Business AgLife
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Thursday, July 23, 2020
The Observer & Baker City Herald
Pandemic plagues hotel tax proceeds
By Bill Bradshaw
and Ellen Morris Bishop
EO Media Group
WALLOWA COUNTY —
The revenue government agencies
receive from local transient/motel
taxes may be another area plagued
by the COVID-19 pandemic, as a
falling number of stays at motels
means fewer tax dollars.
The tax is added to the bills
customers pay when staying at
area motels or hotels. According
to Becky Rushton, of the Joseph
Chamber of Commerce, 1.5% of
a customer’s bill goes to Travel
Oregon, the business name of
the Oregon Travel Commission.
Another 6% goes to Wallowa
County and 3% goes to any incor-
porated city a business is located
in. Businesses outside of cities do
not pay that 3%.
“What everybody needs to
know is that it’s not the business
owner who pays the tax,” she said.
“It’s always the customers who
pay the tax.”
Wallowa County’s income
will diminish, but it’s too early
to make meaningful projections,
according to County Comissioner
John Hillock.
“As far as the local lodging
tax the operators I have talked
to are down considerably so I
would think the income to the
county and county chamber will
be down,” Hillock said. “Travel
Oregon expects to lose millions
and employees have taken pay
cuts.”
He said Wallowa County has
the highest use of Paycheck Pro-
tection Program loans in the state.
Transient tax funding provided
to the Wallowa County Sheriff is
dedicated to support for Search
and Rescue, Sheriff Steve Rogers
said. According to SAR spokes-
woman Paige Sully, the SAR units
do not expect much of a negative
effect in the loss of funding.
“We are really grateful for
the transient tax income,” Sully
said. “But although we could use
a couple of equipment upgrades,
there’s nothing that we really
need. SAR will still help anyone
who needs it.”
Wallowa Memorial Hospital is
not anticipating any transient tax
shortfall issues, either.
“These funds are typically
used for equipment purchases and
will not have an affect on current
operations or care capacity,” hos-
pital spokeswoman Brooke Pace
said. “We have budgeted a 50%
reduction in transient tax income.”
See, Hotel tax/Page 2B
EO Media Group file photo
Too many vacancies at motels
and hotels in Wallowa County can
mean lower transient/motel tax
receipts that benefit services in
the county and its cities.
Grants boost local
health insurers
By Sabrina Thompson
EO Media Group
UNION COUNTY —
The Oregon Health Insur-
ance Marketplace approved
funding for three local
organizations to help with
enrolling residents of Union
and Wallowa counties in
health care plans.
Valley Insurance and
Northeast Oregon Network,
La Grande, and Hillock
Insurance Agency, Enter-
prise, will receive grant
money to help cover the
costs of enrolling residents
in health insurance plans
during open enrollment,
Nov. 1-Dec. 15. The grants
will provide reimbursement
for expenses, such as pay-
Photo contributed by Barreto Manufacturing
Mitch Henry works on an engine at Barreto Manufacturing, La Grande. The company received a Paycheck Protection
Program loan between $1 million-$2 million after being affected by COVID-19.
Local businesses benefit from
Payment Protection Program
48 loans for $150,000 or more approved
in Union and Wallowa counties
By Sabrina Thompson
EO Media Group
LA GRANDE — A
total of 48 companies in
Union and Wallowa coun-
ties received Paycheck Pro-
tection Program Loans
loans of $150,000 or more.
The federal Coronavirus
Aid, Relief, and Economic
Security Act established
the Paycheck Protection
Program to encourage
small businesses to keep
employees on the pay-
roll during the economic
uncertainty caused by the
coronavirus.
Companies who may
apply for PPP loans include
nonprofits, veterans orga-
nizations and indepen-
dent contractors, as long
they have fewer than 500
employees. The loans must
be used only on payroll
expenses and to cover rent
and utilities for the busi-
ness’s building.
Propublica, a non-
INSIDE
• A look at the top recip-
ients in Northeastern
Oregon, Page 2B
profit investigative news-
room, compiled a list of
companies that received
loans of $150,000 or
more. In Union and Wal-
lowa counties, 27 compa-
nies received loans in the
$150,000-$350,000 range,
18 received $350,000-$1
million in loans and four
received loans of $1 mil-
lion-$2 million. Beef
Northwest Feeders in
North Powder was the only
local company to receive a
$2 million-$5 million loan.
More than half of the loans
went to businesses in La
Grande.
Community Connec-
tion of Northeast Oregon,
with headquarters in La
Grande, received $633,800,
according to Execu-
tive Director Margaret
Davidson. Davidson said
having these funds will
help the nonprofit stretch
its other money.
See, Loans/Page 2B
roll for employees working
extra hours and printing
costs for flyers about open
enrollment, according to
Matthew Pidcock, co-owner
of Valley Insurance.
“During open enrollment
we have a small window
to enroll people,” Pidcock
said. “This grant is one of
the things that keeps us in
the individual insurance
market. We are one of the
few companies in the area
left, and a large part of that
is due to having this grant.
It helps us still provide ser-
vice to the community
while offsetting the added
cost that comes during the
See, Grants/Page 2B
Unemployment rates
drop in area counties
By Ronald Bond
EO Media Group
LA GRANDE — Union
County’s unemployment
rate, which at the height
of lockdowns due to the
coronavirus pandemic was
among the worst in Oregon,
dropped almost 6 per-
centage points in June and
now is at 11%, according
to the latest data from
the Oregon Employment
Department. The rate was
16.9% in May.
The county gained back
610 jobs and now is back
over 9,100, though it still is
1,330 jobs off the total of
10,450 reported in March
before the pandemic and
closures hit.
The number of indi-
viduals filing continued
unemployment claims was
almost cut in half, from
1,102 to 605, and is well
down from the peak of
1,368 in April.
Manufacturing jobs
accounted for more than
80% of the comeback with
500 of the positions in that
sector. Once the hardest-hit
industries in Union County,
it now is just 160 jobs off
pre-pandemic totals.
The accommodations
and food services industry
currently has the most con-
tinued claims filed in the
county at 135.
Union County’s rate is
on par with the rest of the
Northeast Oregon. Wallowa
County also has an unem-
ployment rate of 11%, down
from 12.8% in May.
See, Drop/Page 2B
Watermelon season arriving late this year
By Jade McDowell
“I think the crop looks really good
so far, it’s just been set back a little
bit from normal.”
EO Media Group
HERMISTON — The
first few Hermiston water-
melons are starting to hit
the stands, but watermelon
season isn’t in full swing
yet.
“We’re starting very
slowly,” said Jack Bellinger
of Bellinger Farms.
Bellinger said on July 9
they had put a few water-
melons out in the Bellinger
Farms store south of Herm-
iston, but they weren’t ship-
ping them out quite yet. He
said he had planted about a
week earlier than usual this
year, but some “question-
able weather” had slowed
things down.
The wind storm that
swept through west Uma-
tilla County and north
Morrow County on the last
day of May damaged water-
melon crops around Herm-
iston, including some to
Bellinger fields.
“I’ve never seen a wind
storm do that to a water-
Patrick Walchli, of Walchli Farms
EO Media Group file photo
Hermiston seedless watermelons sit in cartons in 2019 outside of the Bellinger Farms
store on Highway 395, Hermiston. Weather and the effects of the dealing with the coro-
navirus are delaying this year’s crop.
melon crop before,” Bell-
inger said.
The weather wasn’t the
only interesting thing this
spring — farmers also have
been having to deal with the
effects of COVID-19. Bell-
inger said luckily between
his “core crew” of people
who usually help with har-
vest during the summer,
plus their contract labor
from Atkinson staffing,
he has had the help he has
needed.
He said the first water-
melons to ripen haven’t
been as large has he was
looking for, but people can
still look forward to a good,
quality taste.
“I’ve been happy with
the flavor of the seedless so
far,” he said.
Jade Mueller of 3rd Gen
Farms said the wind storm
and subsequent days of
strong winds broke many
of the farm’s watermelon
starts, so their crop will be
about half of what it has
been some years.
She said their smaller
melons, such as Gallia
melons, already have been
for sale at Alive & Well,
Hermiston, and said they
were planning on starting
to sell watermelons the
week of July 13. 3rd Gen
Farms also has a stand at
the Maxwell Market in
Hermiston most weeks.
Patrick Walchli of Wal-
chli Farms said the uneven
temperatures this summer
slowed down the ripening
process, and the farm
plans to start harvest July
20.
“I think the crop looks
really good so far, it’s just
been set back a little bit
from normal,” he said.
He said since June he
has gotten plenty of people
asking when they can get
their hands on a Walchli
watermelon, and it’s always
a nice feeling to know
people are excited for their
product.
“It makes you feel good
that people think of it,” he
said.