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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 2, 2019)
A4 OPINION Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, January 2, 2019 County wise to revisit pot tax A fter possible pro- cedural errors in its adoption were pointed out, Grant Coun- ty offi cials made the wise decision to look further into the marijuana tax ordinance passed recently. Although the county may miss out on a small portion of the tax while the issues are resolved, ensuring the ordinance is passed prop- erly will ensure the county is not on the hook to return tax money collected improperly — money that likely would have already been budgeted and spent. The problem with the ordi- nance was not that it imposed a tax on marijuana. State law allows cities and counties to levy up to a 3 percent tax on pot products, which is what the county attempted to do. The problem was that the ordinance did not refer the tax measure to voters for approval, as required by law. As the Eagle covered the proceedings, the lack of a publicized referral to voters stood out, so we looked into it further. We contacted county offi - cials to get their thoughts, determined the ordinance was modeled after one in Columbia County and obtained copies of both ordi- nances. As we read through them, it was easy to see that the section that referred the measure to voters in Colum- bia County had been replaced in the Grant County version with a clause stating the ordi- nance was being passed as an emergency to be effective immediately. It seemed like we were on the right track, so we contin- ued to dig. We contacted the state Department of Revenue, which all but confi rmed what we believed: Local juris- dictions can only tax mar- ijuana with approval from the voters. The only caveat was that the DOR communi- cations operations manager said she was not sure how the law applied to emergency ordinances. We felt fairly confi dent voter referral was required at that point, but we decided to see what we could fi nd through a little legal research. It didn’t take long before we found two more state laws that appear to prohibit this type of ordinance: One requires all tax-related county ordinances to be referred to voters, and the other pre- vents tax-related ordinances from being passed in a single meeting as an emergency. With that information, it certainly appeared that this ordinance did not pass legal muster. We reached out again to county offi cials, letting them know we believed the ordi- nance was passed improperly, and provided them all of our research. Grant County Dis- trict Attorney Jim Carpen- ter, who is transitioning to also serve as county counsel, replied within a couple hours, stating the county would be looking into it to determine if it was passed properly and what the options would be moving forward. Ultimately, we believe the county should pass an ordi- nance to enact the 3 percent tax upon voter approval. And when it does come before voters, we encourage every- one to approve the tax to pro- vide another small stream of discretionary income to the county coffers. But the county must ensure that it follows the cor- rect procedures to prevent this tax windfall from becom- ing a liability to taxpayers. Shooting the Breeze: Road trippin’ By Rod Carpenter For the Blue Mountain Eagle This time of year fi nds most of us snug on the couch watching football or out on snowmobiles enjoying the snow. But if you dream of taking an out-of-state trip to hunt some day, you need to start planning now. Hunt- ing in other states does take some plan- Rod ning, but it really isn’t Carpenter very diffi cult. Many people think out-of- state hunts are only for that once-in-a-lifetime tro- phy, but that doesn’t have to be the case. Quality hunts for mature animals aren’t diffi cult to fi nd and participate in every couple of years if you play your cards right. They can also be a great way to extend your season. For example, Idaho has over- the-counter deer and elk hunts available. Out-of-state kids can hunt there almost as cheaply as hunting here. You could go there every year. If you faithfully buy preference points in Wyoming, you could hunt deer, elk or ante- lope there every four or fi ve years. Montana is on the spendy side but offers good hunting opportunities. It takes some time to build up the points to hunt deer in Colorado, but not long to have enough points to hunt elk. Also, buying points in Colorado is pretty cheap. If you do dream of that mon- ster bull or buck and keep telling yourself, “Someday,” you need to start working toward it now. Many of the trophy units in Utah, Contributed photo Out-of-state hunting can extend the season, but planning ahead is important to acquire preference points. Wyoming or Colorado take 15 or more points to draw. Start build- ing our points now while you’re saving your money for the trip. If you have a kid that loves to hunt, start building points for them now. Most states offer deep discounts for kids, making it easy to build up their preference points. Going about it can be a little tricky. The Oregon regulations make me feel like I need a law- yer to interpret them. Other states aren’t any easier, and each has its own unique quirks. But with some time and effort, it can be done. There are services like Cabela’s TAG service that can do it for you. For a fee, of course. Two maga- zines I know of that offer good advice and walk you through the application process are Eastmans’ Hunting Journal and Huntin’ Fool. Neither are cheap, but they both have great information on each of the Western states’ drawing sys- tems. You actually have to sub- scribe to the magazines to get the info. Newsstand copies don’t have it. However you do it, now is the time to start. Wyoming, Arizona, Utah and Montana all have dead- lines in the fi rst three months of the year. Start building your points now. I can’t afford a Utah elk hunt now but hope to be able when I’ve accumulated my 20 points. In 10 years, you may have the money, but if you don’t have the points to get the tag, it isn’t going to matter. Email your comments to shoo- tingthebreezebme@gmail.com. Rod Carpenter is a husband, father and hunting fool. How to make easy resolutions By Green Shoot Media WHERE TO WRITE GRANT COUNTY • Grant County Courthouse — 201 S. Humbolt St., Suite 280, Canyon City 97820. Phone: 541-575-0059. Fax: 541-575-2248. • Canyon City — P.O. Box 276, Canyon City 97820. Phone: 541-575-0509. Fax: 541-575-0515. Email: tocc1862@ centurylink.net. • Dayville — P.O. Box 321, Dayville 97825. Phone: 541-987-2188. Fax: 541- 987-2187. Email:dville@ortelco.net • John Day — 450 E. Main St, John Day, 97845. Phone: 541-575-0028. Fax: 541-575-1721. Email: cityjd@ centurytel.net. • Long Creek — P.O. Box 489, Long Creek 97856. Phone: 541-421-3601. Fax: 541-421-3075. Email: info@ cityofl ongcreek.com. • Monument — P.O. Box 426, Monument 97864. Phone and fax: 541-934-2025. Email: cityofmonument@centurytel.net. • Mt. Vernon — P.O. Box 647, Mt. Vernon 97865. Phone: 541-932-4688. Fax: 541-932-4222. Email: cmtv@ ortelco.net. Blue Mountain EAGLE Published every Wednesday by Tired of making resolutions that you’re never able to keep? Next time around, pick a few easy goals that only take a few minutes a day and are easy to work into your rou- tine and may be fun to do. Here are some suggestions. • Meditate for a few minutes. Livestrong suggests fi ve to 20 minutes a day of meditation — sit quietly, breathe deeply, get rid of distractions, allow yourself to stop worrying about tasks. If you have an offi ce at work, shut your door and take a mid-afternoon break. You don’t have to empty your mind, just allow yourself a few minutes of calm. • Floss daily. According to USA Today, fl ossing every day is a 90-second task that can help reduce gum disease and tooth loss, which can make your semiannual visit to the dentist a much less painful or stressful experience. Keep your fl oss next to your tooth- brush as an easy reminder. • Go to bed earlier. Depend- ing on how busy you are (or how young your kids are), this sugges- tion from Livestrong may not be easy, but it’s well worth the invest- ment. Even an extra 15-30 minutes a night can help your immune sys- tem, memory, mood and so much more. Schedule your bedtime, and stick as close as possible to it. MEMBER OREGON NEWSPAPER PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION • Schedule all your doctor’s appointments for the year. Good Housekeeping suggests setting up appointments for screenings, eye appointments, dental clean- ings and anything else you know is coming up. You can sched- ule appointments for kids and pets too while you’re at it. Put the appointments in your cal- endar online and don’t worry about it. • Get a houseplant. According to Good Housekeeping, indoor plants can lower stress levels, and caring for a plant helps calm the nervous system and lowers blood pressure. 1 YEAR SUBSCRIPTION RATES (including online access) Grant County’s Weekly Newspaper Publisher............ ......................................Chris Rush, crush@eomediagroup.com Editor & General Manager ...............Sean Hart, editor@bmeagle.com Reporter ...................................................Richard Hanners, rick@bmeagle.com Community News .................................Angel Carpenter, angel@bmeagle.com Sports ........................................................Angel Carpenter, angel@bmeagle.com Marketing Rep .......................................Kim Kell, ads@bmeagle.com Administrative Assistant ..................Makenna Adair, offi ce@bmeagle.com Offi ce Assistant .....................................Alixandra Hand, offi ce@bmeagle.com Contributed photo Meditation is an easy resolution that can provide health benefi ts. Grant County .........................................$40 Everywhere else in U.S. .......................$51 Outside Continental U.S. ....................$60 Online: BlueMountainEagle.com Subscriptions must be paid prior to delivery Periodicals Postage Paid at John Day and additional mailing offi ces. POSTMASTER send address changes to: Blue Mountain Eagle 195 N. Canyon Blvd. John Day, OR 97845-1187 USPS 226-340 Phone: 541-575-0710 Find a plant that fi ts your lifestyle. There are plenty that don’t need a lot of water. • Take the dog for a walk. Even a quick walk around the block is good for you and Fido, according to Livestrong. Take the time for a solitary ramble, alone with your thoughts, or invite your partner or children. • Turn your phone off. Take a few minutes of quiet time, check out from social media and oth- erwise focus fully on the task at hand, your book, the person you’re spending time with or just enjoy- ing the silence. 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