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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 20, 2018)
A3 THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2018 Oregon could save millions on procurement, audit fi nds technology and outdated practices largely prevent the state from digging into whether it is spending each dollar of taxpayer money wisely. Auditors looked at all information technology pur- chases in 2016 and 2017 by 10 state agencies whose buying is subject to over- sight from the Department of Administrative Services. They found the state bought 1,300 24-inch Dell monitors for prices ranging State should better track purchases By CLAIRE WITHYCOMBE Oregon Capital Bureau SALEM — State offi - cials could have saved up to $1.6 billion over a two-year period by being smarter shoppers, accord- ing to a state audit released Wednesday . But, auditors said, old Former Seaside surgeon acquitted of sex abuse charges Faced 10 counts in six-day trial By JACK HEFFERNAN The Daily Astorian A jury acquitted a former Seaside surgeon on Wednes- day of sex abuse charges fol- lowing a six-day trial. Robert John Gustafson, 49, now of North Dakota, was accused in 2015 of sex- ually abusing a girl while he lived in Seaside. He faced 10 counts of fi rst-degree sex abuse alleging that, between 2009 and 2011, he repeat- edly touched a girl under 14. Now 18, the young woman testifi ed for fi ve hours during the trial. A video of a 2015 interview with the girl, soon after she disclosed the alleged abuse to her mother, was also played at trial. She asserted that the defendant had touched her inappropriately. “I didn’t know what it was at the time,” she said during the 2015 interview. “It was uncomfortable. I didn’t like it.” Arguments from Chief Deputy District Attorney Ron Brown included a let- ter written by the girl around the time of the alleged abuse, the fact that the girl was allegedly cutting herself as a result of the abuse and the manner in which Gus- tafson allegedly tried to hide the abuse . I n July, Judge Cin- dee Matyas granted part of a defense motion to exclude evidence regard- ing Gustafson’s past sexual tendencies . “Most of the time, sexual abuse is committed in secret. It’s committed against chil- dren, particularly, because children are easy to manipu- late,” Brown said to the jury during closing arguments. “The younger the person is, the harder it is for a person to tell, I submit.” Gustafson also testifi ed during the trial. He denied all of the accusations. “What I was trying to do is fi gure out how she could have misapprehended that,” Gustafson said. “It wasn’t until later that all of the, sort of, contradictions and stuff became clear, that there was some amount of deception.” Paul Hood, Gustafson’s Portland-based attorney, pointed to a number of minor inconsistencies in witness testimony and the logic of the allegations. He also said that a civil case involving the girl’s mother and Gus- tafson, which was fi led soon before the abuse allegations were brought to light, might have been a factor. “I’m not trying to tell you that any one of these things, by itself, is a slam dunk,” Hood said. “Is her testimony so reliable that you can reach that incred- ibly powerful conclusion? And the answer to that is ‘n o.’” Moments after the ver- dict was read, Hood placed his arm around Gustafson, while the young woman and some of her family mem- bers looked down and qui- etly started to cry. from $176.40 to $241.15 and could have saved over $16,500 by always paying the lowest price. In another example, the state paid 131 different prices for the same surge protector, ranging from $65.90 to $173.98. While focusing on tech- nology, the auditors used their fi ndings and other research to conclude that Oregon could have trimmed up to 20 per- cent of $8 billion in state government purchases in the 2015-17 budget. The Department of Administrative Services has price agreements with ven- dors to set prices for goods bought by the state. The state encourages agencies to negotiate for lower prices. But auditors found that state buyers use multiple systems to track spending and don’t follow consistent buying practices. Some state agencies monitor spending in Mic- rosoft Excel spreadsheets. Pot Roast Dinner Portlant Jazz Trio By MATTHEW BROWN Associated Press BILLINGS, Mont. — The Trump administration miscalculated potential dam- ages from train derailments when it canceled an Obama- era rule requiring the instal- lation of more advanced brakes by railroads hauling explosive fuels, The Associ- ated Press has found. A government analysis used by the administration to justify the cancellation omitted up to $117 million in estimated future damages that could be avoided by using electronic brakes. The error could stoke renewed criticism from supporters of the rule who say the analysis was biased. Department of Trans- portation offi cials acknowl- edged the mistake after it was discovered by the AP during a review of federal documents, but said it does not change their decision not to install the brakes. Safety advocates, trans- portation union leaders and Democratic lawmakers oppose the administration’s decision to kill the brake rule, which was included in a package of rail safety mea- sures enacted in 2015 under President Barack Obama following dozens of acci- dents by trains hauling oil and ethanol in the U.S. and Canada. The deadliest happened in Canada in 2013, when an unattended train carry- ing crude oil rolled down an incline, came off the tracks in the town of Lac-Megantic and exploded into a massive ball of fi re, killing 47 peo- ple and obliterating much of the Quebec community’s downtown. There have been other fi ery crashes and fuel spills in Alabama, Oregon, Montana, Virginia, West Virginia, North Dakota and Illinois. After the brake rule was enacted, lobbyists for the railroad and oil industries pushed to cancel it, citing the high cost of installing so-called electronic pneu- matic brakes and question- ing their effectiveness. Unlike other systems where brakes are applied sequentially along the length of a train, electronic pneu- matic brakes, or ECP, work on all cars simultaneously. That can reduce the dis- tance and time a train needs to stop, and cause fewer cars to derail. “These ECP brakes are very important for oil trains,” said Steven Dit- meyer, a rail safety expert and former senior offi cial at the Federal Railroad Admin- istration. “It makes a great deal of sense: All the brakes get applied immediately, and there would be fewer cars in the pileup.” Under Obama, the Trans- portation Department deter- mined the brakes would cost up to $664 million over 20 years and save between $470 million and $1.1 billion from accidents that would be avoided. The Trump administration reduced the range of benefi ts to between $131 million and $374 million. Transporta- tion department economists said in their analysis that the 8. A w Holiday w Show 6PM “Karaoke Dave” With Kelley Shannon & Frients ASTORIA AMERICAN LEGION Liberty Theatre Saturday, December 22 nd , 2018 at 6 pm Clatsop Post 12 1132 Exchange Street 325-5771 change was prompted in part by a reduction in oil train traffi c in recent years, which meant there would be fewer derailments. The transport of crude on U.S. railroads peaked in 2014 when 540,000 tank cars shipped. That fell to about 210,000 carloads last year, most of it from the Bakken oil patch of North Dakota and Montana, according to industry fi gures. But in making their cal- culations, the economists left out the most common type of derailments in which spilled and burning fuel causes property damage but no mass casualties, the AP found. Equipping fuel trains with electronic brakes would reduce damages from those derailments by an estimated $48 million to $117 million, according to Department of Transportation estimates that were left out of the adminis- tration’s fi nal tally. Including the omit- ted benefi ts reduces the net cost of the requirement to as low as $63 million under one scenario laid out by the agency. Transportation spokes- man Bobby Fraser said the omission was unintentional and would not have changed September’s decision to cancel the electronic brake requirement. Under the administration’s analysis, the cost of the brakes would have outweighed the ben- efi ts even when consider- ing estimated damages from derailments that were left out of the original fi ndings. John Gorka in Concert January 17, 2019 • 7:30pm Astoria’s Performing Arts Center Tickets Liberty box office & online at LibertyAstoria.org coastradio.org Our Heartfelt Gratitude H North Coast Chorale H Local Vocal Favorites with Potatoes, Carrots, Salad and Roll Friday Dec. 21 st 4 pm until gone $ 00 tors said that offi cials in Georgia reported saving $61 million after doing an analy- sis of 38 contracts. Auditors recommended that the Department of Administrative Services buy a procurement system that would provide more details about specifi c purchases so the state can spot ways to save money. The Oregon Capital Bureau is a collaboration of EO Media Group, Pamplin Media Group and Salem Reporter. US miscalculated benefi ts of oil train brakes T he Astoria Christmas Fantastic Clatsop Post 12 Only two state agencies reg- ularly analyze individual purchases, auditors found. “Without the ability to analyze detailed purchase data for all procurements, Oregon is unable to identify opportunities for potentially millions of dollars in cost savings,” auditors wrote. Oregon could benefi t from analyzing information about what it spends money on, auditors found. Such an analysis can result in big savings. Audi- W ords are not enough to Thank the many family and friends who helped celebrate our mom, grandmother and friend, Ann Maize, at her service on Saturday, December 15th. Saying “Goodbye” is never easy, but having so many at our side certainly made it possible. It was a service and reception as beautiful as she was. In addition, we would like to pay special thanks to CALDWELLS-LUCE LAYTON MORTUARY and ERICKSON FLORAL for the professionalism and level of detail they delivered in our mother’s service. We will miss her everyday and will remain grateful for those who shared our grief and were there to assist. Thank you, all. The Maize and Roberts Family. 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