KATHRYN B. BROWN
Owner
ANDREW CUTLER
Publisher/Editor
ERICK PETERSON
Hermiston Editor/Senior Reporter
TUeSdAy, MAy 10, 2022
A4
Founded October 16, 1875
OUR VIEW
Adding police
an investment
in the future
S
eldom is the idea to add more
funding to emergency services
a bad idea, and the fact Pend-
leton City Manager Robb Corbett
wants to boost the number of police
should be seen as a good step by resi-
dents and their elected leaders.
Corbett wants to add two new posi-
tions for the police department in
his 2022-23 budget proposal with
plans to add two more the follow-
ing year. The last time the city police
department faced a boost in posi-
tions was nearly 10 years ago.
The reasons for more police posi-
tions are so lengthy the idea is almost
a no-brainer. At any time, an invest-
ment in public safety is one taxpayers
should — and usually do — support.
That’s because of all the services
a city must pay for and maintain,
public safety is at the top of the list.
Good roads are important as are
many other pieces of city infrastruc-
ture, but if a town is wallowing in
crime none of those things matter.
The key, of course, is money.
Hiring more police means spending
more money. That could make citi-
zen lawmakers on the council leery
and, while understandable, they should
put away their doubts and support
the addition of police positions.
Pendleton also is expected to grow.
As it grows it will encounter all of the
pains — including a potential higher
crime rate — that expansion entails.
That means an investment now in
more police officers will pay real divi-
dends in five to 10 years or beyond.
The police department already is
short-staffed, so the addition of new
officers is really just a step in the
right direction in terms of the abil-
ity to provide the best service possi-
ble for Pendleton residents.
No one — not taxpayers nor their
elected leaders — embraces another
idea to spend money. In a perfect
world the amount we all pay in taxes
would be enough to cover every
conceivable emergency or problem.
The fact is, though, we don’t live
in a perfect world but one where there
are a lot of gray areas rather than black
and white questions and answers.
Adding more officers to the police
department is an excellent idea and one
that shows the city wants to invest in
its future instead of burying its head in
the sand and hoping for the best. Hope
is good, but hope is not a method.
EDITORIALS
Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the East
Oregonian editorial board. Other columns,
letters and cartoons on this page express the
opinions of the authors and not necessarily that
of the East Oregonian.
LETTERS
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of 400 words or less on public issues and public
policies for publication in the newspaper and on
our website. The newspaper reserves the right
to withhold letters that address concerns about
individual services and products or letters that
infringe on the rights of private citizens. Letters
must be signed by the author and include the
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Unsigned letters will not be published.
SEND LETTERS TO:
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or via mail to Andrew Cutler,
211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton, OR 97801
What does an executor decide in a will?
BLAINE
CLOOTEN
ASK AN ATTORNEY
Q. Can the executor decide
who gets what in a will?
A. This is a commonly asked ques-
tion and worth exploring. This question
does not arise until we have a decedent
(person who has passed away) with
property that needs to be probated.
Probate often is needed to clear
title to land or bank accounts, collect
debts owed to the deceased, and/
or resolve any will disputes (valid-
ity or who should take what).
In Oregon, the executor is
referred to as a “personal represen-
tative” but it is the same idea.
In this question, we assume the will
has designated a personal represen-
tative or executor already named.
The personal representative must
be approved by the court and is the
person who is charged with handling
the deceased person’s affairs. The
personal representative has a duty to
take control of the assets of the estate
and determine any outstanding credi-
tors. The personal representative will
give notice to the creditors that they have
four months to bring any claim against
the estate for debts the deceased person
owed to them. The personal repre-
sentative pays these “claims” before
any assets are distributed to heirs.
The heirs (or people named in
the will) are given notice of the
probate proceeding. The personal
representative identifies and inven-
tories the assets of the estate.
The personal representative is under
a fiduciary duty to follow the terms
of the will. The will itself controls
who gets what, not the executor. The
powers of the personal representative
are typically outlined by the will. If
the will is unclear or does not specif-
ically state the personal representa-
tive’s powers the next step is to look to
the law (Oregon Revised Statutes).
The role of the personal represen-
tative is to follow the terms of the will.
While the personal representative might
act as a “tie-breaker” in a will dispute
for personal property, this is an infre-
quent issue when it comes to the “resi-
due” of the estate. I’ll explain why.
A will is typically separated into
two distinct property categories: 1)
personal property; and 2) residue.
Personal property can include things
like jewelry, cars and furniture. Resi-
due of the estate (everything else) are
usually things like: Real property, bank
accounts and retirement accounts.
However, in some estates, all the
personal property, real property and
bank accounts are sold and consolidated
into a single “residue.” It just depends.
For example, a family with a
husband, wife and four children. Let’s
assume all the children are living,
father passed away 10 years ago and
mother passed away three months ago.
The estate is in probate, and there is
personal property at the house that
the children want to “split up.”
This is where the personal repre-
sentative would step in and decide the
method the children will “split up”
or distribute the personal property. A
fairly common way to distribute the
personal property would be by draw-
ing straws, determining and order, and
each child picking a piece of personal
property one at a time, until the desired
pieces are decided. Any remaining/
unwanted items would then be sold off
and distributed as part of the residue.
In this example, not every
person’s pick will necessarily have
an exactly equal value. One child
might pick a dish that has sentimen-
tal value while another child takes
an electronic of significant value.
The rules do not require value
to be exactly the same, but instead
to be substantially equal. Value can
be difficult to determine and gener-
ally, the intent is to have all the heirs
either agree, or compromise.
Personal property is generally differ-
ent from residue, which is typically delin-
eated in shares or percentages. This again
doesn’t mean exactly equal value, but
substantially equal. Under the residue,
one child might be taking a piece of real
property with a hard to define value and
the other child might be taking a bank
account. What’s important is that they
take a substantially equal portion, but
not necessarily an exactly equal portion.
For these reasons, a careful will
drafter will take efforts to avoid conflict
by outlining personal property in a
predetermined order. Often, I include
a “personal property memorandum,”
which allows the testator (will drafter)
to detail which heir will get which piece
of personal property. Susie gets my
jewelry; Joey gets the Ford and so on.
Another way to avoid conflict
is by specifically designating that
all the property of the estate is
to be sold and the proceeds to be
equally divided among the heirs.
If you still have questions, and
I’m guessing you might, please talk
to an estate planning attorney.
———
Blaine Clooten is an attorney serving
Umatilla County with a focus on family
law, estate planning and personal injury
cases. Questions answered do not create
an attorney-client relationship. Facts
and law may vary; talk to an attorney
for more information.
can’t begin to list them. Know that they
are important and make a difference.
When asked why she is running
again, her answer is simple. I am not
done yet. She has so many projects to
see to completion. every one of them
will benefit us in some way. Improv-
ing our neighbor’s lives improves
ours. She will be watching out for all
of us. I am proud to support and to
know Melissa Lindsay. Vote for our
citizens. Vote for Melissa Lindsay.
Kim Cutsforth
Heppner
One of my daughters received a
transfer degree from the college, went
on to Portland State University, gradu-
ated and is now working a professional
level job in social services. She was
the first one in my family to receive a
college degree. A second daughter took
numerous transfer courses in prepara-
tion to apply for the nursing program.
My third daughter spent a year
exploring courses at BMCC after high
school as she contemplated what she
would do for a future career. None of
this would have been possible with-
out the low costs and availability of
transfer courses offered at BMCC.
I hope the BMCC Board of education
will reconsider this radical action. Take
a minute and think of all the people who
have benefited from BMCC’s transfer
program over the years, please don’t take
that opportunity away from others that
would benefit the way my family has.
Bobbie Napoli
The Dalles
YOUR VIEWS
Melissa Lindsay working to
improve Morrow County
I am writing in support of Melissa
Lindsay for Morrow County commis-
sioner. Melissa cares about Morrow
County communities and has worked
diligently to see that they all receive
the resources that they need.
She fought hard to make sure that
the County Administrative Office
remained in Irrigon, when there was a
push to move it. She worked through
many of her numerous resources to
bring everyone to the table to help Ione
find a path toward solving its infra-
structure needs. She fought for fund-
ing for Lexington and all of our cities
to assist with their needs. She has
rallied many entities to find a solution
for the flood mapping at the Kinzua
Mill site, that will allow development.
These are small examples of the way
she has touched us all. She serves on
so many committees and boards that I
BMCC Board of Education
should reconsider
I was surprised to read the arti-
cle about cuts to 10 full-time faculty
at Blue Mountain Community
College. My family lived in Pendle-
ton for many years. My three daughters
took advantage of the opportuni-
ties that were available at BMCC.