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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (March 6, 2019)
A18 NEWS Blue Mountain Eagle Bill Rent Continued from Page A1 Continued from Page A1 Sen. Cliff Bentz, R-On- tario, told the Oregon Cat- tlemen’s Association at their Dec. 1 convention in Bend that the cap-and-trade carbon bill’s goal is to reduce state carbon dioxide emissions from 55 million tons per year to 10 million over 30 years, but the savings amount to only 0.125 percent of global emissions. “This will not resolve cli- mate issues,” he said. With Democrats holding a super-majority in the Legis- lature, Bentz felt sure a cap- and-trade bill will pass. On Jan. 25, he told lawmakers that his party wants to avoid economic hardships while addressing the issue of cli- mate change. “This bill has enormous costs caught up in it,” he said. “The value of this bill is its ability to convince other peo- ple to follow Oregon’s lead. And this means we have to get it right. It’s not going to save the world. What saves the world is other people say- ing, ‘Hey, Oregon figured out how to do it.’” In a floor speech on March 4, Rep. Lynn Find- ley, R-Vale, called for a full exemption for the agricul- tural sector from HB 2020. “When our farmers and ranchers compete within a market place with produc- ers who do not have to deal with carbon taxes, credits or allowances, Oregon produc- ers will always lose,” he said. Findley noted that the costs of running a farm have already significantly increased. Facing thin profit margins, farmers will not be able to handle being strapped with an additional financial burden, he said. “We should be looking for ways to help our farming and ranching community, not place them at a disadvantage within the market place,” he said. “Farmers and ranchers in Eastern Oregon are find- ing it increasingly difficult to maintain their operations for future generations.” In an earlier floor speech, Findley warned that carbon costs caused by the cap-and- trade carbon bill could make Ash Grove Cement in Baker County less competitive than cement plants in China, which do not operate under the envi- ronmental, safety, labor, fuel and raw material regulations that Ash Grove must follow. “Unintended conse- quences of this policy will be a net increase in global emis- sion,” he said, as cement pro- duced in China will produce much more carbon dioxide. If the Ash Grove plant closes, Baker and Malheur counties could lose 600 jobs, Findley said. In another floor speech, Findley noted that EP Minerals might move its plant in Malheur County to Nevada to avoid carbon caps and costs, eliminating 123 jobs in one of the state’s most impoverished counties. “We must do no harm to existing business, understand the economic impacts of this law, and not destroy the abil- ity for Oregon businesses to compete,” he said. “The social and economic impacts must be considered along with appropriate science in the development of future carbon policies. Rural econ- omies are extremely fragile and any reduction of employ- ment diversity, such as this, is very significant.” increase in a year under the law would be $107.42 for that two-bedroom. Who is exempt? Two types of landlords have exemptions in the law. Landlords who own rental homes that received a certificate of occupancy 15 years ago or less are not restricted by the 7 percent, plus CPI, cap. They may raise rents as much as they want until the certificate of occupancy exceeds 15 years. They still have to pay the relocation fee if they evict a tenant for no fault. Landlords who own four or fewer rental units are not required to pay the relocation fee equal to one Wednesday, March 6, 2019 month’s rent when they ask a tenant to move because they want to move into the property, sell the property or make major upgrades to the property. These land- lords are restricted by the rental increase cap. How is the law enforced? Tenants may sue their landlord in court if the land- lord violates the rent cap or evicts them at no fault for a reason other than those allowed under the law. Landlords may legally evict a tenant for no fault if the landlord plans to sell the property, move into the property or their family plans to move into the prop- erty. Landlords also may evict a tenant for upgrades and renovations that can- not be done while the tenant occupies the property. How do landlords increase their rents to market rate, if they are behind? Landlords have two ways to increase rents to mar- ket rate, if they are behind. One is to gradually increase rents by the limit each year. Another is to reset the rent to market rate when a tenant moves out. The Eagle/Richard Hanners The 1188 Brewing Company will apply for a Main Street Revitalization grant from the state to improve its storefront. Grants Continued from Page A1 Co-owner Shannon Adair, also a city coun- cilor who abstained from the council decision, said that in addition to creat- ing a better looking store- front, safety issues would be addressed by installing new windows. City Manager Nick Green said he was told it was unlikely that a single city would receive more than $200,000. Greg Armstrong said he would scale back the Len’s Drug project if they didn’t receive the grant, and Adair said the 1188 project would still get done but not as quickly. In other city council news: • The Oregon Department of Environmental Qual- ity has informally approved the city’s plan for a new wastewater treatment plant that will produce reclaimed water, Green said. That approval includes allowing the city to obtain a permit to discharge reclaimed water in winter, when more reclaimed water is produced than can be put to use, he said. The city learned Feb. 28 that it was awarded a $196,500 federal Commu- nity Development Block Grant that will pay for engi- The Eagle/Richard Hanners Greg and Marla Armstrong have applied for a Main Street Revitalization grant from the state to improve retail space and storefront for Len’s Drug. neering and design for the new facility. The city issued a request for bids the same day. The council also approved a $15,000 pro- fessional services agree- ment with Clean Water Ser- vices of Hillsboro to assist with water reuse planning, specifically for constructed wetlands and watershed improvements along the John Day River. • Noting four errors, Guyer & Associates reported in their audit for fiscal year 2018 that the city was in substantial compliance with state regulations. The firm found over-ex- penditures of $6,070 in the Water Fund and $10,259 in the Information Tech- nology Fund. The city also failed to keep a written record related to propos- als for a police vehicle and failed to include a website address in a newspaper legal advertisement. • In her update on event planning, Councilor Adair advised that March 23 might be too soon for holding a street fair. She also noted that a hot rod club had shown interest in riding through the area in June. Green told the Eagle that the Oregon Depart- ment of Transportation had not approved closing High- way 26 for the street fair and instead suggested using a side street. • The council agreed to create a Community Devel- opment Committee that will oversee public relations, community events and mar- keting and branding. Oversight of the zoning and planning commission would be moved to the new committee from the admin- istrative committee. Adair, Mayor Ron Lundbom and Councilor Gregg Haberly agreed to serve on the new committee. • Tim Unterwegner was re-appointed to the zoning and planning commission. THE JUNIPER ARTS COUNCIL IS SEEKING APPLICATIONS FOR THE JOHN AND LINDA SHELK COMMUNITY GRANTS The Juniper Arts Council is seeking grant applications from Grant County organizations for community projects that benefit Grant County communities. The JAC has $3,000 to distribute from the Shelk Foundation for community projects. The maximum grant award is $1,000. An example of a recent Shelk recipient: Blue Mountain Community College and Oregon State University received a grant to purchase welding safety gear sets to be used for welding classes held at Grant Union with college credit from BMCC. Applications are available from Karin Barntish at 131 West Main Street in John Day. Further information is available from Kris Beal at 541-932-4892. Applications are due April 5, 2019 by 5 PM. 105832
