Opinion
4A
Tuesday, December 1, 2020
Our View
The Observer, File
Young writers gather for a session in 2018 at Fishtrap,
the literary nonprofi t in Wallowa county. Fishtrap is one
of dozens of local nonprofi ts and charities that could
benefi t from a boom during 2020’s Giving Tuesday.
Giving matters
T
oday is Giving Tuesday. The idea came
out of the nonprofi t Mary-Arrchie Theater
Company in Chicago, which nine years
ago urged shoppers to donate to charity once they
were done with their Cyber Monday shopping.
Giving Tuesday went viral and became a global
event.
Just as numerous local businesses are strug-
gling under the constraints of COVID-19 man-
dates, so are dozens of local nonprofi ts. If you
have a spare dollar or more, or spare time, con-
sider giving to any of these or the other local
nonprofi ts and charities operating in Northeast
Oregon.
• Northeast Oregon Network — Works to
improve health systems delivery and health sys-
tems planning programs for residents of Eastern
Oregon: www.neonoregon.org, 541-624-5101.
• Shelter From the Storm — Provides ser-
vices to those who have been affected by inter-
personal violence, sexual assault and stalking
through advocacy, education and awareness:
www.unioncountysfs.org, 541-963-7226.
• Union County Museum Society — Presents
and preserves the history of Union County and
the surrounding area and operates the county’s
historical museum: www.ucmuseumoregon.com,
541-562-6003.
• Union County Warming Station — Pro-
vides shelter and resources to preserve the life
and health of those with no place to sleep during
cold Union County winters: www.ucwarmingsta-
tion.org, to donate contact Ashley Smith at 541-
786-6596 or asmith@neonoregon.org.
• Art Center East — Community arts orga-
nization offers arts learning opportunities in
regional schools and other accessible arts pro-
gramming: www.artcentereast.org, 541-624-2800.
• Blue Mountain Humane Association —
Animal shelter and rescue committed to pro-
viding a safe, humane, high-save environment
to connect all animals with their forever family,
and reunite lost animals with their owners: www.
bmhumane.org, 541-963-0807.
• Wallowa Land Trust — Works coopera-
tively with private landowners, Indian tribes,
local communities and governmental entities to
protect the rural nature of the Wallowa Country:
www.wallowalandtrust.org, 541-426-2042.
• Wallowa County Humane Society — Com-
mitted to the well-being of companion ani-
mals: www.wallowacountyhumanesociety.org,
541-263-0336.
• Wallowa Resources — Creates strong econ-
omies and healthy landscapes through land stew-
ardship, education and job creation: www.wallo-
waresources.org, 541-426-8053.
• Fishtrap — Promotes clear thinking and
good writing in and about the West: www.fi sh-
trap.org, 541-426-3623.
• Josephy Center for Arts and Culture —
Provides functional space so Wallowa County
residents and visitors can view art, listen to
music, watch theater, engage in workshops and
classes and learn about and contribute to the
history and culture of Wallowa County: www.
josephy.org, 541-432-0505.
Our View
Lawmakers should not hide tire tax
T
he new year will bring a
new Oregon Legislature,
and there are already dis-
cussions for new taxes.
There might be a new tax on
tires. Other options are a new tax
on the sale, lease and rental of
off-road equipment; a new tax on
new heavy trucks; and a new tax
on diesel fuel used off-road. A
legislative task force is set to dis-
cuss options on Thursday, Dec. 3.
It is for a good cause. Legisla-
tors are looking at these options
to bring in money to provide
incentives to help businesses
reduce diesel emissions and get
cleaner air. Waiting around for
businesses to slowly adopt cleaner
vehicles was believed to be hap-
pening too slowly. So legislators
have been looking at ways to help
vehicles burn cleaner fuel, burn
Letters
More of Oregon’s cherished
rivers should be protected
I grew up hunting and fi shing on
public lands and waters all throughout
Oregon, and now as a mother, I
cherish what those memories, experi-
ences and adventures do for my own
children. My children thrive while
experiencing the joy of nature and all
it has to offer them. I see the impor-
tance of the outdoors through the lives
and eyes of my children, especially
when we are out exploring our public
lands and waters.
Spending time on a river makes me
happier, more attentive, more inclu-
sive and more nurturing, and has an
less or just burn cleaner.
The Legislature also won’t nec-
essarily move forward with all
these taxes. It may just pick one.
It might well be a tire tax.
There’s already a federal tax
on tires. Many states have them.
The state taxes can be about $1
per tire. West Virginia apparently
charges the most at $5 per tire.
The idea in Oregon might be
to charge the tax and use the rev-
enue to help with recycling tires
and also put money into a fund to
provide incentives to help busi-
nesses move to cleaner vehicles.
That’s basically what California
already does. In Oregon, the Leg-
islative Revenue Offi ce estimates
the annual average revenue from
a surcharge of a $1 per tire would
be about $3.1 million, growing
with population growth.
The argument for a tire tax is it
is related to the goal of reducing
damage to roads and also
reducing diesel emissions. Argu-
ments against are pretty much the
traditional against any new tax
— the industry is already taxed
in other ways and it just raises
costs to consumers. There also is
a fairly unique “equity” argument
that there is no equivalent tax on
railroads or transportation using
waterways.
If the Legislature does move
forward with a tire tax, law-
makers should require it be
clearly labeled as a tax. Con-
sumers should see it when they
make their purchase. Legislators
crafted Oregon’s $1 billion annual
gross receipts tax to conceal the
cost from consumers.
Don’t do that with a tire tax.
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enormously positive effect on the
relationship I have with my children.
The world today is hard to navigate,
but when we are outdoors, we are
focused on the present situation — the
clean air, the clean water, the wildlife
and the landscape. Wild and Scenic
Rivers across the state of Oregon have
improved the quality of life for my
family.
There are 110,994 miles of river
in Oregon. Only 2,173 of those river
miles are protected under the Wild
and Scenic Rivers Act. Do the math
and that pencils out to less than 2%
of our state’s rivers that are protected.
As a lifelong Oregonian, that statistic
doesn’t sit right with me, as I believe
Oregonians overwhelmingly cherish
our rivers and streams and the unfor-
gettable memories we’re able to create
on them each year.
As such, my family was excited to
see Sen. Wyden’s public call for nomi-
nations for new Wild and Scenic River
designations.
Chelsea Cassens
Imbler