The Blue Mountain eagle., July 25, 2018, Page A5, Image 5

News
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, July 25, 2018
A5
Report knocks Oregon property tax system
By Claire Withycombe
Capital Bureau
A new report from the
Center for Budget and Policy
Priorities is critical of Oregon’s
property tax limits, which could
be a target of reform in 2019.
The new report, released
Wednesday, examined Oregon
and three other states — Mich-
igan, Massachusetts and New
York — with limits on property
taxes.
The limits have driven cities
and counties to squeeze rev-
enue out of fees and charges
that disproportionately affect
low-income people, the authors
of the report from the Washing-
ton, D.C., think tank argue.
Oregon’s unusual, and
complex, system was enacted
through a series of ballot mea-
sures in the 1990s.
Supporters say the limits
protect taxpayers from sharp
annual increases in property
taxes and require local govern-
ments to be thrifty.
But detractors say the sys-
tem, which among other caps
and restrictions, typically taxes
owners on the assessed value of
a property — rather than its real
market value — creates signifi-
cant disparities in property tax-
es, even between similar prop-
erties in the same area.
In May, Oregon Gov. Kate
Brown expressed interest in
working with state lawmakers
to make changes to the system
next year, when the legislature
convenes for a roughly five-
month-long budget writing
session.
Lawmakers have proposed
tweaks to the scheme in pre-
vious sessions. Any changes
to the state constitution, as a
property tax overhaul would re-
quire, need a referral to voters
for their approval.
Localities can ask voters
for levies to fund services, but
advocates argue that the system
has adversely affected school
funding, to the detriment of stu-
dents.
“Oregon schools have nev-
er recovered from the damage
wrought by the property tax
limits enacted in the 1990s,”
Daniel Hauser, a policy ana-
lyst with the Oregon Center for
Public Policy, said in a state-
ment released in conjunction
with the report. “The Oregon
legislature failed to fully make
up for the loss of property tax
revenue, and a whole genera-
tion of Oregonians have paid
the price.”
To support services such as
schools and police, localities
have increasingly relied on new
fees and service charges, which
can be more burdensome for
low-income residents, the Cen-
ter for Budget and Policy Prior-
ities study finds.
“For example, a $50 fee to
participate in the school band is
harder to pay for a parent work-
ing at minimum wage than for a
millionaire,” the authors write.
In 1977, local governments
in Oregon got about 16.7 per-
cent of their revenues from
fees and charges. By 2015, that
share had leapt to 26.6 percent.
The study recommends
states with property tax limits
reexamine their systems.
“Every state with a proper-
ty tax limit would do well to
examine the consequences of
its limit and consider relaxing
or repealing it,” the study’s
authors write. “States can
employ more targeted alter-
natives, such as circuit break-
ers (which provide refunds to
households whose property
taxes are deemed too high) and
homestead exemptions (which
exempt a flat amount of home
value from the tax), to relieve
property taxes for seniors and
others who might have difficul-
ty affording them.”
Wendy Johnson, a lobbyist
for the League of Oregon Cit-
ies, says her group is surveying
its members and considering
whether property tax reform
will again be among its legisla-
tive priorities for the long 2019
session.
burglary in progress.
July 18: Received a re-
port of a drive-off at a gas
station on West Main Street
in John Day.
July 18: Advised of a
noninjury crash near a gro-
cery store in John Day.
July 18: Responded to
Southeast Dayton Street in
John Day for a report of tele-
phonic harassment.
July 19: Following a traf-
fic stop on West Main Street
in John Day, Pamela Heard,
57, Seneca, was arrested and
charged with driving under
the influence of intoxicants.
July 20: Responded to a
grocery store in John Day
for a hit-and-run crash.
July 21: Dispatched to
West Main Street for a miss-
ing person.
July 22: Following a traf-
fic stop on East Main Street
in John Day, Kayla Lambeth,
23, John Day, was cited for
speeding 43/25 zone.
• Oregon State Police
July 18: Advised of a sus-
picious person.
• Grant County Sher-
iff’s Office
July 16: Received a fraud
report in Prairie City.
July 16: Responded to a
burglary report on Screech
Alley Loop in John Day.
July 16: Caitlin E.
Brooks, 34, John Day, was
arrested by Portland police
and charged with a Grant
County warrant.
July 18: Received a re-
port of identity theft on Nel-
son Road in Canyon City.
July 20: Advised of a
suspicious person on South
McHaley Avenue in Prairie
City.
• John Day ambulance
July 16: Responded to Vi-
olet Street in Mt. Vernon for a
68-year-old man.
July 16: Dispatched to Dog
Creek Road in John Day for a
55-year-old man with a back
injury.
July 17: Responded with
Prairie City ambulance to
South Johnson Avenue for an
elderly woman.
July 17: Dispatched to East
Fifth Street in John Day for a
78-year-old woman.
July 18: Responded to a
senior home in John Day for
a woman with low pulse and
dizziness.
July 18: Dispatched with
Prairie City ambulance to a
senior home in Prairie City for
a transport.
July 18: Responded to Vi-
olet Street in Mt. Vernon for a
70-year-old woman.
July 18: Dispatched with
Long Creek ambulance to
East Main Street in Long
Creek for a 56-year-old man.
July 19: Responded to
North Washington Street in
Prairie City for a 51-year-old
woman.
July 19: Dispatched to
Southwest First Street in John
Day for a woman with flu-like
symptoms.
July 20: Responded to East
Fifth Street in John Day for a
79-year-old woman.
July 20: Dispatched to
Northwest Fourth Street in
John Day for a 76-year-old
woman who couldn’t move.
July 22: Responded to
Northwest First Street in John
Day for an 89-year-old wom-
an.
July 22: Dispatched to a
senior home in John Day for
an 85-year-old man.
July 22: Responded to
Screech Alley Loop in John
Day.
• John Day fire
July 22: Stood down with
Dayville fire from a report of
an ATV accident on Widows
Creek Road.
• Forest Service
July 17: Advised of heavy
smoke in the Monument area
coming from a fire in Morrow
County.
July 17: Received a report
of a possible fire on Canyon
Mountain.
July 19: Advised of a pos-
sible fire in the Hamilton Road
area north of Long Creek.
C OPS AND C OURTS
Arrests and citations in
the Blue Mountain Eagle are
taken from the logs of law
enforcement agencies. Every
effort is made to report the
court disposition of arrest
cases.
Grant County
Circuit Court
Ashley Perkins, 22, John
Day, pleaded guilty July 20
to misdemeanor interfering
with a peace officer commit-
ted on May 9. A felony count
of hindering prosecution
was dismissed.
Ryan G. Gunn, 25, John
Day, pleaded guilty July 19
to misdemeanor driving un-
der the influence of intox-
icants. A reckless driving
charge was dismissed. He
was sentenced to 24 months
probation, 80 hours commu-
nity service and $1,355 in
fines and fees. His license
was suspended for one year,
and he was ordered to install
an ignition interlock device.
Larry W. Hart, 58, Mt.
Vernon, pleaded guilty July
19 to being a felon in pos-
session of a firearm, a mis-
demeanor. He was sentenced
to 24 months probation and
$900 in fines and fees. He
was ordered to forfeit his
firearm.
Dillon G. Winters, 21,
John Day, pleaded guilty
July 19 to felony first de-
gree criminal mischief and
misdemeanor menacing con-
stituting domestic violence
committed on May 13. Win-
ters was sentenced to 20 days
in jail, 48 months probation
and $400 in fines and fees.
Two charges of first degree
burglary were dismissed.
Darren W. Mortimore
pleaded guilty July 19 to two
counts of strangulation, two
counts of fourth-degree as-
sault constituting domestic
violence and one count of
menacing constituting do-
mestic violence, all misde-
meanors. Thirteen additional
counts were dismissed, in-
cluding kidnapping, assault,
menacing,
strangulation,
criminal mischief and inter-
ference in making a report.
He was sentenced to 24
months in jail.
Grant County
Sheriff
The Grant County Sher-
iff’s Office reported the fol-
lowing for the week of July
18:
Concealed handgun licens-
es: 9
Average inmates: 17
Bookings: 10
Releases: 10
Arrests: 2
Citations: 3
Fingerprints: 0
Civil papers: 7
Warrants processed: 4
Asst./welfare check: 0
Search and rescue: 0
July 13: Hana Maaiah, 23,
Corvallis, was cited for speed-
ing 58/30 zone.
July 13: Anthony Palmer,
35, Portland, was cited for
driving uninsured and warned
for speeding 38/25 zone.
July 13: Brett Domenighi-
ni, 21, Mitchell, was cited for
speeding 44/25 zone.
Oregon State
Police
July 8: Following a traffic
stop for traveling 63 mph in
a 45 mph zone on Highway
26 near Mitchell, a trooper
detected the smell of alcohol
from the driver and saw signs
of intoxication by the driver
and passenger and an opened
beer carton in the rear seat
of a gold Lexus. The driver’s
breath sample test showed
0.153 percent blood alcohol
content. A search of the vehi-
cle turned up drug parapher-
nalia and numerous empty
beer cans. Tyler M. Regory,
29, Portland, was arrested and
charged with driving under
the influence of intoxicants.
July 8: Following a traffic
stop for traveling 70 mph in
a 55 mph zone and overtak-
ing a patrol car on Highway
26 near Moon Creek Road,
a trooper detected the smell
of alcohol from the driver.
The driver was shaking when
asked about drinking the pre-
vious night. Two breath sam-
ples showed 0.0 percent blood
alcohol content. Andrew N.
Smith, 58, Forestville, Cal-
ifornia, was arrested and
charged with driving under
the influence of intoxicants.
July 11: Robert D. Herre-
ra, 60, John Day, was arrest-
ed during a welfare check on
North Canyon Boulevard in
John Day and charged with
violation of a restraining or-
der.
July 16: Responded to a
single-vehicle noninjury crash
at Bridge Street and Seventh
Street in John Day. Cooper
J. Wellington, 28, John Day,
was arrested and charged with
driving under the influence of
intoxicants. His blood alcohol
content was 0.28 percent.
July 20: Responded to
a single-vehicle noninjury
crash on Highway 26 near
Mitchell. The 38-year-old fe-
male driver was adjusting the
air conditioning when she lost
control of the vehicle and left
the roadway.
Justice Court
Violation of speed lim-
it: Robert W. Houghton, 65,
Mt. Shasta, California, July
2, 53/35 zone, fined $165;
Darrell Preakor, 55, Leba-
non, Maine, June 26, 67/35
zone, fined $440; Megan S.
Lee, 53, Edmonds, Wash-
ington, July 4, 47/30 zone,
fined $165; Philip J. Stuwe,
59, Milwaukie, July 4, 67/45
zone, fined $265; Chrisopher
T. Lynch, 29, Portland, June
20, 43/25 zone, fined $165;
Gisele L. Baker, 76, Dillard,
July 2, 50/35 zone, fined
$165; Richard N. Boren, 61,
Dayville, July 4, 67/45 zone,
fined $225.
Exceeding speed limit:
Shawn D. Morehead, 42,
Bruneau, Idaho, July 1, 80/55
zone, fined $265; Jeffrey P.
Walkwitz, 55, John Day, July
4, 79/65 zone, fined $165;
Luis A. Dela Cruz, 39, Uni-
versal City, Texas, June 25,
51/40 zone, fined $165.
Violation of basic rule:
Jason N. Loun, 32, Oregon
City, July 2, 79/55 zone,
fined $265; Kimberly A.
McKrola, 44, Mt. Vernon,
June 18, 85/55 zone, fined
$225; Lorraine J. Ndusha, 56,
Canyon City, June 27, 78/55
zone, fined $225; Austyn L.
Nelson, 21, La Grande, July
5, 83/55 zone, fined $265;
Melanie J. Finch, 28, Hines,
July 8, 83/55 zone, fined
$265; Michael J. Moshof-
sky, 62, Brownsville, June
28, 75/55 zone, fined $165;
Robert L. Ledgerwood, 28,
Mt. Vernon, July 8, 89/55
zone, fined $440; Stephen R.
Kolseth, 75, Albany, July 2,
79/55 zone, fined $265; Brian
K. Henson Jr., 30, Prineville,
June 28, 70/55 zone, fined
$165; Teresa M. Tallman, 45,
Salem, July 5, 75/55 zone,
fined $165; Dorothy J. Miro-
slavich, 30, Long Creek, June
18, 75/55 zone, fined $165;
Ronald S. Ditullio, 56, Bend,
June 30, 75/55 zone, fined
$165.
Driving uninsured: Ryan
D. Mingus, 51, Redmond,
July 6, fined $265.
Driving while suspended:
Jason N. Loun, 32, Oregon
City, July 2, fined $440; Ryan
D. Mingus, 51, Redmond,
July 6, fined $440.
No operator’s license: Da-
vid G. McBride, 58, Corbett,
July 2, fined $265.
No seat belt: Juliann Ev-
ans, 56, John Day, June 30,
fined $115.
Failure to properly use
safety belt: Larry D. Northey,
58, Hines, July 9, fined $100;
Timothy J. Hueckman, 62,
John Day, July 9, fined $115.
Richie
Colbeth,
80,
John Day, was convicted of
third-degree criminal mis-
chief. He was fined $500.
Dispatch
John Day dispatch worked
179 calls during the week of
July 16-22, including:
• John Day Police De-
partment
July 16: Responded to a
bar on Main Street in John
Day. Dakota Stout, 21,
John Day, was arrested and
charged with a probation vi-
olation, and Jeremiah Alsop,
36, Prairie City, was arrested
and charged with theft.
July 16: Responded to a
report of a noninjury crash
at Bridge Street and Seventh
Street in John Day.
July 16: Received a theft
report from West Main Street
in John Day.
July 17: Advised of a
theft on West Main Street in
John Day.
July 17: Responded to the
Grant County Fairgrounds
in John Day for a report of a
RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY
PUBLIC BIDS ACCEPTED
Monday - Thursday
7am- 6pm
Friday 8am - 5pm
Mendy Sharpe FNP
66170
Apppointments
available
The public is invited to bid on residential
property owned by Community Connection
of Northeast Oregon, Inc. in Granite,
Oregon. The property will be open for
inspection on Friday July 27, 2018,
10am -3pm. Minimum bid is $28,375;
deadline for bids is 2pm August 10, 2018 in
La Grande Oregon. Contact Rochelle
Hamilton at 541-963-3186 for a bid packet.
CAUTION
Old Photos
Kids - Famil
y - Trophy
Wildlife - E
tc.
HUNTING STORIES
Every other Monday in John Day at
Blue Mountain Hospital
170 Ford Rd. • 541-575-1311
NO MATTER
HOW BIG OR SMALL YOUR TROPHY WAS
or you just want to share a hunting adventure,
SEND OR DROP OFF YOUR BEST
HUNTING PHOTOS
195 N. Canyon Blvd., John Day, OR 97845 • kim@bmeagle.com
Your photos will be published in this year’s
EAGLE HUNTING JOURNAL
Please have them to the Eagle by August 11th.
to