Portland Observar Apr« ». 1M1 P ^ a I
k
Equity in apportionment
By Calvin O. L. Henry
Section 6 o f A rtic le IV o f the
Constitution o f Oregon states that
the number o f Senators and
Representatives shall, at the session
next follow ing an enumeration o f
the inhabitants by the United States
government, be fixed by law and
apportioned among the several
counties
according
to
the
population in each.’ *
The 1980 U.S. Census is complete
and Oregon population is now
2,632,663. The Black population is
37,059. O f this number, 27,720 live
in Portland.
The main issue before the 1980
Oregon Legislative session, which is
follow ing the 1980 census, is reap
portionment o f the state senatorial
and representative districts. Because
o f an increase in p o p ula tion,
Oregon will get a fifth congressional
seat, and the Legislature w ill be
drawn the boundary lines fo r the
five congressional districts.
A pproxim ately 523,489 people
w ill live in each congressional
district, and the average represen
tative district population is 43,878.
W hile the average senatorial
population is 87,755.
One m ight wonder why should
Blacks in Oregon be involved in the
reapportionm ent process o f the
1981 Legislature. And the question
may also be “ What w ill reappor
tionm ent mean to the Black com
munity in Portland?
One o f the objectives o f the
Oregon Assembly For Black Affairs
(O ABA) is " to encourage Blacks to
understand, participate, and affect
the political process at all levels o f
government.” Reapportionment is
one o f those political processes that
decides who w ill be the people’ s
representatives fo r the next ten
years. And Blacks need to assist in
the decision o f who w ill represent
them for the next ten years. This is
one o f the reasons why Blacks
should be involved in the process.
Reapportionment was one o f the
main topics o f discussion at OABA
T h ird C a ll-T o -A ctio n Leadership
Conference which was held last
January 31. As a result o f the re
apportionm ent discussion at this
conference, an ad hoc com m ittee
was set-up to study rea p p o rtio n
ment and to insure that input from
the Black community on the process
would be given to the legislature.
Herb Golliday o f Salem, Marvin
Revoal o f Tigard and Greg Batiste
o f Portland volunteered to serve on
this ad hoc committee on reappor
tionment. And Batiste was asked to
call the committee together.
In 1970, about 94.5% o f th'e
Blacks in the urban centers lived in
Portland. Many Blacks felt that the
Black com m unity in Portland was
divided up in the 1971 re a p p o rti
onment so that there was almost no
chance for a Black to be nominated
or elected to a legislative office. And
only one Black, State Senator B ill
McCoy, has been elected during the
past ten years.
Because 80% o f the* Black
population live today in Portland,
O A B A has concentrated its re
apportionment efforts toward get
ting better representation o f Blacks
in P ortland. Most Blacks live in
N orth/Northeast Portland. And it
is in this area that the greatest
possibility of Blacks being elected to
legislative o ffic e seems more
reasonable.
In February, members o f OABA
and the ad hoc com m ittee met in
Salem
to
discuss
proposed
legislative d istricts fo r N o rth /
Northeast P ortland. This group
developed a reapportionm ent
proposal fo r N o rth /N o rth e a st
P ortland which calls fo r fo u r
representative d istricts and two
senatorial d istricts, in an area
bounded by 42nd Avenue to the
east, the B anfield Freeway to the
south, the W illam ette River to the
west, and the Columbia River to the
north.
Blacks, who attended the
Republican Dorchester Conference
held at Seaside in March, discussed
O A B A reapportionment proposal
and agreed to support it. Gale
W ashington, Thomas Kennedy,
Bernard Richardson, Ethel Lee, and
C arl T a lto n , all o f P ortland, are
working for the acceptance o f this
proposal.
Bernie Foster, publisher o f The
Skanner, agreed to p rin t copies o f
O ABA reapportionment proposal
and .sent them to all members o f the
1981 Oregon Legislature. Also, The
Skanner printed it on M arch 18,
1981, as its feature story. In
dividuals who have not seen the
proposal should get a copy o f that
issue.
State
Representative
Glen
W hallon, Chairm an o f House
Com m ittee on Elections and Re
apportionment, and State Senator
Jack Ripper, Chairm an o f Senate
Com m ittee
on
Government
Operation, have welcomed this in
put.
Both W hallon and Ripper have
assured members o f the OABA that
the interests and concerns o f the
Black community will be considered
when the lines o f the district boun
daries are drawn. Both committees
have agreed to consider "ra ce ” as
one o f the critera to be applied to
the creation o f legislative districts.
OABA is not the only one who is
concerned about how N orth/N orth
east Portland will be reapportioned.
Now that O ABA reapportionment
proposal has been presented, op
position from Representatives
W ally Priestley, Tom Mason and
Rick Bauman has surfaced. Also
there are some indications that the
opposition is trying to drum up sup
port fro m P ortland prom inent
Blacks who may have different ideas
about Black representing them
selves.
Priestley has been quoted as
saying ‘ O A B A proposal does not
represent the wishes o f the Portland
Black com m unity," and that he is
"g o in g to take a poll o f B lacks."
Others want to see only one re
presentative d is tric t to be fo r
Blacks. Yet another wants to tie
Northeast Portland with East M ult
nomah C ounty fo r a senatorial
district.
But the tru th o f the m atter,
O A B A proposal was in itia te d ,
drawn, reviewed and presented by
Blacks. This proposal follow s
closely the fo u r crite ria noted by
Representative Whallon in his letter
to the House Democratic Caucus,
dated March 17, 1981. These criteria
are equality o f p o p u la tio n , com
m unity o f interest including race,
compactness, and county bound
aries and physical barriers.
Slacks who feel that only whites
can represent them must come into
this decade. "G o o d w ill alone w ill
not be enough to meet the
challenges o f the 1980s ot which the
Black community w ill confront."
Reapportonment could mean to
the Black com m unity in Portland
that they can elect individuals from
their community who w ill represent
their interests in Salem. I f O ABA
proposal or a similar one is accepted
there is the possibility that the Black
community could have at least four
state representatives and two
Senators representing it in Salem
during this decade. Isn’ t it worth it?
From the Capitol
k
Congressman Ron Wvden
Q. Congressman Wyden, this
week you te stified before the
Judiciary Committee to ask fo r con
tinued funding o f the Legal Services
C orporation. You have also been
quoted as fa v o rin g m a jo r cuts in
fe d e ra l spending. H ow do you
reconcile the two?
A. 1 have said 1 am in full agree
ment with the A dm inistration that
we must stop run-away federal
spending - and 1 am. But I also
believe we must cut where it makes
sense to cut - where we have
programs that are w asteful,
duplicative or rife with fraud. Legal
Services is anything but wasteful.
D uring 1980, Legal Services was
able to help 13,000 low-incom e
clients in Multnomah County alone
w ith an operating budget o f only
$850,000. O nly 11 percent o f that
budget went to cover administrative
costs.
In addition, 1 strongly believe we
should not abandon our long-stand
ing commitment in this country to
provide equal justice fo r all - the
poor as well as the rich. W ithout
Legal Services to cham pion their
causes, many poor people in this
country would simply be without a
cham pion. And that is unaccept
able.
Q. Congressman Wyden, the
A dm inistration has proposed cut
ting a ll o f the A m trak runs except
the one between Boston and New
York. How do you feel about this?
A. I am absolutely appalled. To
begin with, I am a firm believer that
with energy supplies growing tighter
and tighter and the cost o f oil ever
on the rise, we must look to mass
transit systems o f all kinds to meet
our present and future transporta
tion needs. C u ttin g ra il services
sim ply to lower federal spending
this year is penny-wise, but pound-
foolish. Secondly, 1 am outraged
that the A dm inistration would ex
pect Oregonians to pay with their
tax dollars fo r an A m trak run
between Boston and New York
while at the same time cutting our
Northwest Pioneer just when it is
beginning to get on its feet.
THE 2 5 HOUR
CONTACT LENS
IS HERE
After years of waiting, the extended-wear contact lens is on the
market And we have it In stock, ready for you.
Work, play, sleep. Do it all in the 25-Hour Lens
A, the Contact Lens Clinic of Portland
our only business is contact lenses
Contact Lens Clinic of Portland
Portland Medical Center
224-5367
Dr James H Vale. Optometrlst
Viso and Moi,»cho<oe Weicome
From the Board Room
Dr Philip Stockstod. Optometrist
fmaneinQ A v a n a t« on Appraved Credit
By Gladys McCoy
Multnomah County Commissioner
Whatever happened to the “ good
old days” when money was easy to
find? Due to the fiscal crisis our
country is experiencing today,
budget cuts are being made at each
governmental level. There is no
more evident than in the February
budget that President Reagan re
cently submitted to Congress.
For the country to m aintain its
present level o f services, a 9% in
fla tio n a ry increase to the general
fund is needed. This cannot be met,
leaving a hole o f approximately $15
m illion that must be filled by either
elim inating services or increasing
taxes.
These decisions need to be shared
ones - shared by the C ounty
Executive, the Board members, and
the public. These decisions w ill ef
fect the services provided by the
county nd the residents themselves.
County government must decide
what it sees as its mission, and how
this mission should be funded.
Thus, the basis o f the budget, the
fo llo w in g questions have been
raised:
1. What services should be pro
vided?
2. How well is the county pro
viding these services?
3. Which services should be re
duced? Increased? M aintained?
Eliminated?
' 4. What w ill these changes cost?
The C ounty Executive and the
Board are concerned that citizens
have s u fficie n t in fo rm a tio n to
determine the services provided by
the county as well as the impact of
those services. Survey questions
have been com piled and widely
distributed.
Small groups have been exploring
op p o rtu n itie s, and a tremendous
am ount o f interest has been
generated. The County Executive
has submitted his proposal to the
Board, in which he suggests revised
budget cuts and sources o f revenue.
However, the Board was not in
clined to support the revenue
measures until we have completed
our own budget process. The Board
w ill begin its budget process on
A pril 9, when the County Executive
presents his proposed budget
document. There are a number o f
Board work sessions scheduled
throughout the month o f A p ril, as
well as public hearings to encourage
citizen input. Citizen participation is
a very vital part o f this process. A
balanced budget must be submitted
by April 30.
While each Commissioner feels a
responsibility to protect the interests
o f his/her District, priorities differ.
It is my belief that we must:
1. Fund mandated services;
2. Remain financially secure;
3. Provide no services which can
appropria tely be provided by
others;
4. Honor our commitment to the
poor, the sick, the elderly, and the
dependent.
C ounty government is often
viewed as the government o f the
poor, but, in fact, it serves everyone
in its jurisdiction and includes such
as lib ra ry services, court systems,
road services, health services, men
tal health services, and animal con
trol to name a few. Your tax dollars
support these services, and you
make it all w orkable and w o rth
while!!
Washington named Kaiser VP
A L V IN W . W A S H IN G T O N
A lv in W. W ashington, Health
Plan manager, has been named a
vice president o f Kaiser Foundation
Health Plan o f Oregon and ap
pointed associate regional manager.
In addition to Health Plan responsi
b ilitie s he w ill have general
management responsibilites for in
form ation services, dental admini
stration and risk management.
W ashington joined
Kaiser-
Permanente in 1978 as Health Plan
manager after three years as ex
ecutive director o f the Medical Care
Group o f Washington University,
St. Louis, Mo. He retired as a lieut
enant colonel after 25 years service
with the U.S. A ir Force. He was one
o f 10 managers selected in 1975 for
the firs t academic fellow ship pro
gram in H ealth Maintenance
O rganization management at the
W harton School, U niversity o f
Pennsylvania. He holds a bachelor’ s
degree in biology from Lincoln
U niversity, M o ., and master’ s
degree in physiological chemistry
from Ohio State University and in
a d m inistration and management
engineering from George Wash
ington U niversity, W ashington,
DC.
P L A 8 T E R IN Q
E ric k a o n ’s P la s te rin g
Specialties. Plastering of
all kinds.
284-8483
Maureen Lundquist helps lighten
the load. Saving PGE customers
more than $123,000 a year.
This year, and every year.
Maureen Lundquist helps
save PGE customers more
than $123.000 by monitoring
the electrical load ot every
distribution transformer in
PGE s service area
Using a computer and an
extensive, systemwide cross-
reference book. Maureen is
able to accurately determine
which of the 180,000 trans
formers PGE uses are over
loaded (and which ones will
soon be overloaded) This
allows PGE service teams to
replace the transformers on
a planned basis before a
possible burn out, because
of overload. It cuts down
overtime expenses, reduces
unscheduled outages, saves
hundreds of manhours and
increases safety All savings
that mean a lot today.
Electricity costs are going
up everywhere, it s no, jus,
here. Both private and public
utilities throughout the
country are facing soaring
pnees. Higher equipment
costs, fuel costs and interest
rates have everyone on a
tight budge,. And the rapid
increase of new residential
and business customers
in our service area is
another strain on
our existing
supply.
But, a, PGE, we are
fortunate to have people like
Maureen Lundquist working
hard to keep costs down for
customers wherever they
can. People who care
rGE
People with cost saving ideas for you
I