Wednesday, March I1)1)1)
Weather forecast
Today Thursday
Rain, wind Showers
High 42, Low 42 High 45, Low 35
An independent newspaper
Volume 100, Issue 110
University of Oregon
www.dailyemerald.com
Town hall meeting
State legislators Sen. Susan Castillo
and Rep. Kitty Piercy meet with an
open agenda in Eugene/PAGE 5
Last defense
Senior guard Lisa Bou>yer foils
opponents by being aggressive
and wanting it more/?AGE 7
Special
election
starts today
A single measure remains on the
ballot: streamlining the process
for bringing elections grievances
By Sarah Skidmore
Oregon Daily Emerald
After generating extensive controversy,
campus-wide rumors and a court hearing, the
special election is finally being held today.
Only one ballot measure will appear on
the ballot.
Students can vote on the measure to alter
the elections grievance hearing process out
side the ASUO office on the ground level of
the EMU Breezewav from 9 a.m. to 5 D.m. to
Vete
SPECIAL
ELECTION
day and Thursday.
Absentee ballots are
available in the
ASUO offices. Ab
sentee ballots must
be turned in by 5
p.m. on Thursday.
The ballot mea
sure was submitted
by ASUO President
Geneva Wortman
and Vice President
Morgan Cowling.
The measure, if
passed, would alter section 12.5 ot the
ASUO Constitution with regard to regular
elections.
As the Constitution currently stands, the
ASUO Elections Board may interpret the elec
tions rules on request but only the Constitu
tion Court can hear complaints of violations.
Any interpretations of the election rules
made by the elections board committee may
be appealed to the Constitution Court.
The ballot measure seeks to alter this dis
tribution of power. Under the proposed
amendment, the elections board would have
the right to hear complaints of violations as
well as the right to interpret the elections
rules on request.
Additionally, members of the elections
board could act as hearing officers and form a
hearings committee that could make deci
sions on the complaints.
Turn to ELECTION, Page 6
Strong winds knock down trees
_t
fua
Crew members from Facilities Services cut up a grand fir that blew over at the comer of University and 13th during Tuesday nights's bad weather.
Nick Medley/Ememld
Crews
labored to
remove
toppled
trees at the
EMU and
elsewhere
in Eugene
ByTeri Meeuwsen
and Rob Moseley
Oregon Daily Emerald
Undeclared freshman Brian Lee
was getting ready for his 6 p.m.
class when he peered out the win
dow of the Kappa Sigma fraternity
house on 11th and Alder and saw
one of the oldest trees on the prop
erty crack and fall onto the back
porch roof.
“I just saw this mammoth of a
tree swaying, and it just came
down,” he said. “It sounded like
thunder and the whole house
shook. It’s kind of scary because
we’re always on that back porch.”
Wind gusts of 40 mph and aver
age winds of 25 mph blew trees and
downed power lines all over Eu
gene on Tuesday night. The Eugene
Police Department, public works
crews, the University Physical
Plant and EWEB were kept busy
most of the night.
The National Weather Service is
sued a high-wind warning for late
Tuesday night and early this morn
ing. The storm’s strongest gusts of
70 mph were expected before about
6 a.m. today, said meteorologist
Miles Higa.
River Road, Washington, City
View, Chamelton, Norkenzie,
Olive and Alder streets are only a
few of the roads affected by the
winds.
No one was injured at the frater
nity house, but the 75-year-old tree
split at its trunk, sending more than
half of the tree into the roof of the
house. The large branches split the
ceilings of a couple of the second
floor rooms, leaving one resident
roomless for the night.
“We heard creaks and stuff, so he
doesn’t get to sleep in there
tonight,” Lee said.
The tree also pulled rain gutters
down and landed on a power line
that stretched across Alder Street.
The accident probably couldn’t
come at a better time, said Dominic
Gatta, a senior journalism major.
“We were planning on making
some major renovations anyway in
the same place it fell,” he said. “It
wasn’t bad timing — that’s for
sure. ”
Their next door neighbors at the
Sigma Nu fraternity house got a
Turn to TREES, Page 6
Higher education bills include loan restructuring, waivers
Strong
support for
the state’s
university
system exists
in the
Legislature,
but funding
is scarce and
priorities
vary
By Michael Hines
Oregon Daily Emerald
Oregon’s higher education lobby
has jumped off the roof of a 20-story
building in Salem.
With each floor it whips past on the
way down, the lobby says to itself,
“OK so far.”
According to Grattan Kerans of the
Oregon University System, that’s just
where higher education is in the Ore
gon Legislature—OK so far.
“We don’t know how the final
crunch is going to come down,” Ker
ans said.
The final crunch likely won’t come
for the Legislature until near the end
of the school year, but higher educa
tion lobbyists in the state are keeping
busy anyway.
Oregon’s Secretary of State Phil
Keisling recently backed Senate Bill
104, which would allow all Oregon
students to attend a state university
through loans, regardless of their in
come.
In addition, the bill would structure
loan repayments to be made based on
an income scale after graduation. In
other words, the more a graduate
makes, the more he or she is required
to pay back on their loans.
There are two other bills currently
before the Senate, 538 and 469.
Senate Bill 538 would allow 40 tu
ition waivers for University, Portland
State and Oregon State students based
on merits such as sports, music, dra
ma or dance.
Senate Bill 469 would start a college
savings program for residents allow
ing $2,000 each year in tax-free invest
ments for their children’s educations.
Sen. Susan Castillo (D-Eugene) said
she supports the intent of all three
bills.
However, like many other legisla
tors, she has reservations about 104,
which is currently structured as a pilot
program to serve 2,000 students over
the next two years.
“Some people think the last thing
students need is to acquire more
loans,” Castillo said. “We were also
told that there are some people who
don’t go to college because they just
can’t afford it.”
Kellie Shoemaker of the Oregon Stu
dent Association said the organiza
tion’s board of directors is refusing to
take a definite position.
“Our position basically is it’s an in
novative idea, and any idea that helps
higher education is great,” Shoemaker
said. “We’re watching it and we’re in
terested in it, but we’re not taking a po
sition.”
Despite how many legislators feel
about 104 now, it was sent into a work
group headed by Tom Hartung (R
Turnto HIGHER ED, Page 6