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CapitalPress.com
September 2, 2016
Editorials are written by or
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the opinions of the authors but
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Opinion
Editorial Board
Publisher
Editor
Managing Editor
Mike O’Brien
Joe Beach
Carl Sampson
opinions@capitalpress.com Online: www.capitalpress.com/opinion
O UR V IEW
ODA’s loss is the state’s gain
aty Coba, longtime
director of the
Oregon Department
of Agriculture, on Oct. 1
will become director of the
Department of Administrative
Services and Oregon’s chief
operating offi cer.
That’s a good thing for
Oregon, but it will be a sad day
for Oregon farmers and ranchers
when she gives up the reins at
ODA.
Coba, a Pendleton native who
grew up on the family wheat
ranch, has been director at ODA
for 13 years, having served four
governors. Her tenure has been
longer than any other director.
We live in an age when the
K
term “bureaucrat”
has come to
be used as a
pejorative, and
those with long
tenure at the head
of a regulatory
agency are viewed
Katy Coba
with apprehension
by the regulated. But Coba is
no imperial Mandarin or party
apparatchik.
Farm Bureau gives Coba credit
for keeping ODA from being
politicized.
Too often government uses a
hammer to enforce its regulations.
Coba has overseen a department
that has collaborated with
producers to achieve desired
outcomes, leaving stronger
measures as a last resort. It’s a
concept other agencies would do
well to emulate.
“The Department of
Agriculture is really a great role
model,” Coba said. “We focus
on education and outreach and
providing technical expertise to
the people we interact with, and
that is our fi rst goal in the work
that we do.”
That’s not to say that
everyone has been happy with
every decision. They have not.
Like many things in Oregon,
agriculture sparks passionate
debate. Producers of all stripes
can adopt strident positions
regarding cropping practices.
But ODA and Coba practice
a big tent policy. Big ag is
good, small ag is good, organic
ag is good, and conventional
ag is good. Coba has promoted
it all.
“Oregon agriculture is very
diverse, which is a strength we
have, but it also brings a lot
of challenges,” Coba told our
colleagues at the East Oregonian.
In making the appointment,
Gov. Kate Brown praised Coba’s
“proven record of effective
and innovative leadership and
extensive knowledge of state
government. She is committed to
making government work better
for all Oregonians.”
Her professional resume made
her a natural choice.
Kristin Grainger, a
spokeswoman for the governor,
said there was one other thing.
“Her roots in rural Oregon and
Eastern Oregon were infl uential
as well,” Grainger said.
So Coba will bring a fresh
point of view to the upper
echelon of a state government
that has been Portland centric for
many years.
“I still feel very much
connected to our natural
resources-based industries,” Coba
said. “I will be shameless in my
advocacy for those things, even in
my new job.”
That can only be good for
agriculture and rural Oregon.
Ag must stand
united this November
O UR V IEW
By BARRY BUSHUE
For the Capital Press
he November 2016 elec-
tion is close upon us, and
it has never been more
vital for the Oregon agriculture
community to come together
as a strong, united front.
All farming and ranching
families — no matter the oper-
ation size, commodity raised,
or farming method used — are
impacted by the public poli-
cy decisions made at the state
capitol. Ever-increasing rules
and regulations involving labor,
water, land use, transportation,
taxes, wildlife, to name only a
few, directly affect our ability to
do our jobs and stay in business.
We must stand together in
support of candidates who un-
derstand and value agriculture
— and stand up against activ-
ists and out-of-state groups that
threaten our family businesses,
rural communities, and way of
life.
Just look at what happened
in the last two Oregon legis-
lative sessions. Lawmakers
passed bills that create an un-
certain regulatory landscape and
unfairly burden food, foliage
and fi ber producers.
• The minimum wage hike
hurts “price-taking” industries
like agriculture that have little
ability to raise prices to offset
increased operations costs.
• Paid sick time does not ac-
count for the unique needs of
agriculture, like short harvest
windows.
• The Low Carbon Fuel Stan-
dard will increase the cost of
transporting goods through a hid-
den gas tax, hitting producers and
working families at the pump.
And we face new challeng-
es in 2017, including requiring
employers to set worker sched-
ules weeks in advance, costly
retrofi t and replacement of diesel
engines, and prohibitions on im-
portant production tools that are
used responsibly and sparingly
on the farm.
In Oregon, we face constant
pressure to reject scientifi c ad-
vancements in agriculture, threat-
ening not only the affordability
and accessibility of food, but also
the family farms and ranches that
raise it. We must continuously
fi ght proposed bans on animal
health tools, biotechnology, and
crop protection products.
It’s especially frustrating be-
cause farmers and ranchers truly
are the original environmen-
talists, our livelihoods directly
dependent upon the health of
the land. All farmers, whether
organic, conventional, or both,
care about sustainability. Who is
T
Capital Press
A sign posted in Jordan Valley opposes the Owyhee Caonyonlands National Monument in Malheur County, Ore. Jordan Valley is nearly
surrounded by the proposed monument.
Blumenauer widens urban-rural divide
opposed the monument proposal in a county-
ou have to hand it to U.S. Rep. Earl
Area in
wide advisory vote.
Blumenauer. He’s not afraid to take
detail
Ore.
In essence, Blumenauer is telling rural
a stand, especially when the issue
BAKER
Oregonians that their opinion doesn’t matter,
will have zero impact on his district and
26
and neither do their businesses, many of
when the victims will be hundreds of miles
which have been in Malheur County long
away.
Proposed national Ontario
before he and his Portland friends ever heard
The Portland Democrat sent a letter to
conservation area
of it.
President Barack Obama recently urging
Nyssa
20
There is a lot of talk these days about the
him to use the Antiquities Act to establish
urban-rural divide, about how urban folks
the 2.5 million-acre Owyhee National
lack an understanding of rural areas. These
Monument.
same people say rural residents need to
The law allows a president to unilaterally
understand the needs of urban
designate a national monument, which
folks.
forbids multiple use of the land. The act
Jordan
Valley
But when it comes right down to it,
is often used by lame ducks to shove
Burns
urban residents say they have the votes,
such designations down the throats of
Junction
and whether rural residents agree or
local residents and curry favor with
95
not, that’s tough. That’s Blumenauer’s
environmental groups.
stand, and the stand of others who want
The distance from Portland to the
the canyonlands “protected” from the
proposed monument: 368 miles.
Ore. McDermitt
generations of Oregonians who have
“A growing statewide coalition of
Nev.
N
ranched there.
local citizens, businesses, conservation
95
20 miles
Blumenauer, in his support for the
organizations, recreational interests,
Alan Kenaga/Capital Press
Owyhee National Monument, just made
sportsmen, and other diverse partners
support permanent protection of the Owyhee Canyonlands,” the urban-rural divide wider. He demonstrated — again
— that the wants of Portland’s elites outweigh the needs of
Blumenauer wrote to Obama.
rural Oregonians.
But, he wrote, “there are some local interests who are
The next time you hear folks talk about the need for
opposed to such a designation.”
urban and rural Oregonians to listen to one another,
The “local interests” are Malheur County residents,
remember that, on issues such as this, urbanites only seem
including ranchers and others who for generations have
depended on the canyonlands area to graze cattle. They fear to hear what they want.
Blumenauer mentions the possibility of a “win-win”
grazing and other economic activities would ultimately be
banned if the monument were designated. That would most solution for all communities in Malheur County should the
area be set aside as a playland for hikers and campers.
likely put them out of business.
What he really means is “We win, you lose.”
Last spring, 90 percent of Malheur County voters
Ow
Ore.
Idaho
Y
Idaho
Ore.
Readers’ views
U.S. needs
to regain its
sovereignty
The U.N. TPP and TTIP
treaties are being touted as
benefi cial to our farms, trade
and economy. Have we ben-
efi ted from any of the other
treaties — WTO, NAFTA,
CAFTA, etc.?
Our economy has slumped
to the point of homeless cit-
izens with their families liv-
ing in cars, vans or wherever.
Their children have maybe a
meal a day. Just think what
the approximately $8 billion
of your tax money going to
the U.N. could do for our citi-
zens and economy.
Yet, we are increasingly
being saddled with Agenda
21, Small Arms Treaty, cli-
mate control and various oth-
er rules and regulations. Our
nation and its citizens were
ruled against with COOL,
the Country of Origin Label-
ing law for some foods.
Isn’t it time to stand up for
our sovereignty and Amexit,
as did the Brits?
Rep.
Mike
Rogers,
R-Ala., has introduced HR
1205, the American Sover-
eignty Restoration Act (pre-
viously submitted by Rep.
Ron Paul, R-Texas, in 1997)
that if passed would stop and
correct these attacks on our
sovereignty.
We need to stand together
and keep calling to account-
ability our legislators. Their
phone numbers are readily
available.
Freedom isn’t free. You
have to fi ght for it.
Ho 4:6 My people are
destroyed for lack of knowl-
edge.
Mrs. M.A. Novak
Yamhill, Ore.
Guest
comment
Barry Bushue
more sustainable than a farmer
working to pass down an oper-
ation to the third, fourth or fi fth
generation?
And certainly the size of an
operation does not dictate its lev-
el of commitment to the environ-
ment, its employees, its animals,
or the quality and safety of its
product. Larger farms care just as
much as smaller farms.
Less than 1 percent of Orego-
nians make their living in agricul-
ture. We cannot let others divide
us into battling factions of small
vs. large, organic vs. convention-
al vs. biotech, one commodity vs.
another.
That’s why we need you to
vote in November. Farmers and
ranchers are stronger as a com-
munity, as a constituency, when
we stand together against fear-
mongering and misinformation.
To get the word out, Farm
Bureau and other Oregon ag or-
ganizations have launched an “I
Farm, I Vote” campaign, similar
to those in other states. To partici-
pate, print out an “I Farm, I Vote”
sign from oregonfb.org/ifarmi-
vote. Take a picture of yourself
holding the sign on your farm or
ranch, and post it on social media
with the hashtag #iFarmiVote-
OR. Help us show that Oregon’s
rural communities are united, en-
gaged and will come out in force
on Election Day.
Throughout the year, it’s
important for farmers to get in
front of legislators and local deci-
sion-makers to explain how pub-
lic policy and legislative propos-
als threaten agriculture’s ability
to survive. That’s what Oregon
Farm Bureau does for our 7,000
farm and ranch family members.
We represent their inter-
ests at the capitol, share in-
formation, and empower our
members to advocate for
themselves.
From now through Nov. 8,
take to social media and pro-
claim #iFarmiVoteOR. Pay
attention to local races and
support candidates who under-
stand the challenges farmers and
ranchers face every day. Learn
about the ballot measures. And
most importantly, cast your vote
this November.
Oregon Farm Bureau
President Barry Bushue is a
third-generation farmer raising a
variety of vegetables and berries
at a nearly century-old farm near
Boring, Ore. He is OFB’s 15th
president.
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