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THE ASTORIAN • SATuRdAy, JuNE 15, 2019
Absenteeism: ‘It is
Oregon public defenders mobilize for
difficult to fail if
fixing staffing shortage, payment system super
you’re there every day’
By GILLIAN FLACCUS
and
SARAH ZIMMERMAN
Associated Press
SALEM — Facing an
ever-mounting
caseload,
dozens of public defend-
ers in Oregon walked out
of courthouses and into the
Statehouse this week to
lobby for a bill that would
fix a staffing shortage and an
outdated contract payment
system that has some attor-
neys representing more than
200 clients at once.
A national watchdog
report deemed Oregon’s
fixed-fee contract system
for paying its public defend-
ers unconstitutional earlier
this year, and the ACLU has
threatened to sue. But sweep-
ing legislation that would fix
the problem has been stalled
in a House committee since
April — and now, two weeks
remain before lawmakers go
home for the year.
Rep. Jennifer William-
son, a Democrat who spon-
sored legislation to overhaul
Oregon’s system, described
the situation as an “absolute
crisis.”
“Public defenders are the
linchpin to so many parts of
our vulnerable communi-
ties,” she said. “If you care
about foster care, health
care, homelessness, our pub-
lic defenders are at the heart
of all of these issues.”
Public defenders play a
vital role in U.S. democracy
and are paid by the state to
represent criminal defen-
dants who can’t afford a pri-
vate lawyer. Yet in a mount-
ing number of states, as in
Oregon, they struggle with
overwhelming
caseloads,
erratic funding and paltry
pay compared with prosecu-
tors and private attorneys.
That leads to “massive
turnover and burnout,” said
Ernie Lewis, executive direc-
tor of the National Associ-
ation of Public Defenders,
which was founded in part to
address the issue.
Missouri, Louisiana and
Kentucky are among other
states where public defense
attorneys have workloads
that lead to high turnover,
he said, while cities such as
Seattle and New York have
placed caps on the number
of cases they handle.
Under Oregon’s sys-
tem, the state contracts
with a hodgepodge of non-
profit lawyer groups, indi-
vidual attorneys and private
law firms to work as public
defenders and then pays a
flat fee for each case. There
are roughly 650 attorneys
who work under 63 differ-
ent contracts, although the
state doesn’t track which
attorneys work which cases
once contracts are awarded,
according to the report
from the nonpartisan Sixth
Amendment Center.
The amount paid to each
contractor varies, and the
amount paid varies by the
type of case as well, from
$565 to $626 for a domestic
violence case, for example,
to $221 to $255 for a proba-
tion violation.
The Sixth Amendment
Center report, which was
commissioned by the state
and released this year, found
the system involved a “com-
plex bureaucracy” with a
“stunning lack of oversight.”
In one instance, a pub-
lic defense attorney in the
Portland metropolitan area
handled 1,265 misdemean-
ors in a year, not counting
nearly 400 smaller cases
such as probation violations
and termination of paren-
tal rights. That kind of case-
load should be assigned to
four attorneys, according to
national minimal standards,
the report found.
The center concluded
the system’s complicated
flat-fee payment structure
threatens criminal defen-
dants’ right to due process
because contractors have a
financial incentive to take as
many cases as they can and
pick plea deals over trials to
churn through cases more
quickly.
States such as Idaho,
Michigan, Nevada and Wash-
ington have banned fixed-fee
contracting because it cre-
ates a conflict between attor-
neys’ financial interests and
defendants’ rights, according
to the report.
Oversight: Commissioners often appear frustrated with role
Continued from Page A1
Clatsop County put both
the developmental disability
and mental health and sub-
stance abuse contracts up for
bid this year, inviting com-
petition to Clatsop Behav-
ioral Healthcare, the long-
time provider. But no other
agency stepped forward to
compete.
According to the county,
the state Department of
Human Services prefers to
contract directly for devel-
opmental disability ser-
vices in counties that are
not large enough to do the
work through county staff.
The transfer of responsibil-
ity to the state could lead to
better communication and
oversight, while freeing up
county resources and reduc-
ing legal exposure.
County commissioners
have often appeared uncom-
fortable and frustrated with
their oversight role. The
county was expected to
ensure the developmen-
tally disabled received
proper care, but the state
sets the standard for services
and provides the money,
while Clatsop Behavioral
Healthcare works with the
providers.
County leaders were sur-
prised last year, for example,
when the state outlined a pat-
tern of inconsistent monitor-
ing at adult foster homes that
raised significant concern.
“I hope that even though
we aren’t in the middle of
it, that we still get good ser-
vice information by provid-
ers going forward,” Com-
missioner Lianne Thompson
said
Wednesday
night
before the county commis-
sion voted unanimously
for the shift. “I hope that’s
possible.”
Sarah Nebeker, the com-
mission’s chairwoman, said
afterward that the situation
had been unworkable for the
county.
“Our hope is that this will
work well,” she said. “And
only time will tell.”
OREGON CAPITAL
Fees: ‘Value’s just too good to pass up’ INSIDER
Continued from Page A1
The fees account for
about $75,000 in revenue.
“The board started this
conversation about two
years ago about fees, but I
had to be able to do it finan-
cially,” said Craig Hop-
pes, the Astoria schools
superintendent.
Increased state funding,
steady enrollment and care-
ful managing of pension
costs all buffeted the school
district’s finances, allowing
it to ensure students can par-
ticipate in activities without
cost barriers, Hoppes said.
While eliminating almost
all extracurricular fees, the
school district cut fees for
students in band — a par-
ticularly expensive program
— by half.
Nathan Hankwitz has
four children in the school
district, including three
daughters at Astoria High
School all wanting to play
multiple sports. He said he
would pay up to $400 a year
in fees, in addition to travel
costs to go see them play.
“It’s a huge, huge thing
for a family like mine that
has multiple kids,” he said.
Astoria looked at the Til-
lamook School District,
which eliminated activity
fees several years ago and
has seen an increase in par-
ticipation by demographics
such as females, said Grace
Laman, a school board
member.
Jewell School District,
a rural district sustained by
timber taxes, also doesn’t
charge student activity fees.
The school board’s sup-
port to end activity fees was
unanimous.
“They’re able to develop
a like or interest in some-
thing, and then they don’t
have to worry about buy-
ing a uniform or anything
else that goes with it,” said
Jimmy Pearson, a school
board member.
David Oser, a retired
chief financial officer for
regional lender Craft3, was
defeated in the May elec-
tion by school psychologist
Heidi Wintermute. Oser had
pointed to the elimination of
student activity fees as one
of his biggest accomplish-
ments while on the school
board.
Charging fees became
necessary during the Great
Recession to make up for a
shortfall in state revenue.
“With the additional
funding that we now have
in the governor’s budget,
and hopefully the Student
Success Act, this revenue
source is no longer neces-
sary,” Oser said.
Randy Schild, the super-
intendent of Tillamook
schools, said student par-
ticipation in extracurricu-
lar activities jumped more
than 30% since the school
district eliminated fees four
years ago, especially among
Hispanic students and
those in poverty. The stu-
dents who participate show
markedly better atten-
dance and fail fewer classes
because
of
increased
accountability and time
around a responsible adult,
he said.
“The value’s just too
good to pass up,” Schild
said. “I commend (Astoria)
for looking at this and real-
izing it’s good for kids.”
Get the inside
scoop on state
government
and politics!
Continued from Page A1
Students are welcomed
on their return to class
from absences, and class-
rooms are encouraged to
achieve perfect attendance,
rewarded by ice cream or
cake. Students with good
attendance are eligible
for gift cards from Del’s
Chevron.
Students also work with
adult advocates to talk
about daily stresses and
create positive interactions.
Shirley Yates, the high
school’s attendance assis-
tant, has met with every
student whose attendance
rate is below 90%. Her goal
is to let them know they
matter.
She described a student
who was leaving school
after every first period.
“Somebody welcomed him
and he’s been here every
day,” Yates said.
Resources at all grade
levels are necessary, not
just for the years before
graduation. Kindergartners
and seniors have the worst
absenteeism rates, Boyd
said.
The push for better
attendance could improve
graduation rates. Accord-
ing to Boyd, seven fresh-
men were not on track to
graduate at the end of the
winter trimester last year.
This year, only two fresh-
men were not on track.
He recognizes combat-
ing absenteeism will be a
long-time effort.
“How do we create a
culture that says we want
you in school, we need you
in school?” Boyd asked.
“Students with solid atten-
dance are most likely to
graduate.
“It is super difficult to
fail if you’re there every
day — there are kids who
have tried, but it’s super
difficult.”
LEWIS & CLARK
TIMBERLANDS
RECREATIONAL PERMIT
PUBLIC NOTICE
All recreational
activities on
Lewis & Clark
Timberlands
require a no
fee recreational
permit.
To acquire a permit:
Go online to GreenWoodresources.com and click
on Recreational Access, or Scan the QR code using
your smartphone at one of our access gate signs. Call
503.755.6655 for recorded information for Oregon
timberlands and 509.780.0865 for recorded information
for Washington timberlands. Washington permits will be
available beginning 6/01/2019.
Our goal is to provide a quality recreational experience
while improving communications with our timberland visitors.