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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 16, 2013)
Union leaders wary about public water district in Portland By DON McINTOSH Associate Editor A prospective ballot initiative would take control of Portland’s water and sewer system away from the city gov- ernment and give it to a newly created public utility board. The initiative was filed July 26, and received a ballot title Aug. 8. Once the initiative is approved for signature- gathering, backers would have until Jan. 21, 2014, to gather 29,786 valid signatures from registered Portland vot- ers in order for the initiative to appear on the May 17, 2014 ballot. The initiative’s chief petitioners are Kent Craford and Floy Jones. Craford — a former campaign manager for 2010 Republican candidate for gover- nor Chris Dudley — is a lobbyist for a group of large commercial water users. Jones is one of the founders of the group Friends of the Reservoirs, which has fought the City of Portland’s efforts to comply with federal mandates to safeguard drinking water. Elected leaders of the unions whose members would be most directly af- fected by the initiatives say they haven’t had time to look closely at the 26-page measure, but they have con- cerns. Portland Water Bureau employ- ees are represented by AFSCME Local 189, and Bureau of Environmental Services employees (who operate and maintain the sewer system and sewage treatment facilities) are represented by Laborers Local 483. The proposed initiative would di- vide Portland into seven geographic districts, each of which would elect one representative to the Portland Public Water District board. But the initiative contains extensive restrictions on who could serve on the board: no one who was a City of Portland employee, water district employee, or employee of a wa- ter or sewer contractor in the previous six years would be allowed to run for election to the board, nor even any cit- izen volunteers who served on the wa- ter or sewer budget advisory commit- tees in the previous three years. The new water district is also barred from employing any attorneys or account- ants who worked for firms that pro- vided legal or accounting services to the City of Portland. Board members would serve three-year terms and would not be compensated. The initiative also contains lan- guage saying the new district may not regionalize or privatize the water sys- tem, may not weaken water quality protections in the Bull Run Water- shed where the City draws its water, and may not commingle Bull Run water with other sources, like the Willamette River. At a press conference announcing the initiative, Craford said it was mo- tivated by concerns about waste, fraud and abuse, such as money that was spent on public toilets and to construct a model water-saving home. Backers of the initiative include the presidents of Portland Bottling Co. and American Property Manage- ment, and corporate lobbyist John DiLorenzo, an attorney with the cor- porate law firm Davis Wright Tremaine who is representing a group of businesses suing the City of Port- land over alleged improper expendi- tures of water and sewer funds. Local 189 President Mark Gipson said his union is still gathering data, but that he has serious concerns about the initiative from a labor standpoint and as a citizen of Portland. Meanwhile, Local 483 Business Manager Richard Beetle said he likes the concept of citizen control, and shares citizen concerns about current use of funds — Beetle worked as a wastewater treatment operator at the City for three decades, and has been a frequent critic of City management. But he said initiative backers haven’t approached the union, and creating a brand-new board raises a whole bunch of questions, like who would be run- ning for the board and what their agenda would be. It wouldn’t be Beetle or Gipson. The two labor leaders would be barred from running for the Water Board — despite in-depth familiarity with operational and budget issues — because they serve as appointed members of the budget advisory committees for the existing water and sewer bureaus. It’s not clear that such restrictions are even lawful, said Portland City Commissioner Nick Fish, who was put in charge of the Water Bureau and the Bureau of Environmental Serv- ices in June. Under the initiative, Fish said, no union member who worked for the city would be allowed to run. On the other hand, Fish said, the only big local law firm that wouldn’t be barred from working for the new dis- trict would be DiLorenzo’s firm. Initiative sponsor Craford chuck- led at that suggestion, and told the Labor Press the clause about attor- neys and accountants was meant to prevent conflicts of interest, since the Water District would be a separate entity from the City. Fish suggested the initiative’s “big business” funders may want to shift system costs from business to residen- tial ratepayers. Or they may seek to cut costs by halting environmental remedi- ation. Fish said DiLorenzo’s lawsuit has been misreported in the press: It’s not primarily about the few hundred thousand dollars spent on non-mission- critical work when Randy Leonard was in charge of the Water Bureau, Fish said. It’s about addressing the City’s Superfund obligations for Willamette River cleanup. Though he had plenty to say about City spending decisions, Craford said initiative backers don’t have any spe- cific agenda for saving ratepayer dol- lars if the measure passes. “If you put real people in as decision makers,” Craford said, “we think they’ll make good decisions.” “This is about who makes decisions about the Bull Run — a group funded by big business, or Portland City Coun- cil,” said Fish. “Do you want a special district along the lines of Clackamas Water District, with people unknown and unaccountable to you, running your utilities?” IRS PROBLEMS? • Haven’t filed for ... years? • Lost records? • Liens - Levies - Garnishments? • Negotiate settlements. • Prepare offer in Compromise. Call Nancy D. Anderson Enrolled Agent NPTI Fellow/America’s Tax Expert LTC-1807 www.nancydanderson.com 503-244-2577 (International Standard Serial Number 0894-444X) Established in 1900 at Portland, Oregon as a voice of the labor movement. 4275 NE Halsey St., P.O. Box 13150, Portland, Ore. 97213 Telephone: (503) 288-3311 Editor: Michael Gutwig Staff: Don McIntosh, Cheri Rice Published on a semi-monthly basis on the first and third Fridays of each month by the Oregon Labor Press Publishing Co. Inc., a non- profit corporation owned by 20 unions and councils including the Oregon AFL-CIO. Serving more than 120 union organizations in Ore- gon and SW Washington. Subscriptions $13.75 per year for union members. Group rates available to trade union organizations. PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT PORTLAND, OREGON. CHANGE OF ADDRESS NOTICE: Three weeks are required for a change of address. When ordering a change, please give your old and new addresses and the name and number of your local union. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS, P.O. BOX 13150, PORTLAND, OR 97213-0150 AUGUST 16, 2013 NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS PAGE 3
