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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 30, 2002)
(Elje JJortlanh (Dbseruer Page A6 January 30,2002 Medical Marijuana Cards Rejected Community Activist Leads Girl Scouts Girl Scouts Columbia River C o u n cil w e lc o m e s Joan Brown-Kline as the chief ex ecutive officer of the largest Girl Scout council in Oregon. B row n-K line jo in s G irl Scouts to achieve a new level of excellence for the organi zation serving 16,000 girls with the efforts of 4,400 adult volunteers. “One of my first priorities Joan Brown-Kline in the next six months” accord ing to Brown-Kline, “is to visit all regions of the Columbia Ri ver council 13 county jurisdiction. I’ll meet with the volunteers and members of our service area and establish a relationship to work together in serving the girls.” Honored for her contribution and service, Brown-Kline re ceived the “Keep Living the Dream” community service award Jan. 21 at the Dr. Mar tin Luther King, Jr. celebra tion attended by 1,200 people. Joan owned and operated a management-consulting firm for over a decade serving na tional and international corpo- ra tio n s su ch as B ank o f America, Kaiser Permanente and the Regional Arts and Culture Council. (AP) - The state Department of Human Services has sent rejec tion letters to 300 Oregonians who had applied for medical marijuana cards. The agency last fall told about 830 applicants that they needed to provide the state with more information, including verification of a doctor-patient relationship and a signed physician consent, O r e g o n ' s E lectricity R estructuring P lan Ulhat you need to know about your new energy options. For customers of Pacific Power, new energy options take effect March 1, 2002. Why is this happening? , Legislation requiring electricity industry restructuring was signed into law in 1999. As a result, customers of Pacific Power will soon have a variety of options to choose from. For example, if the environment is important to you, there is an option that earmarks a portion of your bill for restoring fish habitat or for supporting renewable resources. There is also an option in which your electricity rate would be based on when you use your power. Your new options will vary according to your energy provider. What if I don't want to change? You don't have to. You may select a new energy option or do nothing and stay with your existing service. As a residential customer, can I buy electricity from other companies? No. The law requires residential customers to continue to buy electricity from the company that serves them now. However, your existing utility will be providing you with a number of new energy options from which you may choose. In addition, business customers may be able to choose an alternative Electricity Service Supplier. How will I find out exactly what these new options are and how much they will cost? In the coming weeks, you'll receive a special brochure in the mail that will explain your new choices in further detail and provide you with complete infor mation about pricing, environmental impact, and benefits. If you do decide to choose one of the new options, we'll tell you how. Will rates still be regulated? Yes, all residential rates offered by Pacific Power will continue to be regulated by the OPUC, which regulates rates to ensure that customers receive reliable service at a reasonable cost. What makes this different from deregulation in California? There are a number of ways Oregon's approach to restructuring differs from California's attempts to deregulate. For example, unlike California, Oregon's utilities will not be required to sell their electricity generating plants. In addition, Oregon's utilities will continue to be allowed to acquire power through long-term contracts. When do I have to act? Residential customers don't have to do anything now. Look for a special brochure in the mail that will explain your new options in greater detail. You can also find out more on the Web at www.MyPowerOptions.com. before they could get approval to use marijuana for medical pur poses, said Bonnie Widerburg, spokeswoman forDHS. About 300 people did not re spond, resulting in the rejection letters, said Dr. Grant Higginson, the state public health officer for DHS. “The majority submitted the necessary information and will receive registration cards. But about a third did not respond, and they are the ones being denied,” said Higginson. Under the law passed by vot ers in 1998, patients suffering from a “debilitating medical condition” are allowed to grow and possess small quantities of marijuana if their doctor certifies that the drug could help their medical condi tion. Patients must pay a $ 150 fee for a medical marijuana card, which is good for one year. Earlier this month, the state board of medical examiners sus pended the medical license of Dr. Phillip Leveque, 78, a Molalla doc- tor who signed more than 1,000 medical marijuana applications - more than 40 percent of all appli cations signed since the law went into effect in 1999. The state contends that until the rules changed last summer, Leveque signed for the cards with out giving patients a physical exam. He sometimes consulted with patients over the phone in stead of in person. Moore Named to Housing Authority Board continued from page A3 tant to me as I was growing up.” Moore said the mission for the housing authority is a critical one and he wants to reflect on his early experience as a public housing resident, along with his career ex perience, to help move the agency forward. “We are very pleased to wel come Lee to our board,” said Howard Shapiro, board chairman. “His background in construction and facilities maintenance man agement in both the public and private sectors, as well as his ex perience in public procurement, will be invaluable to us as we work to fulfill our mission of addressing housing needs.” Moore has been deputy direc tor and assistant director of sup port services for the Oregon Lot tery since 1996. He is a member of the board of the Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center on North Interstate and is a past member of the Multnomah County Planning Commission. Moore is completing a degree in management at Marylhurst Uni versity. He received certification in real estate and construction management from New York Uni versity and attended the execu tive program at Harvard Univer sity School of Negotiations. The Housing Authority of Port land provides affordable housing and services for more than 30,000 low-income and very low-income people throughout Multnomah County. Help For Fruit Tree Cultivation Ôïcqovt PUC I’ ii M ii Uiiliis l i Immission > PACIFIC POWER Fin d o u t m ore at w w w .M y P o w e rO p tio n s .c o m t Portland Parks and Recreation Community Gardens program is offering an educational opportu nity for anyone interested in learn ing the basics of organic fruit cul tivation. The focus will be on winter pruning for the health and pro ductivity of fruit trees, with infor mation on the selection of north west culti vars and the application of an organic perspective. P articipants will practice pruning and espalier work, with guidance from horticultural spe cialists. Workshops will be held Satur day, Jan. 26 and Saturday, Feb. 16 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the South west Community Center.6820S.W. 45th Ave. Call 503-823-1612 for more information.
