LOCAL
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2019
L OCAL B RIEFING
From staff reports
Bingo games resume
at Union VFW this
week
UNION — Bingo games at
the Union VFW will resume
Sept. 4 at 518 N. Main St. The
doors will open every Wednes-
day at 5 p.m. Early-bird
games begin at 6 p.m., and
the regular session is at 7 p.m.
During the last game of the
night, blackout can pay up to
$500 if won within the first 50
numbers. All are welcome.
New grief support
group series begins
soon
LA GRANDE — Grande
Ronde Hospital Home Care
Services is hosting a new ses-
sion of the Growing Through
Grief support group beginning
Sept. 11. The group will meet
at 6 p.m. for six consecu-
tive weeks in the first-floor
conference room of the GRH
Pavilion, 909 Adams Ave., La
Grande. Advance registra-
tion is requested. For more
information or to register,
contact the group’s facilitator,
Ann Schaefer, LCSW, at 541-
963-2273.
family-style by the Farmers
Market Board of Directors
and volunteers, and signature
cocktails, beer and wine will be
available at the bar.
The event celebrates local
food while raising money for
the market’s operating costs
through a silent auction and
a live pie auction. The bar and
silent auction opens at 5 p.m.
Dinner is served at 6 p.m.,
followed by the pie auction.
Tickets are $45 and available
at The Bookloft in Enterprise,
Joseph Hardware and the
Wallowa County Farmers
Market booth in Joseph on
Saturdays.
For more information, go to
www.wallowacountyfarmers-
market.com, visit the market’s
Facebook page or call 541-838-
0795.
saving over a period of six to
36 months,” says NEOEDD’s
executive director, Lisa Daw-
son. “It’s essentially a financial-
responsibility program.”
Orientation sessions are
planned for 6 p.m. Sept. 10 at
the Enterprise Public Library,
101 NE First St.; noon Sept.
11 at IGNITE, 104 Depot St.,
La Grande; and 6 p.m. Sept.
11 at LaunchPad Baker, 2019
Main St.
Interested parties are en-
couraged to read the informa-
tion at www.neoedd.org/ida/
and then attend one of the one-
hour orientation to learn more
about the requirements of
enrolling in the IDA program.
Questions are encouraged.
Learn about the
IDA savings-match
program
LA GRANDE — The City of
La Grande Community Land-
scape & Forestry Commission
will meet Sept. 10, the La
Grande Arts Commission will
meet Sept. 11, and the Parks
& Recreation Advisory Com-
mission will meet Sept. 12.
Each meeting begins at 5:30
p.m. at the City of La Grande
Parks & Recreation Office,
inside Pioneer Park near the
basketball courts.
New members are needed
for the Community Landscape
& Forestry Commission and
the La Grande Arts Commis-
sion. For more information
about serving on a commis-
sion or on any of the above
meetings, contact Stu Spence,
Parks & Recreation director, at
sspence@cityoflagrande.org or
call 541-962-1348.
LG Parks & Rec
commissions meet
next week
ENTERPRISE,
LA GRANDE — People with
low-to-moderate incomes in
Northeast Oregon who seek
funds for a business enterprise,
vocational training, continu-
ing education or a vehicle are
encouraged to investigate the
Northeast Oregon Economic
Development District’s Indi-
vidual Development Account
program. IDAs provide a
three-to-one savings match. A
participant who saves $3,000
and completes the program
will receive an additional
$9,000, up to $12,000 total.
“The IDA program is not a
grant. It’s an earned incentive
coupled with goal-setting, edu-
cation and practical experience
WC Farmers Market
hosts dinner and
auction
LOSTINE — The Wallowa
County Farmers Market
Harvest Dinner and Auction is
set for Sept. 14 at the his-
toric Lostine Tavern. The fall
feast features locally grown,
seasonal vegetables paired
with Wallowa County beef
and Columbia River salmon,
prepared by Chef Alexis
Plank. The meal will be served
THE OBSERVER — 3A
Forecast: Oregon residents to
see record tax refund credit
The Associated Press
Oregon taxpayers will
see the largest-ever state
income tax refund next year,
thanks to state revenue
coming in at more than
9% above projections, state
economists said Wednesday.
They say the top 1% of
taxpayers can expect re-
funds of $15,214, while the
median refund will be $346.
The average payout to all
taxpayers is expected to be
$739.
A total of more than $1.57
billion is expected to fl ow
back to personal income tax-
payers after they fi le their
2019 returns.
That compares to a re-
fund projection in May of a
little more than $1.4 billion.
The latest tally given
to lawmakers continues
a trend over the past two
years, as state tax revenue
outpaces expectations,
Oregon Public Broadcasting
reported.
Money fl owing into the
state’s general and lottery
funds came in $2.6 bil-
lion above what offi cials
expected in 2017. That
created a situation where
Oregon reserve funds are at
an all-time high — at more
than $3.7 billion — even as
economists warn of a pos-
sible economic slowdown on
the horizon.
Oregon’s unique refund
policy also means the state
can’t use all of the unex-
pected money.
Under state law, a
“kicker” is triggered when-
ever actual personal income
tax receipts come in at
least 2% higher than initial
projections. In such cases,
any money collected above
initial forecasts fl ows back
to taxpayers in the form of
tax credits.
The unprecedented
revenues have roots in a
number of factors, including
federal tax changes that led
businesses to put off paying
taxes until this year and
ratcheting up corporate tax
receipts by around 50%.
Economists say those im-
pacts are likely short-term.
“Even without a reces-
sion, we’re expecting that
it’s going to be hard to
match the revenue we saw
in the last biennium,” state
economist Mark McMul-
len told lawmakers on the
House and Senate revenue
committees.
P UBLIC S AFETY R EPORT
a controlled substance, meth.
Arrested: Tammi Lee Dolan, 52, unknown address,
was arrested on a charge of disorderly conduct.
Arrested: Jason Michael Norton, 32, unknown
address, was arrested on a charge of violation of
a restraining order.
LA GRANDE POLICE
DEPARTMENT
Arrested: Shane Allen Sain, 33, unknown
address, was arrested on a Union County parole
and probation warrant charging a parole viola-
tion. The warrant was connected to an original
charge of eluding police.
Arrested: Rebecca Ann Loehr, 31, unknown
address, was arrested on two Union County war-
rants. One warrant charged failure to appear in
court on an original charge of second-degree theft.
The second warrant charged failure to appear in
court on a charge of negotiating a bad check.
Arrested: Albert Wayne Johnson, 37, unknown
address, was arrested on a Union County bench
warrant. The warrant was connected to original
charges of luring a minor, third-degree sexual
abuse and endangering the welfare of minor.
Arrested: Joshua Dickson, 32, unknown ad-
dress, was arrested on a Union County parole
and probation detainer.
Arrested: Trey Garrett Rubin, 26, unknown ad-
dress, was arrested on charges of second-degree
theft, second-degree burglary and possession of
UNION COUNTY
SHERIFF’S OFFICE
Cited: Davis A. Lewis, 23, La Grande, was cited
on a charge of harassment.
Accident: Nobody was injured in a rollover
traffi c accident near Catherine Creek State Park
Sunday. The accident was reported at 9:15 a.m.
Cited: A Union County juvenile was cited
on a charge of being a minor in possession of
marijuana.
Arrested: Nathan Hagedorn, 28, unknown ad-
dress, was arrested on a charge of harassment.
LA GRANDE FIRE
DEPARTMENT
Firefi ghters responded to fi ve calls for medical
assistance on Sunday, fi ve on Saturday and 10
on Friday.
O BITUARIES
Alfred L. Harper
Michael P. Lowery
Emily Cheevers
Elgin
Union
La Grande
Alfred L. Harper, 85, of El-
gin, died Aug. 30. An obituary
is forthcoming.
Loveland Funeral Chapel
& Crematory will be han-
dling the arrangements.
Michael Patrick Lowery, 73,
of Milton-Freewater and for-
merly of Union, died June 16.
A celebration of his life will be
held at 2 p.m. Sept. 7 at the
Eastern Oregon Livestock
Show Clubhouse in Union.
Emily Cheevers, 86, of La
Grande, died Aug. 30 at her
home. An obituary is forth-
coming. Arrangements are
entrusted to Daniels-Knopp
Funeral, Cremation & Life
Celebration Center.
Patricia Carson
So Much More Than A Pharmacy
Summerville
Patricia Carson, 72, of
Summerville, died Aug. 30 at
her residence. An obituary is
forthcoming.
Loveland Funeral Chapel
& Crematory will be handling
the arrangements.
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Sept. 7
Marvin
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2 p.m., graveside
service, Grandview
Cemetery; followed
by 3 p.m. celebration
of life, 2004½ E. N
Ave. (Cunningham
residence), La Grande.
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George Gilchrist:
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First Christian
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