LOCAL & STATE
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2020
BAKER CITY HERALD — 5A
Two GOP candidates
campaign in Baker City
audits division, and serving as administra-
tor of public records.
Two Republican candidates hoping to
In regard to elections, Oregon was the
accomplish what has become a rare feat
fi rst state, in 1998, to have all elections by
for members of their party in Oregon
mail-in ballots. The topic has generated
brought their campaigns to Baker City
considerable publicity this year, as states
Thursday evening.
look to limit in-person voting due to the
Kim Thatcher, who is running for Or-
coronavirus pandemic. President Donald
egon secretary of state, and Jeff Gudman, Trump has expressed concern about the
a candidate for state treasurer, spoke to
prospect for widespread election fraud.
a group of about 35 people at Geiser-Poll-
Thatcher said she believes Oregon has
man Park.
avoided such problems with its vote-by-
The event was organized
mail system.
by Baker County Republi-
“I think we do a pretty darn good job,”
cans.
she said. “We have safeguards in place and
Republican candidates
we’ve worked on it for a long time.”
have fared poorly in state-
Thatcher said that as secretary of state
wide elections over the past Thatcher she would ensure that the state remains
two decades, including races
vigilant in making sure Oregon voters can
for state offi ces and for U.S.
be confi dent in their electoral process.
senator.
As for public records, Thatcher believes
Since 2002, Dennis
the state has failed to uphold the purpose
Richardson is the only Re-
of the 1973 law, and made it too diffi cult
publican to win such a race,
for people to access public records to which
when he defeated Democrat Gudman they’re legally entitled.
Brad Avakian in the secre-
Obstacles include the cost of having
tary of state’s race in November 2016.
public offi cials review requested records
Richardson died on Feb. 26, 2019, and
for items that could be legally redacted,
Gov. Kate Brown appointed Bev Clarno,
as well as just “foot-dragging” by agencies,
also a Republican, to replace him.
Thatcher said.
Thatcher, who has served in the Oregon
She said that as secretary of state she
Legislature since 2005, initially as a repre- would seek to make public records more
sentative and currently as a senator, said readily available, in particular by posting
in an interview prior to Thursday’s event
them online.
that she doesn’t believe she has an advan-
Thatcher has been a member of the
tage because both Clarno and Richardson Transparency Oregon Advisory Com-
are also Republicans.
mission, which deals with public records
Indeed, Thatcher, 55, who lives in Keizer, issues, since 2009.
said she misses Richardson, a friend and
Thatcher, who is a former co-chair of the
former colleague in the Legislature.
Joint Legislative Committee on Audits,
Thatcher said she expected that it
Information Management & Technology,
would Richardson’s name on the Nov. 3
said she strongly supports the secretary of
ballot, seeking a second term as secretary state being aggressive in using the audits
of state, rather than her own.
division to make sure state agencies are
Thatcher said she takes heart, though, spending tax dollar wisely.
by Richardson’s victory in 2016.
“They are very good at what they do,”
“Dennis showed it could be done, that
she said of the state’s auditors.
people still do cross over in Oregon, and
Thatcher believes audits can be espe-
look at the candidate rather than the
cially vital in the near future because the
party,” she said.
state will have to deal with a signifi cant
In any case, Thatcher contends that the decline in tax revenue due to the economic
secretary of state is a “managerial” posi-
effects of the pandemic.
tion and that the holder of the offi ce has
Finding, and eliminating, wasteful
“what should be nonpartisan responsibili- spending is more crucial than ever, she
ties.”
said.
Those include serving as the state’s
See Candidates/Page 6A
chief elections offi cial, overseeing Oregon’s
By Jayson Jacoby
jjacoby@bakercityherald.com
Dave Killen / The Oregonian-OregonLive
Protests in downtown Portland on Aug. 25.
Governor Brown calls
for end to violence
By Andrew Selsky
Associated Press
SALEM — With protests
in Portland nearing the 100-
day mark, Oregon Gov. Kate
Brown on Thursday called for
an end to violence even as fed-
eral agents were continuing to
arrest protesters who allegedly
assaulted law enforcement
offi cers.
Protests have erupted daily
in the Pacifi c Northwest city
since the killing of George
Floyd. They are now are
punctuated by clashes between
Black Lives Matter demon-
strators and far-right counter-
protesters. One man who was
a supporter of a far-right group
called Patriot Prayer was shot
dead last Saturday.
“The violence must stop,”
Brown wrote. “There is no
place for white supremacy or
vigilantism in Oregon. All who
perpetrate violent crimes must
be held equally accountable.”
The statement does not
single out the small minority of
left-wing protesters who have
been setting fi res, vandalizing
“The violence must stop. There is no place
for white supremacy or vigilantism in
Oregon. All who perpetrate violent crimes
must be held equally accountable.”
— Oregon Gov. Kate Brown
buildings and throwing objects
at police. But Brown’s spokes-
man, Charles Boyle, said it “is
a collective call to action for an
end to violence in Portland and
affi rms that those who commit
violent acts must be held ac-
countable.”
Brown’s condemnation of
violence was also signed by
almost two-dozen state and
local politicians, a host of orga-
nizations including the local
NAACP chapter, and profes-
sional sports teams like the
Trailblazers NBA team, the
Timbers soccer team and the
Thorns women’s soccer team.
Portland Police Chief
Chuck Lovell has denounced
protesters who broke windows
and set a fi re this week to a
business in the upscale apart-
ment building where Mayor
Ted Wheeler lives. Protesters
are angry that Wheeler has
not stopped offi cers from using
batons and tear gas against
Black Lives Matter protesters.
Wheeler now reportedly plans
to move out of the building.
Two people arrested by
federal agents appeared in
federal court on Thursday.
As of a week ago, 74 people
were facing federal charges
for crimes allegedly commit-
ted during demonstrations in
Portland since at least May
29, U.S. Attorney Billy Wil-
liams said.
“Violent agitators have
hijacked any semblance of
First Amendment protected
activity, engaging in violent
criminal acts and destruction
of public safety,” Williams said
last week.
Dog deaths investigation continues
Samples from dogs that died recently in
Haines are being tested for poison, the Baker
County Sheriff’s Offi ce said Friday.
The Sheriff’s Offi ce has confi rmed that six
dogs have died, all in Haines, according to a
press release.
One resident reported that two of his dogs
died between Aug. 27-29.
On Aug. 31 deputies responded to a call
from a Haines resident whose dog was suf-
fering from seizures. Deputies took the dog to
the Animal Clinic in Baker City but the dog
died en route.
BENEFITS
Continued from Page 1A
The information about the
smaller repayment came from
the Baker Education Associa-
tion, which represents teach-
ers, said Michelle Glover, the
District’s business manager.
Glover said District offi cials,
who believe the overpayment
resulted from ambiguous in-
structions on a state-provided
form, are advocating for the
state to not punish employees.
The situation affects teach-
ers and other employees who
work during the school year
but not year-round, Glover
said.
To ensure employees quali-
fi ed for Oregon’s Work Share
program, the District reduced
their pay by the equivalent of
one work day per week during
May, equating to 25% given
the usual 4-day school week.
While the state probably
won’t seek immediate repay-
ment, the employees could be
required to repay the money
before collecting any future
unemployment benefi ts, Witty
said.
In an email to the Herald,
Witty wrote that the amount
overpaid would be considered
a balanced owed to the state,
and that amount would be
deducted from any future
unemployment benefi ts to
which district employees are
entitled.
“It was a glitch in the way
the contract is built and the
The Sheriff’s Offi ce also received reports
that three other dogs died within a 24-hour
period.
Deputies have been going door to door in
Haines, talking to residents and asking dog
owners to keep their pets contained in their
yards and to watch for symptoms such as
heavy panting or convulsions.
The Sheriff’s Offi ce has been in contact
with the Animal Investigation Unit at the
Oregon Humane Society, and anyone with
information about the incidents should call
the county dispatch offi ce at 541-523-6415.
way Work Share was put into
law,” he said.
Here’s the glitch: For
the week of Memorial Day,
the employees’ work week
totaled 44 hours under their
contracts — 36 hours of
instruction time and eight
hours of holiday pay, accord-
ing to the email from Witty.
The Work Share pro-
gram, however, does not
pay benefi ts to employees
who work more than 40
hours per week, the District
learned when notifi ed by the
Employment Department on
Aug. 25.
That information was
not included on any forms
or communication provided
earlier to the District, Witty
said.
“If we’d have known we
wouldn’t have applied for
that week,” he said.
The employer instructions
for the weekly benefi ts in-
cludes this sentence: “Please
indicate the employee’s cus-
tomary work week (if other
than 40 hours).”
In the email, Witty wrote
that district offi cials, based
on that instruction, weren’t
aware that the customary
work week couldn’t exceed
40 hours.
And although he says
he recognizes the Employ-
ment Department has been
swamped with a heavy
workload and an unusu-
ally high volume of cases to
handle during the pandemic,
Witty faults the department
for paying the claims in the
fi rst place.
“They accepted it and paid
it,” Witty said. “I wish they
would have caught it right
at the gate. That would have
been great.”
Witty said the District will
continue to advocate for a
resolution to the problem for
the benefi t of its employees.
“I wish they would own
the mistake and drive on,
as opposed to trying to col-
lect the money from people
who’ve already spent it,
essentially,” he said. “I am
hopeful that in the next few
days we can get it resolved
and move on, but there are
no guarantees.”
Although the employees’
work week was reduced by
25% in May, they did not
suffer pay cuts because they
became eligible for not only
weekly state Work Share
benefi ts, but also the weekly
federal benefi ts included in
the coronavirus relief bill.
The District expects to
save about $300,000 through
its participation in the Work
Share plan, and would push
that savings into the next bi-
ennium when school budgets
are expect to face heavy cuts
because of declining state
revenue resulting from the
current recession,Witty said.
Jayson Jacoby of the Baker
City Herald contributed
to this story.
Get the care
you need.
The way you
feel comfortable.
In-person or online.
Our calling is you.
Baker City Family Medicine welcomes
Tara Reese, PA-C
Now accepting new patients.
(541) 524-8000
SaintAlphonsus.org