North Douglas Herald
Electric School Buses
Continued from Page 5
Districts, received a grant from the Public Purpose
Charge. The Public Purpose Charge is a state senate
initiative to raise funds for improvements to school
energy infrastructure. The funds are provided by a
1.5 percent share of Portland General Electric and
Pacific Power’s revenue. Lewis Transportation
however, are applying for a grant through the EPA’s
Clean School Bus Program.
“With funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure
Law, the EPA’s Clean School Bus (CSB) Program
provides $5 billion over five years (FY 2022-2026)
to replace existing school buses with zero-emission
and low-emission models. Under the Program’s
multiple grant and rebate funding opportunities to
date, the EPA has awarded almost $2 billion to fund
approximately 5,000 school bus replacements at over
600 schools” states EPA.gov on the grant program.
Back on Tuesday January 11th, Oregon
lawmakers announced that Beaverton, Gresham,
Portland, Willamina, Amity, Dayton, and
McMinnville school districts will receive federal
funds under the Environmental Protection Agency’s
Clean School Bus Program, which is allocating $5
billion to schools across the country to help schools
make the move towards electric bus fleets.
“Making the switch to cleaner, greener school
buses is good for our children’s health and good for
our environment,” Rep. Andrea Salinas said then in a
statement. “I’m grateful to the Biden Administration
and the EPA for investing in Oregon’s future, and I
look forward to seeing these dollars put to good use
in our communities.”
Rep. Earl Blumenauer said the old diesel buses
threaten air quality and the health of children, adding,
“Our community is well positioned to help accelerate
the transition to electrification and today’s grants are
a reflection of our leadership in this vital effort. I’m
hopeful that this is just the beginning of a cleaner,
more efficient transportation system.”
“Every child,” Sen. Jeff Merkley explained,
“should be able to travel to and from school without
having to be exposed to toxins and dangerous air
pollution that drives asthma and other diseases.”
Senator Merkley continued, “This historic
investment will secure support for several Oregon
school districts to purchase electric school buses
to keep the air cleaner for our kids and save school
districts money. I’ll keep fighting for the investments
and legislation we need to upgrade school bus fleets
around Oregon.”
Lewis Transportation has been in a grant
application process with the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) with the intention of fully
electrifying their fleet. The company is hoping to
secure funding for a fleet of 10 buses, including a
wheelchair accessible model. Currently in their third
round of the application process, the bus service is
being assisted by Byd, an electric vehicle company
based out of Lancaster, California. Byd, who
provided Lewis Transportation with the opportunity
to demo the bus, are developing a host of zero
emission technologies ranging from vehicles such as
buses, forklifts, and rail transport, to energy solutions
like battery energy storage and solar.
The Type-D school bus they provided is a
full 36-foot bus that uses Byd’s proprietary lithium
iron phosphate batteries and are fully rechargeable.
In contrast to dangerous lithium-ion batteries,
susceptible to combustion when punctured or
warped, lithium iron phosphate is a safer power
source. The buses have a capacity of 84 students
and are more than capable of serving the local area.
School buses are a smart choice for conversion to
electric with mostly shorter routes and longer sitting
periods.
Concerned citizens have cited worries over
the energy grid. Lewis Transportation have done
their research on this matter. In applying for the
grant, they have partnered with the Central Lincoln
Public Utilities District to assess the capacity for an
electric fleet and its required charging infrastructure.
They found that the area had more than adequate
capacity to accommodate. Lewis Transportation will
be hopeful their grant applications are successful.
Any positive move toward lowering emissions
can contribute to perserving our beautiful Oregon
environment for generations to come.
Continued from Page 4
OREGON’S OLDTIME
FIDDLERS CONVENTION
For the complete schedule, go to
www.ootfa.org
Wednesday evening’s meet-and-greet
potluck and jam will occur in the church
foyer from 4 - 10 pm for early arrivals. Public
activities happen on Thursday, Friday and
Saturday. Educational and fun workshops will
be offered all three days, as well as a Thursday
evening “Band Scramble,” Friday Dance, and
Saturday Youth & Fiddle Contest Showcase.
The public is welcome, and all events are at
Winston Assembly of God Church, 360 SE
Darrell Ave., Winston, OR. Bearded Guy
Bites food truck will be on-site all three days
from 10 am – 6 pm.
Jude Kuether, the 2024 convention’s
co-chair states, “Our goal for this year’s
convention is to have fun playing music we
love with friends, old and new, and to conduct
OOTFA business as quickly and efficiently as
possible.”
During the 1980s and 90s, OOTFA’s
state convention was held in Roseburg and
attracted large crowds of old-time musicians
and music-lovers. For a couple decades, the
convention was held in other parts of Oregon.
“In 2022, it returned to Roseburg,” says
Kuether. “We’ll be so excited to see everyone
at 2024’s church venue in Winston. The
church is ideal. We’ll have plenty of room for
shows, jams and workshops. Youth are very
much included, with dedicated spaces to help
all ages feel welcome. The next generation
will keep this music vibrant, relevant and
alive.” Please pre-register to attend or to
reserve a campsite at www.ootfa.org
OOTFA is a 501(c)3 nonprofit
organization, events are free, but a suggested
donation at the door will be appreciated
but not required. OOTFA is dedicated to
perpetuation and promotion of old-time
music, loosely defined as music played on
traditional instruments dating from the first
half of the 20th century and earlier. Oregon
Oldtime Fiddlers’ Association formed in
1964. They publish and distribute a monthly
newsletter, The Hoedowner to all members.
Meetings, jams, and performances happen
regularly around the State. To become a
member, go to www.ootfa.org
For more info about the 2024
OOTFA State Convention, contact Jude
Kuether at 541-430-2080 or E-mail
jude999s@gmail.com
Pet
RSV Concerns
Since the summer, the Oregon Department of
Agriculture has received more than 200 reports
of what is being called an ‘atypical canine
infectious respiratory disease.’ The disease
is causing pneumonia- and bronchitis-like
symptoms, leading to illness and, in severe cases,
even death.
“Nobody really knows where it’s coming
from. Nobody knows the etiology of it, in other
words, what’s causing it, and nobody knows
what kind of dogs are getting it,” said Dr. Teri
Sue Wright
While uncertainty swirls around the origin
of this virus, what is clear is that certain activities
can increase the likelihood of your pet coming in
contact with a dog carrying the pathogen.
“Shared spaces and breathing on each other
and salivating on each other and coughing at
each other’s faces.”
According to Dr. Wright, finding a way to
balance limiting your dog’s exposure to the virus
and keeping them active is important. Talking
to your vet about ways to ensure you limit your
pet’s risk is a great place to start.
As information continues to come in about
this virus, state-level research into the origin and
treatment options will come closer to reality.
In the meantime, you may want to get creative
about how you keep your pet active and healthy.
March 2024
Page 7
Governor will Sign Bill
Overhauls M110 to include Jailtime & Treatment
Salem OR - Gov. Tina Kotek announced
she plans to sign the new legislation that
makes possessing small amounts of hard
drugs such as cocaine and fentanyl a
criminal offense once again.
House Bill 4002 sped through
both the Oregon House and Senate in
less than a week. The bill, surprisingly
received overwhelming support in
bipartisan fashion. It transforms Measure
110, the voter-backed 2020 policy change,
that decriminalized drugs and allocated
funding to expand services to help people
living with addiction, into a system that
still prioritizes treatment while making
possession of small amounts of drugs a
misdemeanor crime punishable by up to
180 days in custody.
There was little question about
whether Kotek, a Democrat, would sign
the legislation. Still, the governor’s office
remained tight-lipped throughout the
legislative debates, saying only that she
would review a bill only after it reached
her desk. The governor’s announcement
offers certainty that Oregon’s drug
decriminalization experiment is over.
Gov. Kotek said in a statement
on (March 7th, “As Governor, my focus is
on implementation. House Bill 4002 will
require persistent action and commitment
from state and local government to
uphold the intent that the legislature
put forward: to balance treatment for
individuals struggling with addiction and
accountability.”
The governor is particularly focused
on estimates from the Oregon Criminal
Justice Commission. She said, the state
agency “projected disproportionate
impacts to communities of color and
the accompanying concerns raised by
advocates.”
Those figures suggest 1,333 new
convictions every year for people whose
only criminal charge is possessing a
small amount of an illicit drug such as
methamphetamine, fentanyl, or cocaine,
according to the Criminal Justice
Commission. The commission also
estimates that 533 people per year could
receive jail sentences after having their
probation for a drug charge revoked.
Some of those could also be served in a
treatment facility, so far Oregon has not
been able to provide treatment to everyone
Story by Rusty Savage
who wants it.
Lawmakers have stressed the
bill prioritizes treatment, but the system
is complex. Across the state it will look
different depending on whether counties
have agreed to deflect people found with
drugs from the criminal justice system
into treatment following an encounter
with law enforcement. The bill would.
Lawmakers are also expanding funding
for treatment and will make it easier for
prosecutors to charge drug dealers.
There has been a resounding
criticism of Measure 110’s effects on
communities across Oregon. In September,
a group of political leaders, announced
they would push a ballot measure of their
own to recriminalize drugs and overhaul
Measure 110. Last week, the Coalition to
Fix and Improve Ballot Measure 110 said
HB 4002 achieved 85% of what it wanted
and the group would withdraw its ballot
initiatives if the governor would sign it.
Governor Kotek signaled she would be
open to a bill that recriminalized drug
possession at the beginning of the session,
but added she was more interested in
opportunities to get people treatment.
“I want to see a proposal that
answers a set of questions,” Kotek
said in late January. “One piece will be
criminalization, but if we just look at
criminalization in isolation, I think it’s
missing the point. So my question is
going to be … what else are you going to
do different to make sure we have better
outcomes?”
In her statement on March 7th,
Kotek said she would sign the legislation
sometime during the next 30 days.
Bill to Cap cost of Insulin at
$35 passes Oregon Senate
Story by Scooter Brown
Portland, OR — On Tuesday, February
13th the Oregon Senate passed a bill
that would cap the cost of insulin at $35
a month for Oregonians.
“No Oregonian should suffer because
they can’t afford basic, life-saving
medication,” said Sen. Deb Patterson,
D-Salem.
In addition to limiting the cost
of insulin, Senate Bill 1508 would also
prevent the Health Evidence Review
Commission (HERC) and Pharmacy
and Therapeutics Committee (P&T)
from using Quality Adjusted Life Years
(QALY) formula to determine coverage
for those on Medicaid and Medicare.
Patterson said QALY discriminates
against people with chronic illnesses
and disabilities, making it harder and
more expensive for those individuals to
get the care they need
“No Oregonian should have
to ration their medication or choose
between paying for prescriptions or
basic necessities like food or housing,”
Patterson said. “SB 1508 works to make
sure that every Oregonian, regardless of
their health or disability status, gets the
care they need.”
More than 37 million people in
the U.S. have diabetes, a chronic illness
that affects how a person’s body turns
food into energy. Insulin is the main
medication that many people living
with diabetes need to use to survive.
However, the price of the 100-year-old
drug has more than tripled in the last
two decades, forcing people to pay
thousand of dollars a year for life-saving
medication.
Patterson said this bill would
help protect Oregonians on Medicaid,
the Oregon Health Plan and those with
private insurance from the rising costs
on insulin, especially seniors.