Opinion
A4
Saturday, March 19, 2022
OUR VIEW
Was it prudent
for Oregon to
invest in Russia?
hen Russia invaded Ukraine, the state
of Oregon was an investor in Russia.
Oregon investments to earn money
for the state’s public employees retirement fund
had millions in Russian government bonds; Rus-
sian Federation bonds; Sberbank, the largest,
Russian state-owned bank; Gazprom, the Russian
state-owned energy company; and Mosenergo, a
Russian power generating company.
The total was about $137 million. And Oregon
can’t get the money out.
State Treasurer Tobias Read announced on
March 3 that Oregon would dispose of the money.
It has not been able to, his staff told us.
The situation is eff ectively that the state can’t
sell, likely couldn’t fi nd a buyer and would only
get pennies on any dollar if it could sell and fi nd
a buyer. The Moscow Exchange was shut down.
The ruble has plummeted in value.
“One of the big issues is that while we do
have holdings included on the sanctions list, the
market for selling them is eff ectively closed — in
some cases, no one could buy them from us even
if they wanted to,” said Rachel Wray, the public
information director for the Oregon Treasury
Department. “In addition, Russian authorities
have taken separate actions that have raised bar-
riers to potential transactions.”
It seems time to rethink Oregon’s state invest-
ment policy. State law says Oregon should
“make the moneys as productive as possible”
and “investment funds shall be invested and the
investments of those funds managed as a pru-
dent investor would do.” That apparently has been
interpreted to mean investing in Russia is just
fi ne, despite that it is led by an autocratic leader
and has a recent history of aggression.
A few lowlights:
In 2007, Russia planted a fl ag in the seabed of
the North Pole asserting a claim to billions in oil.
It also launched a cyberattack against Estonia.
In 2008, Russia supported separatist move-
ments in Georgia. It later deployed tanks in
Georgia claiming it was there to keep the peace.
More than 2,000 people were killed.
In 2014, Russia invaded Crimea. Crimea sur-
rendered essentially without a shot. It’s now eff ec-
tively part of Russia.
Even with that history, Oregon has investments
that supports the Russian state. They may have
been excellent investments for those whose minds
are only full of dreams of avarice. But where the
state of Oregon puts its money is a statement of
values. And in your name, as a “prudent investor”
the state put its money in Russia.
Where are the leaders calling for a re-evalua-
tion of state investment policy? We hear crickets.
W
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Opportunity for replacing aging
Annex building is too good to pass up
JOHN
TOLAN
OTHER VIEWS
he La Grande School Board
unanimously voted on Jan
12, 2022, to refer to voters a
$4.825 million school bond measure.
The passage of this measure would
allow the school district to replace
the aging Middle School Annex
and move the facilities operation to
another location.
I was employed by the La Grande
School District for 40 years and I
believe this bond measure would be
a positive addition to the district and
community.
When my wife and I moved our
family to La Grande in 1977, I used
to go to the Annex to play city and
church league basketball. I loved
playing there. I knew all the dead
spots on the fl oor, and I think the bas-
ketball rims were about 3 or 4 inches
lower than normal because it was the
only gym where I dunked a basket-
ball during a game.
Then we watched our kids play
T
sports in the Annex and I used the
Annex to coach some of the team
sports they played. The last few years
our grandkids have played AAU and
middle school sports in the Annex.
Over these 40-plus years, I
have seen many renovations to the
Annex: taking down the wooden
bleachers and upper walking deck,
new lighting, new ceiling heaters and
sound boards on the walls because the
acoustics in the Annex are horrible. I
think it is time to stop putting money
into an aging building.
The Annex has been a great asset
to the community over the years
but it’s just about run its course, and
this bond measure is a wonderful
opportunity to build a new facility
to help us through the next 75-100
years without adding any additional
LGSD tax costs. Who knows, maybe
my great-grandkids will start a new
tradition playing sports in a new
facility.
I understand prices of fuel, gro-
ceries and most everything else have
increased during the last year and not
supporting a bond would be a way
to voice an opinion in saying, “No
more increases.” However, because
CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVES
U.S. PRESIDENT
Joe Biden
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Comments: 202-456-1111
U.S. SENATORS
Ron Wyden
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Washington, DC 20510
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La Grande offi ce: 541-962-7691
Kate Brown
160 State Capitol
900 Court St.
Salem, OR 97301-4047
503-378-4582
Bobby Levy, District 58
900 Court St. NE, H-376
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1458
Rep.BobbyLevy@state.or.us
Cliff Bentz
2185 Rayburn House Offi ce Building
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-6730
Medford offi ce: 541-776-4646
SENATOR
Greg Smith, District 57
900 Court St. NE, H-482
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1457
Rep.GregSmith@state.or.us
Bill Hansell, District 29
900 Court St. NE, S-415
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1729
Sen.BillHansell@state.or.us
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the school district refi nanced the bond
passed in 2014, they can apply the
$4.825 million along with a $4 mil-
lion matching Oregon School Capital
Improvement grant to this bond mea-
sure without increasing the current
bond debt. I’ve never seen this type of
bond measure come up in the 40-plus
years I’ve been associated with the
school district. We just can’t pass up
this opportunity.
If you need more information on
this bond measure, please reach out
to a school board member, school
administrator, school staff member
or fi nd information on the La Grande
School District website or Facebook
page. Please be informed on this
measure.
A yes vote on Measure 31-105 is a
great opportunity for our community
to build a new physical education/
athletic/STEM facility at La Grande
Middle School. Please join me in sup-
porting this La Grande bond measure.
———
John Tolan retired in 2020 after
40 years in the La Grande School
District, most recently as the principal
of Island City Elementary School for
nearly two decades.
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