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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 11, 2015)
A4 Opinion wallowa.com November 11, 2015 Wallowa County Chieftain Department of Energy makes shady deals, hides rationale I magine a government agency that thwarts the will of elected Voice of the Chieftain of¿cials, as it maNes dubious deals with businesses, then tries to hide from the public the purported legal rationale for its actions. No need to invent such a cagey agency. It already exists. Here in Oregon. It’s called the state Department of Energy. When the Oregon Legislature passed laws creating the Business Energy Tax Credit program, the purpose was to encourage individuals and businesses to invest in projects that were energy ef¿cient or would use renewable sources. Recipients could use the credits to reduce their tax bill. The credits could also be transferred to a third party to raise capital. The program and the prices were to be administered by the state Department of Energy. Hillary Borrud, a reporter with our Capital Bureau, uncovered how shoddy that oversight has been. 6he revealed that Energy of¿cials Tuietly stopped enforcing pricing and other rules for the credit transfers bacN in 2011. This allowed private broNers to arrange deals in which the prices were never veri¿ed by the state. It was later learned that some buyers avoided paying capital gains taxes on the transfer. Energy’s inconsistent handling of the credits program is troubling and smacNs of political favoritism. In the waNe of these revelations, there has been a steady stream of resignations of Energy of¿cials, including the head of the loan program and the agency’s chief ¿nancial of¿cer. *ov. .ate Brown has asNed the Legislature to review and then shut down the Business Energy Tax Credit program. That’s not good enough. A full audit is warranted. Gov. Brown should also order the release of a recent opinion on the matter by the Department of -ustice. Energy of¿cials have claimed for years that lawyers at Justice vetted and approved the discounted sales. If that’s the case, why are Energy of¿cials and the governor refusing to release that report? Our company, EO Media Group, along with Pamplin Media Group and the Oregonian, have been rebuffed in attempts to obtain the opinion under Oregon’s Public Records Law. That law is aimed at ensuring that the public’s business is transparent to its citizens and taxpayers. Of¿cials at the Department of Energy have ignored directions from the Legislature and its own administrative rules. Now they’re hiding behind claims of attorney-client privilege. It’s past time they give up this charade. EDITORIAL USPS No. 665-100 P.O. Box 338 • Enterprise, OR 97828 Of¿ce 29 1: )irst St., Enterprise, Ore. Phone 27 • )ax 2392 :aOOowa Count\’s 1ewspaper Since 88 Enterprise, Oregon Our veterans continue to serve Veterans Day is one day to honor the service and sacri¿ce of all who have raised their right hand, worn the uniform, defended our freedom and stood guard over our peace. Across our 70-year history, the Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs has witnessed generations of service members returning home and then using their hard-earned leadership sNills and experience to signi¿cantly contribute to our communities. What many citizens may not Nnow is that one out of every 12 Oregonians is a veteran. While our veterans gain great strength from their service, it is not surprising that many can face challenges as they reintegrate home. For those impacted by their service, we must understand their tenacious spirit and resiliency. They deserve nothing less than the best in care, resources and support. There is never a doubt, though, that our learned resilience, idealistic pride and unwavering dedication to our families, community and each other is stronger because we served in uniform. TaNe the recent examples of young returning veterans from Oregon liNe AleN SNarlatos and Chris Mintz. SNarlatos captured international headlines for thwarting a terrorist attacN while traveling in France after his deployment GUEST COLUMN Cameron Smith in Afghanistan with the Oregon Army National Guard. Similarly, Mintz, an Army veteran, also chose to run toward chaos on the UmpTua Community College campus to help protect fellow students. He was shot multiple times and, thanNfully, continues to recover for his young family and community. These stories have made the national news, but our local veterans communities are ¿lled with everyday examples of inspiring continued service. Bill Grif¿th is a former Navy Corpsman who served in Vietnam and is continuing to serve his fellow veterans as an award-winning volunteer Long Term Care Ombudsman. He was recently recognized for his advocacy for our aging veterans at the Oregon Veterans’ Home in The Dalles and other sNilled nursing facilities, receiving the Governor’s Volunteer Award in October. A recent appointment to ODVA’s Advisory Committee, Kim Douthit, is a Coast Guard veteran and continues to serve student veterans in her role as a veterans’ coordinator at Portland Community College. She is a leader for both our fastest growing demographic, women veterans, and for all veterans across Oregon. While our focus is on our veterans, we also must remember the service and sacri¿ce of our military and veteran families. Judi Van Cleave of Portland was elected as the National President of Gold Star Wives of America. Her late husband was a disabled Korean War veteran. Judi’s signi¿cant service for two decades with Gold Star Wives of America continues to honor our fallen and their families. Across our team at the Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs, many of us are veterans and family members of veterans, and we continue to be inspired by our current service members, veterans and their families. We are honored and privileged to serve them — not just on Veterans Day, but throughout the year. It is their individual stories that maNe up the incredible fabric of our community. No matter the branch of service, no matter the era, no matter who we are, or where we live, we stand proudly together. We are Oregon veterans. Cameron Smith served three tours in Iraq as a U.S. Marine captain and is the director of the Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs. Knights of the Range resourceful Over the years I have noticed that cowboys as a rule are pretty resourceful. BroNen reins can be ¿eld-spliced with little more than a pocNet Nnife but I have noticed that there is nothing as perma- nent as a temporary ¿x and often the opposite is a truism. The price a cowboy pays for his lifestyle is low pay, long hours and dangerous conditions. It is not a life for the weaN of heart. Rodeo Cow- boys fall into a subcategory. Their life is fairly dangerous and they are often far from home and short of cash. This often causes lapses of the Code of the West. It is not unusual for them to lower their normally high moral standards to suc- cumb to a common-looNing girl’s wiles if she continues to buy his drinNs. My friend Barney was at the Reno Rodeo and short of funds. I saw him talNing to a girl and overheard him offer to buy her dinner and have a night on the town. Unfortunately Barney was short of cash and if she could cash a checN for him he would then be in a position to show her a great time and a slice of cowboy life. She eagerly cashed a $150 checN Barney wrote out and the party was on. The girl had a wonderful time on Barney’s cash, downed Tuite a few drinNs and danced up a storm. Fortunate- ly she failed to notice Barney retrieve OPEN RANGE Barrie Qualle the checN he had written her from her purse and a few minutes later excuse himself to go to the restroom and never return. My friend Jim also was resourceful and also capable of lapses in the Code. During a long drought of winning, both our resources were low. At a rodeo where nothing was going right we were celebrating in a less-than-charming bar. The last of the cash was expended on a ¿nal drinN. Halfway through the drinN I heard Jim asN the bartender to call a cab for us to get bacN to the motel. I mentioned to Jim that I was completely broNe, and he maybe had 50 cents. His response was that it would be OK and he had the situation in hand. We downed our drinNs and Jim said let’s go outside and wait for the cab. Outside, Jim suggested we wait down the street from the bar for the cab and I asNed him what he was up to. His plan — and it worNed — was that when the cab driver arrived he would double parN, leaving the motor running, and go into the bar and asN who wanted the cab. That would be our opportunity to jump in the cab and head for the motel. We could maNe the hotel in about ten minutes and parN the cab a couple of blocNs away and leave the Neys in it. Jim viewed this as more liNe borrowing than grand theft auto. Another time out of town Jim’s horse coliced and things didn’t looN good. We loaded the horse and got him to a veterinary hospital, where Jim checNed the horse in and the vet went over the options. Jim opted to start with the less expensive treatments and oper- ate only as a last resort. The next morn- ing I overheard him calling to checN on the horse’s condition and the name he gave was not his. I asNed him why he had checNed the horse in under someone else’s name and his explanation was that if the horse had died he wouldn’t have to pay the bill and if it recovered he could pay the bill and retrieve it. Not everything I learned from these guys was worthwhile, but they were tru- ly resourceful. I sometimes wonder why some ranchers don’t want their daugh- ters to date rodeo cowboys. CoOumnist Barrie 4uaOOe is a worN ing cowEo\ in :aOOowa Count\. M EMBER O REGON N EWSPAPER P UBLISHERS A SSOCIATION P UBLISHER E DITOR R EPORTER R EPORTER N EWSROOM ASSISTANT A D S ALES CONSULTANT G RAPHIC D ESIGNER O FFICE MANAGER No such thing as ‘accidental’ shooting Marissa Williams, marissa@bmeagle.com Scot Heisel, editor@wallowa.com Stephen Tool, stool@wallowa.com Kathleen Ellyn, kellyn@wallowa.com editor@wallowa.com Jennifer Powell, jpowell@wallowa.com Robby Day, rday@wallowa.com Cheryl Jenkins, cjenkins@wallowa.com P UBLISHED EVERY W EDNESDAY BY : EO Media Group Periodical Postage Paid at Enterprise and additional mailing of¿ces Subscription rates (includes online access) Wallowa County Out-of-County 1 Year $40.00 $57.00 SuEscriptions must Ee paid prior to deOiver\ See the Wallowa County Chieftain on the Internet www.wallowa.com facebooN.com/Wallowa _ twitter.com/wcchieftain POSTMASTER — Send address changes to Wallowa County Chieftain P.O. Box 8 Enterprise, OR 7828 Contents copyright © 2015. All rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. Volume 133 To the editor: There has been way too much pub- lished and broadcasted lately of what is called and “accidental” discharge of ¿rearms. I am a former peace of¿cer and regular Army soldier, in addition to be- ing a shooting instructor and coach. To me there is no such thing as an accidental discharge of a ¿rearm, but rather a neg- ligent discharge of a ¿rearm, and people LETTER to the EDITOR who engage in ¿rearms sports, etc., and are not competent, I strongly urge you to become competent before you hurt some- one. Alfred P. Jones Lewiston, Idaho Letters to the Editor are subject to editing and should be limited to 275 words. Writers should also include a phone number with their signature so we can call to verify identity. You can submit a letter to the Wallowa Coun- ty Chieftain in person by mail to P.O. Box 8, Enterprise, OR 7828 by email to editor#wallowa.com Where to write Washington, D.C. U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D — 516 Hart Senate Of¿ce Building, Washing- ton D.C. 20510. Phone: 202-224-5244. E-mail: wayneBNinney#wyden.senate. gov Web site: http://wyden.senate.gov Fax: 202-228-2717. U.S. Sen. Jeff MerNley, D — 1 Hart Senate Of¿ce Building, Washing- ton D.C. 20510. Phone: 202-224-75. E-mail: senator#merNley.senate.gov. Fax: 202-228-7. Oregon of¿ces include One World Trade Center, 121 S.W. Salmon St., Suite 1250, Portland, OR 7204 and 10 S.E. Second St., Suite 105, Pendleton, OR 7801. Phone: 50-26-86 541-278- 112. Fax: 50-26-20. U.S. Rep. Greg Walden, R — (Sec- ond District) 1404 Longworth Build- ing, Washington D.C. 20515. Phone: 202-225-670. No direct e-mail be- cause of spam. Web site: www.walden. house.gov Fax: 202-225-5774. Med- ford of¿ce: 14 North Central, Suite 112, Medford, OR 7501. Phone: 541- 776-4646. Fax: 541-77-0204. Pending Bills: For information on bills in Congress, Phone: 202-225- 1772.