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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (July 6, 2019)
A4 THE ASTORIAN • SATuRdAy, July 6, 2019 OPINION editor@dailyastorian.com KARI BORGEN Publisher JIM VAN NOSTRAND Editor Founded in 1873 JEREMY FELDMAN Circulation Manager JOHN D. BRUIJN Production Manager CARL EARL Systems Manager OUR VIEW Legislators did some good work in session T he partisan excesses and political turmoil of the 2019 Oregon Legislature have been well-documented. But the now-finished legislative session also should be remembered for some good work on behalf of the entire state. Much of that work was bipar- tisan. Much of it drew little pub- lic attention. Much of it would help rural Oregon. There are many examples. Here are a few. The Legislature fulfilled its con- stitutional mandate to write a bal- anced state budget for 2019-21, while also building up a healthy rainy-day fund. By the way, Orego- nians will get to keep their “kicker” tax refund next year, although the amount won’t be known until next month. Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scap- poose, was a constant voice for fis- cal sanity — and understanding the needs of rural Oregon — in her role as a Senate co-chair of the bud- get-writing Ways & Means Com- mittee. Her reputation for hold- ing state officials accountable was undaunted. She and other lawmakers chal- lenged public universities to learn from community colleges by collab- orating on their building needs and addressing their deferred mainte- nance instead of constantly seeking state money for new buildings. And Johnson was instrumental in securing state money for projects in Clatsop County — $1 million for the cleanup and redevelopment of Astoria Warehousing, $2 million to help turn a former youth prison in Warrenton into the new Clatsop County Jail and $1 million for stage and other improvements at the Lib- erty Theatre. A proposed university cen- ter to train rural health care work- ers received $10 million. The pro- posed Southern Oregon Medical Workforce Center in Roseburg would be a collaboration with New- berg-based George Fox University. It would offer bachelor’s and grad- uate degrees in allied health profes- sions, such as physical therapy and AP Photo/Andrew Selsky Lawmakers convene at the Oregon Senate on June 29 after minority Republicans ended a walkout over a carbon-emissions bill. mental health. The concept is that people trained in rural Oregon are more likely to take health-care jobs in rural Oregon. An increased 911 tax will help emergency dispatch centers hire more staff and modernize their tech- nology. Although call volumes have increased dramatically, the emer- gency communication tax had not increased in nearly 25 years, accord- ing to the legislation’s tenacious sponsor, Rep. Lynn Findley, R-Vale. The monthly tax will rise over a two-year period from the current 75 cents to $1.25 per phone line. That measure, House Bill 2449, passed the Senate in the Legislature’s final hours. It was an illustration that even the best ideas needed constant attention and unending advocacy to survive the legislative process. Sen. Bill Hansell, R-Athena, and Johnson sponsored SB 290, which protects farmers, ranchers and vol- unteers from civil liability for help- ing fight wildfires. The legislation, which passed unanimously in both chambers, stemmed from the Sub- station Fire that burned more than 78,000 acres of crop and range land in Wasco and Sherman counties. Another bipartisan bill success- fully sponsored by Hansell and Johnson aims to increase student achievement and improve gradua- tion rates through state coordination with FFA programs. Among major issues on lawmak- ers’ agenda, they did a little bit to pay down the Public Employees Retirement System’s unfunded lia- bility, although public-employee unions howled that it was too much and Republicans said that it was too little. In one little-noticed but important move, the Legislature also allowed the Harney District Hospital in Burns to offer a retire- ment program other than PERS and to fill job vacancies by rehir- ing PERS retirees without affecting those retirees’ pensions. Oregon’s beleaguered child-wel- fare system gained the money and program changes to add 347 front- line workers. Oregon State Police can hire 40 troopers. Oregon State University Extension Service — one of the most popular programs among legislators — gained new investments for fire resilience, water basin research, organic farming and berry research. The Legislature appropriated $14 million to rehabil- itate the Wallowa Lake Dam after Gov. Kate Brown visited the area and learned the potential for a dam disaster. High-profile items such as fam- ily leave, education funding, climate change, gun control and rent con- trol dominated the news at various times during the past five months. Amid dealing with those contro- versial issues — for good or bad — legislators collaborated on a lot of good work. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Share the road o all the operators of surrey bike rent- als and the tourists who rent surreys: Please emphasize the importance of stay- ing closest to the right side of the road as possible. Too often traffic is backed up because a surrey is biking down the center of Hol- laday Drive in Seaside, alongside the cen- ter yellow lane, as if they are a motorized vehicle. I often wonder if I were to rent a surrey, if I would be informed to obey the laws of bicycles, and need to stay nearest to the curb as possible. Or, are renters merely asked to read some policies, which we all know no one actually reads. When surreys are on the right side of the road cars can safely pass by, surrey rid- ers can enjoy their day and motorists can get to work. Just as motorists are asked to share the road with bicyclists, surreys need to share the road with motorists by staying away from the center yellow lane. DAVID MUSCHAMP Gearhart T Credit for Ship Inn n regard to the food carts review, “13 food carts to try in Astoria this summer” (Coast Weekend, June 26), please get your facts straight and give credit where credit is due. While Enola’s Ship Out food cart is a nice tribute to the now closed Ship Inn restaurant, Enola was not the propri- etress of the Ship Inn. The Ship Inn was the vision and creation of the late Fenton Stokeld and his wife, Jill Stokeld. They moved from England, and brought with them the idea of serving English-style I fish and chips here in Astoria. The Ship Inn was opened by the Stokelds on June 7, 1974, and was successful for 43 years, closing its doors on April 30, 2017 (“Ship Inn furls sails, closes galley,” The Daily Astorian, April 18, 2017). STACEY McKENNEY Astoria Voters deserve explanation hey say that behind every complaint is a request. I request that the Coastal Caucus explain to their constituents how HB 3309 makes Oregonians safer. This bill eliminated the tsunami reg- ulatory line, and the requirement to con- sult with the State Department of Geology regarding construction of essential public buildings in tsunami inundation zones. This major change to longstanding pol- icy was made outside the standing com- mittee process, and without public tes- timony. No alternative was provided. Coastal voters deserve an explanation of HB 3309. PATRICK CORCORAN Astoria T Lasers are disrespectful ecent news highlighted some cit- ies eliminating firework shows and, instead, having laser light shows on Inde- pendence Day. In 1814, at the battle at Fort McHenry, Francis Scott Key was inspired to write the “Star Spangled Banner.” Do the words “and the rocket’s red glare, the bomb bursting in air/gave proof through the night that our flag was still there” ring a bell? R We do live in the land of the free. Many veterans and servicemen then and now sacrificed their lives so Americans could have that freedom. Our public servants risk their lives everyday in the same way. Cities are free to do whatever they want. Using lasers instead of a fireworks show on the Fourth of July yes, is safer, but disrespectful to the legacy of those brave men. TOM CASTRO Astoria Food security ood security is a serious concern for many in our county. To supplement distributions made at food pantries, the F Oregon Food Bank devised the Seed to Supper Program as a way of increasing food security by teaching participants to grow their own healthy vegetables. With the Northwest Oregon Hous- ing Authority as host agency, the Clat- sop County Master Gardeners Association recently completed teaching 12 hours of best practices in vegetable gardening to 16 enthusiastic participants at two sites. On behalf of these participants and CCMGA’s volunteer facilitators, I want to thank 7 Dees Garden Center, Columbia Pacific Coordinated Care Organization and Rick and Wendy Bigness for the generous donations that make this far-reaching pro- gram possible. DEBRA FERENCY Warrenton
