NEWS
Blue Mountain Eagle
Federal
County
Continued from Page A1
Continued from Page A1
“Congress has mandated
that every federal agency
engage in the coordination
process” and that “Con-
gress also recognized that
local government must have
a position in planning and
policy making that is supe-
rior to that of the general
public.”
Supporters of coordina-
tion note that public land
planning should take into
account the economic needs
of local communities as well
as protect local customs and
culture.
The Grant County Court
adopted a Document of
Custom and Culture as a
resolution in May 1999. The
resolution underwent two
public hearings and sub-
stantial changes were made
to the original document,
which gave the resolution
the process protection of an
ordinance.
According to the docu-
ment, the customs and cul-
ture of Grant County were
formed by the people who
settled here when Oregon
was a territory and were
passed down from genera-
tion to generation.
A common base of val-
ues were established, the
document
states,
that
includes self-reliance, inde-
pendence, personal free-
doms, unalienable rights
and “common sense edu-
cation system that instills
in our children the love
of God, family and coun-
try, which is the custom of
patriotism.”
Customs cited in the
document include mining,
ranching, logging, hunting,
trapping, fishing, firewood
gathering and the harvesting
of berries, mushrooms and
other plant life.
Myers said he appreciated
Palmer’s work. Myers said
the current planning process
forces the county to object to
project proposals during the
comment period rather than
allow the county to partici-
pate in project planning.
Myers also noted that the
idea of “invoking coordina-
tion” doesn’t need to be a
“scary proposition.” He said
it should be good for both
the county and the govern-
ment agencies, but Palmer’s
proposal should be carefully
scrutinized by an attorney
familiar with natural resource
issues.
Hamsher motioned to
move forward with Palmer’s
proposal. Myers seconded
the motion, noting that this
was something the county
had not done in the past.
Myers said he wasn’t sure
how it would be done, but an
ordinance or resolution was
needed.
Government view
Forest Service officials
Schools
Continued from Page A1
toddlers at risk of abuse to
technical training for high
school seniors who aren’t
college bound.
The lawmakers empha-
sized bolstering services for
low-income families with
young children, starting the
help at infancy.
“Kids in crisis can’t
learn,” Smith Warner said.
“We have students all across
the state, urban, rural, from
the biggest schools to the
smallest, that have had sig-
nificant trauma. ”
In that vein, legislators
The Eagle/Richard Hanners
Eva Harris addresses the Grant County Court during a
discussion about invoking coordination for planning with
federal and state agencies on Jan. 23.
have a different interpre-
tation of the meaning of
coordination. In May 2017,
Steve Beverlin, the Malheur
National Forest Supervisor
at the time, explained that
the agency engaged the pub-
lic simultaneously through
collaboration, coordination
and cooperation according
to their legal definitions and
frameworks.
Coordination
requires
the Forest Service to work
with requesting agencies,
such as the Grant County
Court, to address discrep-
ancies between federal and
local planning documents,
such as cultural or natu-
ral resource plans, Beverlin
said.
The Forest Service must
respond to the discrepan-
cies but is not bound to fol-
low the local plans, Bever-
lin said.
John Hagengruber, the
state liaison for the Forest
Service’s Region 1 office,
explained the role of coor-
dination between the For-
est Service and county gov-
ernments in a March 2014
memo to the Montana Envi-
ronmental Quality Council.
“Based on recent local
government resolutions or
want to expand Early Head
Start. It provides full-day
programs for infants and tod-
dlers from low-income fam-
ilies but is only available
to 2,064 kids of the 25,000
eligible.
The group found the state
wasn’t adequately funding
early intervention and early
childhood special education.
Full funding would cost an
additional $37.5 million per
year.
The legislators also pro-
pose propping up Oregon’s
most needy families. Com-
mittee members found state
programs provide home vis-
its to only 10 percent of
30,000 at-risk families who
ordinances and letters to
some national forests, it
appears that some local gov-
ernment officials believe
the (National Forest Man-
agement Act) coordination
requirement means the For-
est Service must incorpo-
rate specific provisions of
county ordinances into for-
est plans or that the Forest
Service must obtain local
government approval before
making planning decisions,”
Hagengruber said.
“This position overstates
the NFMA obligation of the
Forest Service,” he contin-
ued. “The statute does not
specify what actions are
required to coordinate For-
est Service planning with
local government planning,
and it does not in any way
subordinate federal author-
ity to counties.”
“Rather,” he continued,
“the Forest Service must
consider the objectives
of state and local govern-
ments and Indian tribes as
expressed in their plans and
policies, assess the interre-
lated impacts of these plans
and policies, and deter-
mine how the forest plan
should deal with the impacts
identified.”
need such services.
The 84-page report stops
short of outlining how to pay
for all of these ideas. They
have punted those questions
to three smaller groups of
lawmakers who on Thurs-
day will sort out the details,
including how to pay for
these changes.
Lengthening the school
year and limiting class sizes
are among the most expen-
sive recommendations.
Committee
members
found Oregon’s school year,
which ranges from 150 days
to 170 days, isn’t enough.
They would like to reach the
national average of 180 days.
But adding those days
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
A coordination meeting
“must take place after public
issues have been identified
and it must take place before
recommendation of a pre-
ferred alternative is made,”
the sample letter states.
The packet that Palmer
provided to Myers and
Hamsher included a sam-
ple ordinance establishing
a coordination policy for
the county, a sample resolu-
tion establishing coordina-
tion between the county and
federal agencies, a sample
court agenda for a meeting
between the court and the
Forest Service and a sam-
ple letter from the court to
the Forest Service invoking
coordination.
Palmer told the Eagle he
wrote the sample documents
based on research he had
conducted.
The sample ordinance
lists eight objectives and pro-
vides several pages of actions
that all state and federal
plans, projects and programs
that could affect land or natu-
ral resources in Grant County
must take into account.
The county must be noti-
fied “of any proposed action
prior to the initial plan-
ning phase of the proposed
action,” the sample ordi-
nance states. State and fed-
eral agencies must also
“coordinate procedures with
Grant County as equals” and
“consider alternatives which
would reconcile proposed
action with the county’s
laws, policies and plans and
take all practical measures
to resolve any conflict,” the
sample ordinance states.
State and federal agen-
cies must “comply with all
laws, case law, statutes, reg-
ulations, rules and guidelines
concerning protection of pri-
vate property rights in Grant
County,” the sample ordi-
nance states.
To enforce this policy, the
county court may request
the district attorney to bring
an action seeking criminal
or civil penalties, the sam-
ple ordinance states. Any-
one found to have deprived
a person in Grant County of
property rights secured by
the sample ordinance “shall
be guilty of a misdemeanor
punishable by not more than
30 days in jail, a $500 fine, or
both,” the sample ordinance
states.
The sample ordinance
also calls for establishing
an oversight committee to
assure that the intent and pur-
poses of the ordinance are
maintained.
“The basic function of the
committee shall be to moni-
tor federal and state actions
and advise the (court) regard-
ing compliance by such agen-
cies with this ordinance,” the
sample ordinance states.
Palmer’s sample letter to
the Forest Service invoking
coordination states, “Notice
must be given to the county
of any intent to prepare a land
and resource management
plan, along with a general
schedule of anticipated activ-
ities to the governing body of
the county.”
would cost an estimated
$258 million per year.
And caps on class sizes
— which would range from
20 in kindergarten and first
grade to 29 for core academic
glasses in grades 6 through
12 — would cost about $185
million per year.
Other goals reach higher,
aspiring not to just fall in line
with national averages but
exceed them.
The legislators want
state-subsidized education
for teachers, with an empha-
sis on those going on to
instruct career and technical
education.
A state-organized men-
torship system would bump
up salaries for teachers who
agree to mentor others and
create an advancement coun-
cil inside the state education
department to help teachers
succeed. Legislative budget
analysts say the mentorship
program could cost $234
million a year.
They also propose hiring
more specialists like music
teachers, librarians and
school counselors.
Ideally, the state’s teach-
ers should reflect the state’s
demographic makeup, leg-
islators said. Some money
would be dedicated to help-
ing local school districts
“grow their own” future
workforce with scholarships
for students from “racially
and linguistically diverse”
backgrounds who want to
become teachers.
Smith said he supports
the committee’s requests —
but it’s not clear if his fellow
Republicans agree.
In an interview this week,
Senate Republican Leader
Herman
Baertschiger,
R-Grants Pass, dismissed
the notion that more funding
means better education.
“I see private schools hav-
ing less money but having
better results,” Baertschiger
said.
To make it more palatable
and not a shock to the econ-
omy, legislators would have
to trim the package.
“We need to prioritize,”
House Speaker Tina Kotek
said.
Sample documents
Court discussion
Following Palmer’s pro-
posal at the Jan. 23 court
meeting, Eva Harris raised
several questions about
invoking coordination. She
said she didn’t believe Grant
County could get “equal foot-
ing” under the National For-
est Management Act, and the
act did not refer to “invok-
ing coordination.” She also
said the county’s custom and
culture resolution needs to be
updated.
Myers responded by not-
ing that her points needed to
be addressed by county coun-
sel, but the county needed to
be involved in public land
planning at an earlier stage.
He also noted that the custom
and culture resolution had
not been challenged in court.
John Morris said coor-
dination is included in the
National Environmental Pol-
icy Act, which means that it
applies to state as well as fed-
eral planning. Dave Traylor
advised the court to confer
with legal counsel to under-
stand the true meaning of
coordination instead of rely-
ing on personal interpretation.
Jim Sproul noted that, in
order to invoke coordination,
a county needs to have a nat-
ural resources plan in place.
He proposed the court use the
plan developed by a commit-
tee several years ago. He also
suggested the court invite a
representative from a county
that had invoked coordi-
nation to speak at a public
forum here.
Sheriff Glenn Palmer sug-
gested that the six-mem-
ber committee proposed
by Commissioner Palmer
include residents dependent
on natural resources and not
just elected officials.
Cemetery
Continued from Page A1
About 10 years ago, a dozen
men and women dressed in
Confederate uniforms and
antebellum Southern cos-
tume appeared in Prairie
City to honor the fallen sol-
diers with new headstones,
Wright and Woodley said.
Several of Sullens’
ancestors are buried in the
older section of the ceme-
tery, including Capt. Wiley
Howell, a decorated World
War II aviator. When How-
ell was a child, he checked
out a book at the Prairie City
School library and never
returned it. Years later when
he returned home a war
hero, he donated thousands
of dollars to the library,
Wright said.
1809 First Street • Baker City • (541)523-5439
BARGAIN MATINEE IN ( ) Adults $7
ALL FILMS $6 ON TIGHTWAD TUESDAY
MOVIE SCHEDULE FEBRUARY 1-7
GREEN BOOK (PG-13) A work-
ing-class Italian-American bouncer
becomes the driver of an African-Amer-
ican classical pianist on a tour of venues
through the 1960s American South.
FRI & SAT
(3:45) 6:45 9:30
SUNDAY
(3:45) 6:45
MON- THURS
6:45
THE KID WHO WOULD BE
KING (PG) A band of kids embark
on an epic quest to thwart a medieval
menace.
FRI & SAT
(4:00) 7:00 9:35
SUNDAY
(4:00) 7:00
MON- THURS
7:00
SERENITY (R) Anne Hathaway &
Matthew McConaughey. A fishing boat
captain’s past comes back to haunt him
FRI & SAT
(4:05) 7:05 9:40
SUNDAY
(4:05) 7:05
MON- THURS
7:05
102439
$9 Adult, $7 Senior (60+), Youth
100898
A16