September 1, 1999
(Hfye JJortlanò ©bseruer
Page A3
Mayor Vera Katz
Pledges To Seek
Repayment
Beneficiaries o f Federal Retirees
to Receive Refunds
Refund checks to ben eficiaries
o f deceased federal retirees w ill
be in the m ail the last w eek in
O ctober, according to the O regon
D epartm ent o f Revenue. Senate
Bill 1136, w hich w as recently
signed by the G overnor, a u th o ­
rizes the departm ent to issue over
6,500 refund checks totalin g $8
m illion to beneficiaries. Up until
the tim e SB 1136 was signed into
law, beneficiary refunds were lim ­
ited by law to either $1,000 to
$ 10,000 depending on the federal
retiree’s date o f death lim ited b en ­
eficiary refunds. SB 1136 removed
that lim itation specifically for ben­
e ficiaries o f federal retirees. The
sam e bill also authorizes the de­
partm ent to issue refund checks
during the 2001-03 biennium to
federal retirees and beneficiaries
w ho did not previously file pro­
tective claim s for 1991-1995. “ We
plan to send these checks as soon
after July 1, 2001 as p o ssib le,”
said Ben G ille, o f the departm ent.
He added that until the tim e the
refunds are sent, interest, ranging
from eight to 11 percent would
continue to accrue. The dep art­
m ent estim ates that it will send
$ 105 million in refunds in the 2001 -
03 biennium. Eligible federal ben­
eficiaries w ho have not filed a
refund form have until A pril 16,
2001 to file a claim. The forms and
instructions are available at the
departm ent and through its Web
s ite :
w w w .d o r .s ta te .o r .u s /
19Forms Revform s.htm l for more
inform ation, a special O regon toll-
free num ber is available M ondays
through Fridays from 8:00 a.m. -
5:00p.m . except W ednesdays when
the hours are 9:00 a m. -5 :0 0 p.m.
The number is 1-877-877-6198. For
TTY (hearing or speech im paired
only), the year-round, toll-free
number is 1-800-886-7204. In Sa­
lem the number is 503-945-8617.
These numbers are answ ered by
m achine only and are not for voice
use Spanish speakers may call a
special message line at 503-945-
8618. The refunds are based on a
1998 Oregon Supreme Court deci­
sion clarifying that Oregon must
tax federal, state and local govern­
ment retirees equally. Eligible fed­
eral retirees and their beneficiaries
have received refunds o f state taxes
paid on their federal retirement ben­
efits from 1991-1997.
PSU Architecture Department
Lecture Series Offers
Preview O f Newest Addition
Portland State U niv ersity ’s D e­
partm en t o f A rc h ite c tu re o ffers
to help answ er the q uestion “ How
a re o p e n s p a c e s d e s ig n e d ? "
through a series o f free, inform al
public talks. The PR A X IS L ec­
ture Series brings local arch itects
to cam pus to explain the design
o f co n tem p o rary b u ild in g s. T he
series is dev o ted to d iscu ssin g
p ro je c ts in th e ir e a rly d esig n
p h ases, so the p u b lic has the
chance to p review and ask q u e s­
tions ab o u t m any o f the a re a ’s
more influential projects. The first
lectu re in the series on W ed n es­
day, O cto b er 6 fo cuses on the
new PSU U rban C en ter, sc h e d ­
uled to open in January, 2000. All
lectu res in the series are free on
W e d n e sd a y s at n o o n in T h e
V an p o rt Room o f Sm ith C enter,
Room 338 (Sm ithC enter, 1825SW
B ro ad w ay ) on cam pus.
The illustration of the PSU Urban
Center is the work of Christopher
Chinn with Thomas Hacker
and
a
n a Associates
A s s o c ia it::)
M ayor V era K atz released a
statem ent regarding her intent to
re c o u p f ra u d u le n tly o b ta in e d
funds from Portland Police offic­
ers. W hile she is anxious to do so,
K atz said she w ould w ait until the
D istrict A ttorney com pletes his
review before proceeding with
attem pting to collect repaym ent,
so as not to affect the D istrict
A tto rn e y ’s d e c isio n s to p ro s ­
ecute.
“ As Police Com m issioner, I am
responsible for m aintaining the
p u b lic ’s confidence in this orga­
nization. The p u b lic’s confidence
in our police force is a central
bond o f trust, critical to our com ­
m unity policy philosophy. We
know it m ust be regained. The
vast m ajority o f officers in the
Portland Police Bureau perform
their duties in an uncom prom is­
ing fashion, w ith the utm ost re­
spect for the citizens o f Portland
and the trust that we place in them.
U nfortunately, a few officers were
involved in a very serious pattern
o f m isconduct.
“ I believe this problem cuts to
the core o f the very qualities that
every officer in the police depart­
m ent should possess - honesty,
integrity and a com m itm ent to the
w ell being and p ro tectio n o f the
city they serve. I am deeply d is­
appointed in those m em bers o f
the P o rtland P olice B ureau who
p ro fite d o r allo w e d o th e rs to
p r o f it b y f a l s i f y i n g th e ir
tim esheets. The police officers
that rep o rted this in cid en t are
truly re p re se n ta tiv e o f the sp irit
More School News
i_ _ _ ___________________ ______________ ——
P O R T L A N D — "T h e O reg o ­
n ia n ” is re p o rtin g S u p e rin te n ­
dent o f P o rtla n d P ublic Schools
Ben C anada should receive about
16-thousand d o lla rs for his first
y e a r’s p e rfo rm a n c e b onus.
The p a p e r says he d id n ’t earn
e
—
Collaborative Effort Feeds Inner
Eastside Schools
T he th ird a n n u a l F o o d for
T hought, a b e n e fit for eastsid e
neig h b o rh o o d sc h o o ls, w ill be
6:30 - 9 :3 0 p .m ., Sept 26, in the
A trium at L egacy E m anuel H os­
pital. M ore than 30 e a stsid e re s­
ta u ra n ts , b re w e rie s an d w ine
shops w ill p a rtic ip a te by p ro v id ­
ing food and drink for the e x ­
travaganza.
Food for T h o u g h t, o rg an ized
by a v o lu n te e r co m m ittee o f p a r­
ents, is an ev en in g o f fun, food
and m usic for com m unity m em ­
bers in te re ste d in raisin g m oney
for area schools. P articipating
schools are A lem eda, Boise-Eliot,
B uckm an, H ollyw ood, Irvington,
L a u re lh u rs t,
S a b in
and
S u n n y sid e.
T his c o lla b o ra tiv e effo rt b e­
tw een e a stsid e b u siness ow ners,
th eir p a tro n s, and the n e ig h b o r­
hood sch o o ls creates a m arvel­
ous atm o sp h ere o f support for
our k id s,” said Susan Stone, com-
m ittee chair. " W e ’re looking for­
w ard to an even m ore b eautiful,
ta s te fu l, an d ta sty ev en t th is
y ear.”
In tw o y e a r’s the event has
raised m ore than $80,000 w hich
w as d iv id ed eq u ally am ong p a r­
tic ip a tin g sch o o ls and used, in
part, to fund m ath instru ctio n al
tra in in g for teach ers, a science
lab c o o rd in a to r and playground
e q u ip m e n t. T he goal for th is
y e a r’s ev ent is to sell 750 tickets
and raise $50,000 w ith m ore than
95 p ercent o f the proceeds d i­
rectly funding sch o o l-id en tified
program s and projects.
In addition to food and b ev er­
ages for the evening, a raffle in ­
cludes $ 1000 in travel certificates
donated by A zum ano T ravel, four
Bed & B reakfast gift certificates,
and tw enty $50 gift c ertificates
from p articip atin g restau ran ts.
M usic w ill be provided by Ken
B arry, pianist.
Group Advisory Effort Leads To
PCC Building Inspection Degree
They came together, hammered
out a curriculum and created from
the ground up the new Portland
Community College two-year de­
gree in Building Inspection Tech­
nology. And the degree require­
ments dovetail those o f the State
Building Codes D ivision o f Con­
sumer and Business Services. Stu­
dents w ith construction experience
seeking a change will be glad to
know the night program at PCC will
start up this fall at the college’s
Sylvania Campus.
The Building Inspection Tech­
nology Advisory Committee, led
by program leader and PCC depart­
ment chairT om G illespie, featured
city building officials, building in­
spectors and plans examiners who
cam e together with a common goal
in mind: develop a program to train
future building inspectors and plans
examiners.
For more than two years, com ­
m ittee m em bers and G illesp ie
crafted what they believe will give
graduates o f the PCC Building In­
spection Technology program a
solid foundation o f know ledge to
build on as they enter careers in the
building inspection and plans exam­
iner fields.
For more inform ation on the
Building Inspection Technology
degree at Portland Community Col­
lege, contact Tom Gillespie at 977-
4166. The new program is located at
the college’s Sylvania Campus,
12000 S. W 49,h Avenue in Portland.
Parent Surveys Show High Satisfaction
With Portland Public Schools
Teachers, administrators and staff
in Portland Public Schools received a
strong vote o f confidence in surveys
reported to the School Board (Aug. 23).
Most o f the parents polled last spring
(93pcrcent)believed that, "Overall, my
child’sschoolisagoodone." Some87
percent believe that children are learn­
ing what they need to know in subjects
like reading, writing and math “This
degree of customer confidence would
and c h aracter o f the B ureau and
they d eserve our a p p re c ia tio n
and recognition.
“ The city does not have the
au thority to p ro secu te the o ffic ­
ers crim inally. T hat p e ro g a tiv e
lies w ith the M ultnom ah C ounty
D istrict A ttorney. The P olice B u­
reau in itially d iscu ssed th is case
w ith the D istrict A tto rn e y ’s O f­
fice in February and p e rio d ic a lly
provided them updates during the
course o f the in v e stig a tio n . In a
letter o f declination dated June 9,
1999, the D istrict A tto rn ey d e ­
clin ed to pro secu te. H ow ever,
they are curren tly rev iew in g the
case again.
“ W hile 1 am very anxious to
seek repaym ent o f any in ap p ro ­
priately obtained funds, we w ill
w ait until the D istrict A ttorney
com pletes his review before we
proceed w ith repaym ent, so that
our actions do not affect the D is­
trict A ttorney’s decisions to p ro s­
e c u te .”
Follow ing an internal in v e sti­
gatio n , in c lu d in g h u n d re d s o f
hours o f interview s w ith em ploy­
ees involved w ith the C entral Pre­
cinct drug m issions, the Bureau
concluded that supervisory ser­
geants granted overtim e and “c u ff
tim e” for many hours that had not
been w orked. The city im posed
sanctions on officers o f varying
degrees including term ination, de­
m otion, and letters o f reprim and.
K atz said the Bureau is also
review ing internal controls to pre­
vent this type o f activity from re­
occurring.
be the envy o f many corporations and
government agencies," said Stephanie
Mitchell, assistant directorofPortland
Public Schools Research, Evaluation
and Assessment, who led the survey
effort. The surveys are the first in a
series o f annual surveys that the dis­
trict will conduct as part o f its school
improvement and accountability initia­
tives. The Spring 1999 surveys include
a statistically valid, random telephone
survey of400parents representing dif­
ferent grade levels and ethnic groups
throughout the school district. Writ-
ten surveys also were conducted on
a pilot basis with parents and stu­
dents. Beginning in Spring 2000,
written surveys o f parents, students
and staff will be conducted at every
school. Each year, schools will re­
ceive results o f the surveys con­
ducted with their own parents, stu­
dents and staff, to use in developing
and updating individual school im­
provement plans. “That information
will provide schools with informa­
tion they need to plan, and it will help
parents and the community under­
stand our successes and ourchal tenges."
Supt Ben C anada told the School board.
For more complete survey results,
visit the school district’s web site at
wwwja&kliotus.
h is full bo n u s o f 2 0 -th o u san d
d o lla rs b ecau se he fa ile d to fin ­
ish all p ro je c ts he and the board
had agreed to.
B ut he d id m ake im p ro v e ­
m e n ts in te s t sc o re s, d ro p o u t
ra te s and s tu d e n t a tte n d a n c e .
wv
.
» ■
Recycle it or Eat it.
PORTLAND TheMetroregional
government is looking at a new that
would have citizens either eat food or
recycle it. They couldn t just throw it in
the garbage. Officials say there is grow­
ing concern about the heaps of food
waste ending up in the landfill in Arling­
ton. Metro estimates the tri-county area
sends about 54-thousand tons of scraps
to the landfill during the course of a year.
The plan is only being investigated at
this point but, if it’s implemented, it will
probably be modeled on the food recy­
cling program in San Francisco.
vfHHEDY SCHooi
R
McMenamins
SEPT EM B ER
The Henry Cooper Blues Band
CD R elea se Party • Thursday, Sep tem b er 2 at 7pm
Alisa Wolfe Band
Thursday, S ep tem b er 9 at 7pm
Evening with an Author
F ea tu rin g J o a n n a R ose
w ith a D eli B uffet and E d gefield Wines
W ednesday, S ep tem b er 15 at 7pm
$35 p er person • 21 and over
Battle of the Bands: Round 3
Steve Bradley vs. The X Angels
Thursday, S ep tem b er 16 at 7pm
John Coltrane’s Birthday Bash
Historical Tribute featuring
Saxophonist Brian Dickerson
Thursday, S ep tem b er 23 at 7pm
B irthday C ake and S w ee t P o ta to P ie
An Evening in Autumn
M usic by C hatta Addy • Thursday, Septem ber 30, 6pm
McMenamins Kennedy School
5756 NE 55rd • Portland, Oregon • 249-5985
All ages welcome unless noted ■ No cover charge unless noted