7A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2017
Timber suit: County land represented 23 percent of all land in suit
Continued from Page 1A
“There is no free money
here, as far as I can see,” said
Nebeker, who also expressed
concerns about the future ram-
ifications on state forestry pol-
icies. “I do not think this is a
good or wise way to change
such far-reaching rules and
practices.”
Linn County
Linn County, with financial
aid from a number of private
timber industry groups, filed
the lawsuit against the state in
March, claiming it had failed
to meet an agreement to maxi-
mize timber profits. In October,
a Linn County Circuit Court
judge’s ruling gave the lawsuit
class-action status, meaning
14 other counties — including
Clatsop — and 130 taxing enti-
ties could participate.
Commissioner Lisa Clem-
ent, who voted against opt-
ing out along with Commis-
sioner Lianne Thompson, said
while she was concerned with
the potential rise in state taxes
as a result of a successful law-
suit, she saw the timber issue as
a legal, not political, issue.
Clatsop County’s roughly
147,000 acres of forestland rep-
resented 23 percent of all land
Scott
Lee
Lianne
Thompson
included in the suit. Sheriff
Tom Bergin, Warrenton Fiber’s
Martin Nygaard and peo-
ple who work in the local tim-
ber industry were among those
who urged commissioners to
remain in the suit.
Both Nebeker and Sullivan
said the lawsuit favors Linn
County’s interests more than
those of Clatsop County.
“(The lawsuit) assumes
that Linn County and Clatsop
County agree with the great-
est permanent value rule,”
said Sullivan, who earlier in
the meeting was sworn in for
her first term as a commis-
sioner. “While not perfect,
the forest management plan is
working.”
Thompson said that while
she “hated” the lawsuit itself,
she wanted Clatsop County to
have a say in how its forests are
managed.
“What I’m interested in
is how best to control the
The Daily Astorian/File Photo
Clatsop County opted out of a $1.4 billion timber lawsuit against the state Wednesday at the commission meeting.
outcomes,” she said.
Lee disagreed.
“Why would we join a law-
suit that demands maximum
timber harvest over all other
interests if we don’t support
that position?” he said.
Should the counties win the
lawsuit, Clatsop County might
have received $262 million.
The county budget, by compar-
ison, is roughly $57.6 million.
Other taxing districts, such
as Clatsop Community Col-
lege, would receive some of the
money should they decide to
remain in the lawsuit.
County Manager Cameron
Moore said it was unlikely the
county would consider filing
a separate lawsuit against the
state.
Moore said it’s not entirely
certain what the board’s deci-
sion will mean for the county or
the lawsuit. “I don’t think any-
one will know what the exact
impact of Clatsop County’s
decision will be for at least a
year,” he said.
Linn County Commissioner
Roger Nyquist said the deci-
sion is between Clatsop County
New Washington state proposal
seeks expansion of wine refill law
By ALEXIS MYERS
Associated Press
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Two
years ago, the Washington
state Legislature began allow-
ing wine lovers to fill reus-
able containers — known as
growlers — at their favorite
wineries.
Now, a new measure would
allow refills at grocery stores,
wine boutiques and other
places licensed to sell wine in
the state.
House Bill 1039, sponsored
by Democratic Rep. Sharon
Wylie, would let businesses
already licensed to sell beer or
cider in a growler to also offer
wine in the containers. The
measure is set for its first pub-
lic hearing on Thursday.
“It’s an additional way to
market and appeal to custom-
ers,” Wylie said. “And being
able to safely reuse your bot-
tles is a good thing.”
Oregon currently has a law
allowing growler purchases at
wineries, but no other states
have passed or proposed a bill
that would extend the growler
AP Photo/Elaine Thompson
Restaurant manager Jason Appleton pours a glass of
wine from a small barrel at Luc’s restaurant as he demon-
strates that the same system could be used for consum-
ers using their own growlers.
practice outside of wineries
directly, according to Heather
Morton, a policy specialist at
the National Conference of
State Legislatures
Paul Beveridge of Seattle’s
Wilridge Winery said it’s the
most eco-friendly way to con-
sume wine without lessening
quality. In addition, he said,
consumers get more for less.
“It would be easier, and
more convenient for custom-
ers to have filling stations out-
side of my winery,” said Beve-
ridge, president of Family
Wineries of Washington State,
a proponent of the bill.
He said many state laws
pertaining to alcohol date back
to the repeal of Prohibition
and are designed to protect
existing wineries and distribu-
tors from competition.
Currently, the only way
to avoid a trip to a winery is
to “swap out” a growler at a
licensed store. But customers
have to drop it off and wait for
new growlers to be delivered
to replace the old one.
More and more beer-fill-
ing stations have popped up
in Seattle grocery stores and
pharmacies, where growl-
ers can be refilled with local
beers.
Wylie says some wineries
are concerned about giving
up control over the bottling
process and about protecting
their products from oxygen
spoilage and other threats to
quality.
Anne Baunach, executive
director of the Washington
State Recycling Association,
said growlers aid the environ-
mental by eliminating some
of the corks, labels and other
waste associated with recy-
cling glass.
“Right now if you go into a
store and buy a bottle of wine,
you consume the wine, and
the bottle hopefully goes into
a recycling container, but for
many people, it would go into
a landfill,” she said.
Portland Port Director Wyatt to retire in June
Executive was
raised in Astoria
By JIM REDDEN
Portland Tribune
The Port of Portland cur-
rently owns four marine termi-
nals, five business parks, and
the Portland International, Hill-
sboro and Troutdale airports.
Wyatt was hired as executive
director in 2011, jut weeks
before the Sept. 11 attacks.
Port of Portland Executive
Director Bill Wyatt has for-
mally announced he will retire
on June 30. The Port’s nine
commissioners will appoint his
successor. A recruitment pro-
cess will be announced later
this week.
“It has been an enormous
privilege to have served the
Port for the past 16 years. The
Port’s best successes during my
tenure have been the result of
collaboration and partnership
and I want to thank the many
stakeholders and community
members who have played a
role in helping the Port carry
out its mission of providing state’s largest brownfield rede-
access to global markets and velopment project at the Trout-
land for job creation,” Wyatt dale Reynolds industrial Park,
said in a statement released acquiring the Gresham Vista
Business Park, and reduc-
Wednesday.
The Port of Portland cur- ing Port-wide greenhouse gas
rently owns four marine termi- emissions from Port source to
20 percent below
nals, five business
1990 levels.
parks, and the Port-
“Bill has been
land International,
a skilled, dynamic
Hillsboro
and
and admired leader
Troutdale airports.
and I know I speak
Wyatt was hired as
for all of the Com-
executive director
mission when I say
in 2011, jut weeks
how grateful we are
before the Sept. 11
for his unparalleled
attacks.
service,” said Port
In addition to
Commission Presi-
overseeing all of the
Bill
dent Jim Carter.
security changes in
Wyatt
But the Port also
the airport and ter-
minal operations as a result of lost all international cargo ship-
those attacks, Wyatt is cred- ping business during Wyatt’s
ited with returning interna- tenure during a still-unresolved
tional service to the Portland labor dispute between the for-
airport and initiating $2 billion eign-owned operator and the
in improvements there over the Longshoreman’s union that
next few years. He also over- represents most of the workers
saw millions of dollars in the there. Both the Port and State
terminal operations follow- of Oregon have been unable to
ing the $199 million Columbia recruit new shipping lines or
River navigation channel deep- develop Portland-based alter-
ening project, completing the native shipping methods for
Balzer: Former fire chief had earned
more than $100,000 in annual salary
Continued from Page 1A
Balzer was fired in October
2015 in what the fire district’s
board described as a “personnel
matter.”
Balzer, who earned more
than $100,000 in annual salary
and compensation, was faulted
for “poor leadership” in a per-
formance evaluation.
Balzer stated in his com-
plaint that the board’s actions
led to damages to his reputa-
tion and standing in the com-
munity. He had sought com-
pensation of almost $678,000
and reinstatement of his duties
and benefits.
“The lawsuit itself is the
end of any dispute between Mr.
Balzer and the Cannon Beach
Rural Fire District,” Snyder
said this week.
those who used the deep water
terminal.
Before his appointment,
Wyatt, a native Oregon raised
in Astoria, served as a state
representative from there from
1974 to 1977. He then served
five years as Executive Direc-
tor of the Association for Port-
land Progress, six years as
President of the Oregon Busi-
ness Council, and seven years
as Chief of Staff to former
Oregon Governor John A.
Kitzhaber.
commissioners and their con-
stituents and will not hamper
the lawsuit going forward.
“Clatsop County must
be in a much better financial
situation than the rest of
us, which is a good thing,”
Nyquist said. “I don’t
know how they go to the
voters now and ask for more
money.”
PERS: Attempts at
reform will face an
uphill battle politically
Continued from Page 1A
“We don’t want to pro-
pose anything that we don’t
think would survive a legal
challenge because it would be
a waste of time,” Kruse said.
Legislative Counsel, in a
memo to Knopp and John-
son in late August, noted that
the court hasn’t addressed the
method of calculating final
average salary and whether
it is a term of the PERS
contract. If it is, they said,
changes to the calculation are
permissible “if the changes
protect accrued benefits.”
Calls to Knopp and
Johnson Wednesday after-
noon were not immedi-
ately returned. Lawmakers
were gathering at the Capi-
tol this week to organize for
the upcoming session and
attend a slew of mandatory
trainings.
Attempts at reform could
face an uphill battle politi-
cally; some union represen-
tatives have already publicly
questioned the legality of pos-
sible changes to the system.
‘Smarter government’
In her inauguration speech
Monday, Gov. Kate Brown
called for “smarter govern-
ment,” including better man-
agement of PERS, just over a
month after she nudged Ore-
gon business leaders to con-
tribute ideas to address the
state’s budget shortfall in the
wake of the failure of Mea-
sure 97, a tax on corporate
sales.
Supporters said the tax
would have raised about $3
billion per year and could
have fixed the state’s per-
sistent budget shortfalls.
Brown said in her speech
Monday that beside her pro-
posal — outlined in SB 107
— to bring more investment
functions in-house under
a new Oregon Investment
Department, she looked for-
ward to “the other solu-
tions proposed in the months
ahead.”
“As we consider our next
steps, let’s agree to keep our
promises to retirees,” Brown
said, according to her pre-
pared remarks. “Let’s ensure
that no one can (take) advan-
tage of the system. And let’s
seek solutions that are legally
viable, so that dead ends
aren’t left to languish in court
while the challenge of PERS
only continues to grow.”
In a phone interview in
late December, Sen. John-
son said there was “very lit-
tle political enthusiasm to
engage in the discussion to
find a solution or a partial
solution.”
“In an ideal world, I
would envision an omnibus
bill that would have some
revenue raising mechanisms
done or agreed to with busi-
ness rather than done to busi-
ness,” Johnson said in late
December. “The same omni-
bus bill would address the
expenditure side of the ledger
and include one or two strate-
gic PERS reforms that would
yield financial benefit to the
system as well as survive any
legal test.”
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