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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 3, 2017)
NORTHWEST East Oregonian Page 2A Friday, February 3, 2017 Senate committee Oregon lawmakers backing pesticide restrictions poised to shape farm policy will release revenue Proposed changes to “right plan next week to farm” law would remove protections for pesticides By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI Capital Bureau SALEM — Lawmakers with strong track records of supporting pesticide restrictions are chairing two Senate committees that are positioned to affect Oregon agricultural policies in 2017. Senate Bill 499 — a proposal to strip pesticide protections from Oregon’s “right to farm” law — was introduced at the behest of the Senate Judiciary Committee, whose chair is Floyd Prozanski, D-Eugene. Oregon’s “Right to Farm and Forest” law prohibits local ordinances restricting common farm practices as well as nuisance and trespass lawsuits against such farm practices. People who lose such lawsuits are required to pay the opposing party’s attorney fees, which has discouraged such cases against farm practices from being filed in Oregon. Under SB 499, however, complaints alleging nuisance or trespass from pesticides are exempted from the “right to farm” law. The bill’s introduction at the request of the Senate Judiciary Committee bodes well for its chances for a vote before the full Senate, particularly since Prozanski has supported a harder line against pesticide usage. In 2015, for example, Prozanski sponsored bills that would ban neonicotinoid insecticides and increase notification and reporting requirements for spraying pesticides. All of those bills died in the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, which was then chaired by Sen. Chris Edwards, D-Eugene. Edwards left the Legis- lature last year to take a job at the University of Oregon, so Sen. Michael Dembrow, D-Portland, will replace him as chair of that committee. Dembrow was a chief sponsor of legislation in 2015 — Senate Bill 613 — that would have increased notifica- tion requirements for aerial pesticide spraying of forestland, which died in committee. The Oregon League of Conservation Voters gives Dembrow a 94 percent “lifetime score” based on his support of environmental legislation. Scott Dahlman, policy director of the Oregonians for Food and Shelter agribusiness group, said his organiza- tion hasn’t always seen “eye to eye” with Dembrow. Even so, Dembrow is known for having an “open door” policy and will hopefully keep an open mind on issues affecting agriculture, Dahlman said. Beyond Toxics, an environmental non-profit, believes Dembrow is the right choice to chair the Senate Committee on the Environment and Natural Resources, though it’s too early to say how he might influence legislation, said Lisa Arkin, the group’s executive director. Arkin said Oregon’s approach to pesticides in farming and forestry is “outdated and unscientific” and the state’s pesticide laws are overdue for reform. In the Oregon House, the elim- ination of the Committee on Rural Communities, Land Use and Water has created some uncertainty for legislation that affects agriculture, said Dahlman. Bills that would have previously been steered to this committee will now likely wind up before the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee and the House Energy and Environment Committee, he said. The House Agriculture Committee is chaired by Rep. Brian Clem, D-Salem, who is a part-owner of a farm and is familiar with agricultural issues, Dahlman said. Rep. Ken Helm, D-Beaverton, isn’t as familiar with natural resource issues but there’s no reason to think he won’t be receptive to industry concerns, he said. By CLAIRE WITHYCOMBE Capital Bureau SALEM — Lawmakers in the Oregon Senate’s Finance and Revenue committee are expected to release a package of measures next week that will likely include a broad- based tax on business. Facing a nearly $1.8 billion shortfall to maintain existing services, business tax talks are occurring in the context of a larger discussion legislators are having about the volatility of state revenue. Most of the state’s general fund comes from income taxes, which rise and fall with changes in the economy and produce what State Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-Ontario, has described as “crazy gyra- tions.” The Senate Finance and Revenue Committee Thursday discussed the merits of three main types of business taxes — a gross receipts tax, a value- added tax and a corporate income tax. As the name implies, a gross receipts tax is applied to a company’s gross sales. It is paid regardless of whether those receipts generate a profit. Measure 97, a $6 billion state gross receipts tax that applied to certain corporations, was defeated at the ballot box in November. The tax would have required some corporations to pay the state 2.5 percent of their annual Oregon sales exceeding $25 million. Because it only applied Attorney: Iranian infant needs visa waiver for heart surgery PORTLAND (AP) — The family of a 4-month-old Iranian girl is hoping to get a waiver to President Donald Trump’s immigration ban so their daughter can have crit- ical heart surgery in Portland. Iranian doctors told the child’s parents weeks ago that she needed at least one urgent surgery — and perhaps several — to correct serious heart defects or she will die, said her uncle, Samad Taghi- zadeh, a U.S. citizen who lives in Portland. The family had an appointment in Dubai to get a tourist visa on Feb. 5, but it was abruptly canceled after Trump announced his executive order on immi- gration banning travel to the U.S. by citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries, including Iran. The family returned to Iran with the baby, Fatemah. “I don’t want to lose my hope, but the big problem here is time. She’s in an emergency situation and if it takes a long time, they’re going to lose her,” Taghizadeh told the AP. “They said a couple of weeks ago she had to be in surgery. They recommended three or four weeks ago to do it.” Doctors in Iran were able to send the results of an echocardiogram and other records that show Fatemah has structural abnormalities and two holes in her heart, said Jennifer Morrissey, a Portland attorney helping with the case. Morrissey read the child’s diagnosis to the AP from medical records the immigration attorneys are using to petition for a visa waiver. “Her heart is twisted. Her heart’s working overtime to compensate for that ... and it’s causing more and more damage to her every day that she doesn’t get the surgery,” said Amber Murray, another Washington, D.C-based attorney working on the case. The family chose Oregon Health & Science University in Portland because of its proximity to family, Taghi- zadeh said, but will go to anywhere to keep Fatemah alive. A lawyer for the family says they are also looking at hospitals in other countries, including Canada and Germany. Murray told The Associ- ated Press on Thursday she’s filing an application for a visa waiver immediately. If that is rejected, she may file an application for humanitarian parole, which would allow the baby to enter the U.S. solely for medical treatment on humanitarian grounds, even without a visa. That application, however, requires an appointment, a doctor’s letter and proof of funds, she said. Gov. Kate Brown mentioned Fatemah’s case on Thursday while signing an executive order that said all state agencies, and not just law enforcement, must follow the 1987 statute that essentially made Oregon the nation’s first and only sanctuary state. Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley is also working to get the family to the U.S., his office said. Meanwhile, Taghizadeh can only wait for news on his niece’s visa waiver request and try to keep her mother’s spirits up from afar. “First, they’re counting on me and second, they’re counting on the U.S. govern- ment,” he said. 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 — 211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton 541-276-2211 333 E. 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Single copy price: $1 Tuesday through Friday, $1.50 Saturday Copyright © 2017, EO Media Group REGIONAL CITIES Forecast TODAY SUNDAY SATURDAY Snow mixing with sleet Not as cold with a shower or two 29° 25° 44° 34° MONDAY Mainly cloudy, showers around Mostly cloudy with a bit of rain PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 40° 32° 44° 31° 40° 24° HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 39° 34° 26° 24° PENDLETON through 3 p.m. yesterday TEMPERATURE HIGH LOW 20° 18° 44° 28° 66° (1934) -18° (1950) 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 Trace Trace 0.09" 1.65" 1.51" 1.47" HERMISTON through 3 p.m. yesterday TEMPERATURE HIGH Yesterday Normals Records LOW 23° 17° 45° 29° 64° (1934) -28° (1950) 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" 0.00" 0.06" 1.69" 1.10" 1.34" SUN AND MOON Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today First Full Feb 3 Feb 10 7:14 a.m. 5:05 p.m. 10:53 a.m. none Last New Feb 18 43° 29° 40° 24° Seattle 42/39 ALMANAC Yesterday Normals Records 42° 36° Feb 26 Today TUESDAY Cloudy with a stray shower Spokane Wenatchee 26/24 26/22 Tacoma Moses 41/36 Lake Pullman Aberdeen Olympia Yakima 27/25 32/29 44/40 40/35 29/23 Longview Kennewick Walla Walla 39/38 26/25 Lewiston 25/22 Astoria 35/30 46/41 Portland Enterprise Hermiston 36/36 Pendleton 38/34 The Dalles 26/24 29/25 30/27 La Grande Salem 36/34 46/45 Albany Corvallis 46/42 46/45 John Day 41/37 Ontario Eugene Bend 35/30 48/45 37/29 Caldwell Burns 40/36 36/29 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 46 32 37 53 36 38 48 30 26 41 43 36 33 53 51 54 35 28 29 36 36 46 26 34 39 26 29 Lo 41 29 29 46 29 34 45 24 24 37 36 34 31 42 46 48 30 21 25 36 30 45 24 28 37 25 23 W r sn sn r i sn r sn sn sn r sn sn r r r sn sn sn i sn i sn sn i sn sn Hi 48 37 44 51 37 40 51 43 39 44 45 41 39 52 51 53 40 36 44 46 47 50 34 43 48 41 36 Today Beijing Hong Kong Jerusalem London Mexico City Moscow Paris Rome Seoul Sydney Tokyo Lo 27 65 35 35 48 6 42 53 24 74 41 W pc c s r pc c r pc pc c s Lo 38 29 34 46 28 35 42 34 34 38 35 37 34 41 41 44 33 32 34 38 35 42 33 35 37 35 31 W r c c r c c r c i c c c c r r r c i sh r c r sn c r i sf Sat. Hi 52 71 56 45 71 13 47 61 43 87 54 Klamath Falls 43/36 Lo 24 64 39 35 48 10 40 49 31 76 41 W pc sh s r pc c sh sh pc pc s (in mph) Today Saturday Boardman Pendleton NE 3-6 W 4-8 VAR 2-4 S 6-12 UV INDEX TODAY Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows. REGIONAL FORECAST Coastal Oregon: Occasional rain today into tomorrow. Eastern and Central Oregon: A wintry mix today, except a couple of showers in the south. Western Washington: Periods of rain today; periods of rain, freezing on surfaces early across the south. Eastern Washington: Intermittent snow today, accumulating 1-2 inches. A little snow at times tonight. Cascades: Snow today, accumulating 3-6 inches. More snow, some heavy, tonight and tomorrow. Northern California: Heavy rain today; however, snow in the interior mountains. 0 0 1 0 0 NEWS • To submit news tips and press releases: • call 541-966-0818 • fax 541-276-8314 • email news@eastoregonian.com • To submit community events, calendar items and Your EO News: email community@eastoregonian.com or call Tammy Malgesini at 541-564-4539 or Renee Struthers in at 541-966-0818. • To submit engagements, weddings and anniversaries: email rstruthers@eastoregonian.com or visit www.eastoregonian. com/community/announcements • To submit a Letter to the Editor: mail to Managing Editor Daniel Wattenburger, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801 or email editor@eastoregonian.com. • To submit sports or outdoors information or tips: 541-966-0838 • sports@eastoregonian.com 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 47 69 52 50 71 16 52 62 43 81 54 Classified & Legal Advertising 1-800-962-2819 or 541-278-2678 classifieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY Sat. WINDS Medford 53/42 Corrections An article in Thursday’s East Oregonian states 104 tribal members have signed a petition opposing the expansion of the Carty Generating Station at Boardman. The petition has been signed by both tribal and non-tribal community members. The East Oregonian works hard to be ac- curate 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 541-966-0806 • ljensen@eastoregonian.com Multimedia Consultants: • Terri Briggs 541-278-2678 • tbriggs@eastoregonian.com • Elizabeth Freemantle 541-278-2683 • efreemantle@eastoregonian.com • Jeanne Jewett 541-564-4531 • jjewett@eastoregonian.com • Chris McClellan 541-966-0827 • cmcclellan@eastoregonian.com • Stephanie Newsom 541-278-2687 • snewsom@eastoregonian.com • Dayle Stinson 541-278-2670 • dstinson@eastoregonian.com • Audra Workman 541-564-4538 • aworkman@eastoregonian.com Subscriber services: For home delivery, vacation stops or delivery concerns: 1-800-522-0255 to “C” corporation, it would have applied to a relatively small number of businesses. Legislators and lobby- ists have since discussed the possibilities for a smaller tax spread over a broader base of businesses. A corporate income tax generally taxes gross receipts minus several deductions such as labor costs and operating expenses, and typically at a higher rate than a value- added tax or gross receipts tax. A group of public finance economists, whose study of Connecticut state taxes lawmakers reviewed Thursday, found that the corporate income tax “has been eroded by intense inter-state competition for economic development,” Oregon’s legislative revenue officials wrote in a summary document. A value-added tax is collected in increments at each stage of production. It can put companies at a competitive disadvantage if they sell their goods out of state, where they may be taxed again. A gross receipts tax generally has a broader base, meaning there are few or no deductions from what is taxed. It is also typically simpler to administer than a value- added tax. A broader base has advantages, said Paul Warner, the head of the Legislative Revenue Office, because it mini- mizes distortions in the broader economy but can be a “powerful revenue generator.” 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: As lake-effect snow falls in parts of the Northeast, rain will dampen part of the Deep South today. Rain will soak much of the Pacific coast as areas of ice and snow occur inland over the West. Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states) High 87° in Edinburg, Texas Low -19° in Bozeman, Mont. 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 59 55 38 39 24 51 41 33 65 34 25 26 54 42 23 72 7 20 79 63 30 77 35 70 46 65 Lo 33 33 22 20 21 30 39 19 36 16 14 17 38 27 13 43 -11 11 62 46 14 50 21 49 24 52 W c pc pc c pc pc sn pc c pc s sf c pc pc pc s s pc c pc pc s pc pc sh Sat. Hi 61 53 37 38 28 56 44 33 54 38 32 33 55 58 28 75 4 30 80 62 36 60 45 68 47 67 Lo 33 37 20 25 18 43 38 23 39 27 27 26 48 28 24 45 -14 8 69 59 27 46 30 47 35 52 Today W s pc s s c pc c s pc s pc pc c s pc s pc c pc c pc pc pc pc c pc 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 37 45 82 23 24 44 64 33 45 31 35 75 31 33 43 28 52 62 36 45 67 61 42 77 43 39 Lo 18 27 66 14 13 21 45 22 26 23 21 49 13 17 24 23 39 52 21 38 56 53 39 45 25 24 W pc pc pc pc s pc r pc pc pc pc pc pc pc r pc sh r s c pc r i pc c pc Sat. Hi 42 50 82 32 34 51 62 34 55 48 35 76 28 33 47 45 52 61 44 47 66 59 48 79 40 55 Lo 32 40 66 27 20 38 51 25 40 25 26 50 18 21 26 22 33 46 35 34 52 49 37 45 31 33 Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice. W pc pc s pc sf s pc s c pc s s pc s s pc c c c pc pc c r s s pc
