NORTHWEST
East Oregonian
Page 2A
Friday, March 17, 2017
Reversal of Oregon’s
Legislators seek ways to make
GMO pre-emption debated ODOT more accountable
Lawmakers told to
give authority over
agency director
back to commission
Opponents argue
local restrictions
create uncertainty
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Bureau
SALEM — Nearly
four years after barring
local governments from
regulating
genetically
engineered crops, Oregon
lawmakers are thinking of
reversing that policy.
The Oregon Legislature
pre-empted all local ordi-
nances over seed in 2013
but is now considering
House Bill 2469, which
would create an exception
allowing local restrictions
for genetically engineered
crops.
Critics of the bill worry
it will pave the way for
outright bans on genetically
modified crops, or GMOs,
such as the prohibition
passed in 2014 by Jackson
County voters.
Jackson County’s GMO
ban was allowed to go
forward because the initia-
tive was already on the ballot
when the state pre-emption
policy was enacted.
Barry Bushue, presi-
dent of the Oregon Farm
Bureau, said it’s unfortunate
that some people would
rather forbid farmers from
growing certain crops rather
than letting them resolve
conflicts with neighbors
amicably.
“I urge you to reject
the notion that one grower
should be prioritized by the
government over another,”
said Bushue said at a March
16 hearing before the House
Agriculture Committee.
Fewer than 1 percent
of organic farmers have
reported losing crop value
due to GMOs and none
of them were in Oregon,
Bushue said, citing a nation-
wide USDA survey.
Also, no growers have
taken advantage of a medi-
ation program aimed at
resolving conflicts among
conventional, organic and
biotech crops, passed by
Oregon lawmakers in 2015,
he said.
Steve Strauss, an Oregon
By PARIS ACHEN
Capital Bureau
SALEM — Four former
chairmen of the Oregon
Transportation Commission
said Wednesday that the
commission should regain
authority over the state trans-
portation director.
The suggestion was one
of a handful the former
chairmen gave as ways
to enhance accountability
for Oregon Department of
Transportation projects and
contracts.
The chairmen were invited
to speak with a new subgroup
of the Legislature’s Joint
Committee on Transportation
Preservation and Modern-
ization. The committee
is charged with crafting a
transportation package worth
hundreds of millions of
dollars. Legislative leaders
hope to pass the package
during the 160-day session,
which began Feb. 1 in Salem.
About a month ago, the
leaders of the transportation
package committee asked
Rep. Andy Olson, R-Albany,
to lead a team of four other
lawmakers to come up with
policy
recommendations
for making ODOT more
accountable for the agency’s
spending.
The group invited the
former
OTC
chairmen
Wednesday to gain insight
on how to improve account-
ability at ODOT.
The meeting was initially
closed to the public, but
Olson allowed a reporter
to attend Wednesday. The
committee’s four other topic
work groups have held public
meetings at the Capitol since
the beginning of the session.
Olson said he initially
closed the meetings out of
concern that the public eye
would discourage frankness,
but legislative leaders have
committed to keeping the
process open and transparent.
ODOT has been criticized
for its history of projects that
have been overdue and over
EO Media Group file photo
The Oregon Legislature pre-empted all local ordinanc-
es over seed in 2013 but is now considering House Bill
2469, which would create an exception allowing local
restrictions for genetically engineered crops.
State University professor
who studies biotechnology,
said lawmakers should ask
themselves whether they
want Oregon agriculture to
be known for innovation or
for exclusion.
Scientists are developing
new crops with gene editing,
which doesn’t involve
transferring DNA from
one organism to another
but could nonetheless be
restricted under HB 2469,
he said.
Opponents of HB 2469
argue the possibility of local
restrictions on genetically
engineered crops will create
uncertainty for farmers,
particularly if they cultivate
crops in multiple jurisdic-
tions.
Tim Winn, who produces
biotech sugar beets in
Benton County, said propo-
nents of GMO bans see
farmers like him as “neces-
sary collateral damage.”
“I urge you to please not
take my options away,” he
said.
Supporters of the bill
claim that local governments
should again be permitted to
set their own rules because
the state government has
taken no action on GMOs
since the 2013 pre-emption
policy was approved.
“We were led to believe
cross-contamination would
somehow be addressed
through the Department of
Agriculture,” said Rep. Paul
Holvey, D-Eugene, who
sponsored HB 2469.
The USDA has acknowl-
edged that damages from
GMO contamination occur
but claims it lacks the
authority to prevent such
problems, said Amy van
Saun, a legal fellow at the
Center for Food Safety,
a nonprofit that supports
greater biotech regulation.
It would be great if the
state government tackled
the problem, but it’s shown
no such intention, she said.
“It’s not coexistence
when only one side bears
the burden and the costs,”
van Saun said.
Growers of conventional
and organic seed would be
unreasonable to ignore the
potential legal liability of
selling crops contaminated
with patented biotech traits,
said Elise Higley, director
of Our Family Farms Coali-
tion, which supports HB
2469.
Contaminated
seed
would also be rejected
by buyers who want a
GMO-free product, ulti-
mately making it more
expensive as it becomes
more rare, she said.
“GE farmers end up
winning by default and
our traditional seed supply
diminishes,” Higley said.
Proponents of HB 2469
also discounted arguments
against local GMO ordi-
nances, such as the possible
confusion from various
county-by-county rules.
“So what if there’s a
patchwork? There are
all kinds of patchworks
with different policies and
they’re working just fine,”
Higley 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. Main St., Hermiston 541-567-6211
Office hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Closed major holidays
SUBSCRIPTION RATES
Local home delivery Savings off cover price
EZPay
$14.50
41 percent
52 weeks
$173.67
41 percent
26 weeks
$91.86
38 percent
13 weeks
$47.77
36 percent
*EZ Pay = one-year rate with a monthly credit or debit card/check charge
www.eastoregonian.com
To subscribe, call 1-800-522-0255
or go online to www.eastoregonian.com
and click on ‘Subscribe’
East Oregonian (USPS 164-980) is published daily except Sunday, Monday
and Dec. 25, by the EO Media Group, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801.
Periodicals postage paid at Pendleton, OR. Postmaster: send address changes to
East Oregonian, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801.
Single copy price:
$1 Tuesday through Friday, $1.50 Saturday
Copyright © 2017, EO Media Group
REGIONAL CITIES
Forecast
TODAY
SUNDAY
SATURDAY
A little afternoon
rain
Cloudy, a little rain;
breezy
51° 45°
59° 32°
MONDAY
Partly sunny
Some sun, then
clouds and chilly
PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
50° 30°
49° 35°
53° 38°
HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
60° 33°
51° 44°
PENDLETON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
LOW
51°
55°
72° (2010)
39°
35°
3° (1906)
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
0.13"
1.06"
0.66"
4.98"
3.35"
3.17"
HERMISTON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
Yesterday
Normals
Records
LOW
55°
58°
73° (1941)
39°
34°
20° (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
0.05"
0.51"
0.50"
3.97"
2.12"
2.74"
SUN AND MOON
Sunrise today
Sunset tonight
Moonrise today
Moonset today
Last
New
Mar 20
Mar 27
First
Apr 3
53° 35°
54° 38°
Seattle
46/45
ALMANAC
Yesterday
Normals
Records
54° 30°
7:04 a.m.
7:04 p.m.
none
9:50 a.m.
Full
Apr 10
Today
TUESDAY
Occasional rain in
the afternoon
Spokane
Wenatchee
48/43
45/36
Tacoma
Moses
47/43
Lake
Pullman
Aberdeen Olympia
Yakima 49/43
51/46
46/42
46/43
52/39
Longview
Kennewick Walla Walla
49/47
50/46 Lewiston
49/43
Astoria
56/47
49/44
Portland
Enterprise
Hermiston
51/46
Pendleton 57/47
The Dalles 51/44
51/45
51/43
La Grande
Salem
61/50
55/50
Albany
Corvallis 54/48
55/48
John Day
65/54
Ontario
Eugene
Bend
67/46
55/48
60/49
Caldwell
Burns
72/51
61/41
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
49
63
60
56
61
57
55
51
51
65
63
61
59
60
53
59
67
49
51
51
61
55
48
57
50
50
52
Lo
44
46
49
50
41
47
48
46
44
54
47
50
50
50
47
50
46
42
45
46
48
50
43
47
46
46
39
W
r
pc
r
r
pc
pc
r
r
r
pc
c
pc
pc
c
r
r
pc
r
r
r
r
r
r
r
r
r
c
Hi
50
62
55
53
54
56
52
59
60
61
55
63
60
58
49
51
64
60
59
52
57
52
52
56
52
64
58
Today
Beijing
Hong Kong
Jerusalem
London
Mexico City
Moscow
Paris
Rome
Seoul
Sydney
Tokyo
Lo
36
67
50
48
46
32
43
48
32
70
43
W
pc
c
c
sh
pc
c
pc
s
s
c
pc
Lo
36
28
27
41
26
25
32
29
33
31
33
29
27
41
36
37
39
33
32
36
26
33
29
25
37
36
28
W
r
r
sh
r
r
r
r
r
c
r
r
r
r
r
r
r
c
r
r
r
r
r
r
r
r
r
r
Sat.
Hi
69
73
64
59
73
45
56
63
58
76
55
(in mph)
Klamath Falls
63/47
Boardman
Pendleton
Lo
36
69
46
52
47
34
48
48
32
71
45
W
s
sh
c
c
pc
c
c
pc
pc
sh
s
REGIONAL FORECAST
Coastal Oregon: Periods of rain today.
Breezy tonight with periods of rain.
Eastern and Central Oregon: Mainly cloudy
today with a shower in spots; warmer in
the south.
Western Washington: Periods of rain today;
any time across the south, in the afternoon
elsewhere.
Eastern Washington: A shower today;
however, a bit of snow with little or no
accumulation in the mountains.
Cascades: Mostly cloudy, a little rain this
afternoon.
Northern California: Clouds and sun today;
a couple of showers, but dry in the interior
mountains.
Today
Saturday
NNE 4-8
NNW 4-8
WSW 10-20
WSW 10-20
UV INDEX TODAY
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
0
2
3
2
1
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
64
73
59
53
73
45
56
65
58
74
53
Classified & Legal Advertising
1-800-962-2819 or 541-278-2678
classifieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com
NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY
Sat.
WINDS
Medford
60/50
Corrections
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
541-966-0806 • ljensen@eastoregonian.com
Multimedia Consultants:
• Terri Briggs
541-278-2678 • tbriggs@eastoregonian.com
• Danni Halladay
541-278-2683 • dhalladay@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
2011, Kitzhaber, then in his
third term, commandeered
control of the Department
of Education, becoming the
first governor in the nation to
assume the title of superin-
tendent of schools.
“I think it was a huge
mistake,” Foster said of
taking away OTC’s oversight
of the director.
Foster served as
commission chair
from 2003 to
2007.
Mike Hollern,
who served on
the OTC most
recently
from
1987 to 1993,
compared
the
commission
to a board of a
company.
“You are running the
place, and you are responsible
to the shareholders, and then
all of a sudden, someone else
is appointing the director,”
Hollern said.
Given that commissioners
are volunteers and they can’t
hire and fire the director, “I’m
not sure it’s worth the effort,”
Hollern said.
Foster said a conflict
within the OTC is the
governor’s appointment of
commissioners who also
serve on the commissions
of counties or are city
employees.
He said it’s difficult for
people in those positions to
be unbiased when voting
on projects that could affect
their regional areas. He said
the governor should choose
appointees with “a statewide
perspective.”
The former chairman,
which also included Henry
Hewitt and Steve Corey, also
recommended tying increases
to the gas tax to the consumer
price index. Gas tax revenue
pays for road projects in
Oregon.
———
The Capital Bureau is a
collaboration between EO
Media Group and Pamplin
Media Group.
budget. A recent $1 million
management performance
audit by New York-based
McKinsey & Co. was
intended to respond to that
criticism and show ODOT
is prepared to effectively
manage an influx of new
highway funding.
The firm’s report, released
Jan. 30, portrayed
an agency lacking
in dissent and
accountability,
wasting money
and
needing
greater oversight
and guidance.
Two
weeks
before that, OTC
chairwoman
Tammy Baney,
in a letter to Gov.
Kate Brown in January,
complained the commission
needed more oversight of the
director.
“The director carries
out the administration of
the day-to-day operations,”
Baney said in a January
phone interview with the
Pamplin Media Group/EO
Media Group Capital Bureau.
“There isn’t a place for us to
have a voice in how that is
going.”
Baney requested that the
governor include the OTC
in the director’s performance
evaluation. She apparently
was unaware at the time that
Director Matt Garrett has not
had a performance evaluation
since his tenure began in
2005, according to Garrett’s
office.
Until 1999, the commis-
sion had authority to hire
and fire the director, and
the director reported to the
commission.
After years of pressure
by Gov. John Kitzhaber, the
Legislature in 1999 took that
authority away and gave it to
the governor, former OTC
Chairman Stuart Foster told
lawmakers Wednesday.
Minutes from the 1999
legislative meetings on the
bill give no indication of the
reason for the change. In
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: A storm will spread snow and a wintry mix over the Upper Midwest
with rain showers and thunderstorms farther south today. Rain will return to coastal areas
from Northern California to Washington.
Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states)
High 95° in Imperial, Calif.
Low -5° in Embarrass, Minn.
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
77
67
44
46
52
67
71
35
63
45
47
38
83
69
38
86
7
39
83
80
47
66
69
88
71
81
Lo
48
52
35
36
38
56
53
21
47
42
35
36
64
43
34
54
-12
19
69
61
36
42
34
63
56
56
W
s
pc
s
s
pc
pc
pc
s
s
sh
sh
sn
c
pc
sn
s
s
c
pc
pc
sh
s
pc
s
c
pc
Sat.
Hi
79
67
47
51
73
70
65
36
72
51
46
45
82
80
45
88
11
42
82
82
46
76
63
90
73
74
Lo
50
43
36
34
43
41
42
29
45
33
28
33
62
49
30
60
-14
32
69
59
30
48
45
64
50
54
Today
W
s
sh
r
c
c
c
r
sn
pc
sh
pc
sn
c
s
sf
s
s
pc
s
pc
pc
s
pc
pc
s
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
54
70
72
42
46
59
74
40
76
64
42
93
34
38
57
56
75
75
68
75
71
69
46
92
48
73
Lo
44
56
61
34
28
49
57
30
53
29
32
66
12
19
44
27
48
52
41
54
57
52
45
61
39
41
W
sh
c
pc
sn
c
sh
s
s
c
pc
s
s
s
s
s
pc
pc
pc
c
pc
pc
pc
r
s
s
pc
Sat.
Hi
54
71
77
44
43
65
77
38
76
58
45
95
33
39
66
73
66
67
60
80
68
65
50
94
58
72
Lo
33
46
59
27
30
35
60
30
59
42
33
65
20
29
39
44
41
50
36
51
56
53
37
60
37
55
Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain,
sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.
W
s
sh
pc
pc
s
pc
pc
sn
s
s
sn
s
pc
sn
sh
s
sh
sh
s
pc
pc
c
r
s
sh
s