Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (March 7, 2020)
4A SATURDAY, MARCH 7, 2020 The Observer OUR VIEW Session left transparency in the dust The Democrats botched the legislative short session. They can blame Republicans until they are blue in the face — pun intended — but the supermajority party knew the possible consequences of pushing controversial climate change legislation in a mere 35-day session. The Democrats in the least should have slow walked cap and trade, holding it for the end of the session. They should have fi rst worked with Republicans on simpler bills and bills that would fi x immediate needs, from fund- ing to fi ght forest fi res to helping Eastern Oregonians recover from fl ooding. That might have gone some distance toward making the session productive and may have avoided the need for a special session or Gov. Kate Brown sidestepping the Legis- lature with an executive order to enact cap and trade. The Dems maintain Republicans were unwilling to compromise on the climate legislation, and that’s true. The Republicans would only be on the fl oor for a vote if the bill’s language referred it to a vote of the people. The Democrats were just as unwilling to compromise, refusing to allow Oregonians to vote on a measure that would have wide and lasting effects. They acted more like bullies than lawmakers. And in this morass, a crucial move to strengthen trans- parency in Oregon government remains in the piles of bills that went nowhere. Senate Bill 1506 would establish the position of the pub- lic records advocate as independent from the governor’s offi ce. Democrats and Republicans supported the bill. The bill was a response to the September 2019 resigna- tion of Ginger McCall, Oregon’s fi rst public records advocate. McCall contended Brown’s staff pressured her to represent the interest of the governor while staying silent about that. McCall — rightly — wanted nothing to do with the two-faced approach and left the job. The Public Records Advisory Council also did not like the governor’s offi ce having infl uence over the person working to ensure the public has access to public records. SB 1506 would allow the council to appoint McCall’s successors rather than the governor. The bill also provides the advo- cate with the authority to weigh in on legislation. That’s signifi cant. Oregon has more than 500 exemp- tions to public records — some peg the number at 550 or more. Those exemptions come from lawmakers and special interests. The public records advocate, then, could head off the creation of more loopholes or at least voice opposition to them. The advocate position has two other important purpos- es: resolve confl icts arising from public records requests and train public employees and others on Oregon’s public records laws. The ream of exemptions presents challenges to record seekers and record providers. What might appear to be a simple request could require a public body check with a lawyer to make sure there are no exemptions. McCall’s training on public records, therefore, was of real benefi t to the people of Oregon. And the people would benefi t further if the governor’s offi ce — no matter who served there — could not control the advocate. Given the failure of the short session, a special session seems likely. If that comes to be, Democrats and Republi- cans should take up SB 1506 as soon as possible and pass it. That kind of bipartisanism would be a small step to- ward reconciliation and a better functioning Legislature. And it would show the two sides are putting Orego- nians fi rst. MY VOICE Cap-and-trade bill about power, money T he EPA report from 1990-2018 on U.S. emissions shows an overall increase of 3.7%, but since 2005, emis- sions declined by 12.3%. Oregon fares well because our vast agricultural and forest land need carbon dioxide. We also have passed more than 54 state laws related to environmental concerns over the past two decades, and things improved a lot. I was a member of an environmen- tal group working for clean air and water while using natural resources wisely. aWhile we often don’t agree with the method to reach that goal, the goal is good. Today, almost all global pollution is not Oregon sourced. The cap-and-trade bill does not offer a solution. The issue is power and money, so look at who benefi ts. If you look on page 34, section 39, of the 94-page bill as amended dated Feb. 14, the following are to prioritize greenhouse gas reduction with the money they receive: Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board gets 25% of the $700 million this bill is expected to extract from us all annu- ally, local governments get 20%, and another 20% goes to agencies of the state. You also will see a long list of Indian tribes that will share 10%. In About the author Granella Thompson is a resident of Weston. My Voice columns should be 500-700 words. Submissions should include a portrait- type photograph of the author. Authors also should include their full name, age, occupation and relevant organizational memberships. We edit submissions for brevity, grammar, taste and legal reasons. We reject those published elsewhere. Send columns to La Grande Observer, 911 Jefferson Ave., La Grande 97850 or email them to news@lagrandeobserver. com. addition to the cash, they have to be consulted by local governments in their climate plans and have a part in rulemaking (sections 25, 27, 36 and 104). While I think they should certainly have a place at the table, this part of the bill everyone should know. Their support for this bill is no surprise. Another part of the bill (section 39d) states that state forestry cannot YOUR PUBLIC OFFICIALS U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley: D.C. offi ce: 313 Hart Senate Offi ce Building, Washington, D.C. 20510. Phone: 202-224-3753. Fax: 202-228-3997. Website: merkley.senate. gov/. Email: merkley.senate.gov/contact/. Portland offi ce: One World Trade Center, 121 S.W. Salmon St. Suite 1250, Portland, OR 97204; 503-326-3386; fax 503-326-2900. Pendleton offi ce: 310 S.E. Second St. Suite 105, Pendleton 97801; 541-278-1129; email elizabeth_scheeler@merkley.senate.gov. U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden: D.C. offi ce: 221 Dirksen Senate Offi ce Building, Washing- ton, D.C. 20510-3703; phone: 202-224-5244; fax 202-228-2717. Website: wyden.senate. gov. Email: wyden.senate.gov/contact/. La Grande offi ce: 105 Fir St., No. 210, La Grande, OR 97850; 541-962-7691; fax, 541- 963-0885; email kathleen_cathey@wyden. senate.gov. U.S. Rep. Greg Walden (2nd District): D.C. offi ce: 2185 Rayburn House Offi ce Building, Washington, D.C. 20515-0001, 202-225-6730; fax 202-225-5774. Website: walden.house. gov/. Email: walden.house.gov/e-mail-greg. La Grande offi ce: 1211 Washington Ave., La Grande, OR 97850; 541-624-2400, email jorden.noyes@mail.house.gov. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown: 900 Court St. N.E., Salem, OR 97301; 503-378-4582. Oregon Secretary of State Bev Clarno: 136 State Capitol. Salem OR 97310-0722; 503-986-1523. Oregon State Treasurer Tobias Reed: 350 Winter St. N.E., Suite 100, Salem, OR 97301- 3896; 503-378-4329. Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosen- blum: Justice Building, Salem, OR 97301- 4096; 503-378-4400. State Sen. William S. Hansell (29th District/ Pendleton): Salem offi ce: 900 Court St. NE., S-423, Salem, OR 97301; 503-986-1729. Website: www.oregonlegislature.gov/hansell. Email: sen.billhansell@oregonlegislature.gov. State Rep. Greg Barreto (58th District/ Cove): Salem offi ce: 900 Court St. NE., H-384, Salem, OR 97301; 503-986-1458. Website: www.oregonlegislature.gov/bar- reto. Email: rep.gregbarreto@oregonlegis- lature.gov. State Rep. Greg Smith (57th District): Salem offi ce: 900 Court St. NE., H-482, Salem, OR, 97301; 503-986-1457. Heppner offi ce: P.O. Box 219, Heppner, OR 97836; 541-676-5154; Website: www.oregonlegislature.gov/smithg. Email: rep.gregsmith@oregonlegislature.gov. SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION Subscription rates per month: Union & Wallowa Co. .........................$11.80 By mail, all other U.S. .............................. $15 A division of Oregon Legislature: Legislative docu- ments and information are available online at www.leg.state.or.us. City of La Grande: Mayor Steve Clem- ents, City Manager Robert Strope; P.O. Box 670, La Grande, OR 97850; 541-962-1309; fax 541-963-3333. Union County Commissioners: Donna Beverage, Matt Scarfo and Paul Anderes; 1106 K Ave., La Grande, OR 97850; 541-963- 1001; fax 541-963-1079. Wallowa County Commissioners: John Hillock, Todd Nash and Susan Roberts; 101 S. River St., Room 202, Enterprise, OR 97828; 541-426-4543, ext. 11; fax 541-426-0582. Elgin City Councilors: Mayor Allan Duffy, 501 N 11th St., 541-437-1016, mayor@ cityofelginor.org; Mary West, 260 N 5th Ave., 541-805-0443, councilor3@cityofelginor.org; Kathy Warren, PO Box 697, 541-786-9611, councilor6@cityofelginor.org; Risa Halgarth, PO Box 525, 541-437-9462, councilor2@ cityofelginor.org; Rocky Burgess, 800 N 14th St., P.O. Box 854, 541-786-2417, councilor1@ cityofelginor.org; David Reed, 1011 Detroit St., PO Box 368; 541-975-3306, councilor4@ cityofelginor.org; Ryan Martin, councilor5@ cityofelginor.org. STAFF Phone: SUBSCRIBE AND SAVE NEWSSTAND PRICE: $1.50 You can save up to 34% off the single-copy price with home delivery. Call 541-963-3161 to subscribe. use any of this money for fi re sup- pression, yet forest fi res contributed 141.1 million metric tons of green- house gases in 2017 alone, according to the EPA. You’d think preventing that would be important. They do allow 25% of the funds to be spent for mitigating the consequences of wildfi re response (section 39 5e). The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Board will be made up of one mem- ber jointly appointed by legislative leaders from the Republican Party and one from the Democratic Party who serves on a committee related to climate (section 97). Several positions, like the director of the Department of Environmental Quality, are on the board. The governor appoints 10 members on this board, from groups such as Environmental Justice Task Force, and one tribal member. Natural resources and other impacted busi- nesses are not included. Accountability is a problem, as not all portions of this bill would be available via public record request, and the public has no input, only other agencies. Section 109 states the board, governor, PUC, Energy Facili- ties Siting Council and Department of Transportation may adopt rules and issue orders to carry out provi- sions. 541-963-3161 An independent newspaper founded in 1896 (USPS 299-260) Periodicals postage paid at Pendleton, Oregon 97801. Published Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays (except Dec. 25) by EO Media Group, 911 Jefferson Ave., La Grande, OR 97850 (USPS 299-260) Toll free (Oregon): 1-800-781-3214 Fax: 541-963-7804 Email: news@lagrandeobserver.com Website: www.lagrandeobserver.com Street address: 911 Jefferson Ave., La Grande POSTMASTER COPYRIGHT © 2020 THE OBSERVER Send address changes to: The Observer retains ownership and copyright The Observer, protection of all staff-prepared news copy, advertising 911 Jefferson Ave., copy, photos and news or ad illustrations. They may La Grande, OR 97850 not be reproduced without explicit prior approval. Periodicals postage paid at: Pendleton, Oregon 97801 Publisher........................................Karrine Brogoitti Classifieds ........................................ Devi Mathson Regional circulation director ....................Kelli Craft Home delivery advisor.................Amanda Fredrick Editor .....................................................Phil Wright Customer service rep ......................... Mollie Lynch News clerk....................................Lisa Lester Kelly Advertising representative...............Juli Bloodgood Sports editor .......................................Ronald Bond Advertising representative...................... Amy Horn Reporter................................................Dick Mason Graphic design supervisor................Dorothy Kautz Reporter....................................Sabrina Thompson Graphic design ..............................Cheryl Christian IT support ........................................Nicole Gilbride Chris Rush, Regional Publisher
