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Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, Ore. Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2009
Ellis again in middle of bickering colleagues City, county ponder
Old Stage Road ...
(Continued from page 1)
in that role again, but the
election worked out that
which contributed to their
mutual public animosity.
Raffenburg declined to
Commissioner Dwight Ellis ( IVN file photo)
way,” he said.
Toler and Raffenburg
were very different politi-
cally, Ellis said, and both had
“really strong personalities,”
seek a second term in 2008,
which left his seat open.
Sandi Cassanelli beat Grants
Pass resident Harry Mackin
in the general election to re-
place Raffenburg, and Ellis
was re-elected to his position.
Ellis assumed the chair-
manship in January. The year
started quietly enough, but
the philosophical chasm be-
tween Cassanelli and Toler
has become much more obvi-
ous in recent months.
Part of the problem could
be the structure of the board
of commissioners, which
Ellis said can sometimes act
as a “three-headed monster.”
“Three is a bad number,
especially when you can’t
talk to each other, unless it’s
in a public session,” Ellis
said. “This type of situation,
always begs confrontation.
It’s made a fight already be-
fore anyone even talks.”
Further complicating the
situation, said Ellis, is that
citizens often use commission
meetings to try and score
political points, sometimes at
the expense of board mem-
bers. Persons in the audience
occasionally even bicker
among themselves, which
presents another challenge to
Ellis as chairman.
“One thing I don’t want
to do is stifle free speech,” he
said, adding that he tries to
maintain an atmosphere of
civility and respect.
Toler announced on
Wednesday, Oct. 21 that he
intends to run for re-election
next year. As such, Ellis said
that he expects to see Toler’s
supporters and detractors take
plenty of shots at the commis-
sioner and each other through-
out the next several months.
“I don’t see any light at
the end of this tunnel,” he
predicted.
In local political circles,
Ellis often is characterized as
the swing vote on the board.
For the chairman, that entails
trying to see both sides of
every issue in his delibera-
tions, even if it means getting
caught in the crossfire every
once in a while.
“You just gotta’ do the
best you can,” said Ellis.
Future of mining in S.W. Oregon discussed ...
(Continued from page 1)
won’t be allowed to mine it,
even with an existing claim.
Kitchar said that such a
withdrawal would mean the
end of any mining on U.S.
Forest Service and Bureau of
Land Management land in
Josephine County for the
foreseeable future.
He also expressed doubt
about the possibility of Cali-
fornians crossing the border
to conduct suction dredging
in Oregon. That was one of
the reasons given by Kulon-
goski for requesting the min-
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ing withdrawal. However,
Kitchar said that lawsuits
already are being filed to
challenge California’s ban on
suction dredging, and added
that most of the good creek
and stream claims in the
Siskiyou Wild Rivers area
already are taken.
No Mining Feared
By Walt Freeman
Lifelong Illinois Valley
resident Walt Freeman said
that he has been mining off
and on for more than 50
years. He stated that proposed
changes to existing mining
laws would change the activ-
ity from a granted right to a
revocable privilege.
“When that happens,
there will be no mining,”
Freeman said.
Freeman shared stories
of his dealings with govern-
ment agencies, which spent
several years and more than
$1 million denying one of his
claims. The project he hoped
to start would have put Illi-
nois Valley residents to work,
he said.
Under the proposed
changes to mining laws, Free-
floated the theory that the
minerals contained within
existing and proposed wilder-
ness areas are being used as
collateral to secure the federal
government’s mounting debts.
Lesley Adams, Rogue
Riverkeeper for the Klamath-
Siskiyou Wildlands Center
environmental group, asked
panelists if they condone ille-
gal mining. Adams cited the
case of Gold Hill resident
Clifford Tracy, 37, who was
arrested and charged with
illegal mining in early Sep-
tember during a traffic stop
outside his claim on Sucker
Creek in Illinois Valley.
That arrest has caused an
angry uproar among members
of the mining community.
Gibson replied that Tracy
and other miners’ activities
are ensured under a long-
established granted right.
“It’s not an issue of per-
mission,” Gibson said.
Tracy will have his day
in court, Gibson said, adding
that Adams had “cast a pall
upon his character without
due process.”
Butcher Knife work announced by USFS
A recent decision to ap-
ply mechanical density man-
agement and prescribed fire
use within the Butcher Knife
Slate area was announced by
Joel King, Wild Rivers Dis-
trict Ranger/Rogue River-
Siskiyou National Forest.
The Butcher Knife Slate
location is considered a key
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& utility line trenching
Spe c ia lizing in
a lt e rna t ive
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man stated, miners would be
forced to pay for mineral ex-
aminations requested by regu-
latory agencies. He added that
limiting the ability of Ameri-
cans to engage in mineral
extraction ultimately would
make the nation more de-
pendent on foreign countries.
“I fear for our industry,”
Freeman said.
Bill Peterson, of Cope-
land Sand & Gravel, gave a
presentation on that com-
pany’s history, along with a
review of the regulatory proc-
esses that it must go through
with a litany of county, state
and federal agencies.
Katherine Lehman, the
immediate past president for
the People USA Grange, dis-
cussed provisions in every
major federal land-use regula-
tion that require agencies to
coordinate their plans with
local governing entities.
Counties can and should
demand coordination author-
ity whenever federal laws
affect their jurisdictions, Leh-
man said.
During a question-and-
answer session, Gibson
(5 4 1 ) 5 9 7 -4 4 8 6
wildland urban interface area.
It has an increased chance
that wildfires may threaten
those who live in the rural
communities intermingled or
adjacent to the forest accord-
ing to King.
Located near Hayes Hill
on Hwy. 199 north of Illinois
Valley, the area is flanked by
the 2002 Biscuit Fire bounda-
ries and the rural communi-
ties around Wonder, Slate
Creek and Waters Creek.
“The reduction of the
accumulated, thick vegetation
or fuels in the area is a top
priority,” said King. “These
combined fuel reduction
treatments will help minimize
large-scale wildfire hazards in
the area.
“When completed, these
forest treatments will also
grow even larger trees with
increased fire resiliency, and
will emphasize the restoration
of black and white oak tree
communities and pine savan-
nahs.” Maintenance of large
trees and continued growth of
an older forest are empha-
sized, he added.
The U.S. Forest Ser-
vice’s recent decision author-
izes tree density management
on 2,093 acres. It allows for
small-diameter tree density
management on 619 acres,
prescribed fire on 1,822 acres,
meadow restoration on 122
acres, 2 miles of fish habitat
restoration and associated
activities such as noxious
weed control.
“Work could start on the
ground this fall with treat-
ments such as noxious weed
control, meadow restoration,
small diameter thinning, and
prescribed fire activities,”
said King.
“Other activities, such as
the commercial harvest with a
focus on density manage-
ment, will be prepared this
fall, winter, and spring to start
next year.”
A variety of mechanisms
that include timber sales,
stewardship contracts, service
contracts and forest employ-
ees would be anticipated to
complete the work on the
ground during the next sev-
eral years.
Concrete
Remodel
New Construction
CCB 174891
592-6609
illinois-valley-news.com
(Continued from page 1)
problem.
“It sounds like there’s
definitely a mix of cars, pe-
destrians and bikes that was-
n’t there 10 years ago,”
Brandes said. “That’s some-
thing that does need to be
looked at.”
The first step toward
slowing down traffic on Old
Stage is conducting a traffic
count, Brandes said. Such a
study could be conducted
“fairly quickly,” he said, and
should take about a week.
“We should be able to get
our engineers out there in the
next week or two,” he said.
“That will give us the average
daily traffic so we have an
idea what the speeds are.”
Brandes said that his
department would have to
determine the amount of
right-of-way needed for add-
ing a bike lane.
Public works officials
also will be contacting con-
cerned citizens to begin circu-
lating a petition to change the
speed limit. That can be done
in “relatively short order,”
Brandes said.
“From the level of inter-
est, I don’t think it will take
long to get signatures,” he said.
Tax amnesty offered
Oregon taxpayers who
need to file or amend a tax
return to report back taxes
can pay them during the
state’s first amnesty program
if they qualify.
Amnesty can be applied
for through Nov. 19.
The state will charge
only half the interest and no
penalty on taxes paid under
the amnesty program.
The 2009 Legislature
created the program to give
Oregonians who owe back
taxes an incentive to get
caught up.
“This is a one-time op-
portunity,” said Marvin Rho-
des, who oversees the state’s
personal income tax program.
“When it’s over, it’s over.”
Those who apply will
have until Jan. 19, 2010 to
file their tax returns.
Amnesty is available for
all tax years or periods before
2008 for these types of taxes:
*Personal income tax.
*Lane and Tri-Met tran-
sit district self-employment
taxes.
*Corporate income and
excise taxes.
*Trust and estate income
taxes.
*Inheritance tax.
In Oregon, state taxes
help fund education, public
safety, health care, and other
public services. For more
information on amnesty,
visit
oregontaxam-
nesty.com.
George Marcel Pinios
1956-2009
Not how did he die, but how did he live?
Not what did he gain, but what did he give?
These are the units to measure the worth
Of a man as a man, regardless of birth.
Not, what was his church, nor what was his creed?
But had he befriended those really in need?
Was he ever ready, with word of good cheer,
To bring back a smile, to banish a tear?
Not what did the sketch in the newspaper say,
But how many were sorry when he passed away.
We would like to thank all those who shared our love for
Georgie. We respect his wishes - there will be no memorial
service at this time. Please join us next Labor Day at the
Pinios house for a time to celebrate his life.
Sincerely, the Pinios Family
WILL THE IRS CALL YOUR
SIDELINE BUSINESS A HOBBY?
It can be great fun to take a hobby
you’re passionate about and use it to
generate income. But if you plan to
take tax deductions for your hobby ex-
penses, be aware that the IRS has strict
rules about business deductions. Run
afoul of these rules, and you may end
up owing the IRS more than just your hobby income.
Most importantly, you should be able to show that
you’re running your business with a genuine “profit mo-
tive.” This doesn’t mean that you actually need to make a
profit, but you should be able to document your intent to
generate a net income.
You can document this profit motive in several ways.
First, you should run your business as a business. For exam-
ple, keep proper books and records; maintain appropriate li-
censes; secure space in the business pages of the phone
book; even keep a business journal.
Second, it’s a good idea to develop and maintain an up-
to-date business plan. This plan could include projections of
future income and expenses, marketing strategies, personnel
policies, and so forth. The idea is to show the IRS that you
plan to grow your business.
Third, keep your business and personal funds separate.
Don’t pay for Johnny’s bicycle from your business account;
don’t deposit sales income into your personal account.
Fourth, go to work regularly. If you attend your business
on a frequent basis, the IRS will see that you’re not just
playing at it. Of course, you need to document — with time
cards, a work log, or some other record — that you actually
worked on certain days. Just telling the IRS auditor that you
worked on such-and-such a day won’t cut it.
Finally, talk to your accountant or financial advisor to
make sure you’re maintaining adequate documentation and
following the rules.
For more information or assistance, give us a call.
Karen M Bodeving CPA is a Nationally Recognized CPA. She is a Commu-
nity Oriented Illinois Valley resident. Her office is located at: 574 NE E St.,
Grants Pass, OR – Non Tax season office hours are 9 am – 1 pm, Monday
through Thursday. Other hours and Illinois Valley appointments are avail-
able by calling her office at 479-3625 .