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About Sandy post. (Sandy, Oregon) 1938-current | View Entire Issue (June 22, 1978)
I Salem scene Von Braschler, Gen. Monager Caroline Du«, O«ice Manager Agency reduces bankruptcies John Kline, Editor Mark Floyd. Stott R eporter Publ.»hed w eekly Thursday* by The Outlook Publishing Co Bo« 68 Sondy Oregon 970 5 5 Second clo*» postage paid at Sondy Oregon 668 5548 by Jack Zimmerman Associated Oregon Industries SUBSCRIPTION RATES In M ultnom ah and Clockomo* Counties per year . . . . . . . . . . . . '5 00 Servicemen ony a d d re s s ................. ‘ 5.00 In Oregon outside M ultnom oh ond Clotkom os C o u n tie s _ p e i_ y e o ^ _ ^ ^ ^ 0 ^ MEMBER N U |L P f+ P E R Page 2 Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association In N orthw est and Pacific Coast States outside Oregon per y e a r ................. *7.00 Mention consumer protection and the average person probably thinks of Ralph Nader, militant housewives organizing a boycott or a government agency attempting to control the sale of one product or Outside Northwest ond Pocilic Coast states per y e a r ..................................‘ 9 00 Represented Nationally by U S SUBURBAN PRESS INC I I! No Sandy Post. Sandy, Oregon 97055 25 Thurs., June 22, 1978 Jarvis-Gann Goes National We’ve h e ard a lot about Proposition 13 in California and the resultant efforts to get something sim ilar on the ballot here in Oregon. But what about other states? How goes the battle there? In Washington, voters instituted a 1 per cent tax limitation several years ago. They also have removed the sales tax from food items not purchased at a restaurant. Hence, we doubt if a Jarvis-Gann response is likely there just now. In Idaho, sufficient signatures already have been gathered to place a tax-cut initiative on the November ballot. As a result, Gov. John E v an s is draw ing up blueprints to meet the expected decline in state revenue. In Montana, voters approved a $30 million rollback in state property tax levels several years ago. Those cutbacks still are being implemented. In Utah, voters have until July 7 to gather sufficient signatures to get an initiative on this y ear’s ballot. Passage seems likely. And in a move clearly influenced by Jarvis-Gann, the House of Representatives in Washington, D.C., last week voted to ban cost-of- living raises for congressmen, judges and other federal officials earning more than $47,500 per y e ar. Congressional expense allowances also were cut 5 percent. H allelu jah , th e p o litician s already a re getting the message! GO EAST, OLD MAN...GO EAST! f /i/Zin Take a Look at Parking We heartily agree with recom mendations that the Memorial Coliseum’s seating capacity be expanded by another 4,500 seats. This would bring total capacity to about 17,000 seats and would provide badly needed additional space for the Portland Trail Blazers and other attractions. However, we hope that some attention is paid to the need for additional parking which, in our view, is just as acute as more seating. Twice this last season, we missed the entire first quarter of a Blazer basketball game. We were outside the stadium , circling round and round the block, hoping the parking lots would squeeze in a few more. Other times, we did the sam e round-and-round routine but found a place sooner. And getting out of the parking lots always is a problem. There isn't much unused land around the Coliseum, but there is some. We hope the E-R Com mission takes a long look a t its acquisition for more parking. ‘Irresponsible’ reaction To the Editor: Bob Hawley’s letter to the editor in the June 15 Post presents us with a classic case of irresponsible citizen reaction to growth. Let’s consider a couple of points. Mr. Hawley is against the Beaverton style “ urban sprawl,” but he is also against the well-considered and thoughful steps being taken by the Sancy city council to provide for an International Knowledge While traveling in Europe last sum m er, we w ere surprised at how knowledgeable people were about affairs in the United States. And most other countries, too. By contrast, the average US citizen knows very little about overseas politics. He reads less than one column of international news daily. If he prefers television, no more than 2 percent is devoted to international affairs — the lowest average of 100 nations recently surveyed by UNESCO. U S. media today have fewer overseas correspondents than at any tim e since World War II. To serve 1,774 daily newspapers, 935 TV channels .and 7,500 radio stations, we have 429 American staff correspondents There are other distressing signs. F o reig n lan g u ag e enrollment is dropping at all levels. Less than 1 percent of college students are taking courses which feature international affairs. A recent survey of U.S. high school freshmen ranked them high in knowledge of local, state and national affairs but next to last in world affairs. So what? So we cannot be an island unto ourselves. Obviously, happenings in some obscure com er of Africa or the Middle East could explode into world headlines tomorrow. We’re being short-changed by a media system and an educational system which, with tunnel vision, focus only on the good old USA. Better Read Small Print In the explanatory m atter ac companying the Mt. Hood Com munity College levy in the June 27 election is this statem ent: “ The Board calculates at this time that there will be no increase in the current tax rate of $2.20 per $1,000 of assessed valuation. Therefore, the total tax on a $30,000 home, if valued the same as the current year, will be $66 or less.’’ The key phrase, of course, is “ if valued at the same as the current year.” How many property owners in the Mt. Hood district have the same valuation as last year? Our guess: zero. Estim ates are that the district overall had a 14 percent increase from the assessor’s office. Some valuation went as high as 33 per cent. Thanks to the assessor’s office, no one’s valuation stays the same. Plenty of Jobs In any listing of overcrowded fields, you usually find teaching, engineering, law and journalism. Only as far as journalism is concerned, there are abundant openings if you have the right background. And by the “ right background,” we don’t mean the news writing end of the business. We mean advertising and circulation News jobs are in extremely short supply. The number of writers being turned out by the nation’s universities far exceeds the n e e d .. Advertising and circulation are T o Tho_ T T d i t ö r } something else. Advertising jobs are much easier to find, circulation still easier. A recent compilation by a state press association showed 45 would-be w riters listed in its “ Work Wanted” file, eight ad vertising men, and not a single circulation-type. M any y o u n g sters e n terin g college are interested in jour nalism, but almost inevitably the news end. Just a word of advice: If you aim your studies at an ad vertising or circulation career, you’ll be a whole lot more em ployable four years hence organized and orderly growth. * His alternate solution for the “concerned citizens of Sandy” is to vote down all tax measures and bond issues in an effort to stop growth and to elect officials who whill work toward that end. Unfortunately, this ostrich approach to the problem just won’t work because there are several things that we have no control over. For example: 1) We cannot vote against people having children; 2) We cannot vote against children who have the in solence to grow up and need housing; 3) We cannot vote against the n atu ral preference people have for a rural setting. After all, we prefer it, don’t we? In other words, people are going to come to Sandy whether we vote for them to do so or not. But the most upsetting part of M r. Hawley’s letter was his treatment of the mem bers of city council. It is true that four of the seven members are businessmen. But why being a responsible and respected businessman should make one unfit for leading the affairs of the city escapes me. To accuse them of stimulating city growth for personal gain is unthinkable because an increase in the population will result in an increase in businesses and more competition. We cannot stop growth nor can we vote it down. The best we can hope to do is control and direct it so that we can maintain the lifestyle we have come to love. The politicians who at tempt to do this deserve our support and applause, not suspicious castigation. Growth is a normal and healthy process in our bodies as well as our city. It is the cancer of uncontrolled growth that we must work against. A.F. Rend Sandy Taxes fo r kids To the Editor: What is the Sandy Union High School rate levy election for? For kids, yours and mine; and for a good educational system which isn’t perfect but is improving every day. Also it is the only alternative we have for financing schools. L e t’s not punish our children because our legislature hasn’t been able to come up with a better financing plan for schools (although they can legislate many rules and requirements which cost all of us more money). One myth that has been widely publicized is the 40 percent state school support. Don’t believe it, as it is a complicated formula set up at the state level with union high schools coming out on the short end. The district received only 27.4 percent from the state general fund in 1977 78 Why? Because i t ’s a good budget; because I ’ve worked hard on it as have all other members of the budget com m ittee and ad ministration staff; because I check the bills and I see a high level of accountability as w ell as many im provements in the ac counting procedures. Also because we w ill continue to go through a thorough budgeting process which allows unlim ited input from citizens at hearings and meetings (Our agenda clearly states and allows for citizens par ticipatimn and input). In the two years I have served on the board, no one has asked for specific cuts although there have been several requests for additional programs What is it? We’re proposing a three year serial levy which will establish a rate of 15 76 per thousand each year This will finance the operating budget your budget com m ittee praaents through meetings and hearings. Your school will be able to operate under defined limits for the next three years which will give stability to the programs offered. The Sandy area will not be physically reappraised by the county in the next three years so the assessed value on property should not, in that period of time, show unusual increases. Figure it out! Our budget represents about a 10.7 percent increase over last year. We have a 10 percent increase in Sandy students each year and with increased building in Sandy it could easily be more students. This alone should make our budget go up a like amount to educate these additional students. (This does not include the Redland students which, by the way, will not be accepted after 1979). We also very much feel the effects of inflation. Teachers negotiate a tough contract. Insurance as an example is going out of sight, and we’re lucky to get one bid One liability insurance we must buy went from $700 to $7,000 in one year We must pay the increased social security benefits and much, much more required by law. With all this in mind I think we re doing a good job keeping the budget at the level we have. It represents many cuts from what departments would liked to . have had next year. There is so much more I could say Suggestions for making things better, more information and help to the citizen to understand that this system of schools is everyone's responsibility. (Is n 't that one thing everyone thinks the schools should teach — respon sibility?) Schools are your most valuable public agency and also the most efficient I know property taxes aren't fair I know it’s hard to understand I know there is no free lunch I know the people you elected to the board are trying to do a good job in watching out for your interest within the limits of the law. If you’re dissatisfied with the system, make your voice heard in other ways that might be much more e f fective and not punish children in the process. I will be glad to answer questions about the serial levy and to help people gain satisfaction with their concerns. I ’m sure other board members feel the same as I do in this another. Only a few people associate the term with the merchants they do business with every day. But the number is growing. And it’s growing because business people in Oregon are performing an outstanding example of what the term really means as far as providing protection for the buying public. It started here about a dozen years ago when a number of businessmen were discussing the state s steadily advancing number of personal bankruptcies. At stake, of course, were business losses. Those losses were driving up the cost of doing business and pushing prices upward as merchants tried to cover the losses. More significant, however, were the tragedies oc curing among families forced to seek bankruptcy as a final resort. One recalled hearing of a non-profit counseling service in Columbus, Ohio, aimed at alleviating the problem. Investigation provided enough information to interest the group in starting a similar service here And after signing a personal note to provide initial funding, Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Oregon became a going concern. In essence, CCCS is designed to help people help themselves. Its major services range from basic counseling about family money problems to a com prehensive debt retirement program. It also provides speakers and assistance in planning programs con cerning money management for schools, churches and other groups and has assisted in developing classroom courses on family finances. Any person with debt problems is eligible to use CCCS services. Appointments can be made by telephone and there is no obligation or charge for advice and counseling. A modest fee is charged if a fam ily wishes to have CCCS provide the formal debt retirement program. But even that is waived in hard ship cases. Proof of the movement’s success is evident from the fact nearly 20,000 Oregon families have turned to CCCS for help since 1967 and the trend toward bankruptcy has been markedly reversed during the same period. In fact, CCCS authorities report there has been a 25 per cent decline in the total number of Oregon bankruptcies since the first office opened in Portland. Other figures are equally impressive. In the past 11 years the service has counseled 20,349 families with debts of more than $37 million — not including real estate mortgages. And through its debt retirement programs, CCCS has been instrumental in distributing more than $17 million to creditors directly. During its first year in Portland, CCCS counseled 800 families with $2,354,000 in debts and managed, repayment of $143,564. It has continued to serve close to 2,000 families each year since and in 1977 counseled 1,983 clients with debts totaling $3,277,910 and managed repayment of $1,816,700 to creditors. But most satisfying to CCCS officials and its sup porters are files literally bulging with letters from now happier and more productive families that have avoided the heartbreak and humiliation of bankruptcy, bankruptcy. Funding for CCCS continues to come prim arily from the original source — contributions from the business community itself. No tax money is involved. About two-thirds of the annual budget is provided by donations and the balance stems from fees charged when CCCS takes over a fam ily’s finances and manages them until solvency is achieved. From its beginning in Portland, CCCS today is available in most of the more densely populated areas of the state. Counselors from the Portland office travel regularly to Hood River, The Dalles and Astoria to visit clients who make appointments through local chambers of commerce. Other offices have been established independently in Bend, Coos Bay-North Bend, Eugene, Grants Pass, Medford, Roseburg, Albany, and Salem. Counselors from Medford also serve Klamath Falls. And as CCCS begins the second year of its second decade in Oregon, it’s a safe bet former clients are among the growing number of individuals who recognize business also is involved in protecting consumers. respect. TYiis letter reflects my personal opinions and very strong feelings on the subject of funding for the Sandy Union High School. I hope it will allow people to better understand the issue in volved. Ginny Brewster Parent, School board member Taxpayer . Sandy MHCC registration open Summer registration of the first five-week session at M t. Hood Community College will continue through Friday Late registration for summer classes meeting in a 10-week session w ill be available through June 30. More than 400 summer classes are offered in five- and ten-week sessions Both evening and day classes are available Registration for the second five-week session will be July 24, with classes for personal interest The MHCC summer schedule includes vocational - technical classes, lower division transfer classes, d e v e lo p m e n ta l s k ills program, and classes for personal interest I City serial levy To the Editor: This Tuesday (June 27), voters in Sandy will be asked by the Sandy City Council to vote on a three-year serial levy in the amount of $4 02 per thousand for the operating costs of the city for the period of 1978-79 through 1980-81. There are two basic reasons for this request (1) To fix a tax-rate for $4 02 for the next three years. This accomplishes two things: (a) You'!! know that operating expenses cannot exceed this rate, and (b) the new growth in construction will pick up its full share of the cost of services as the city's valuation increases. (2) To give the city the ability to plan ahead, over a three-year period, based on the projections of growth and the monies generated by that growth. Right now, city government could be termed “ management by crisis,” strictly reactive! This is not a good management philosophy, and I ’m sure that city council would prefer that this not be our mode of operation. I would like to point out that your city has reduced its tax-rate from $1163 per thousand in 1974-75 to $4.57 in *77-'78 through a combination of both good management and increased valuation in the growth of the com munity. Back in September of 1976, when we passed the bond issue on Alder Creek, we indicated that the full impact of the cost of this bond would be felt in ’78-’79 and we estimated $6.25 would be the rate. Since then we have also passed a General Obligation Bond on our community center which has its first interest impact in ’78-’79. Again, I break down for you the total $6.50 per thousand rate into three categories (1 ) tax base $11,142 or $35 per thousand (2) debt service of $66,974 each $2.13 per thousand and (3) operating cost of the city each $126,198 or $4 02 per thousand, which is what we are requesting on a tbree- year serial levy at a fixed rate. The City of Sandy and its citizens are progressive, and are thinking toward the future of a planned growth community. Unfortunately we cannot do this without funds I respectfully ask on behalf of the city council and myself your support at the polls on June 27, 1978. Paul F Helton Sandy City Manager
