CLASSIFIEDS/STATE Wallowa.com 101 Legal Notices 101 Legal Notices PUBLIC NOTICE A public meeting of the Wallowa County Compensation Committee will be held on Friday, April 9, 2021. The meeting will be held at the Wallowa County Courthouse in the Thornton Conference Room at 10:00 am. The purpose of this meeting is to make recommendations on elected officials compensation to the Wallowa County Commission. Legal No. 237876 Published: March 31, April 7, 2021 101 Legal Notices 101 Legal Notices NOTICE OF BUDGET COMMITTEE MEETING A public meeting of the Budget Committee of the Wallowa Rural Fire District, Wallowa, State of Oregon, to discuss the budget for the fiscal year July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022, will be held at Wallowa City Fire Hall, Wallowa, Oregon. The meeting will take place on April 21, 2021 at 6:30 pm . The purpose of the meeting is to receive the budget message and to receive comment from the public on the budget. This is a public meeting where deliberation of the Budget Committee will take place. Any person may appear at the meeting and discuss the proposed programs with the Budget Committee. A copy of the budget document may be inspected or obtained on or after April 21, 2021 at Wallowa City Fire Hall, between the hours of 9:00am and 3:00pm. Published: April 7, 14, 2021 101 Legal Notices Legal No. 236974 101 Legal Notices NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING Pursuant to ORS 477.250, notice is hereby given that a public hearing will be held at the Northeast Oregon Forest Protection (NEO) District Office, 611 20th Street, La Grande, Oregon, on April 22, 2021 at 10:00 am , to receive from any interested persons suggestions, advice, objections or remonstrance’s to the proposed budget for the forest protection district. A copy of the tentative budge for the Forest Protection District may be inspected during normal working hours. To ensure the broad- est range of services to individuals with disabilities, persons disabilities requiring special arrangements should contact Kay Rinker, at 541-276-3491 at least two working days in advance of the scheduled hearing. OREGON DEPARTMENT OF FORESTRY PETER DAUGHERTY, STATE FORESTER Published: April 7, 14, 2021 101 Legal Notices Legal No. 236979 101 Legal Notices PUBLIC NOTICE The Troy School Board will meet for their Regular Board Meeting and Budget Committee Meeting on Tuesday, April 13, 2021 at 4:00 pm. To support the Governor’s recommendations for social distancing, Troy School District #54 will conduct the April 13, 2021 board meeting by telephone/video conference only. Members of the public can contact Gretchen Piper: gpiper@r18esd.org for information on attending. Public Comment. Only written public comment or testimony will be accepted and may be submitted to Troy SD #54, 107 SW First Street, Suite 105, Enterprise, OR 97828. Agenda and materials for the board meeting will be available at least 24 hours prior to the meeting and can be requested from Wallowa Education Service District – Region 18, 107 SW First Street #105, Enterprise, OR 97828 or by email: gpiper@r18esd.org. Troy School District remains committed to the public comment process and will consider all public comment seriously. Please email written comments or testimony to gpiper@r18esd.org or send by mail to Troy School District #54, 107 SW First Street, Suite 105, Enterprise, OR 97828. √ Clearly label the subject line as: Public Comment or Testimony and include the topic. Example: Public Comment – Assessment. √ All written public comment will be posted to http://www.kasha. r18esd.org:8080/OpenKM/login.jsp. √ Public comments or testimony submitted the morning of the board meeting or during the board meeting will be posted to http://www.kasha.r18esd.org:8080/OpenKM/login.jsp within 48 business hours. Published: April 7, 2021 I’m late, I’m late for a very important date. Deadline for classified ads 10:00 am Monday No time to say Hello, Goodbye, I’m late, I’m late, I’m Late!!! - White Rabbit Alice in Wonderland Place your business in the Service Directory By GARY A. WARNER Oregon Capital Bureau SALEM — COVID- 19 infections are on the rise again in Oregon, a fourth wave of increasing cases since the pandemic began. “This virus is at our door- step — our numbers are ris- ing and we are back on alert,” said Gov. Kate Brown at a Friday, April 2, press conference. A steep drop in infections since Jan. 1 had shown signs of bottoming out in recent weeks, but the most current data shows COVID-19 is again on the rise. The April numbers are showing that the most pes- simistic forecasts last month are coming true. “The virus appears to be rebounding,” said Dr. Dean Sidelinger, the Oregon Health Authority’s top infectious disease expert. “COVID-19 is a resilient enemy.” The OHA reports cases are averaging 392 per day, while hospitalizations are up and the percentage of tests that come back positive is 3.7%. That is still below the 5% level above which the OHA has said growth of the virus becomes exponential. The rise comes despite the arrival of three vaccines that can inoculate people from the virus. But only 18% of Ore- gonians are currently com- pletely vaccinated, slightly higher than the national average. The OHA had hoped to have at least one shot of vac- cine given to every Orego- nian over age 16 who wanted one by late May. Due to vac- cine delivery issues, the OHA is now looking at early June to reach the goal. The state is getting an average of about 30,000 new shots of vaccine into arms of people per day, though mostly the Moderna and Pfi zer vaccines that require two shots spaced out over about a month. The OHA had been hoping for a surge of new one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccines. But the company announced ONLINE More information on the COVID-19 situation in Oregon and how to fi nd vaccinations can be found at getvaccinated. oregon.gov. Courtnie McCAuliff e/Contributed Photo Ruthie Mann, infection control offi cer at Wallowa Memorial Hospital, prepares a syringe with the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine Tuesday, March 9, 2021. In the background is Stacey Karvoski, WMH quality director and nurse. last week that a subcontractor in Baltimore had improperly mixed ingredients, ruining as many as 15 million doses set to go out to states over the next few weeks. The Johnson & Johnson vaccines that are currently being given are not from this batch and are safe and eff ec- tive, the Centers for Dis- ease Control and Prevention reported earlier last week. Oregon has over 35,000 doses of Johnson & John- son vaccine available now, but it will receive between 200,000 and 300,000 fewer doses than expected in com- ing weeks. The inoculation campaign comes amid concern of the growth of new, more-conta- gious and likely more-lethal versions of COVID-19. Researchers have found that those who are inoculated will most likely be spared severe illness or death com- pared to the unvaccinated. “This is a race between the vaccines and the vari- ants,” Brown said. Washington will become the latest state to off er vac- cines to everyone age 16 and above earlier than the fed- eral May 1 deadline. Gov. Jay Inslee has announced all eligibility restrictions will be lifted April 15. Brown announced early Tuesday, April 6, that vacci- nations would be made avail- able to anyone 16 and older beginning on April 19. Oregon was fi ghting to make vaccination equitable across economic and ethnic groups, Brown said. “The goal of Oregon’s vaccination strategy is to make sure we are doing this fast and doing this fairly,” she said. Brown announced that eff ective immediately, peo- ple with several additional underlying medical con- ditions would be added to the advanced eligibility list, including smokers. A full list will be released by the OHA. The state also will allow workers who are currently eligible for the vaccine, such as farmworkers, to bring all adults in their household to be vaccinated at the same time. The OHA is also working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to cre- ate pop-up and mobile vac- cination centers in rural parts of the state, including Mor- row County. Not on the OHA’s agenda is any loosening of business restrictions. OHA offi cials said they would be sticking with the four-tiered county risk level system, with the next changes to be announced Tuesday, April 6, to go into eff ect Friday, April 9. The state has allowed counties that recently dropped down a level but rebounded higher in the next period to hold off on reinstat- ing restrictions during a two- week grace period. Sidelinger said the same system did not apply to coun- ties that had sustained lower infection rates for multiple weeks and are now rising again. Among the issues that the OHA is facing in its goal to maximize inoculations is what OHA Director Pat Allen called “a softening of demand” for vaccine among targeted senior groups, par- ticularly in Southwest Ore- gon and portions of rural Eastern Oregon. Sidelinger said evi- dence is beginning to show an unfortunate relaxed atti- tude toward mask wear- ing and social distancing as the warmer spring weather brings people together. “Mask use is going down, while travel is going up,” Sidelinger said. Gun storage requirement heads to Oregon House By PETER WONG Oregon Capital Bureau SALEM — Another gun regulation bill is headed for a legislative debate and vote, this time in the Oregon House. House Bill 2510, approved Tuesday, March 30, by the House Health Care Committee, would require the storage of fi rearms with trigger or cable locks, in a locked container or in a gun room. An off ense is a Class C violation, which carries a maximum fi ne of $500, unless someone under age 18 obtains access, in which case it is a Class A violation with a maximum fi ne of $2,000. No jail time is imposed for violations. The committee vote was 6-4. All Democrats voted for it, and all Republicans against it. On March 25, the Oregon Senate voted 16-7 to approve a bill making state buildings — including the Capitol — off -limits to fi rearms car- ried by concealed-handgun licensees. Senate Bill 554, which went to the House, leaves it up to local govern- ments to decide that question for their own buildings. Oregon is among the states with no laws regulat- ing gun storage, according to the pro-regulation Giff ords Law Center. Laws in Cali- fornia and Washington apply to some aspects of storage. When the House Health Care Committee heard the gun storage bill March 11, almost 400 pieces of testi- mony were submitted for and against House Bill 2510. Some people submitted more than one. “We cannot gun-proof children,” Dr. Benjamin Hoff man, pediatrician at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital at Oregon Health & Science University, testifi ed. “We must child-proof guns.” Between 1999 and 2019, he said, Oregon averaged 3.5 deaths by fi rearms per 100,000 people, compared with the national average of 2.3 per 100,000. For youths under 19 during the period, he said Oregon averaged 6.3 deaths per 100,000, com- LERY SHANNA RAE TIL (13-week minimum) Pr onsore d b y p S OF THE kend ry had a strong w m ee atches Shanna Rae Tille Co e re ugars in th for the Wallowa , Damascus Christian and ph against Jose e senior was particularly th de w Po r Valley, an de d fense side of the net. In the e th ks, strong on amassed 24 bloc ns ry lle Ti , es ch at m e thre contest agai t including 11 in the Powder Valley. oudly Small Large $10.66 per week $21.32 per week Call 541-426-4567 Wallowa County Chieftain A15 Fourth wave of COVID-19 hits Oregon The board sincerely appreciates your input and thanks you for your participation. Legal No. 239043 Wednesday, April 7, 2021 pared with the national aver- age of 5 per 100,000. “Gun violence is one of the leading causes of death for people my age,” Hope Williams, a volunteer with Students Demand Action in Oregon, said in a state- ment after the vote. “We want to feel safe at home and in our communities and that starts with securely stor- ing fi rearms to prevent gun violence.” Students Demand Action, together with Moms Demand Action, constitute Every- town for Gun Safety. “Even in a pandemic, our communities are continu- ing to endure gun violence everyday,” Elizabeth Klein, a gun violence survivor and volunteer for the Oregon chapter of Moms Demand Action, said. “And, uninten- tional shootings and gun sui- cides have continued to rise over the past year. Secure storage is an eff ective and easy way to help prevent these tragedies. But Oregon’s gun-rights advocates staunchly opposed the bill. “This bill will subject hundreds of thousands of law-abiding citizens with potential criminal and civil liability overnight for actions that are perfectly legal today,” Paul Donheff ner, legislative committee chair- man for the Oregon Hunt- ers Association, said in testi- mony to the committee. Kevin Starrett is direc- tor of the Oregon Firearms Federation, which bills itself as a no-compromise group on gun rights. It even dis- paraged Republican law- makers working on regula- tion of fi rearms sales at gun shows in 1999, a year after the group’s founding. The bill did not pass, but voters approved a related initiative measure in 2000 by a 62% majority. Starrett had harsher words for lawmakers during his committee testimony. “Gun owners in Ore- gon have been remarkably well-behaved,” he said. “But if you keep rewarding criminals and punishing the law-abiding, don’t expect them to stay that way.”