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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, JULY 26, 2016
Brownson will run
for City Council
Seeks seat
being vacated
by Herzig
By DERRICK
DePLEDGE
The Daily Astorian
Tom Brownson, a retired
contractor, is running for Asto-
ria City Council.
He is seeking the south
side seat being vacated by City
Councilor Drew Herzig, who
is moving to Massachusetts
and will not run for re-election.
“I think that who I am —
and what tools I have — I can
be an asset to the council in
the decision-making process
as we move along,” Brown-
son said.
Brownson is active with
the Astoria Yacht Club and
the campaign
to return the
old Tourist
No. 2 ferry to
Astoria. He
ran
unsuc-
cessfully
for the Port
Tom
of Astoria Brownson
Commission
in 2005.
He has served on the John
Day Water District and with
the Democratic Party at the
precinct level.
In the other open seat for
City Council, Bruce Jones, a
former commander of U.S.
Coast Guard Sector Colum-
bia River, is running for the
east side ward.
City Councilor Russ Warr
has announced he will not
seek a fourth term.
The iling deadline for
candidates is Aug. 30.
Seaside gives dog
park a thumbs up
By DAVE FISHER
The Daily Astorian
SEASIDE — A new dog
park is coming to Seaside.
The Seaside Parks and
Recreation
Committee’s
request for the conditional
approval of the city’s irst dog
park was granted Monday eve-
ning at the City Council meet-
ing. The park will be located
in an “underutilized area” at
the north end of the Broadway
Middle School parking lot.
“It will dress up that part
of town,” said Public Works
Director Dale McDowell in
his summary of the project to
council members.
The Planning Commis-
sion conditionally approved
the plans at a meeting earlier
this month. The park would
be in a fenced-off area where
the public can exercise their
dogs on and off leash.
Utilizing mostly recycled
materials, such as chain-link
fencing and even a nonfunc-
tional ire hydrant as a dec-
orative addition, the cost to
the city was kept to a min-
imum; $780, according to
McDowell.
“It’s amazing that you can
do this for $780,” said Coun-
cilor Randy Frank. “Once
again, Seaside has set the
standard.”
Outdoor school fund initiative
qualiies for November ballot
Campaign leaders said ear-
lier this month they were con-
ident the proposed measure
would qualify.
“We are very excited Orego-
nians are going to get a chance
to support statewide funding
for outdoor school,” said Paige
Richardson, campaign director
of the Outdoor School initiative.
The ballot measure would
dedicate 4 percent of lottery
revenue — as much as $22
million per year — to pay for
a week of outdoor school for
50,000 students and 3,000 high
school counselors.
By PARIS ACHEN
Capital Bureau
SALEM — An initiative
petition to fund a statewide out-
door education program with
Oregon Lottery revenue has
qualiied for the November
ballot.
The Secretary of State’s
Ofice conirmed that the cam-
paign for IP 67 gathered 93,102
valid signatures, about 5 percent
more than the 88,114 require-
ment. The campaign turned in
135,538 signatures, but not all
of those could be veriied.
State Sen. Betsy Johnson,
D-Scappoose, has criticized
the measure because it would
siphon money from other lot-
tery-supported programs. The
measure also would reduce the
lexibility of the lottery fund,
which has allowed lawmakers
to use lottery money during the
recession to sustain services,
Johnson said.
“IP 67 sounds great on the
surface, but it is fraught with
unintended consequences,”
Johnson said. “The bottom line
is there is only so much money,
and lottery money is the most
lexible money we have, and if
we are repurposing the money
for speciic inancial obliga-
tions, we are taking it away
from something else.”
The Secretary of State’s
Ofice has until Aug. 7 to ver-
ify signatures for initiative peti-
tions. The only initiative peti-
tion still awaiting veriication
is a proposed measure to pro-
hibit the sale of products made
from 12 endangered species.
The Capital Bureau is a
collaboration between EO
Media Group and Pamplin
Media Group.
Coast Guard cutter busts drugs, rescues ishers
The Daily Astorian
While on patrol in the east-
ern Paciic Ocean, the U.S.
Coast Guard cutter Alert inter-
cepted more than 3 tons of nar-
cotics, according to the agency.
The cutter returned to homeport
in Astoria July 17.
During a 53-day patrol, the
Alert caught four “go-fast” boats
carrying 3.3 tons of cocaine,
valued at $100 million, and
detained 11 suspected smug-
glers. Results of that magnitude
have not been recorded since
2009, according to the agency.
“I couldn’t be more proud
of the crew’s accomplishments
and the professionalism during
the best patrol of my career,”
Cmdr. Patrick Culver of the
Alert said in a release. “They
earned a well-deserved respite
from the rigors of sea. Reunit-
ing with their loved ones at
homecoming makes the mission
truly worthwhile.”
The Alert also rescued four
crew members from the ish-
Photo courtesy of U.S. Coast Guard
The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Alert seized 3.3 tons of cocaine during a 53-day drug patrol
spanning 12,500 miles in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
ing vessel Alexa, which was
found sinking in a rain squall at
night. The rescued crew were
medically examined and even-
tually transferred to a Costa
Rican Coast Guard vessel.
The Alert’s drug patrols
off of the West Coast of Cen-
tral and South America were
part of Operation Martillo, an
international operation shar-
ing information and bringing
together air, land, and maritime
assets from the U.S. Depart-
ment of Defense, the Depart-
ment of Homeland Security
and partner nations to counter
illicit traficking.
Loan relief lures mental health workers to southern Oregon
Student loans
forgiven through
incentive program
By VICKIE ALDOUS
Mail Tribune
MEDFORD — Saddled with
$75,000 in student loans, Chy
Porter looked for an employer
that offered a loan-forgiveness
program when she hunted for a
job in the mental health ield.
She chose to go to work as a
mental health therapist for Jack-
son County Health and Human
Services — which is competing
for mental health workers amid
a nationwide shortage.
In exchange for a two-year
commitment to Jackson County,
$60,000 of her student loans
were forgiven through a loan
forgiveness program. By work-
ing hard and scrimping, she
was able to pay off the remain-
ing $15,000 herself during those
same two years.
“I can’t say enough glow-
ing things about this program,”
said Porter, who has since been
promoted to quality assurance
reviewer. “It can be life-chang-
ing not to have to worry about
student loans.”
number of residents on the plan
skyrocketed from 30,000 four
years ago.
Jackson County Health and
Human Services hired more
than 60 workers in the is-
cal year that ended in June and
hopes to hire another 100 to 150
for this iscal year, according to
county budget documents.
Current job openings include
a clinical therapist, a children’s
services mental health pro-
fessional and a mental health
employee to work with a law
enforcement crisis team for
$46,987 to $61,921 annually.
The highest paid mental health
job is for a psychiatric medical
director with a salary of more
than $200,000.
One of the irst
Porter came to Jackson
County in 2011 and was one of
the county’s irst mental health
workers to use a loan-forgive-
ness program. She continues
to work for the county, even
though she has completed her
service commitment.
“I do it out of a sense of pride
and really wanting to be a part of
the community,” she said.
Porter cautioned that work-
ers must be committed to the
ield and their employer to take
part in a loan-forgiveness pro-
gram. If they don’t complete
their term of service, they have
to pay back the money — with
interest.
“You have to have a sense of
duty and responsibility, and have
a passion for this type of work.
You have to have that drive,
determination and passion. It’s
totally doable,” she said.
high-need areas in rural parts
of the country. We’ve tried to
promote the fact that we use
the programs because we’ve
had such a need,” said Men-
tal Health Division Manager
Stacy Brubaker.
Prospective mental health
employees often ask whether
Jackson County participates in
loan-forgiveness programs.
‘I thought it would be a
great opportunity to keep
working for the county
and get the benefits.’
Lisa Ortiz
Jackson County mental health clinical supervisor
Jackson County uses a vari-
ety of state and federally funded
loan-forgiveness programs to
lure mental health workers. The
incentives range from $20,000
for a one-year commitment by
a person with a master’s degree
who is working to attain a license,
to $105,000 for a three-year com-
mitment by a psychiatrist who
has inished medical school.
“The intent of the pro-
grams is to recruit people to
“They cite that as one of the
reasons they’re interested in
working for Jackson County,”
Brubaker said.
Hang on to seasoned
workers
Loan-forgiveness programs
are also helping Jackson County
hang on to its seasoned mental
health workers.
Jackson County Mental
Health Clinical Supervisor Lisa
Shortage of workers
A countrywide rush to hire
mental health professionals was
triggered by the 2010 passage
of the federal Affordable Care
Act, which put mental health
care coverage on par with phys-
ical health care coverage. The
nation does not yet have enough
mental health workers to meet
the demand for care, lead-
ing to intense competition for
new graduates and established
professionals.
Coordinated care organiza-
tions are paying Jackson County
to provide mental health care to
the 65,000 county residents now
on the Oregon Health Plan. The
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Ortiz, a 10-year veteran, has
been recruited by other employ-
ers, but said she enjoys work-
ing in various positions for the
county and appreciates its par-
ticipation in loan-forgiveness
programs.
“I ind it really satisfying.
I’ve been able to move to dif-
ferent positions and gain expe-
rience to help the community,”
she said.
Ortiz estimated she spent
more than $100,000 earning
a bachelor’s degree and then
a master’s degree in psychol-
ogy, with most of that inanced
through student loans.
At one point after she’d
gone through a divorce, she was
working almost full-time, going
to school full-time and caring
for her three children.
Ortiz is eligible for up to
$50,000 in student loan forgive-
ness for a two-year commit-
ment, and can apply for addi-
tional loan forgiveness for a
future commitment.
“I thought it would be a great
opportunity to keep working for
the county and get the beneits,”
she said.
Jackson County mental
health workers noted it takes
years of education and train-
ing to become a licensed men-
tal health professional — four
years of college for a bache-
lor’s degree and two years for
a master’s degree, plus two to
three years of work to accumu-
late the hours needed to become
licensed.
The process takes longer
for psychiatrists and other pro-
fessionals who attend medical
school.
But those who make it
through ind there is high
demand for their skills.
“Because of the Afford-
able Care Act, more people can
access mental health services,”
Ortiz said. “That has broadened
the type of client we see. It’s a
challenge to ind enough staff to
serve that huge population.”
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