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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 1, 2017)
PANTHERS OUTRUN TIGERS IN CROSS-COUNTY RIVALRY GAMES – PAGE A9 The Blue Mountain EAGLE Grant County’s newspaper since 1868 W EDNESDAY , F EBRUARY 1, 2017 • N O . 5 • 18 P AGES • $1.00 www.MyEagleNews.com “They silenced one man’s voice, but in doing so, they created 13 more very loud voices.” — Jeanette Finicum The meeting that never happened By Sean Hart Blue Mountain Eagle Eagle photos/Rylan Boggs Jeanette Finicum encourages attendees to get involved however they can at “The meeting that never happened” Saturday at the Grant County Fairgrounds in John Day. “One man can make a difference. He did make a difference,” she said of her late husband LaVoy Finicum. Supporters gather in Grant County to honor LaVoy Finicum By Rylan Boggs Blue Mountain Eagle A ttorneys, ranchers and members of the Finicum family called for politi- cal activism in the wake of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation and the death of LaVoy Finicum last year. Jeanette Finicum — the widow of the refuge occupier who was killed during a traffi c stop en route to a meet- ing in John Day in the fi nal days of the Malheur occupation — spoke to the crowd and thanked God and all those who supported her and her family since her husband’s death. “They silenced one man’s voice, but in doing so, they created 13 more very loud voices,” Finicum said. She read a statement prepared by the family’s lawyers announcing they fi led a notice of administrative claim as a precursor to fi ling a federal civil rights lawsuit. “While we could have fi led our wrongful death lawsuit against the state of Oregon, it is more effi cient to wait a short while longer to include the FBI in one lawsuit,” she said. She recounted the jury’s acquittal of seven of the occupants on federal con- spiracy charges to thunderous applause, adding her husband should have been Sixth-generation rancher Trent Loos and Jeanette Finicum’s daughter, Thara Tenney, raffle off a picture of LaVoy Finicum during an event in John Day Saturday, Jan. 28. among them. “Our family is truly grateful that some of them have been able to return home to their families, and we are pray- ing for all those who are still incarcer- ated, unjustly, for their immediate re- lease,” she said. “We hope for the same outcome for the next seven that are still on trial and for those in Nevada.” Finicum played several videos made by her husband before and during the occupation, which explained he supported the occupation because he believed the federal government was overreaching and overly regulating farmers and ranchers. She urged those in attendance to become involved however they can in their local communities. “One man can make a difference,” she said. “He did make a difference.” ••• A crowd of more than 500 gathered Saturday night at the Grant County Fairgrounds for what was billed as “The meeting that never happened.” Unlike the Jan. 26, 2016, event La- Voy Finicum, Ammon and Ryan Bun- dy and other occupation leaders were en route to when stopped by police, no See MEETING, Page A18 Fifteen-year-old Laine Norton speaks about her experience with the Center for Self Governance during a meeting in John Day Saturday, Jan. 28. The center is a non-partisan educational organization that trains citizens in applied civics. Long road to a transportation package By Rylan Boggs and Sean Hart By Claire Withycombe and Paris Achen The Oregon Legislature is again trying to clear the road- blocks to a comprehensive transportation package after failed attempts in 2015. State Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-Ontario, co-vice chair of the Joint Committee on Transpor- tation Preservation & Mod- ernization, has been working with Co-Vice Chair Sen. Brian Boquist, R-Dallas, and Dem- ocratic Co-Chairs Sen. Lee Beyer and Rep. Caddy McK- eown to develop a framework to present to the entire 14-per- son committee in the upcom- ing legislative session. With the state already facing a $1.8 billion budget Capital Bureau The Eagle/Rylan Boggs State Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-Ontario, right, listens to concerns about transportation funding at the John Day City Council meeting Wednesday, Jan. 25. Senate but not the 60-percent majority needed to pass bills raising revenue, so Republi- can votes will be necessary. See ROADS, Page A18 Education offi cials from across Eastern Oregon con- verged in John Day last week for an education forum with state legislators before the legislative session. School administrators and school board members provided their thoughts and ideas for improvements on education funding and legis- lation, focused on the small- er districts in rural Oregon, to Sen. Ted Ferrioli, R-John Day, Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-On- tario, and Rep. Greg Barre- to, R-Cove, Jan. 24 at Grant Union Junior-Senior High School. Several educators said sta- ble, consistent school funding was needed. Baker School District Superintendent Mark Witty said the same discus- sions happen every two years when the Legislature con- venes to balance the budget. “We need to fund edu- cation over the long haul,” Grant School District Super- intendent Curt Shelley said. “Attempting to fund it bienni- um to biennium is not going to be a good solution for ed- ucation.” Bentz said Republicans have ideas, but Democrats must be willing to cross the aisle to develop bipartisan solutions. He said he was willing to discuss increasing revenue through tax reform but only if Democrats were willing to reduce expenses. Witty said the Public Em- ployees Retirement System, which carries a large cost for school districts, was a “big issue.” Ferrioli agreed and said PERS benefi ciaries should be demanding reform to ensure the program remained sol- vent. Bentz said one way to reduce costs statewide would be requiring state employees, such as teachers, to pay more for retirement and health in- surance benefi ts. Everyone at the meeting appeared to support the Small School Correction, which provides small schools more money per student. Oregon School Boards Association See SCHOOLS, Page A18 Lawmakers, governor lay out session priorities Blue Mountain Eagle shortfall to maintain current government service levels, funding the infrastructure package will be diffi cult. Democrats hold the majori- ty in both the House and the Educators discuss funding, legislative fi xes for schools Oregon’s legislative leaders say they have a diffi cult ses- sion ahead of them. With the games due to be- gin today, balancing the state’s budget is top of mind. Health care costs, educa- tion programs and rising state employee costs all mean that the state has nearly $1.8 billion less than it needs to maintain the present level of govern- ment services. Possible changes in federal immigration and health care policies also seemed to muddy the waters as legislators dis- cussed their agendas for 2017 with members of the press in a forum at the Oregon Capitol organized by The Associated Press. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, for her part, said she is fo- cused on fi nding solutions to the state’s immediate defi cit and emphasized improving the state’s transportation sys- tem and maintaining access to health care. Legislators have until mid- night on July 10 to do their main job, which is to balance the state’s books; Senate Presi- dent Peter Courtney, D-Salem, warned this week that legis- lators might go into a special session after that deadline. See SESSION, Page A18
