A4 Opinion Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, May 20, 2015 Rural highways and drivers deserve green light in Salem R ural Oregon rarely PDNHVLWLQWRWKH6DOHP spotlight, but two bills currently being debated on the floor have us front and FHQWHU The first would increase speed limits on select rural highways, including the VWUHWFKRI,QWHUVWDWHIURP 2QWDULRWR7KH'DOOHV7KH second bill would allow for self service gas in counties with less than 40,000 people ²PRVWRI(DVWHUQ2UHJRQ :H¶UHLQIDYRURIERWK Increasing the speed OLPLWWRPSKIURP7KH Dalles to Ontario, as House %LOOZRXOGGRPDNHV JRRGVHQVH,W¶VJRRGIRUWKH Eastern Oregon economy, good for our drivers and good for travelers coming from neighboring states with KLJKHUVSHHGOLPLWV ,WGRHVQ¶WPHDQWKDW everyone has to speed up by 5 mph — but those of us who feel more comfortable GULYLQJLQWKHPLGVFDQ do so without fear of being WLFNHWHG %XWHYHU\RQHNQRZVDV speed goes up, gas mileage JRHVGRZQ And if you are traveling in Grant County and other rural areas, but forget to fill up, it can be a long way to the next VWDWLRQ 6WDWH6HQ7HG)HUULROL R-John Day, is a co-sponsor of a bill to lift the ban on self-service in certain areas, DWFHUWDLQWLPHV+HVD\VLW PDNHVVHQVHIRUWKHUHPRWH reaches of the state, where stations are widely scattered and few, if any, can afford to KDYHZRUNHUVRQVLWHURXQG WKHFORFN ³,I\RX¶UHDWRXULVWJRLQJ LQWRWKHRXWEDFNRIRXUVWDWH ZLWKRXWDIXOOWDQNRIJDV´ KHWROGRUHJRQOLYHFRP ³\RX¶GEHWWHUEHSUHSDUHGWR VOHHSLQ\RXUFDUEHFDXVHLW¶V going to be tough to find a JDVVWDWLRQWKDW¶VRSHQDIWHUD FHUWDLQKRXU´ 6RLWPDNHVVHQVHLQVRPH of our most rural places for self-service to be legal when QRHPSOR\HHVDUHSUHVHQW You heard that right, under this proposal, such stations will still be full service from DPWRSP%XWDIWHU KRXUVZKHQ\RXFDQ¶WZDLW around until the station opens in the morning, you can pump your own so you can JHWRQ\RXUZD\ This is a reasonable step for the rural areas, and also nudges the state toward the SDWKDOUHDG\WDNHQE\DOPRVW DOOWKHRWKHUVWDWHV1HZ Jersey, the only other state with a self-service ban, is ZHLJKLQJDFKDQJHDVZHOO And that might come in handy one of these nights ZKHQ\RX¶UHGULYLQJDORQHO\ stretch of Highway 26 or 395, your gauge dipping GDQJHURXVO\FORVHWRHPSW\ By Bruce Daucsavage 195 N. Canyon Blvd. • John Day, OR 97845 To the Blue Mountain Eagle 541-575-0710 • Fax 541-575-1244 USPS 226-340 John Day, Oregon MEMBER OREGON NEWSPAPER PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION Marissa Williams, marissa@bmeagle.com Scotta Callister, editor@bmeagle.com Kristina Kreger, kristina@bmeagle.com Cheryl Hoefler, cheryl@bmeagle.com Angel Carpenter, angel@bmeagle.com Angel Carpenter, angel@bmeagle.com Kim Kell, ads@bmeagle.com Lindsay Bullock office@bmeagle.com PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY BY: EO Media Group 3HULRGLFDOV3RVWDJH3DLGDW-RKQ'D\DQGDGGLWLRQDOPDLOLQJRI¿FHV SUBSCRIPTION RATES (including online access) Grant County Elsewhere in Oregon Continental U.S., Outside Oregon Outside Continental U.S. Banner headlines, above the fold: Supreme Court Overturns PERS &KDQJHV Since the announcement a couple of ZHHNVDJRWKHFKDWWHULQJFODVVLQ2UH- gon has been focused on assessing the GDPDJHIURPWKHSROLWLFDOHDUWKTXDNH What do the billions of unfunded PERS costs mean for the state moving for- ward? 0DQ\ZRQGHULIWKHHDUWKTXDNHKDV VKDNHQWKHWD[SD\HUVHQRXJKWKDWWKH\ are now willing to tax themselves to prevent cuts to important public ser- vices including schools and public safe- W\ DHM Research did some earth- TXDNHGDPDJHDVVHVVPHQWRIRXURZQ to determine where Oregon voters are on PERS and the question of higher WD[HVWRSUHYHQWFXWVWRVHUYLFHV Despite all the hoopla surrounding WKH 6XSUHPH &RXUW¶V GHFLVLRQ QRW DOO YRWHUVKDYHKHDUGDERXWLW$ERXWDWKLUG RI2UHJRQ¶VYRWHUVWROGXVODVWZHHNHQG that they had not heard or read anything related to PERS within the last two ZHHNV:KHQDVNHGWRLGHQWLI\WKHPRVW important issue they want their state JRYHUQPHQW RI¿FLDOV WR GR VRPHWKLQJ DERXWRQO\SHUFHQWPHQWLRQHG3(56 9RWHUV UHJLVWHUHG VLJQL¿FDQW FRQ- FHUQV DERXW WKH VWDWH¶V DELOLW\ WR SD\ for an adequate level of public services VXFK DV HGXFDWLRQ DQG SXEOLF VDIHW\ *RRGQHZVLI\RXWKLQNWKDWWKHFOLPDWH PD\ EH FKDQJLQJ IRU WD[ UHIRUP 7KH magnitude of concern, however, re- mains moderate: Less than one half of 2UHJRQ¶V YRWHUV DUH ³YHU\´ FRQFHUQHG SHUFHQW'HPRFUDWVSHUFHQW5H- SXEOLFDQV SHUFHQW ,QGHSHQGHQWV <HVGHVSLWHWKH3(56GHFLVLRQ Furthermore, voters listed high tax- es among the top issues that they want WKHLURI¿FLDOVWRDGGUHVV6FKRROIXQG- ing remains a top concern, but is men- tioned by less than a majority and split between those who feel the schools already have enough money (and just need to spend it more wise- ly) and those who feel schools need more PRQH\ Two more data Adam points from this past Davis ZHHNHQG VXJJHVW LW PD\ WDNH VRPH HDUWK- TXDNH DIWHUVKRFNV DQG D SURORQJHG economic recovery before the political landscape shifts enough in Oregon to safely support building a request of the YRWHUVWRLQFUHDVHWKHLUWD[HV The state remains very divided on the need for more state revenue, even DIWHUWKH3(56GHFLVLRQ In the 2013 Oregon Values and Be- liefs Survey, 43 percent agree that our current tax system with just income tax and property tax is too unstable to pay IRUSXEOLFVHUYLFHV$VLPLODUSHUFHQW GLVDJUHHG 7KLVSDVWZHHNHQGZHDVNHGYRWHUV WRFRQVLGHUWKHVWDWH¶VTXDOLW\RIOLIHDQG ORZUDQNLQJFRPSDUHGWRRWKHUVWDWHVLQ PDQ\ DUHDV:KHQ DVNHG LI QRZ ZLWK the PERS decision there was a need to UDLVH WD[HV SHUFHQW DJUHHG DQG SHUFHQW GLVDJUHHG <RX ZDQW D SDUW\ GLYLGH":KLOHSHUFHQWRI'HPRFUDWV agreed that it is time to raise taxes, only 16 percent of Republicans and 34 per- FHQWRI,QGHSHQGHQWVIHOWVR7KDW¶VQRW JRRGFDOFXOXVIRUWD[DGYRFDWHV Wonder if people view the situation differently when framed in terms of ³P\ORFDOVFKRROV"´7KDWVKRXOGWXJDW the heart strings, right? Given four statements, only 24 per- cent felt the statement that comes clos- est to how they feel is “my local public VFKRROVMXVWGRQ¶WKDYHHQRXJKPRQH\ and now with the recent Supreme Court ruling overturning PERS reform, the SUREOHPLVZRUVH,¶PSUHSDUHGWRSD\ PRUHLQWD[HVIRUP\ORFDOVFKRROV´ 6OLJKWO\PRUHSHUFHQWIHOWHYHQ with the PERS reforms being over- WXUQHG³,¶PQRWSUHSDUHGWRSD\PRUH in taxes for my local schools until edu- cation reforms have been put in place to ensure that any additional money will LQFUHDVHVWXGHQWDFDGHPLFJURZWK´ The most common viewpoint, cho- VHQ E\ SHUFHQW ZDV WKDW ³,¶P QRW prepared to pay more in taxes for my ORFDO VFKRROV (YHQ ZLWK WKH 3(56 reforms being overturned, I feel the schools have enough money; they just QHHGWRVSHQGLWPRUHZLVHO\´ A smaller number, 10 percent, said ³,MXVWFDQ¶WDIIRUGLW(YHQWKRXJK,IHHO P\ ORFDO VFKRROV GRQ¶W KDYH HQRXJK PRQH\,FDQ¶WSD\PRUHLQWD[HVIRUP\ ORFDOVFKRROV´ $WWKLVSRLQWLWGRHVQ¶WORRNOLNHWKH 6XSUHPH&RXUW¶V3(56HDUWKTXDNHKDV VKDNHQWKLQJVHQRXJKWRPRELOL]H2U- egonians in support of increased taxes WRPDLQWDLQIXQGLQJIRUSXEOLFVHUYLFHV +RZ PDQ\ DIWHUVKRFNV ZRXOG LW WDNH and for how long would they need to KDSSHQWRFKDQJHWKLQJV"+DUGWRWHOO $OVRFRQVLGHUWKDWZH¶UHRQO\WDONLQJ about the need for additional revenue to SUHYHQWFXWVLQVHUYLFHV+RZDERXWWKH money needed to address new expenses such as our deteriorating water, sewer, and transportation systems? :HGRNQRZWKDWDQ\IXWXUHHDUWK- TXDNHV ZRXOG KDYH WR EH RI VHLVPLF PDJQLWXGHWRSHQHWUDWHWKHYRWHUV¶FRQ- VFLRXVQHVVVLJQL¿FDQWO\DIIHFWWKHLUDW- titudes about government and politics, DQGDOWHUWKHSROLWLFDOODQGVFDSH,WZLOO OLNHO\ WDNH PRUH WKDQ RQH 3HUKDSV LW PD\WDNHDUHDOHDUWKTXDNH1RWOLNHO\ WRKDSSHQ"2.WKHQOHW¶VMXVWJRDIWHU WKH ZHDOWK\ DQG ELJ EXVLQHVV:KDW D QRYHOLGHD No wonder only about a third of Or- egon voters feel that over the next 10 \HDUV ZH¶OO ¿QG FRPPRQ JURXQG DQG ZRUN WRJHWKHU WR PDNH SURJUHVV DG- dressing the critical issues we face as a VWDWH Adam Davis, who has been con- ducting opinion research in Oregon for more than 35 years, is a founding principal in DHM Research, an inde- pendent, non-partisan ¿rm. 9isit www. dhmresearch.com. Trade pact is good for rural Oregon EAGLE P UBLISHER E DITOR A DMINISTRATIVE A SSISTANT E DITORIAL A SSISTANT C OMMUNITY N EWS S PORTS M ARKETING R EP C USTOMER S ERVICE R EP By Adam Davis For Oregon Capital Insider C OMMENTARY Blue Mountain Grant County’s Weekly Newspaper The PERS earthquake: A damage assessment 1 year $40.00 $48.00 $55.00 $60.00 Subscriptions must be paid prior to delivery See the Blue Mountain Eagle on the Internet www.MyEagleNews.com POSTMASTER — send address changes to Blue Mountain Eagle 195 N. Canyon Blvd. John Day, OR 97845-1187 Copyright © 2015 Blue Mountain Eagle All rights reserved. No part of this publication covered by the copyright hereon may be reproduced or copied in any form or by any means — graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, taping or information storage and retrieval systems — without written permission of the publisher. Recently there has been much de- EDWH DERXW WKH 7UDQV3DFL¿F 3DUWQHU- ship (TPP), the free trade agreement that the United States is negotiating ZLWKRWKHU3DFL¿F5LPQDWLRQVDQG Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), which gives the President authoriza- tion to negotiate the TPP and bring it WR&RQJUHVVIRUDQXSRUGRZQYRWH One thing is for sure: TPA and TPP DUHJRRGIRUUXUDO2UHJRQ Businesses grow and hire people ZKHQWKH\VHOOPRUHRIWKHLUSURGXFW One of the biggest opportunities to sell more Oregon made products is to ex- SRUWWKHPWR3DFL¿F5LPFRXQWULHV7R- day there are 525 million middle class FRQVXPHUVLQ$VLD%\WKHUHDUH H[SHFWHGWREHELOOLRQ7KDW¶VPRUH WKDQ VL[ WLPHV ZKDW WKH 86 PDUNHW ZLOO EH DW WKDW SRLQW$QG WKHVH FRQ- sumers are demanding exactly what rural Oregon produces: great food, quality building materials, and renew- DEOHIXHOWRKHDWWKHLUKRPHV Most of the TPP countries simply do not have the excellent forest and agricultural resources that we possess LQ2UHJRQ7KDW¶VZK\WKHOLVWRIZKDW ZHSURGXFHLQUXUDO2UHJRQORRNVDORW OLNH WKH OLVW RI 2UHJRQ¶V WRS H[SRUWV including wheat, fruits and vegetables, processed foods, dairy, beef, and wood SURGXFWV )RUW\¿YHSHUFHQWRIWKHELO- lion in goods that Oregon exported in 2013 went to TPP countries, and much RI LW ZDV IRRG DQG IRUHVW SURGXFWV Small and medium sized business PDNHXSSHUFHQWRIWKRVHWKDWH[- SRUW ([SRUWV DOVR KHOSHG NHHS P\ LQ- GXVWU\ IRUHVW SURGXFWV DÀRDW GXULQJ WKHUHFHVVLRQ86KRXVLQJVWDUWV±WKH WUDGLWLRQDO GULYHU RI 2UHJRQ¶V IRUHVW SURGXFWVLQGXVWU\±FDPHWRDVFUHHFK- LQJKDOWDIWHUWKHKRXVLQJDQG¿QDQFLDO FULVLVWKDWEHJDQLQ$WWKHVDPH time, housing starts in China and other $VLDQFRXQWULHVZHUHJURZLQJUDSLGO\ While much attention was paid to the controversial topic of export- LQJ UDZ ORJV WKH OLWWOH NQRZQ IDFW LV that exports of manufactured wood products to Asia grew rapidly during WKLVSHULRG,WLVKDUGWRLPDJLQHEXW the recession would have been much worse for rural Oregon without access WRWKHVHPDUNHWV During the recession my company began producing high quality wood SHOOHWVIURPIRUHVWELRPDVV7KHVHSHO- lets are used to heat homes, hospital ERLOHUVDQGVFKRROVDOORYHUWKHZRUOG They replace fossil fuels, improve air quality, and help restore our forests by providing a use for small diameter trees that are contributing to devastating IRUHVW ¿UHV LQ RXU RYHUVWRFNHG IHGHUDO IRUHVWV *URZLQJ PRUH PDUNHWV IRU WKHVH SURGXFWVQRWRQO\KHOSVXVNHHSGR]HQV of people employed at our mill in John Day, but it accelerates the much needed thinning and restoration of our eastside IHGHUDOIRUHVWV The TPP and TPA are needed to JURZ 2UHJRQ¶V H[SRUW HFRQRP\ EH- FDXVHWKH\ZLOORSHQDGGLWLRQDOPDUNHWV for Oregon products where little or no trade is currently occurring, lift trade EDUULHUVOLNHWDULIIVDQGUHGWDSHRQSDU- WLFXODUSURGXFWVHYHQLQPDUNHWVZKHUH VRPHWUDGHLVDOUHDG\WDNLQJSODFHDQG PDNH LW HDVLHU IRU PRUH FRPSDQLHV WR get into the business of exporting in the ¿UVW SODFH 0RUH PDUNHWV PRUH SURG- XFWVPRUHFRPSDQLHV Perhaps even more important is that XQOHVV WKH 86 OHDGV WKH JOREDO WUDGH FRQYHUVDWLRQ&KLQDZLOO7KDWVFHQDU- LRORRNVPXFKZRUVHIRU2UHJRQ7KH 8QLWHG6WDWHV¶OHDGHUVKLSRQWKH733LV leading to a trade agreement with the strictest and most enforceable labor and environmental standards of any trade agreement in history, helping Oregon DQG86EXVLQHVVHVZKLFKDOUHDG\KDYH to comply with these standards here at KRPH 0DQ\ PHPEHUV RI 2UHJRQ¶V FRQ- gressional delegation have been leaders RQWKLVLVVXHLQFOXGLQJ6HQ:\GHQDQG 5HS:DOGHQ 7KH\ GHVHUYH RXU VXS- SRUW :KDWHYHU FRQFHUQV WKDW SHRSOH have about TPA and TPP, there should be little doubt that they are good for ru- UDO2UHJRQ Bruce Daucsavage is the president of Ochoco Lumber Co., which operates Malheur Lumber in John Day.