NORTHWEST
East Oregonian
Page 2A
Wednesday, January 25, 2017
Legislative leaders seek compromise on tax reform
Employees Retirement System.
Courtney said he spurred
the Legislature’s budget writers
last week to release a budget
without any new revenue to give
lawmakers a reality check on what
they’re facing in terms of cuts.
Budget writers unveiled a plan
that would entail kicking more
than 350,000 people off Medicaid,
larger class sizes, university
tuition hikes and cuts in child
welfare workers.
Beyond
having
informal
meetings with business and labor
leaders, Gov. Kate Brown has
largely distanced herself from the
push for revenue reform since the
failure of Measure 97, which she
endorsed. In her proposed budget
last month, Brown laid out several
new taxes to address the state’s
revenue shortfall but excluded any
now,” Courtney said. “We do not
have them in the room together.”
The two groups last year waged
the most expensive political battle
in the state’s history over a $6
billion corporate sales tax measure.
Voters overwhelmingly
defeated Measure 97 on
the November ballot.
Since then, victo-
rious business leaders
have
acknowledged
the state needs more
revenue stability. The
state’s system is overly
dependent on income
tax revenue, which
fluctuates
drastically
with economic spikes and dips.
However, business leaders say
they won’t support new business
taxes until lawmakers curtail rising
costs associated with the Public
By PARIS ACHEN
Capital Bureau
The heads of the Oregon House
and Senate said Monday they still
have not brought together two
opposing sides over how
to fix the state’s unstable
revenue system and a
$1.8 billion shortfall in
the next two years.
House Speaker Tina
Kotek, D-Portland, and
Senate President Peter
Courtney, D-Salem, have
been leading an effort to
negotiate a compromise
between public unions
and business leaders. But they are
making slow progress with just a
week before the 160-day legisla-
tive session.
“I’m very discouraged right
that would raise business taxes.
“She has seven taxes we’re
supposed to vote on individually,
but basically, long-term she’s
thinking 2018,” Courtney said.
“This also complicates this
long-term perfect fix” that some
lawmakers are pursuing.
In an email to the Pamplin
Media Group/EO Media Group
Capital Bureau, Chris Pair, a
spokesman for Brown, did not
address the governor’s preference
for timing in revenue reform.
“The cuts proposed put into
human terms the devastating
consequences families face with a
tax system that is unstable, inad-
equate, and fundamentally out of
balance to meet Oregon’s essential
needs,” Pair wrote in the email.
“While Gov. Brown will continue
working hard to make sure state
Oregon officials kill cougars preying on pets
SALEM (AP) — Normally timid
mountain lions are being forced by this
winter’s heavy snows into some remote
Oregon communities, where they are
preying on pets and chickens.
Cougars prowling through La Pine
have killed two pets and at least 12
chickens, stoking fear in the town in
the piney woods of Oregon east of the
Cascade Range.
On Saturday, Deschutes County
deputies shot and killed a cougar that
was hiding under a porch after attacking
a dog. On Monday, state and federal
wildlife officials went to investigate
and killed three more of the cougars
that have been leaving their paw prints
in the snow on the decks of homes and
in backyards.
The Oregon Department of Fish and
Wildlife said in a statement Tuesday the
cougars are causing public safety issues
in and around town.
It said officials from the Oregon
agency and the U.S. Department of
Agriculture’s Wildlife Services were
tracking at least one cougar after it was
sighted at a store.
There has never been an attack by
a wild cougar on a person in Oregon,
which is home to about 6,300 cougars,
although attacks have occurred in other
states and Canadian provinces, the
Oregon agency said.
Resident Shannon Shahan said 14
of her chickens were killed or died of
shock and two survived.
She told Bend TV station KTVZ
the cougars had jumped a fence to
get at the chickens. Her surveillance
cameras caught at least one cougar on
her property, leaving large paw prints in
the snow.
The state wildlife department said
— Corey Heath, wildlife biologist with ODFW
211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton 541-276-2211
333 E. Main St., Hermiston 541-567-6211
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Copyright © 2017, EO Media Group
FRIDAY
Fog in the a.m.;
mostly cloudy
Mostly cloudy; fog,
cold
34° 26°
34° 22°
SATURDAY
Areas of fog,
freezing early
SUNDAY
Areas of fog,
freezing early
Areas of fog,
freezing early
PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
35° 22°
36° 22°
38° 29°
HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
35° 25°
35° 26°
PENDLETON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
LOW
31°
29°
42°
28°
71° (1935) -15° (1930)
PRECIPITATION
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
0.00"
1.33"
1.14"
1.33"
1.13"
1.14"
HERMISTON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
Yesterday
Normals
Records
LOW
33°
30°
43°
29°
63° (1935) -16° (1949)
PRECIPITATION
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
0.00"
1.39"
1.00"
1.39"
0.87"
1.00"
SUN AND MOON
Sunrise today
Sunset tonight
Moonrise today
Moonset today
New
First
Jan 27
Feb 3
Full
Feb 10
35° 24°
37° 28°
Seattle
46/36
ALMANAC
Yesterday
Normals
Records
36° 24°
7:24 a.m.
4:51 p.m.
5:30 a.m.
3:04 p.m.
Last
Feb 18
Today
Spokane
Wenatchee
33/23
30/19
Tacoma
Moses
47/31
Lake
Pullman
Aberdeen Olympia
Yakima 31/20
32/18
47/36
47/31
33/21
Longview
Kennewick Walla Walla
46/35
35/24 Lewiston
33/24
Astoria
36/25
50/38
Portland
Enterprise
Hermiston
44/32
Pendleton 28/11
The Dalles 35/26
34/26
37/27
La Grande
Salem
33/20
48/33
Albany
Corvallis 48/33
48/31
John Day
33/20
Ontario
Eugene
Bend
27/8
48/30
35/19
Caldwell
Burns
29/13
20/-2
Astoria
Baker City
Bend
Brookings
Burns
Enterprise
Eugene
Heppner
Hermiston
John Day
Klamath Falls
La Grande
Meacham
Medford
Newport
North Bend
Ontario
Pasco
Pendleton
Portland
Redmond
Salem
Spokane
Ukiah
Vancouver
Walla Walla
Yakima
Hi
50
25
35
49
20
28
48
35
35
33
33
33
31
45
49
51
27
34
34
44
37
48
33
31
44
35
33
Lo
38
3
19
39
-2
11
30
24
26
20
15
20
18
31
38
39
8
23
26
32
19
33
23
16
32
24
21
W
c
c
pc
pc
pc
c
c
c
c
pc
pc
c
c
c
c
c
pc
c
c
c
pc
c
c
c
c
c
pc
Today
Beijing
Hong Kong
Jerusalem
London
Mexico City
Moscow
Paris
Rome
Seoul
Sydney
Tokyo
Lo
22
60
48
28
46
-8
22
39
15
70
35
W
pc
s
c
c
s
c
s
s
s
c
s
Lo
36
5
16
36
-3
9
28
20
25
17
9
16
15
28
36
36
8
21
22
29
16
29
23
12
29
22
22
W
pc
c
c
pc
c
c
pc
c
c
c
pc
c
c
pc
pc
pc
c
c
c
pc
c
pc
c
c
pc
c
c
Thu.
Hi
48
68
56
40
77
10
39
54
43
81
49
Lo
19
61
43
31
44
8
32
40
24
72
40
W
pc
s
c
s
s
pc
s
s
pc
c
s
WINDS
Medford
45/31
(in mph)
Klamath Falls
33/15
Boardman
Pendleton
REGIONAL FORECAST
Coastal Oregon: Mostly cloudy today; a
shower in spots across the north.
Eastern Washington: Mostly cloudy today;
areas of freezing fog during the morning.
Eastern and Central Oregon: Mostly cloudy
and cold today, except some sun in central
parts; fog across the north.
Western Washington: Mostly cloudy today.
A shower in spots; arriving in the afternoon
in central parts.
Cascades: A little snow at times with little or
no accumulation today.
Northern California: Some sun, then clouds
today; frigid in the interior mountains.
Today
Thursday
NE 3-6
WNW 4-8
NE 3-6
NNW 4-8
UV INDEX TODAY
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
0
0
1
0
0
NEWS
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COMMERCIAL PRINTING
Production Manager: Mike Jensen
541-215-0824 • mjensen@eastoregonian.com
Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day.
WORLD CITIES
Hi
42
71
64
44
76
14
33
56
33
78
48
Classified & Legal Advertising
1-800-962-2819 or 541-278-2678
classifieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com
NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY
Thu.
Hi
50
24
36
51
21
27
47
34
35
33
34
32
30
49
49
52
24
34
34
45
38
48
31
31
45
33
34
PORTLAND (AP) —
An Oregon woman accused
of hiring a hit man to kill
her ex-husband has pleaded
guilty to using interstate
commerce in a murder-for-
hire plot.
Pamela Gygi of Lane
County entered the plea
Monday at the federal
courthouse in Eugene.
Federal officials said
Gygi paid a parolee to kill
her ex-husband, but the
parolee decided to instead
alert the man to the plot.
The woman was
arrested in July after the
would-be hit man had
several audio-recorded
meetings with her.
Court documents state
Gygi paid the hit man
$600, and promised him a
residence in California, the
title to a 2005 Dodge Stratus
and an online business.
Corrections
REGIONAL CITIES
Forecast
Woman pleads
guilty in murder-
for-hire plot
Umatilla County Republican Chairman Larry B. Moore
was misrepresented in the article “Local reactions” in
Saturday’s East Oregonian. He said Democrats are not the
enemy, but they are the opposition. The East Oregonian
works hard to be accurate and sincerely regrets any
errors. If you notice a mistake in the paper, please call
541-966-0818.
Advertising Director: Marissa Williams
541-278-2669 • addirector@eastoregonian.com
Advertising Services: Laura Jensen
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Multimedia Consultants:
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Didn’t receive your paper? Call 1-800-522-0255
before noon Tuesday through Friday
or before 10 a.m. Saturday
for same-day redelivery
— Founded Oct. 16, 1875 —
THURSDAY
EUGENE (AP) — An
Oregon man with ties to the
armed occupation of the
Malheur National Wildlife
Refuge has pleaded guilty
to illegally possessing a
machine gun.
The Register-Guard
reports that 54-year-old
Michael Ray Emry on
Monday pleaded guilty.
Sentencing is scheduled for
April 3.
The ATF says the
M2 machine gun Emry
possessed was capable of
firing 550 to 650 rounds
per minute.
Emry admitted that he
took the gun from a shop
where he works in Idaho.
Emry says the owner of the
shop didn’t know that he
had taken the weapon.
Emry described himself
as an “embedded reporter”
during the refuge takeover
one year ago. He was not
indicted for his role in
the occupation and the
“The cougars are having trouble hunting their traditional
prey so are coming to residential areas for an easier meal.”
and appreciate the cougars as a part of
living in a rural area.
A dog and a cat have been killed, in
addition to the chickens.
In its statement, the state wildlife
department said wildlife managers will
not relocate the trespassing cougars
because the animals would cause prob-
lems in new areas or return to La Pine.
Officials recommended residents
feed their pets indoors, walk their
dogs on a leash and be aware of their
surroundings, especially at dawn and
dusk.
weapons charge was not
connected to the incident.
Man pleads guilty
to possessing
machine gun
Mark Mulligan/The Daily Herald via AP, File
Subscriber services:
For home delivery, vacation stops or delivery concerns: 1-800-522-0255
TODAY
BRIEFLY
In this 2012 file photo, an approximately 2-year-old female cougar runs
away from a Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife trap after being
released northeast of Arlington, Wash. Cougars prowling near the remote
community of La Pine, have killed two pets and at least 12 chickens.
deep snow is likely a factor in the
appearance of the cougars.
“The cougars are having trouble
hunting their traditional prey so are
coming to residential areas for an easier
meal,” said Corey Heath, a wildlife
biologist with the department. “Unfor-
tunately at this point we consider them
a significant human safety risk, so they
need to be removed for the safety of La
Pine residents.”
Some people think killing the tres-
passing cougars is going too far. They
said people should protect their pets
government does more with less,
she maintains that we must work
to develop a long-term solution
that doesn’t put Oregonians at risk
every two years.
“Gov. Brown looks forward to
working with legislators, business
leaders and advocates to come
together on these tough choices
and build a budget and revenue
package that keeps the doors of
opportunity open for all Orego-
nians”
Kotek said 2017 is the best
time for lawmakers to reform the
revenue system.
“I don’t want to wait until ’18
because we might be dealing with
a whole different set of problems
… because of what the federal
government decides to do,” Kotek
said. “There is a lot of unknowns
on the horizon.”
0
8 a.m. 10 a.m. Noon 2 p.m. 4 p.m. 6 p.m.
0-2, Low
3-5, Moderate 6-7, High;
8-10, Very High;
11+, Extreme
The higher the AccuWeather.com UV Index™ num-
ber, the greater the need for eye and skin protection.
Forecasts and graphics provided by
AccuWeather, Inc. ©2017
-10s
-0s
showers t-storms
0s
10s
rain
20s
flurries
30s
40s
snow
ice
50s
60s
cold front
70s
80s
90s
100s
warm front stationary front
110s
high
low
National Summary: Rain will fall from the eastern Great Lakes to the central Gulf coast
today. Snow and colder air will sweep over much of the northern Plains and the Upper
Midwest. Much of the West will be dry.
Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states)
High 94° in Laredo, Texas
Low -17° in Bridgeport, Calif.
NATIONAL CITIES
Today
Albuquerque
Atlanta
Atlantic City
Baltimore
Billings
Birmingham
Boise
Boston
Charleston, SC
Charleston, WV
Chicago
Cleveland
Dallas
Denver
Detroit
El Paso
Fairbanks
Fargo
Honolulu
Houston
Indianapolis
Jacksonville
Kansas City
Las Vegas
Little Rock
Los Angeles
Hi
38
72
52
55
29
69
28
46
74
62
45
52
59
30
45
50
8
29
80
74
54
78
36
49
64
59
Lo
18
49
44
42
15
42
11
34
54
42
32
38
33
13
36
27
4
18
67
45
33
57
24
34
32
42
W
pc
pc
s
s
pc
pc
pc
pc
s
pc
sh
c
s
pc
sh
s
pc
c
s
pc
c
s
sf
s
pc
s
Thur.
Hi
37
55
55
56
30
53
25
48
71
43
35
41
54
32
41
49
30
23
80
63
37
74
33
48
48
62
Lo
15
34
38
35
21
32
12
35
38
30
24
30
32
13
29
27
13
15
66
41
26
40
21
34
28
44
W
s
pc
pc
pc
s
s
c
pc
sh
c
sf
sn
s
s
sn
s
pc
c
pc
s
sf
sh
pc
pc
s
s
Today
Louisville
Memphis
Miami
Milwaukee
Minneapolis
Nashville
New Orleans
New York City
Oklahoma City
Omaha
Philadelphia
Phoenix
Portland, ME
Providence
Raleigh
Rapid City
Reno
Sacramento
St. Louis
Salt Lake City
San Diego
San Francisco
Seattle
Tucson
Washington, DC
Wichita
Hi
61
66
81
40
35
64
78
49
47
33
52
56
41
47
70
22
34
53
51
29
61
54
46
53
61
41
Lo
36
36
65
33
26
37
53
43
24
23
42
37
27
33
55
7
21
36
33
20
46
42
36
31
49
22
W
c
c
pc
sn
sn
c
pc
s
s
c
s
s
r
pc
s
pc
pc
pc
pc
sn
s
pc
c
s
s
pc
Thur.
Hi
42
46
86
37
28
46
60
51
48
28
56
58
43
50
63
28
35
54
39
27
62
54
47
57
59
42
Lo
29
29
65
25
20
31
42
37
24
17
36
39
29
34
35
18
15
35
28
9
46
42
33
31
37
22
Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain,
sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.
W
c
s
s
sf
c
c
s
pc
s
pc
pc
s
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
c
c
s
pc
c
s
pc
s