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kwanzaa at City Hall
because the assistance is packaged as a for-
givable loan, it won’t affect your taxes.
“If you sell your house because you real-
ize can’t afford it and don’t make money,
then you don’t have to pay anything back,”
she said.
Hacienda has set up an intake site at the
Doubletree Hotel at Lloyd Center Exhibit
Hall, 1000 NE Multnomah to process appli-
cations from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday
through Friday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on
Saturdays. Homeowners can call 503-961-
6432 with any questions about eligibility
and required documentation.
In the office, Joyce has heard many sad
stories from homeowners trying to stay in
their homes. One woman is struggling to
recover from cancer, which cost her her job
and her ability to make mortgage payments.
The number of construction workers who
can’t find work is too large to count.
“Their self-worth is being eroded daily,”
she says.
That’s when the agency’s other programs
may help. Set to be launched in the early
part of 2011, Oregon Housing and
Community Service will be starting pro-
grams designed to help people move who
are living in unaffordable homes; provide
assistance for fees and fines for people who
have regained employment and are recover-
ing from missed payments; and loan modi-
fication assistant program to help move a
loan into a lower interest rate.
Qualifications for the mortgage assistance
program:
•
The household’s income cannot be
equal to or more than 120 percent of state
median income. A homeowner who has an
Oregon bond loan meets this test. For
details, see the State Median Income Table.
•
The homeowner’s current firt
mortgage must date before January 1, 2009.
•
The homeowner must be unem-
ployed or have a verifiable loss in income of
25 percent or more.
•
The homeowner cannot have more
than four months of mortgage payments
available as liquid assets. (Retirement and
education savings accounts are OK).
•
The homeowner must complete
and sign a Financial Hardship Affidavit.
•
The homeowner, in connection
with a mortgage or real estate transaction,
cannot have been convicted, within the last
10 years, of any one of the following: (A)
felony larceny, theft, fraud or forgery, (B)
money laundering or (C) tax evasion.
•
The subject property must be an
owner-occupied, primary residence and be
located in Oregon. Manufactured homes are
eligible only if the structure is recorded in
the county’s deed records. *Note:
Condominiums and Town homes are NOT
considered single-family, 1-unit, detached
homes.
•
The homeowner’s unpaid mort-
gage balance cannot exceed $729,750.
phOtO by jErry fOStEr
continued from page 1
Artists and other attendees celebrated kwanzaa at Portland City Hall on
dec. 29. The event featured drumming by Art Alexander and Caton, and
spoken word by Renee Mitchell and Antoinette Edwards. Joyce Harris,
pictured also on page 2, led a libation ceremony.
•
Homeowners who have received
notification of trustee/sheriff sale before
February 1, 2011 are ineligible for the MPA
program.
•
Homeowners who own other resi-
dential real property are ineligible for the
MPA program.
•
Homeowners who are currently in
active bankruptcy are ineligible for the
MPA program.
•
Any homeowner who knowingly
submits more than one application for the
MPA program is ineligible.
the Department of Corrections allowed the
early release of offenders despite offenses
that would normally change the release
date. They also found that some inmates
assigned to rehabilitation programs has not
been, with no explanation given.
The DOC says that certain inmates sched-
uled for early release that had violated
prison rules are some-
times cleared for release
because it would under-
mine efforts to secure
housing, work and reha-
bilitation, factors that are
important to reduce the
chance an offender
recidivates.
There was a similar
problem with prisoners
who were put into segregation. For some, it
meant retracting their earned time. For oth-
ers, it had no effect. Some other states were
studied and found to have explicit rules for
the amount of segregation time was allowed
before earned time was disallowed.
Auditors recommend that administrative
rules be revised to consistently address
inmate accountability in the four months
prior to release.
Researchers were not able to determine
what effect the Earned Time has overall on
recidivism in Oregon. In Washington and
other states, other studies have found that
earned time programs have a positive influ-
ence on an ex-offenders ability to stay out
of prison.
One study by the Bureau of Justice
Statistics found no difference on recidivism
when grouping offenders by their length of
incarceration. The study had one exception:
those offenders jailed for more than 60
months.
Another study by the Washington State
Institute for Public Policy found that incar-
ceration’s affect on recidivism is “offender
specific.”
One benefit that comes with earned time
programs is cost. The Oregon Department
of Corrections saved at least $25 million in
fiscal year 2009.
Naches, sponsors a companion bill in the
House.
Another proposal, sponsored by Sen.
lawyers to pursue claims, recovering attor-
neys’ fees and costs.
A bill requested by the Attorney General
and sponsored by Sen. Cheryl Pflug, R-
Maple Valley, prohibits the use of eminent
domain for economic development. A com-
panion bill is sponsored by Rep. Larry
Springer, D-Kirkland. This year, the bill is
pursued in the name of Daniel Fink, a com-
munity activist from Seattle who fought
eminent domain abuse until his death late
last year.
Another AG-requested law, sponsored by
Rep. Roger Goodman, D-Kirkland, would
give property owners 120 days to improve
blighted property before condemnation.
According to the Washington Policy Center,
over the last decade, tens of thousands of
property owners in some of the poorest
Audits
continued from page 1
ual cases in 26 counties, auditors deter-
mined that the counties had used appropri-
ate resources to detain these youth. For
many (42), youth had exhibited delinquent
behavior while under the supervision of a
residential treatment facility; for most (51),
officials determined they posed a communi-
ty safety risk because of gang affiliations or
aggressive behavior that was not
linked to their actual offense; for
others, there were past convictions
or petty past convictions, that when
coupled with the aggravating
offense, rose to a level that warrant-
ed detention.
The audit found no difference in
rural or urban counties in the sen-
tencing of youth to probation or
detention. The audit debunked the
myth that youth in urban areas receive more
lenient treatment than their rural counter-
parts.
The audit called for records to be kept and
analyzed after they are expunged, to allow a
more long term analysis while protecting a
person’s privacy. The audit also called for
counties to work with the Oregon Youth
Authority to better document services, treat-
ment and probation violations.
Earned time program
For the most part, state auditors found that
the Earned Time program is working as it is
... certain inmates scheduled for early
release that had violated prison rules
are sometimes cleared for release
designed – it provides qualified inmates the
opportunity to reduce their sentences and
redacts any earned time if an offender
exhibits bad behavior before their release
date. The audit did find several cases where
Agenda
continued from page 1
McKenna also proposes two bills specifi-
cally targeted to save money by preventing
lawsuits concerning open government mat-
ters. One bill, sponsored by Sen. Craig
Pridemore, D-Vancouver, and others,
requires records requesters seeking court
penalties to first notify a government
agency of their intent to file a lawsuit over
denied records.
The other bill, sponsored by Rep. Deb
Eddy, D-Kirkland, provides a one-year
statute of limitations for suing over denied
records.
“As a former mayor and city coun-
cilmember, and as a state legislator, I recog-
nize the importance of providing access to
government information,” Eddy said.
“Clear open records laws provide access to
records and the courts — and ultimately
save taxpayer money.”
“The vast majority of Public Records Act
lawsuits against the state involve inmates,”
Sen. Mike Carrell, R-Lakewood, said. “The
bill for defend-
ing these law-
suits is paid by
taxpayers.”
Sen. Carrell
co-sponsors
the Attorney
General’s bill
to
restrict
inmates from
filing suits in
state court at public expense if they previ-
ously brought three or more cases found
frivolous by a court. Inmates could still
bring claims if they are at imminent risk of
serious physical harm. The bill is prime-
sponsored by Sen. James Hargrove, D-
Hoquiam, while Rep. Charles Ross, R-
Another proposal ... prohibits the use
of eminent domain for economic
development. This year, the bill is
pursued in the name of Daniel Fink, a
community activist from Seattle
Hargrove and Rep. Dean Takko, D-
Longview, seeks to eliminate PRA penalty
awards for inmates, removing the financial
incentive for those behind bars to blister the
state with records requests, trying to force
errors and collect penalties along the way.
Inmates would preserve their ability to hire
See WAShINgtON on page 5
january 5, 2011 The Portland and Seattle Skanner page 3