Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 10, 2012)
WWW . THESKANNER . COM O CTOBER 10 , 2012 S EATTLE , W ASHINGTON V OLUME XXXV, N O . 1 25 CENTS For The Skanner news alerts Text "NEWS" to 503-715-0890 or scan this QR code C HALLENGING P EOPLE TO S HAPE A B ETTER F UTURE N OW PEE WEE State Auditor Slam Campaign called ‘most hostile’ of election season PHOTO BY SUSAN FRIED By Mike Baker The Associated Press Rainier Eagle, Cash Jordan, 5, pursues Kent Cobra running back Myking Lee, 6, down the field in a PeeWee football game Saturday, Oct. 6 at Rainier play field. The Cobras went onto win the game 23 to 6. Hemp Measures Remain Sketchy Pot passage would create the familiar clash with federal law By Gene Johnson and Kristen Wyatt The Associated Press SEATTLE (AP) — Residents of Washington, Oregon and Col- orado won’t just be considering whether to let adults buy pot at state-sanctioned shops when they vote next month on legaliz- ing and taxing marijuana. They’ll be voting on whether to let farmers grow marijuana’s far less potent cousin — hemp — for clothing, food, biofuel and construction materials among other uses. But don’t expect farmers to start growing it, at least not immediately. The passage of the measures would create the familiar clash with federal law, which prohibits growing the plant for industrial, recreational or medicinal purposes. Farmers who say they have enough to worry about with drought and crop diseases don’t want to also be left wondering whether federal drug agents will come knocking. ``Farmers are already engaged INDEX News ........................3,6 Calendar ....................2 Opinion ....................2,4 Arts & Entertainment ...5 Bids/Classifieds............7 in a high-risk endeavor,’’ said Roy Kaufmann, a spokesman for Oregon’s pot initiative. ``That weariness of potentially facing federal action is just too much of a disincentive.’’ The three ballot initiatives to regulate pot like alcohol have garnered much attention, in part for the hundreds of millions of dollars they could bring into state coffers and for the show- down it could set up with the federal government. No state has made recreation- al pot legal, and these measures would be the first to set up state- sanctioned pot sales. The Justice Department could try to block them in court under the argu- ment they frustrate federal antidrug law enforcement efforts. Less well known is the effect the measures would have on hemp and the possibilities they create for another fight with the federal government. Nine states — Hawaii, Ken- tucky, Maine, Maryland, Mon- tana, North Dakota, Oregon, See HEMP on page 3 OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — The race for Washington state auditor has escalated into the most hostile campaign of the year. With the departure of longtime auditor Brian Sonntag, the two candidates seeking to replace him have focused on whether the other is fit to serve, not on their goals for the office. Republican candidate James Watkins repeatedly points to allegations faced by Democrat Troy Kelley in past lawsuits. Kel- ley, in turn, has questioned whether Watkins is qualified to do the work needed in the job. Regarding the issues, Watkins said he’d like to work closely to align department pri- orities with the next governor to improve government efficiency, and with local gov- ernments to help improve those operations. He wants more emphasis placed on per- formance audits that can produce results more quickly and intends to work with financial managers to help them look for signs of potential fraud. ``The overall goal is to make state gov- ernment more effective, more efficient, more accountable,’’ Watkins said. Kelley declined interview requests from The Associated Press. In a recent debate, he described how he would look at best prac- tices from other states and make recommen- dations to the Legislature on what might be done to improve large programs, such as preventing fraud in the food stamps pro- gram. He also said performance audits must examine information security because of recent cases in which government systems have been hacked. ``Are our systems safe?’’ he said at the Association of Washington Business debate. Kelley has denied allegations in what he called a nuisance lawsuit that accused him of misappropriating customer funds, fraudu- lently transferring funds, tax evasion and See AUDITOR on page 3 Immigration Program Burdens Schools Requests for documents in deferral effort stretches thin resources YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) — The new fed- eral immigration program that delays action against young people living in this country illegally has created a pile of work for the Yakima School District and other districts with a large number of immigrant children. Yakima School District registrar Sheila Miller estimates she has responded to as many as 800 requests for transcripts and other records since the school year began, mostly because of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, The Yakima Herald reported in Sunday’s newspaper. Most Yakima valley schools get a handful of transcript requests each month. Now dozens are arriving each week. ``We’re having to go through boxes and boxes,’’ said Rachel Romero, counseling secretary and registrar for Grandview High School. She has fielded 265 requests since August. Teachers have volunteered to help and principals are hiring substitutes to pitch in. In Yakima, the registration office has spent up to 400 hours filling records requests, said Roy Knox, director of central registration. An exact cost wasn’t readily available. But school officials said that at See SCHOOLS on page 3
