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community
april16
2020
Columbia County Commissioner Candidates –
Answers to Questionnaire for May 19 Election
$30m gap to cover existing needs over
the next five years” and “$42m of addi-
tional needs over the next five years.”
The problem is, these estimates were not
based on either a comprehensive cash
flow analysis, or line item assessment.
How can we say that we have a $72m
funding gap without conducting a com-
prehensive analysis on how effectively
we’re currently managing the tax payers’
money? Is an expo center, or a municipal
broadband network something we need
over the next 5 years to fix the county’s
financial situation? How much of the
$30m gap is actual needs vs. non-critical
wants?
Our #1 objective should be to
find ways to operate more efficiently and
spend every one of your dollars wisely.
Creating new taxes and fees will increase
our cost of living and make our county a
less friendly place to do business.
5. As the world deals with the COV-
ID-19 crisis, what are your thoughts
on how the Columbia County Public
Health Department has responded? Is
there anything you think the County
needs to address concerning Public
Health?
Position 1
Stockwell: We are seeing life changing
history with COVID-19. These are un-
precedented times and none of us know
exactly what will happen next. The
public health director is updating the
Board of Commissioners on a daily ba-
sis. Hopefully we are all following the
guidelines set forth by the Governor.
Right now it is crucial that the
Commissioners provide transparency
with the county so that residents are able
to make informed decisions regarding
their families health and feel they can
trust the information being provided to
them is accurate and trustworthy, which
reduces speculation and fear.
Magruder: Columbia County’s Public
Health Director Michael Paul and Emer-
gency Management Director Steve Pe-
gram have provided excellent leadership
during the current Covid-19 pandemic.
Columbia County has limited
health services and is one of the few
counties in Oregon without a hospital,
which has been a concern during this
crisis.
Our Public Health team has been
working 24/7 to bring the necessary ser-
vices of testing and care to the county,
Bonamici, Merkley, Wyden
Call for $50 Billion for Child
Care in Next Relief Package
Representative Suzanne Bon-
amici, Senator Jeff Merkley, and Sena-
tor Ron Wyden called on House Leader-
ship to provide $50 billion to support the
already-struggling child care sector in
the next coronavirus pandemic response
package.
According to a recent report by
the National Association for the Educa-
tion of Young Children (NAEYC), one
out of four Oregon child care providers
would not survive a closure of more than
two weeks without additional funding,
and one out of five reported they could
not survive a closure of any length.
The Congresswoman and Sena-
tors call for $50 billion in emergency
funding for the child care sector to be
used in three ways:
• Additional funding to help essential
and emergency workers cover the cost
of child care during the pandemic;
• Dedicated funding or structured grants
to help child care providers cover oper-
ating expenses, with appropriate over-
sight mechanisms; and
• Hazard pay, robust labor standards,
and personal protective equipment for
child care workers.
Congress has taken some action
to support the child care sector during
the pandemic, including $3.5 billion for
the Child Care and Development Block
Grant (CCDBG) to provide for contin-
ued payment and assistance to child
care providers and to support child care
for essential workers. It also provided
$750 million in grants for Head Start,
including up to $500 million for support
of summer programs in certain areas.
Based on research and input from child
care providers and families, however,
significant additional support is urgently
needed.
and the follow-up necessary when a pos-
itive test individual is identified. Direc-
tor Paul has provided the Commission-
ers with daily reports on the situation in
Columbia County and throughout the
state. All of our first responders are en-
gaged and prepared to take the steps nec-
essary if there is a surge of patients, and
our heartfelt thanks goes out to them.
Yes, it would be ideal if we had
a local hospital. However, preparations
are underway for medical housing in
other facilities, both permanent and tem-
porary, and identifying staffing.
This will certainly be a learning
experience for us all. When the crisis
is over we will be able to evaluate our
preparation and our execution, so that
we will be better prepared in the event of
another large scale emergency.
Dudzic: I think our Public Health De-
partment has done a phenomenal job
considering by the county’s own as-
sessment from October 2019 that it’s in
“dire need” of an additional 3 full-time
employees and that “capacity of exist-
ing personnel barely allows the county
to meet its mandated public health re-
quirements.” I cannot imagine heaping a
pandemic on an agency struggling that
much, yet, here we are.
One of the most important
things that Michael Paul did from the
beginning was to drive home a mes-
sage that whether we had a positive lab
test confirmation or not to just assume
that residents have come into contact
with the virus and to act accordingly. I
am grateful for the consistent commu-
nication our public health department
has had with health officials from other
counties; it is assuring to many of us.
I would appreciate it if our
county commissioners did something
to support our unsheltered population.
Unsheltered people are among some
of the most vulnerable to Covid; they
cannot shelter in place, often lack ac-
cess to healthcare, and have nowhere
to bathe now that public showers have
been closed. Extending $600/mo. RV
and camping reservations at two county
parks isn’t even close to being enough.
Mayo: Nothing. National and local
news outlets are streaming direction 24-
7, businesses have cooperated, schools
have shut down. Even local seamstress-
es have taken to making face masks.
I think it would’ve been advan-
tageous to parents and students if the
continued from page 13
governor had left the online state funded
charter schools up and running rather
than shutting them down as she did.
Position 3
Correll: As I prepare these responses, I
believe the county has 2 reported cases
of the COVID-19 virus. The local health
officials conducting contact tracing of
the latest positive case and then notify-
ing those individuals, which seem to be
the most appropriate actions to be taken.
The activation of the Emergency Opera-
tions Center on February 28 also was
a positive step to utilize a coordinated
multi-agency response. They seem to
be handling it well. I thank them and all
involved with the current pandemic for
their tireless work and commitment to
keeping us all safe and well. Once again
Columbia County residents are showing
compassion for each other, which makes
me ever more grateful to be part of this
community. THANK YOU ALL!
Tardif: The County, under state guid-
ance, recently had to take back the Pub-
lic Health Authority. This caused the
county to create a public health depart-
ment internally. The department is still
new and considering the circumstanc-
es, has done a fantastic job of trying to
manage this public health crisis. The
public health department has followed
all state and federal guidance and has
worked tirelessly to ensure all residents
in Columbia County are staying safe and
healthy. Originally Public Health held a
daily check in meeting, which is now 3
times a week, for the commissioners and
public to hear firsthand what was hap-
pening and to keep everyone up to date
on current information. I’ve been im-
pressed with the response and planning
from public health considering their
small budget and small staffing.
Garrett: Given the extreme circum-
stances, I think our Public Health De-
partment has handled this crisis relative-
ly well. They’ve consistently provided
ongoing updates and recommendations,
which has helped the County make in-
formed and responsible decisions. With
this guidance Columbia County has
found ways to maintain a reasonable
level of service and keep most of our ac-
cess to public spaces open.
Once we get through this, we
will be better able to evaluate where our
shortfalls are and determine where we
can become more prepared.
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