwoman Tammy Baney, in a letter to Gov. Kate Brown, complained the commission needed more oversight of the director. “The director carries out the administration of the day- to-day operations,” Baney said in a January phone inter- view. “There isn’t a place for us to have a voice in how that is going.” Baney requested that the governor include the commis- sion in the director’s perfor- mance evaluation. She appar- ently was unaware at the time that Director Matt Garrett has not had a performance evalu- ation since his tenure began in 2005, according to Garrett’s office. Until 1999, the commis- sion had authority to hire and fire the director, and the direc- tor reported to the commission. After years of pressure by Gov. John Kitzhaber, the Legis- lature in 1999 took that author- ity away and gave it to the gov- ernor, former commission chairman Stuart Foster told law- makers Wednesday. Minutes from the 1999 leg- islative meetings on the bill give no indication of the reason for the change. In 2011, Kitzhaber, then in his third term, comman- deered control of the Depart- ment of Education, becoming the first governor in the nation to assume the title of superin- tendent of schools. ‘Huge mistake’ “I think it was a huge mis- take,” Foster said of taking away the Transportation Com- mission’s oversight of the direc- tor. Foster served as commis- sion chair from 2003 to 2007. Mike Hollern, who served on the commission most recently from 1987 to 1993, compared the commission to a board of a company. “You are running the place, and you are responsible to the shareholders, and then all of a sudden, someone else is appointing the director,” Hol- lern said. Given that commissioners are volunteers and they can’t hire and fire the director, “I’m not sure it’s worth the effort,” Hollern said. Foster said a conflict within the commission is the gover- nor’s appointment of commis- sioners who also serve on the commissions of counties or are city employees. He said it’s difficult for peo- ple in those positions to be unbi- ased when voting on projects that could affect their regional areas. He said the governor should choose appointees with “a statewide perspective.” The former chairmen, which also included Henry Hewitt and Steve Corey, also recom- mended tying increases to the gas tax to the consumer price index. Gas tax revenue pays for road projects in Oregon. The Capital Bureau is a col- laboration between EO Media Group and Pamplin Media Group. er A m ic a n L Lad ie s Au xi CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE St. Patrick’s Day March 17 6 pm Open to the Public FRIDAY, MARCH 17th 1PM - 3PM r y SEASIDE AMERICAN LEGION 1315 Broadway in Seaside P U B L I C W E L C O M E Proceeds Benefit High School Scholarships Call Heather at 503-791-6259 Suzanne Elise a p a r t of the a v a m e r e f a m i l y of c o m p a n i e s 101 Forest Drive, Seaside, OR 97138 www.suzanneelise.com AUCTION F UNDRAISER A Fundraiser for Libraries ROCC Providing Library Reading Outreach Services for all Children in Clatsop County SEASIDE CONVENTION CENTER THURSDAY, MARCH 23 RD DOORS OPEN AT 5:30 PM 15 Tickets Available at the Astoria, Seaside, or Warrenton Public Libraries Sponsored by the Seaside Public Library Foundation, Pacifi c Power, and Jeremy Mills -State Farm Agent N e w Full color, scenic montage postcards of Astoria now available at the Daily Astorian office! Tourists, visitors, family & friends will love sending these! 949 Exchange Street, Astoria • 503-325-3211 Alder and Maple Saw Logs & Standing Timber N orth w es t H a rdw oods • Lon gview , W A Contact: John Anderson • 360-269-2500 Clatsop Post 12 Dinner 10 $ RSVP 503-325-6278 Friday, March 17 th 4 pm until gone Corned Beef ‘N’ Cabbage with Potatoes, Carrots, Onions and Bread 6PM: “Karaoke Dave” All Proceeds To Benefi t $ 8 Clatsop Post 12 Scholarship Fund and Clatsop Post 12 98th Birthday Program ASTORIA AMERICAN LEGION Clatsop Post 12 1132 Exchange Street 325-5771 503-738-0307 LITTLE LIBRARY $ Corned Beef, Cabbage, Potatoes, Salad and Dessert After the tour stay and join us for happy hour with entertainment and refreshments from 2PM to 3PM. assisted living community TICKETS Doors open 5 pm Dinner 7 pm interruptions “toxic.” “The fact that I can’t sin- glehandedly and immedi- ately satisfy your demands does not mean that we are not listening to you.” The American Civil Lib- erties Union immediately condemned the ordinance as unconstitutional and protest- ers tried to prevent the vote by shouting down commis- sioners as they were polled. People in the cham- ber held up posters with an image of Wheeler’s head that read “Gas the Peaceful, Let the Poor Freeze.” The poster is a dual refer- ence to Portland’s vast num- bers of homeless and anger over how the Portland Police Bureau handled almost daily protests after President Don- ald Trump’s inauguration. In papers filed with the City Council, ACLU-Ore- gon’s legal director Mat dos Santos said city officials have the right to throw out disrup- tive individuals on a case- by-case basis, but banning a person from future meetings based on their current behav- ior is unconstitutional. W A NTED th OPEN HOUSE PER PLATE PORTLAND — In ultra-liberal Portland, where protest is a way of life, the new mayor is taking on the sacrosanct. Mayor Ted Wheeler and the City Council unani- mously approved an emer- gency ordinance Wednesday that would allow city leaders to eject disruptive protesters from meetings and ban them from council chambers for up to 60 days in some cases. As they voted, commis- sioners said months of pro- tests by a small group of people have shut down meet- ings, disrupted government business, caused stress to city staff, undermined proj- ects and prevented other res- idents from appearing before the council. “I don’t know why you’ve decided that your voices are more important than anyone else who comes to this cham- ber to give testimony,” said Commissioner Chloe Eudaly, who was elected to the coun- cil last fall and called the Bingo Join us for an Open House event and celebrate St. Patrick’s day. Tour the community and while you’re here, enter for a chance to win a raffle basket. la March 17 th • 5-8 PM • $ 10 By GILLIAN FLACCUS Associated Press Astoria Elks Lodge St. Patrick’s Day Dinner egio n Ultra-liberal Portland moves to rein in protests LOWER COLUMBIA BOWL Bowling Parties... because bowling is just fun!! 503-325-3321 Friday & Saturday 9:00pm to midnight OPEN: 10AM-10:30PM MON-TH 10AM-12:00AM FRI-SAT 12PM-10:30PM SUNDAY