News
wallowa.com
GARRETT
Calls to Oregon’s government
Zaste Kotline at a ¿veyear KigK
Continued from Page A1
“Our usual band and lodg-
ing budget is $16,000, but
we’re hoping to get enough
sponsors to increase that to
$22,000 to $25,000.”
The festival board is plan-
ning a media/sponsor blitz for
the holiday season.
The festival won the 2015
“Muddy” award for best
Northwest blues event from
the Cascade Blues Associa-
tion.
“That CBA award should
help bring people in. It’s a
pretty big deal.”
Garrett has no regrets about
taking a step back from the
festival.
“We’ve brought a lot of
good times and music to this
county, and money, too. We’ve
done some good things.”
The only negative expe-
rience Garrett can recall also
was among his fondest mem-
ories. One year blues guitarist
and festival headliner Joe Lou-
is Walker failed to show for the
gig.
“We had (Blues Brothers
inspiration) Curtis Salgado,
who was the fourth act, come
up and play another set, and
the audience loved it,” Garrett
said.
As much as Garrett enjoys
the events, he said he looks
forward to allowing others to
handle the responsibilities.
“It’s getting to be a lot of
work and takes time away
from my business,” he said,
“I still want to be involved
with the graphics, the web-
site, posters and that kind of
work. It’s been a great run.”
HEARING
Continued from Page A1
A major concern for the
licensing proponents was
that the public had been fed
wrong information about
marijuana.
Jack Poulson of Wal-
lowa, a medical marijuana
card-holder who can legally
grow for himself and others,
said the public was misin-
formed on what marijuana
was and thought of it as a
drug, when it’s actually a
medicine.
“You need to do research
on this, please,” Poulson
said. “They’re killing stage-
four cancer with cannabis oil.
It’s saving lives. How many
people die from alcohol? And
there’s a liquor store in ev-
ery town. I lost a sister to a
drunk driver right outside of
Wallowa 30-some years ago.
I lost a good friend the next
night to another drunk driver.
We’ve lost a lot of lives to
drunk driving. I don’t have
anything against alcohol. I
drink a beer or two every
night ... at my house.”
A concern for individuals
in favor of the opt out was the
safety of children.
Chad Nash of Enterprise
argued that marijuana had
changed over the years and
that modern marijuana was
not harmless.
“I realize there are mis-
conceptions about marijua-
na and there are all kinds
of science that refutes other
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sort through that,” Nash said.
“But we know marijuana
has been highly hybridized
and genetically engineered
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It’s been bred ... to be highly
potent and to be even addic-
tive.”
While expressing an deep
By Hillary Borrud
Capital Bureau
SALEM — The Oregon
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on track to receive more com-
plaints this year to the govern-
ment waste, fraud and abuse
hotline than in any of the pre-
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As of Nov. 10, the agency
had received 235 complaints,
according to audit manager V.
Dale Bond at the Secretary of
State’s Audits Division. Em-
ployees still have to go back
to remove any duplicate com-
plaints, but the highest number
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years was 184 complaints in
2010, according to an email
from Bond. The lowest num-
ber of complaints during that
period was 145 complaints in
2012.
Molly Woon, a spokes-
woman for the Secretary of
”
December 2, 2015
A9
Wallowa County Chieftain
I APPRECIATE THE GOOD JUDGMENT THESE INDIVIDUALS DEMON- RXWRIWKHRI¿FHIRUYDFDWLRQRU
sick leave.
STRATED AS WELL AS THE INVESTIGATIVE WORK THAT IS BRINGING
Earlier this year, a com-
plaint
to the hotline prompted
IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING THESE EVENTS TO LIGHT.
Gov. Kate Brown
6WDWH¶V2I¿FHVDLGHPSOR\HHV ed the response of employees regarding these events to light.”
Statistics on the outcomes of
believe the increase in com- at the state data center who
plaints to the hotline might questioned a request from a the complaints were not avail-
be connected to Gov. Kate staffer in former Gov. John able on Wednesday, but they
Brown’s message to state em- .LW]KDEHU¶V RI¿FH WR GHOHWH can vary widely depending
upon the incident.
ployees in March, in which the Kitzhaber’s emails.
For example, a 2014 com-
“I believe the staff members
governor asked employees to
speak up if they observe prob- at (Department of Administra- plaint that Oregon Parks and
lems. Brown included a link to tive Services) who were not Recreation Department em-
the web page for the govern- comfortable with what they be- ployees had not properly re-
ment waste, fraud and abuse lieved they were being asked to corded work absences was re-
GR E\ *RY .LW]KDEHU¶V RI¿FH ferred to the parks department
hotline.
“We think this is at least responded correctly by notify- for an internal investigation.
in part due to the Governor’s ing their supervisors, and the The inquiry revealed that two
introductory email to state em- agency’s decision to suspend HPSOR\HHV VSHFL¿FDOO\ LGHQ-
ployees in March ... and her further action was appropriate,” WL¿HG LQ WKH FRPSODLQW ² +5
highlighting the hotline pro- Brown wrote. “I appreciate the director Tasha Petersen and
gram in her new role,” Woon good judgment these individ- HR analyst Susan Kirschen-
uals demonstrated as well as mann — had recorded on their
wrote in an email.
In her message to employ- the investigative work that is timesheets that they worked
ees in March, Brown highlight- bringing important information hours when they were actually
auditors at the Secretary of
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Department of Energy’s han-
dling of renewable energy and
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ultimately concluded that the
Department of Energy never
publicized a 2012 decision to
allow people to ignore price
regulations on the sale of en-
HUJ\WD[FUHGLWVVRIHZ¿QDQFH
¿UPV NQHZ WKH\ FRXOG QHJRWL-
ate such deals. Brown respond-
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a review of the Department of
Energy.
“Our hotline team works
diligently to triage urgent com-
plaints and concerns, forward
calls to other state agencies
when appropriate, and inves-
tigate cases when necessary,”
Woon wrote in an email.
Fishtrap offering fellowships for summer gathering
Wallowa County Chieftain
Fishtrap Fellowships rec-
ognize and encourage writers
Local creative writing who show promise at an early
QRQSUR¿W)LVKWUDSLVRIIHULQJ stage in their career. The pri-
three fellowship opportu- PDU\EHQH¿WRIWKLVDZDUGLV
nities for the 2016 Summer an opportunity to attend the
Fishtrap Gathering on July 2016 Summer Fishtrap Gath-
10-16 at Wallowa Lake. Ap- ering. In addition, Fellows
plications are due through receive advance workshop
registration, meals, lodging
Dec. 13.
and are featured readers at a
program during the week.
A Fishtrap Fellowship
covers the cost of the sev-
en-day retreat including a
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plus readings, activities and
panel discussions. A Fishtrap
Fellowship is valued at more
than $1,000 and represents
able here.”
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however, comes to nothing
given the lack of information
on how any taxes would af-
fect Wallowa County.
“We don’t know what that
(tax amount) would be; we
have no idea at this point.”
Commissioner Roberts said.
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making rules. We basically
don’t know what the rules
are.”
Based on information
from the Association of Or-
egon Counties, the commis-
sioners believe that opting
out now means they will lose
the ability to assign a 3 per-
cent local tax at a later date.
The opportunity to opt back
in at a future date is expected
to remain open.
7KH ¿UVW \HDU RI WD[ FRO-
lection in Oregon will see a
sharing of a percentage of
statewide taxes with every
county based on population.
“The second year it goes
to a percentage based on
outlets in the county,” said
Roberts. “It’s not going to be
much.”
County Treasurer Shonelle
Dutcher said she was “not
taking a stand, one way or
another” about legalization,
but that the county needed
the revenue of any taxes.
“My concern is revenues
to the county,” Dutcher said.
“The county does need reve-
nues. I would hate to see the
county completely say no to
it without an option to say
yes at a later date.”
A second ordinance hear-
ing, scheduled for 10 a.m.
Monday in the Thornton
Conference Room at the
County Courthouse in En-
terprise, may be the last time
members of the public can
weigh in on the matter.
concern for misuse of alco-
hol, Nash said it did not less-
en the danger.
Carpenter agreed that
the industry should not tar-
get children in the way that
tobacco companies did for
decades.
Poulson pointed out that if
you have a liquor cabinet in a
home with children, you of-
ten keep it locked up or out of
reach to protect the children,
and that the same procedures
should be used for marijuana.
Poulson also encouraged
the commissioners to do
more research on the poten-
tial income from marijuana.
“I think opting out would
hurt the community in a lot
of ways. We could create a
bunch of jobs and have a lot
of tax revenue for this coun-
ty. There’s 400,000 people
come through (this county)
every year. I know some of
those people are looking to
buy weed. It should be avail-
an opportunity for emerging
writers to build new friend-
ships and a renewed sense
of creative potential in an at-
mosphere of mentorship and
community.
Since 1990, Fishtrap has
awarded more than 100 Fel-
lowships to writers through-
out the West and many have
gone on to important publica-
tion and full-time careers as
writers and teachers.
For more information
about the guidelines and ap-
plication process, visit http://
tinyurl.com/zm6ksep.
Registration for the 29th
Summer Fishtrap Gathering
opens March 1.
Pet of the Week
Star
is a one
year old spayed
female mixed
breed dog needing a home.
Star is 65 pounds, very
energetic and strong, people
oriented and eager to please.
Star knows a few basic com-
mands but needs lots of
attention and an indoor/out-
door home with a fenced yard.
$50 adoption fee.
Call Karen if interested in an
interview in Joseph at
541-432-7310
www.wallowacountyhumanesociety.org
An IRS 501 (C)3 ORGANIZATION
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