Opinion
4A
Saturday, August 22, 2020
Other Views
A community with
no local newspaper?
That’s bad news
hat would my town be without a newspaper? If
you haven’t asked yourself that question, perhaps
it is time to consider just what the newspaper
means to this community.
Because the doleful fact is, too many small towns and
mid-sized cities are losing their newspapers right now. An
extensive study
from the Univer-
sity of North Car-
DEAN RIDINGS
olina released in
CEO, AMERICA’S
January found by
NEWSPAPERS
last year, 2,100
newspapers had
disappeared, or
almost 25% of the 9,000 newspapers published in 2004.
That translates to 1,800 communities that 15 years ago
had their own newspapers that now have no original local
reporting, either in print or digital.
Note this report was released just weeks before the coro-
navirus pandemic swept up newspapers in the same finan-
cial catastrophe that’s devastated businesses of all types and
sizes and thrown millions out of their jobs and households
into terrifying economic uncertainty.
What does a community lose when it loses its
newspapers?
The most obvious is the community’s access to news
about itself: the workings of its town hall; information about
taxes and property values; the operation of schools for its
children; the achievements, or the criminal activities, of
local residents; the scores of local ball teams; schedules and
reviews of movies, concerts and restaurants; and the offer-
ings of local small businesses.
During this pandemic and in spite of their deep financial
troubles, newspapers continue to provide the unique local
news and information about COVID-19 — from testing
spots to restrictions and openings to dining options —
unavailable from any other source.
But the less obvious losses when a newspaper disappears
may be the most devastating to a community.
Researchers in 2018 found when a local newspaper
closes, municipal borrowing costs — and therefore resi-
dents’ taxes — go up. Losing a paper, the study said, creates
a “local information vacuum.” It turns out lenders depend
on local reporting to judge the value of government projects
— and the officials in charge of them. Without that infor-
mation, lenders tend to charge higher rates.
Communities without newspapers also are more likely
to be victims of corruption petty and grand, local incidents
the national media will never uncover. The most glaring
example comes from the small California city of Bell,
where — without the eyes of a local newspaper on them —
the city council engineered passage of a virtually unnoticed
referendum to get around a new state law capping council
member salaries. Within five years, council members were
taking home a cool $100,000, the police chief was being
paid $450,000 — and the city manager of this municipality
of just 37,000 souls was making nearly $800,000.
Losing a local newspaper, another study found, also can
lead to more political polarization — something no commu-
nity, nor our nation, needs now.
Fortunately, there are steps you can take to avoid
becoming another “news desert.”
For one thing— subscribe.
But there also is pending bipartisan legislation that
deserves your support. The Local Journalism Sustainability
Act (H.R. 7640) provides for tax credits that support the
three pillars of trusted, fair and accurate journalism: people
who subscribe to newspapers or other local media; busi-
nesses that advertise in local newspapers; and newspapers
that staff their newsrooms with journalists who cover the
community. The tax credits aren’t permanent and sunset
after five years.
In a nutshell, this bill would provide every taxpayer tax
credits up to $250 a year to spend on subscriptions to qual-
ified local newspapers. It would give businesses with fewer
than 1,000 employees tax credits of up to $5,000 the first
year and up to $2,500 for the next four years for advertising
in local newspapers or local media. And it would give local
newspapers a tax credit of 80% of its compensation to jour-
nalists in the first year and 50% for the next four years.
This legislation provides a lifeline for everyone affected
by the pandemic: local readers, local businesses, local news
providers.
Asking your legislators in Washington to support the
Local Journalism Sustainability Act is a simple step you
can take to help your community from becoming yet
another news desert. Just go to www.usa.gov/elected-offi-
cials for contact information for your legislators. Your right
to fair and trusted local news and information is worth the
effort.
———
Dean Ridings is CEO of America’s Newspapers, an alli-
ance of local newspapers and related establishments com-
mitted to explaining, defending and advancing the vital
role of newspapers in democracy and civil life.
W
Other Views
Working to stop B2H power line
ug. 27 is the deadline for
contesting Idaho Pow-
er’s proposed but unneeded
power line through Union County
and Eastern Oregon. For anyone
who believes that Idaho Power’s
A
WHIT
DESCHNER
BAKER CITY
Boardman to Hemingway Transmis-
sion line will provide more benefit
than damage — forget it. Presently
Idaho Power is polishing up their
700-plus page application for their
permit from the Oregon Department
of Energy.
However, contrary to their PR
about being a down-home honest
corporation, their track record of
misinformation remains on course.
Here are some — just a few of many
— items that Idaho Power is trying
to slip by and hide unnoticed in their
permit application.
The transmission line would run
305 miles through Eastern Oregon,
and Idaho Power proposes to weasel
out of responsibility for wildfires
they start during construction or
from downed lines. Local volun-
teer fire departments will carry the
burden of fire containment. In other
words, they can start a fire like the
one that burned up Paradise and
kill 80-some people but won’t be
responsible.
Where the power lines cross pri-
vate lands, access roads used for
building and maintaining the power
lines may be gated and locked,
denying public access. Road building
will be allowed within 25 feet of
streams, meaning the current laws
protecting streams and rivers in
Oregon are worthless. We are let-
ting an out-of-state corporation run
roughshod over regulations made to
protect us and our environment.
ODOE plans to allow Idaho
Power’s power line to exceed the
World Health Organization’s rec-
ommended decibel level and Idaho
Power is fudging its numbers,
meaning it does not know either
because of incompetence or the
company does know and is pulling
the wool over our ears.
ODOE requires a bond to restore
the land in case Idaho Power quits
the project or goes bankrupt. ODOE
is allowing a bond amount of $1
good for 50 years. What is the pur-
pose of a buck bond if it doesn’t
protect the citizens it is there for?
Who is ODOE working for?
This is the iceberg’s tip. What
other stop-at-nothing tactics Idaho
Power has hidden in this application
is anyone’s guess. ODOE can’t tell
us nor does it appear they plan to.
Unfortunately, public input for this
near-final round is closed but not for
our public representatives.
La Grande-bred Stop B2H is
fighting an entire stable of corpo-
rate law-trained Goliaths. But where
are the rest of our representatives
to stop this debacle? Don’t let Idaho
Power ruin Eastern Oregon. Gov-
ernment agencies such as ODOE
are there to protect the public, not to
help out-of-state for-profit corpora-
tions invade and erode the standards
of our rural endangered lifestyle.
It’s way overdue for other represen-
tatives to kick in for what they were
elected and/or hired to do: Repre-
sent the people.
Stop B2H.
———
Whit Deschner has lived in Baker
County for the last 38 years and is
the instigator of The Great Salt Lick,
a fundraiser for Parkinson’s research
in Baker City for the past 13 years.
Contact your public officials
President Donald Trump: The White
House, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Wash-
ington, D.C. 20500; 202-456-1414; fax 202-
456-2461; to send comments, go to www.
whitehouse.gov/contact.
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley: D.C. office:
313 Hart Senate Office Building, U.S.
Senate, Washington, D.C., 20510; 202-
224-3753; fax 202-228-3997. Portland
office: One World Trade Center, 121 S.W.
Salmon St. Suite 1250, Portland, OR
97204; 503-326-3386; fax 503-326-2900.
Pendleton office: 310 S.E. Second St.
Suite 105, Pendleton 97801; 541-278-
1129; merkley.senate.gov.
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden: D.C. office:
221 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Wash-
ington, D.C., 20510; 202-224-5244; fax 202-
228-2717. La Grande office: 105 Fir St., No.
210, La Grande, OR 97850; 541-962-7691;
fax, 541-963-0885; wyden.senate.gov.
U.S. Rep. Greg Walden (2nd District):
D.C. office: 2182 Rayburn Office Building,
Washington, D.C., 20515, 202-225-6730;
fax 202-225-5774. La Grande office: 1211
Washington Ave., La Grande, OR 97850;
541-624-2400, fax, 541-624-2402; walden.
house.gov.
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown: 254 State
Capitol, Salem, OR 97310; 503-378-3111;
www.governor.oregon.gov.
Oregon State Treasurer Tobias
Read: oregon.treasurer@ost.state.or.us;
350 Winter St. N.E., Suite 100, Salem OR
97301-3896; 503-378-4000.
Oregon Attorney General Ellen F.
Rosenblum: Justice Building, Salem,
OR 97301-4096; 503-378-4400.
State Sen. William S. Hansell (29th
District/Athena): Salem office: 900 Court
St. N.E., S-423, Salem, OR 97301; 503-986-
1729. Website: www.oregonlegislature.gov/
hansell. Email: sen.billhansell@oregonleg-
islature. gov.
State Rep. Greg Barreto (58th
District/Cove): Salem office: 900 Court
St. N.E., H-384, Salem, OR 97301; 503-986-
1458. Website: www.oregonlegislature.gov/
barreto. Email: rep.gregbarreto@oregon-
legislature.gov.
State Rep. Greg Smith (57th Dis-
trict/Heppner): Salem office: 900 Court St.
N.E., H-482, Salem, OR, 97301; 503-986-
1457. Heppner office: P.O. Box 219, Heppner,
OR 97836; 541-676-5154; Website: www.
oregonlegislature.gov/smithg. Email: rep.
gregsmith@oregonlegislature.gov.
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 An-
deres; 1106 K Ave., La Grande, OR 97850;
541-963-1001; fax 541-963-1079.
Wallowa County Commissioners:
John Hillock,Todd Nash and Susan Rob-
erts; 101 S. River St., Room 202, Enterprise,
OR 97828; 541-426-4543, ext. 11.
Elgin City Council: Mayor Allan Duffy,
501 N. 11th St., 541-437-1016, mayor@city-
ofelginor.org; Mary West, 260 N. 5th Ave.,
541-805-0443, councilor3@cityofelginor.
org; Kathy Warren, P.O. Box 697, 541-786-
9611, councilor6@cityofelginor.org; Risa
Hallgarth, P.O. Box 525, 541-437-9462, coun-
cilor2@cityofelginor.org; Rocky Burgess,
800 N. 14th St., P.O. Box 854, 541-786-2417,
councilor1@cityofelginor.org; David Reed,
1011 Detroit St., P.O. Box 368; 541-975-3306,
councilor4@cityofelginor.org; Ryan Martin,
councilor5@cityofelginor.org.
La Grande City Council: Mayor Steve
Clements, Gary Lillard, Nicole Howard,
Corrine Dutto, Mary Ann Miesner, Justin
Rock; through the city manager’s office,
541-962-1309.