Myers takes over as state attorney general
■ OFFICE: The former state
legislator plans to focus on
keeping kids out of trouble
By Charles E. Beggs
The Associated Press
Former Oregon House Speaker
Hardy Myers became Oregon’s
15th attorney general on Monday,
and three other state officials were
sworn in to begin terms.
Myers was sworn in by Chief
Justice Wallace Carson Jr. of the
Oregon Supreme Court in a cere
mony attended by about 300 peo
pie in the Oregon House chamber.
The attorney general is the
chief lawyer for state government.
Myers, a Democrat who has prac
ticed law in Portland, was elected
to the post in November.
Ted Kulongoski, also a Democ
rat, gave up the attorney general’s
office in a successful run for an
Oregon Supreme Court seat. Ku
longoski also was sworn in Mon
day, in a ceremony at the court.
Later, Carson gave the oaths of
office to Secretary of State Phil
Keisling and State Treasurer Jim
Hill.
They are Democrats who were
re-elected to the positions in No
vember. Those offices by law are
limited to two terms.
Myers was a state representative
from 1975 to 1985 and served as
House speaker from 1979 to 1983.
He told the audience following
his swearing-in that he intends to
make child welfare a top priority.
Myers said he wants the attor
ney general to play a central role
to prevent children from starting
down the road to crime.
“The stakes involved in that ef
fort are no less than the survival of
our society,” he said.
Myers said the biggest immedi
ate issue facing him is interpreting
and gauging the effects of a proper
ty tax cut measure passed by vot
ers at the November general elec
tion.
Myers voted against the initia
tive, but after the election he said
he would put his personal feelings
aside in defending the new law
against any lawsuits.
“We’re going to need to be care
ful to give sound legal advice as to
what the measure means and how
to comply with it,” he said.
Replacing tanks could mean empty future for small gas stations
■ CLEANUP: Rural stations
often cannot afford the high
cost of removing aging gas
storage containers
By Charles E. Beggs
The Associated Press
SALEM — As numerous Ore
gon gas stations face extinction be
cause of a tank cleanup deadline,
the 1997 Legislature might be
asked for last-ditch financial help.
Otherwise, says a gas dealers’
spokesman, Oregon could lose as
many as half of its 1,800 service
stations within about two years.
The threatened stations are in
rural areas, smaller outlets that
cannot afford big tank repair and
replacement costs, says Mike
Sherlock, executive director of the
Oregon Gasoline Dealers Associa
tion.
A U.S. Environmental Protec
tion Agency order adopted in
1988 says tanks in use before 1988
must be renovated or replaced to
minimize chances of leaking fuel
contaminating ground water.
The deadline for compliance is
Dec. 22,1998, and not much gov
ernment financial assistance is in
sight for station owners.
“We expect tanks to be the sub
ject of discussion in the legislative
session,” says Mike Kortenhof,
manager of the underground tanks
program for the state Department
of Environmental Quality.
“We expect a lot of requests for
help,” Kortenhof says. But the
agency did not ask for lottery
funds this year.
About $6 million in lottery rev
enue has helped about 80 stations
with grants to fund tank replace
ment costs since 1993.
But lottery revenue is no longer
rising, so the DEQ did not seek any
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funding from that source.
A lot of people are just hanging
on and praying some miracle will
happen that will bail them out be
fore the deadline, Sherlock said.
He says many Oregonians likely
are not aware of the problem and
will not be until the last stations
start closing down.
Major oil companies have up
graded tanks at the high-volume
stations in major cities. But the
$100,000 or more for that work is
hard to justify for some rural sta
tion operators, Sherlock says.
There is talk of extending the
deadline, he says, a move the as
sociation would oppose.
“A lot of people have put their
life savings to update fuel tanks,”
he says. “It would be very unfair.
The die is cast. People have had
ample warning.”
“[Thej EPA is making clear
there won’t be an extension,” says
Kortenhof.
He says the DEQ is asking for a
major increase in the permit fee for
tanks, now $35 a year.
The agency wants it increased
to $60, to raise $339,000 to finance
an expected increase in technical
assistance requested by tank own
ers as the deadline draws nearer.
Some sort of fee increase is
needed just to stay even in rev
enue, because the number of tank
permits is dropping as stations
close up rather than meet the ex
pensive requirements.
Two efforts to help finance a
large-scale tank cleanup program
with public funds failed.
Lawmakers passed a measure to
finance a program by imposing a
new fee on gas deliveries to sta
tions. But the courts threw out the
plan, saying the fee amounted to a
gas tax that the state constitution al
lows to be used only for highways.
Winter 1997
Environmental Awareness Workshops
Oregon Forests-January 10-12
' v\\
a ciose-up iook at trie environment with an
opportunity to study the relationships, concepts, and
variety that are present in Oregon's forests.
Oregon's Wildlife-January 24-26
This workshop will cover everything from black bears to seastars
and look at the unique array of species in Oregon.
Park resources-January 17-19
This workshop is designed to allow the participants an
opportunity to closely examine the needs, development, costs
and management of public park systems.
Oregon Coast-January 31-February 2
Study at the edge of the continent to gain
knowledge about Oregon's spectacular and
varied coastline.
Winter Recreation-February 14-16
This class examines the recreational and tourism potential of
winter recreation including: snowplay, skiing, fishing and
camping during the winter months in Oregon.
Cascade Mountains-February 21-23
Explore the Oregon Cascade range while learning
I valuable information about the areas plants,
animals, geology and history.
' Oregon Water-February 28-March 2
A close look at one of Oregon's most valuable resources.
Study the importance of a quality water environment for
recreation, tourism, forestry and agriculture.
Coastal Lakes-March 7-9
Large and small lakes along Oregon's coast provide an
interesting and informative field lab for the study of
plants, animals, history and geology.
Oregon Rivers-March 14-16
Investigate the exciting riparian environments of
Oregon's rivers. Field labs on local rivers expose
students to problems, relationships, and
opportunities for river activities.
All classes are 2 credits, (HDEV 410), Tuition $200
All Environmental Awareness workshops meet: Fri-noon to 4:50pm;
Sat-7:00am to 6:50pm; Sun-8:00am to 4:50pm
University of Oregon Continuation Center
For information call Mel Jackson at (541) 346-5431
or the Continuation Center at (541) 346-4231
l ake flight on a University of
Oregon
Overseas Program
Information Sessions:
Russia
Jan. 7, EMU Century D
4:00-5:00pm
Germany
Jan. 8, EMU Cedar E
4:00-5:00pm
Term long programs in
France, Italy, Germany, and
England
Jan. 9, EMU Cedar E
4:00-5:00pm
Office of International Education and
Exchange 330 Oregon Hall, 346-3207
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