Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current, April 16, 2015, Image 1

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    april16 2015
VERNONIA’S
volume9  issue8
www.vernoniasvoice.com
reflecting the spirit of our community
Merkley and Bonamici Hold Town Hall
 
US  Senator  Jeff  Merkley 
and US Congresswoman Suzanne 
Bonamici  held  a  joint  Town  Hall 
at the Vernonia School on Friday, 
April 3, 2015.
 
Over sixty people were in 
attendance when Senator Merkley 
opened  the  meeting  by  making  a 
presentation  of  a  United  States 
flag to high school principal Nate 
Underwood.  The flag  had previ-
ously  been  flown  over  the  Capi-
tol  Building  in  Washington,  D.C.  
“This school contributes so much 
to the strength of this community,” 
said  Merkley.    “This  is  really  in 
appreciation  for  how  every  facet 
of  the  community  came  together 
to make this happen.”
 
Merkley  and  Bonamici 
both  made  opening  remarks  and 
then took questions from the audi-
ence.
 
In  his  opening  remarks 
Merkley stated that not much has 
been  passed  through  the  Senate 
since  January.    He  noted  that  the 
Senate  had  spent  almost  a  month 
working on the Keystone Pipeline 
issue which President Obama had 
said he would veto and did, spent 
a  month  on  a  Homeland  Security 
bill which everyone agreed on but 
then  had  unrelated  immigration 
policy  riders  added,  and  spent  a 
few  weeks  on  a  new  trafficking 
bill  which  everyone  agreed  on 
but  then  an  unrelated  social  is-
sue was added to it, and then time 
was  spent  on  the  budget.    Merk-
ley  also  mentioned  conversations 
about  authorizing  military  force 
in Syria, the Iran nuclear weapons 
treaty, and the attempt to fast track 
the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade 
agreement.  
 
Congresswoman 
Bon-
amici  noted  during  her  opening 
remarks that she serves on the Ed-
ucation  and  Science  Committees.  
She  said  she  has  been  working 
on the reauthorization of the “No 
Child Left Behind” act, which she 
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said  needed  some  “big  changes,” 
and  said  instead  of  focusing  on 
standardized  testing  we  should 
provide a well rounded education 
for  students.    She  has  introduced 
telligence  and  in  cyber  security.  
That huge investment in defense is 
not the right direction.”  Bonamici 
also  mentioned  the  importance 
of  the  permanent  fix  to  the  reim-
a bipartisan amendment to the re-
authorization that would eliminate 
low quality and redundant testing 
and  better  inform  instruction;  the 
bill has passed through the Educa-
tion Committee.  She also has been 
working on the reauthorization of 
the  Older  Americans  Act  which 
provides funding for senior service 
programs  like  Meals  on  Wheels, 
which  she  said  helps  seniors  live 
independently for as long as pos-
sible.    Bonamici  said  she  serves 
on the Environment, and Research 
and Technology subcommittees of 
the  Science  Committee  and  said 
she  had  a  bill  that  she  sponsored 
pass  in  the  House.    The  bill,  the 
Tsunami  Warning  Research  and 
Education Act, has strong biparti-
san support.  She said she is also 
working on the Weather Forecast-
ing Improvement Act which would 
assist  in  agriculture  and  fishing 
and  has  been  passed  out  of  com-
mittee.  Bonamici said she did not 
support the budget bill which she 
said made too many cuts to safety 
net programs and made too much 
additional  investment  in  defense 
spending.  “We  need  to 
keep our country safe, no 
doubt about it,” said Bon-
amici,  “but  the  way  to 
do  that  is  through  good, 
smart  investments  in  in-
bursement  formula  for  Medicare, 
which  passed  the  House  and  will 
be considered in the Senate.  “This 
is something that has needed to be 
done  for  many  years,”  said  Bon-
amici.    Bonamici  noted  that  tem-
porary  funding  for  Secure  Rural 
Schools was added to the bill, and 
that  she  is  committed  to  working 
on that as well.
 
Throughout  the  meeting 
both Bonamici and Merkley men-
tioned the importance of their  bi-
partisan work in Congress in order 
to try to get things done and men-
tioned  examples  when  they  have 
worked across the  aisle on legis-
lation.
 
When  the  Senator  and 
Congresswoman  began  taking 
questions  from  the  audience,  the 
first question came from Vernonia 
High School senior Alexis Baska, 
who asked if they could help pro-
vide more funding for education in 
rural areas like Vernonia.  Senator 
Merkley  responded  that  the  fed-
eral  government  funds  programs 
like Title One, Head Start and No 
Child Left Behind.  He said that in 
the  new  budget  he  will  be  push-
ing for more funding for education 
and trying to block more funding 
for defense through the appropria-
tions process.  He expressed con-
vernonia marathon
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vhs spring sports
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the boot leather bull
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easter egg hunt
continued on page 12
May 19 Elections
Give Voters Some
Interesting Choices
 
The upcoming May 19 election will offer local 
voters the chance to elect representatives to the Vernonia 
School  Board,  The  Vernonia  Rural  Fire  Protection 
District,  the  Mist-Birkenfeld  Fire  District  and  the 
Columbia County 9-1-1 Communications District.  There 
are also three ballot Measures  for voters consideration.
 
Ballot Measure 5-243 is a county wide measure 
that  would  increase  the  Natural  Resources  Depletion 
Fee  by thirty-five cents ($.35) per ton to a total of fifty 
cents ($.50) per ton. The current fee primarily provides 
revenue  for  county  roads.  The  increase  is  intended  to 
cover the costs to the infrastructure of Columbia County 
that  result  from  mining  activities.  The  additional  fees 
would be used as follows: 
• Ten cents ($.10) for road improvements and maintenance 
of existing roads and bridges.  
•  Twenty-five  cents  ($.25)  for  Columbia  County  Rider 
Transportation. 
 
The initiative requires that none of the proposed 
increased funds could be used for other county general 
fund purposes.
 
Measures  5-245  and  5-246  would  raise  funds 
for the Vernonia Rural Fire Protection District.  Measure 
5-245 is a ten year bond for the purchase of fire apparatus 
and is estimated to cost taxpayers an average of $0.2621 
per thousand of assessed value each year. For the owner 
of  a  home  or  property  owner,  the  estimated  annual 
average  cost  would  be  $26.21  per  $100,000  of  taxable 
assessed value. Measure 5-246 is a five year levy which 
would fund  the salary and benefits package of a Training 
Captain.  This  person  would  be  responsible  for  the 
District’s training program and responding to incidents.  
This measure is estimated to cost taxpayers an average 
of $0.32 per thousand of assessed value each year. For 
the  owner  of  a  home  or  property  the  estimated  annual 
average  cost  would  be  $32  per  $100,000  of  taxable 
assessed value.
 
The Vernonia School Board will have a few new 
faces.  Katie  Cook  is  running  unopposed  for  Position  3 
and Brittanie Roberts in running unopposed for Position 
7.  Those seats are currently held by Tim Bamburg and 
current Board Chair Bill Langmaid who both chose not 
to run.  Greg Kintz, who currently occupies Position 2 is 
facing a challenge from Thomas E. Jones of Birkenfeld. 
Jones is the husband of Mist School teacher Joan Jones.
 
The Vernonia and Mist-Birkenfeld Fire District 
Boards  will  see  no  changes  as  Joel  Glass  and  Terry 
Lindauer  in  Vernonia  are  both  running  unopposed  for 
their  currently  held  positions  and  Larry  Boxman,  Joan 
Jones, and Barbara Smith are all running unopposed for 
positions  they  currently  hold  on  the  Mist-Birkenfeld 
Fire  Board.    The  same  is  true  on  the  Columbia  9-1-1 
Board where Kathy Denkla is running unopposed for the 
position she currently holds. 
School Board to Make Charter School Decision
 
The  Vernonia  School  Board 
will meet in a special meeting on April 
21  at  6:30  PM  to  decide  whether  to 
sponsor a Charter School and submit an 
application  to  the  Oregon  Department 
of Education (ODE).
 
The  Vernonia  School  District 
formed  a  Steering  Committee  earlier 
this spring made up of citizens, school 
staff,  School  Board  members  and 
parents  to  discuss  the  possibility  of 
submitting an application to the state to 
become a Charter School.  The Steering 
Committee  held  discussions,  decided 
to  move  forward,  and  prepared  the 
formal application which was reviewed 
by  a  School  Board  Subcommittee  for 
completeness.    Following  two  public 
hearings,  the  full  School  Board  is 
currently evaluating the application on 
its merits and will make a final decision 
about  submitting  it  to  the  State  at  the 
special meeting on April 21.
 
The  proposed  application 
would  leave  the  Mist  School  separate 
from  the  charter.    The  charter    would 
encompass  the  entire  K-12    Vernonia 
School.    The  new  Charter  School 
would  require  the  formation  of  a 
separate Board of Directors and require 
independent accounting processes. 
 
Vernonia  District  Superinten-
dent  Aaron  Miller  elaborated  on  the 
Charter School application process dur-
ing a recent conversation.  Miller said 
the Steering Committee included sever-
al community partners and was what he 
deemed  “a  representative  group”  that 
included “a wide range of people from 
the community.”  
 
According  to  Miller  the 
continued on page 16