REGION
Friday, August 4, 2017
East Oregonian
Page 3A
PENDLETON
HERMISTON
Fire leaves man little break from heat
Rivera accepts EOTEC
manager position
By PHIL WRIGHT
East Oregonian
Richard Hayes of Pend-
leton is sweating out the heat
wave after an electrical fi re
knocked out the power to his
trailer.
“I ain’t got no water,
no electricity, nothing ...,”
Hayes said.
The
fi re
happened
Tuesday afternoon in an
electrical panel on his right
side of his 27-foot trailer at
Catalpa Tree RV Park, 15
S.E. 11th St., Pendleton.
The fi re also damaged the
trailer’s sewer pipes.
“I go up to [Hal’s
Hamburgers] to get lunch,
and I come home and the fi re
department is all over the
place.”
An extension cord to the
outlet on the power pole next
to his trailer provides elec-
tricity to keep the freezer on,
along with a mechanic work
light and the TV. Without a
bathroom, Hayes said he has
to use a portable toilet. And
a buddy lets him shower at
his place, but there is no air
conditioning there, either.
Thursday he was outside
the trailer, trying to enjoy what
little breeze there was while
the sun pushed temperatures
into the high 90s.
By JADE MCDOWELL
East Oregonian
Staff photo by Phil Wright
An electrical fi re Tuesday has left Richard Hayes of Pendleton without power or wa-
ter in the trailer he calls home.
“Too damn hot in the
trailer,” he said.
Hayes’ neighbor, Barbara
Wright, said she set up an
online crowdfunding account
to help him and plans to
open a donation account at
Community Bank. She also
said she is reaching out to
Keystone RV to see if the
local manufacturer would
donate a trailer.
Hayes,
a
disabled
Army veteran who served
in Vietnam, said he’s
“exploring a bunch of
avenues” to get out of the
predicament.
“I’m just a regular guy,”
he said, “trying to get along.”
And until something
better comes alone, Hayes
continues to live in the
powerless trailer.
If you want more informa-
tion on how to help Richard
Hayes, call Barbara Wright
at 541-276-3532. An online
fundraiser has been set up at
www.youcaring.com
Oregon rolls out private retirement program
By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN
East Oregonian
Come January, all private
sector employees in Oregon
will be able to save for their
retirement through a new
statewide program. The
Oregon State Treasury is
looking for volunteers in
Eastern Oregon to join the
pilot groups.
The program, called
“OregonSaves,” is the result
of legislation passed in 2015,
and aims to expand the
number of Oregonians saving
for their retirements through
automatic payroll deduc-
tions. It is not connected
to the Public Employees
Retirement System.
The bill was introduced in
2015 as House Bill 2960, and
passed 32-26.
James Sinks, the state
treasury’s director of commu-
nications and stakeholder
relations, said they are now
in the process of testing out a
pilot phase, and are about to
start a second one.
“We want to ensure
it’s going simply for the
employers and workers, and
make sure it has geographic
representation in all parts of
Oregon,” Sinks said.
Joel
Metlen,
public
engagement manager for the
state treasury, said the fi rst
pilot phase has included 11
employers, and about 163
employees, from businesses
in Portland, Bend and
Southern Oregon.
“Most have started payroll
deductions,” said Metlen.
“That was really our fi rst test,
to have different employees
set up accounts and make
choices about participation,
savings grades and invest-
ment options.”
“We have a retirement savings
crisis in the country.”
— James Sinks, Oregon State Treasury
Volunteer groups for the
fi rst pilot phase include S
& S Sheetmetal in White
City, Square Deal Lumber
in Springfi eld, Upper Rogue
Physical Therapy in Shady
Cove and Statehood Media
in Bend.
Now that the fi rst pilot
phase is underway, state
treasury employees will be
rolling out a second pilot
phase, on a larger scale.
“We have about 40
employers who’ve expressed
interest,” Sinks said. “That
represents about 2,000
employees.”
In addition to testing
out the program, treasury
employees hope to fi gure
out how things work across
different business models
— large and small orga-
nizations, companies that
outsource their payroll, and
ones that do it in-house.
But all have one thing in
common: they’re private-
sector companies that don’t
have retirement savings
programs.
“In Oregon, we like to be
fi rst,” Sinks said. “The bottle
bill, the beach bill, land use
planning, vote-by-mail. This
is the fi rst in (the nation)
retirement plan for private
sector workers.”
The plan, he said, is
specifi cally geared toward
employees whose employers
don’t have plans to help
them save.
“More than half of private
sector workers in the state
don’t have retirement plans,”
Sinks said. “That ends up
being about one million
people.”
Sinks noted that the plan is
not tied to specifi c employers,
but is managed by the state.
If an employer already has a
retirement program in place,
this one will not replace it.
“When
people
do
payroll deductions, they’ll
pass the money through to
OregonSaves,” he said. “So
employers have to do some-
thing, but they don’t have
any fi duciary risk.”
Though
people
can
make changes once they’re
enrolled, the program is
fairly structured, Sinks said.
“A lot of people don’t save
because they’re intimidated,”
Sinks said. “Best practices
(say) to automatically put
people into retirement plans,
and put them into a simple
option so they don’t get
overwhelmed.”
Sinks said there are several
savings options — capital
preservation, market-based,
and target-date funds. Funds
are managed by State Street
Global Advisors, a private
asset management company.
The default amount that
the program takes out of a
paycheck is 5 percent, but
Sinks said people can adjust
that number.
People can also choose to
opt out of the program.
Metlen said they’ve seen
fairly positive reactions from
their pilot group.
“Most people who are
actually workers, having
automatic savings through
their paycheck benefi ts
HERMISTON
Woman suffering mental episode assaults cop
East Oregonian
Hermiston Police Chief
Jason Edmiston reported an
offi cer came away with a
bloody nose while trying to
arrest a woman.
“No call for service is
ever predictable,” Edmiston
said in a written statement,
“and offi cers are trained to
be alert and ready to take
immediate action. This inci-
dent involves yet another
person having a mental
crisis of some kind and
offi cers having to respond
and be the community care-
taker.”
Police at about 8 p.m.
responded to the 300 block
of East Cherry Avenue
after a caller reported a
relative was experiencing
mental issues and outrage,
according to the Hermiston
police activity bulletin.
Edmiston reported offi cers
encountered Janie Appleby,
47, of 320 E. Cherry Ave.,
No. B., Hermiston, and had
a warrant for her arrest.
Police tried to take her
into custody, Edmiston
reported, but Appleby
fought back.
“Appleby
refused
all verbal commands,”
according to the chief, “and
ultimately struck an offi cer
in the face, causing a bloody
nose and broken glasses.”
She also kicked the same
offi cer in the chest.
Police took Appleby to
the Umatilla County Jail,
Pendleton, and booked her
on charges of assaulting
a police offi cer, resisting
arrest and second-degree
criminal mischief.
Fortunately, Edmiston
stated, the offi cer suffered
only minor injuries, “but
taxpayers will be footing the
bill to replace the glasses
Ms. Appleby broke.”
them,” he said.
Sinks said initially, those
enrolling will have to pay one
percent of their assets toward
the program. This fi scal year,
he said, the treasury depart-
ment is taking out a loan of
$2 million for the program.
“It will start paying for
itself in six or seven years,”
he said.
He added that not
everyone has been compli-
mentary of the program.
“There has been a vocal
minority who doesn’t like
the government getting
involved in this, and thinks
private individuals can take
care of folks,” he said, noting
that the criticism has mostly
come from people who work
in fi nancial services.
“Other employers are not
necessarily opposed to the
program, but feel like there’s
a lot of mandates coming
down from the state, and like
this is an extra thing they’re
being asked to do.”
Nevertheless, they hope
the program will catch on
once it’s implemented.
“We’ve worked hard to
put this together,” Sinks said.
“As the fi rst one in the country,
we want to do it right. Other
places are watching Oregon
very carefully.”
Employers interested in
volunteering for the second
pilot group can contact the
treasury department at retire-
mentsavings@ost.state.or.us.
The deadline to sign up for the
pilot phase is next week.
———
Contact
Jayati
Ramakrishnan
at
jramakrishnan@eastorego-
nian.com or 541-564-4534
Nate Rivera will serve
as interim general manager
for the Eastern Oregon
Trade and Event Center
for up to six months after
the facility hosts its fi rst
Umatilla County Fair.
He will retain his posi-
tion as general manager of
Hermiston Energy Services
and said that job will take
fi rst priority, but he is
working with Byron Smith
— who will oversee both
sides of the equation as city
manager and EOTEC board
chair — to strike a balance
between obligations to both
jobs.
Rivera was part of the
original planning group
for EOTEC, and said he
has always been passionate
about helping it succeed.
“I’m excited to be part
of the project again,” he
said.
The EOTEC board
voted on a motion during
a special meeting Monday
to extend Rivera an offer
of the interim position for
a period “not to exceed six
months,” and Rivera said he
hopes to help the board hire
a new manager sooner than
that and then assist in the
transition before returning
his full focus to Hermiston
Energy Services.
The plan is to have others
pitch in with the day-to-day
operations like answering
phones and locking up after
events while Rivera works
more “behind the scenes”
to craft a business plan,
staffi ng plan, maintenance
plan and guide to policies
and procedures for the
facility. He said those proj-
ects should help the board
in its search for someone
to run the facility for years
into the future.
“This is not a long-term
solution,” Rivera said of
his interim position. “The
idea is not for me to tran-
sition up there. My role is
to help create a long-term
solution.”
Rivera offi cially starts
August 14, as business
manager Heather Cannell
leaves for a new job at the
SAGE Center. Cannell has
been handling day-to-day
operations,
marketing
and booking for the event
center with the help of an
administrative assistant and
janitorial contractor, but as
construction on the rest of
the project wraps up the
EOTEC board has been
advertising for a general
manager.
Final touches like
fencing and signs are
being placed on EOTEC
this week as the facility
gets ready to host the
Umatilla County Fair and
Farm-City Pro Rodeo next
week. Rivera said he will
be spending time on-site
during the fair getting
trained on the ins and outs
of the facility.
“I’m looking forward
to re-engaging with the
EOTEC project,” he said.
Police monitor cruisers’
carbon monoxide levels
after national recalls
By JAYATI
RAMAKRISHNAN
East Oregonian
Police vehicles around
the U.S. have recently
been recalled after carbon
monoxide leaks and health
issues have been reported
in Ford Explorer police
cruisers in Massachusetts,
Texas and Washington.
According
to
the
National Highway Traffi c
Safety
Administration,
more than 700 complaints
have been received about
carbon monoxide leaks in
the vehicle. CBS reported
that one police offi cer in
Massachusetts passed out
while driving and crashed,
a result of carbon monoxide
poisoning.
Local law enforcement
offi cials also drive the
SUVs, and are taking note
of the issues around the
country.
The Hermiston Police
Department has six Ford
Explorer
SUVs,
and
though it hasn’t seen any
problems yet, plans to
monitor carbon dioxide in
them.
“We are aware others
are having problems and
we will be moving forward
with (carbon monoxide)
detectors to ensure our
offi cers are safe,” said
Hermiston Police Chief
Jason Edmiston. He added
that on Thursday, three
people from his department
were traveling to Portland
to pick up two new vehi-
cles. However, he said the
two new vehicles will be
Dodge pickups that will be
outfi tted as patrol vehicles.
“The pickups cost
around $9,000 less to
fully outfi t versus the Ford
SUVs, so we are going to
give them a try,” Edmiston
said.
The Umatilla County
Sheriff’s Offi ce will also
be watching their vehicles
closely.
“We’ve not had any
issues with them so far, but
we will be placing (carbon
monoxide) detectors in
those vehicles in case
something like that comes
about,” said Captain Dave
Williamson. He estimated
that the department has 15
or 16 Ford Explorers.
The solar eclipse is coming
August 21
Come get the coolest eclipse
glasses in town at your nearest
East Oregonian office, or come
visit us at our Umatilla County
Fair booth, Aug. 8-12.
D
L
SO
T
U
O
$1 EACH
Best deal in town!
Pick some up for your friends
and family while supplies last.
East Oregonian
1-800-522-0255
211 SE Byers Ave. Pendleton 333 East Main St. Hermiston