SIX - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, May 15,2013
ENTERPRISE ZONE
-Continuedfrom PACE ONE
The CREZ will take
the fees collected under the
agreements and distribute
these funds to special taxing
districts, such as rural fire,
to compensate them for the
effects of having new busi
nesses and increased popu
lation using their services.
M oney collected so
far, however, has only been
$100,000 in fees from the
zone’s first company. Rack-
space, and those funds are
being held by County Trea
surer Gayle Gutierrez. The
board voted Monday to
notify Gutierrez to release
the funds to the new fiscal
agent for disbursement. Fif
teen thousand of the money
goes to the new Morrow
Education Foundation and
the balance goes to the Port
o f Morrow for partial reim
bursement on $ 100,000 the
Port fronted to a Boardman
housing fund, designed to
provide housing for the
new workers the Enterprise
Zone development is ex
pected to attract.
The $15,000 to the
Education Foundation was
spelled out in the agreement
negotiated last year with
Rackspace, a data center
planning on building a serv
er farm at the Port, and will
be used to help fund educa
tion in Morrow County. The
Morrow County Education
Foundation was modeled
after a similar foundation
established in lone, to aid
schools in that district by
awarding grants collect
ed from outside funding
sources.
The CREZ has been
around since 2009 but re
cently reorganized under a
new IGA (intergovernmen
tal agreement) signed be
tween its three “sponsors,”
or government entities of
the City o f Boardman, Port
o f Morrow and Morrow
County Last week all three
o f these entities voted to
approve the new IGA, one
provision of which was to
appoint the fiscal agent.
There are two CREZ
board members appointed
from each entity; they cur
rently are: Morrow County:
Commissioner Leann Rea
and Assessor Greg Sweek;
City of Boardman: Mayor
Sandy Toms and Manager
Karen Pettigrew; Port of
Morrow: C om m issioner
Don Russell and General
Manager Gary Neal.
The IGA agreem ent
does not spell out exactly
which districts will be eli
gible to receive funding, but
does say that “recommen
dations and requests from
affected special districts of
potential impacts involving
the service provided by said
districts, including but not
limited to fire protection
and public safety, may be
considered.”
Once funds begin com
ing into the CREZ, the
board will distribute the
money only during a meet
ing that the full board is
represented, and at least one
affirmative vote from each
entity shall be required to
pass a motion on distribu
tion of funds.
The last provision was
added after some board
members felt two o f the
entities may dominate one
other when deciding which
taxing district would re
ceive funding.
On the subject of which
districts should receive
funding, Jb t-lw n l, h r al
ready received some criti
cism for not including over
lapping and adjacent taxing
districts in the formulation
of the IGA. At its May 6
meeting, the board received
a letter from Cyde Estes,
chairman o f the Morrow
County Unified Recreation
D istrict, asking the En
terprise Board to “invite
all taxing districts in the
Columbia Enterprise Zone
II boundary, to an infor
mational meeting prior to
ratification of the IGA. It is
our sincerest hope that you
will allow us an opportunity
to be heard,” Estes said in
her letter. All Enterprise
Zone meetings are open
to the public and so far the
board has followed open
meetings laws governing
public bodies.
When new businesses
negotiate deals with the En
terprise Zone to pay “fees”
instead of county property
taxes on new manufactur
ing and service facilities,
these fees are based on the
amount of new develop
ment the company does
within the Enterprise Zone
and new jobs the companies
are bringing into the county.
The zone is a 12-square-
mile area encom passing
mainly the Port of Morrow
Industrial park near Board-
man, which has for many
years provided virtually all
of the new development
and job growth in Morrow
County.
The companies locate
in the zone, and pay negoti
ated fees up to 15 years to
avoid paying higher prop
erty taxes directly to the
county, thus giving the zone
an econom ic advantage
in attracting new business
and jobs. The money, how
ever will not go through
the county to be divided
up among county taxing
districts as with “normal”
collected property taxes.
The IGA says the fees
collected in lieu of taxes
will instead be awarded to
special districts on which
the new businesses and
jobs have a direct impact
by locating here.
-
“Every special district
can say ‘we are impacted
because we don’t get the
tax es,’” Board Member
Gary Neal said. “ H ow
ever, if they (the new busi
nesses) weren’t here, you
would not be getting the
taxes either,” Neal pointed
out. Both Neal and board
member Don Russell said
the CREZ should make an
effort to reach out to special
districts.
In other business at
M onday’s m eeting, the
board:
-Learned that Marc Ro-
gelstad o f the Boardman
Rural Fire District was
appointed as an alternate
board member for the City
of Boardman, and that Terry
Tallman and Ken Grieb had
both been appointed alter
nates for the county. The
board also asked each entity
to vote to name County
Planning Director Carla
McLane as the CREZ man
ager. She had already been
serving in that capacity.
-Discussed that previ
ous agreements negotiated
with companies would have
to be amended to instruct
that future fees be paid to
the new CREZ fiscal agent
rather than Morrow County
as had been spelled out in
the agreements.
-Discussed rules for fu
ture negotiations with busi
nesses, including the need
to put a deadline on board
action of 90 days. Some
agreements also spell out
“buy backs,” where com
panies can receive reduced
fees if they perform certa»»
actions such as donating to
the Greater Eastern Oregon
Development housing fund,
or giving to the educa
tion fund, and Neal said
those buy-back stipulations
should be better defined in
future negotiations.
TELESTROKE SUCCESS
connection. Jean was the
first person in Heppner
to benefit from the new
Telestroke system, which
the Morrow County Health
District acquired last year.
Dr. Betsy Anderson
was covering the ED that
Monday morning in April.
She and Dr. Yanase de
termined that Jean had an
ischem ic stroke— a clot
that was blocking oxygen
from getting to her brain.
Under the physicians’ guid
ance, the RN administered
the only FDA-approved
drug treatment for ischemic
strokes, the clot-busting
drug known as tPA.
There is a very short
window of time in which
tPA can be used, which is
why Don’s immediate ac
tion was so important. Jean
was lucky; only two percent
-Continuedfrom PAGE ONE
Jean Bennett is having a
stroke.”
A full crew was already
assembled in the Emergency
Department (ED) tending a
person who had just arrived
in the ambulance. Jean was
quickly put onto a gurney,
and the entire team swung
into action. Jean arrived at
the hospital at 11:45 a.m.,
and labs were reported out
as she was started through
th eC T at 11:54.
As Jean was being
wheeled back into the ER,
a nurse was calling the
Providence Telestroke Net
work. Within minutes Jean
was being exam ined by
Dr. Lisa Yanase, a stroke
neurologist in Portland,
via the Telemedicine robot,
which is possible only with
a secure high-speed internet
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of people whose lives could
be saved by tPA receive
treatment in time.
Shortly after the tPA
was adm inistered, Jean
was LifeFlighted to Port
land Providence, where she
was treated by Dr. Yanase
in person. Jean was dis
charged from Providence
after only two days, thrilled
to be able to come home
with minimal after-effects
from her stroke.
Yes, Jean was fortu
nate. She owes that good
fortune to her husband Don,
who immediately recog
nized symptoms of a stroke
and quickly brought her to
Pioneer Memorial, where
she was able to receive the
lifesaving treatm ent she
needed.
Awareness saves lives
May is Stroke Aware
ness Month. Stroke is one
of the leading causes of
death among Americans.
Although Don Bennett was
certainly aware o f what
was happening to his wife,
more than 90 percent o f
Americans don’t know the
signs of a stroke. And, ev
ery minute a stroke is left
untreated, millions of brain
cells are killed. With a
stroke, that could mean the
difference between life and
death or living with a major
disability.
Health care profession
als use the “FAST” test to
teach people to recognize
the signs o f a stroke:
F - FACE: A sk the
person to smile. Does one
side of the mouth or face
droop?
A - ARMS: Ask the
person to raise both arms.
Does one arm drift down
ward? Can one arm not be
raised?
S - SPEECH: Ask the
person to repeat a sentence.
Can he or she repeat it cor
rectly without slurring the
words?
T - TIME: If the person
exhibits any problems with
these, it’s time to call for
emergency help.
Some additional infor
mation about stroke:
-80 percent of strokes
can be prevented by chang
es in lifestyle
-The leading cause of
stroke, high blood pressure,
affects one in four adults—
some 50 million people in
the U.S.
-Stroke is the third lead
ing killer among women
and the fourth among men
Another local hero
Another, silent partner
also played a role in Ben
nett’s recovery. Inland De
velopment is a non-profit,
locally-owned fiber-optic
communications company.
Inland’s investment in
next generation technolo
gies enables rural hospitals,
health clinics, schools and
government agencies to
use cutting edge technology
such as the Telestroke.
Sandy Matthews, of
fice manager at Inland De
velopment since 2005, is
certainly grateful that the
company played a role in
Bennett’s safe recovery...
Matthews is Jean Bennett’s
daughter.
If you or someone you know has a gambling problem,
help is available and that help Is FREE of charge.
If Y O U have a family member who suffers from
gam bling addiction, Y O U can also receive F R E E treat
ment even if the gam bler is not receiving treatment.
If you are a resident of Morrow County and you wish
to take advantage of the services above or desire more
information. Please call any of the following numbers
to set up a LO C A L appointment or just to talk:
Bobby Harris Q 541-676-9925 or 541-256-0175
Community Counseling Solutions (CCS) Q 541-676-9161
O R 1-677-695-4648 (1-868-M YLIM IT)
Op/Ed
~
Should other taxing
districts have say in
Enterprise Zone?
By Gerald Breazeale
The subject of the Columbia River Enterprise Zone
and the “in lieu of taxes” fees being received is a compli
cated issue and deserves a great deal of scrutiny. First, to
be clear, an “Enterprise Zone” is an area created to help
entice industry to locate within that area by providing
property tax concessions. It is an economic development
tool specifically designed to appeal to businesses that
wish to maximize their profits and limit their property
tax liability.
Under Oregon tax law, businesses that locate within
one of the enterprise zones are able to have the value of the
property “frozen” at the present value before the company
invests in major construction activities. The value of the
new construction is not placed on the tax rolls until three
years after the date of the agreement. After the initial
three years, the property is valued at its present state and
then is liable for current property taxes. Businesses that
agree to additional concessions, like the number of jobs
created above 150 percent of the average county wage,
may qualify for additional property tax abatement for up
to 15 years. This makes a lot of sense to lure profit-hungry
businesses to the communities offering the enterprise
zone designation.
In the case of the Columbia River Enterprise Zone at
the Port of Morrow, there are 13 taxing entities affected
by the enterprise zone. When the enterprise zone incen
tives are applied to new businesses, all of these agencies
share in the loss of property taxes that would have been
paid if the enterprise zone were not applied. The affected
agencies are, according to taxing rate, City of Boardman,
Morrow County, Boardman Rural Fire District, Blue
Mountain Community College, Intermountain ESD,
Morrow County Health District. Morrow County Unified
Recreation District, Boardman Park District, Oregon Trail
Library District, North Vector Control District, Umatilla
Morrow Radio Data District, the Port of Morrow and the
Boardman Cemetery District.
The Columbia River Enterprise Zone is being over
seen by a board representing the City of Boardman, the
Port of Morrow and Morrow County. Yet, all their deci
sions have an effect on all of the above-mentioned taxing
districts. The total of the combined tax rates for all the
agencies is $12.4451 per $1,000 of assessed valuation.
This is complicated by the fact that Measure 5 limited the
maximum tax for local governments to $10 per $1,000
value, which puts the taxing entities into “compression”
where each is limited to a proportionate share of the $10
per $ 1,000 tax limit. In other words, each entity is subject
to about a 20 percent reduction in realized taxes to stay
within the $ 10/$ 1.000. Cpnfusing, yes, but not really
important to the issue of representation on the Columbia
River Enterprise Zone board or to how the board distrib
utes fees in lieu of taxes.
The entities managing the enterprise zones may grant
the additional extension of time subject to the property tax
abatement if the company will do certain things that are
set by statute, and by agreeing to additional local requests.
The tax abatement may be extended from the initial three
years to a maximum of 15 years if the company agrees
to hire a certain number of employees at 150 percent of
the county average annual wage within five years and
maintain that average for the rest of the term.
In the case of the Columbia River Enterprise Zone,
the board has approved several long-term property tax
abatement projects. One that I am familiar with is the
abatement awarded to Con Agra for an expansion of
their potato processing facility at the Port of Morrow.
With that agreement, ConAgra will invest approximately
$211,400,000 in construction costs. Without the tax abate
ment of the Columbia River Enterprise Zone (CREZ),
Con Agra would face a tax liability of approximately
$2,494,350 per year between all of the taxing entities
before factoring in compression of approximately 20
percent. The after-compression figure would be approxi
mately $2,114,000 per year. To qualify for this abatement.
Con Agra agreed to hire 35 workers at an average wage
o f 150 percent of the Morrow County Average. O f the
35 workers that will be hired, some will make more than
the 150 percent of the Morrow County average to make
the average of those reported to be at 150 percent of the
Morrow County average wage. There is no requirement
that the payroll records are audited, but the company must
file an annual report.
In the example above, leaving out compression, Mor
row County and the City of Boardman would receive
about 67 percent of the property taxes or $1,416,380 per
year. The Port of Morrow would be entitled to 0.0067
percent or $14,164. The remaining taxing entities would
be entitled to approximately 32 percent of the tax revenue
or $676,480. The enterprise zone removes that tax liability
for 15 years. In exchange for the tax abatement, the CREZ
has required Con Agra to pay the CREZ $950,000 per
year. The Columbia River Enterprise Zone would be re
sponsible to decide what to do with the funds received.
After factoring in compression, and after considering
the in-lieu-of payments to the CREZ, the loss of (not cap
tured) tax revenue to all the taxing entities is $ 1,164,000 or
$33,257 per year per employee hired. That loss of revenue
will be shared between the 13 taxing entities according to
the tax rate for each of the respective agencies.
Other than the question of whether the cost to the
entities is worth the creation of the jobs, there is the
question of who should have a voice in the Columbia
River Enterprise Zone. The present board members have
suggested that the revenue from the in-lieu-of taxes pay
ments be distributed similarly to that used in the “needs
and issues” process that Morrow County previously used
to distribute a portion of the fees collected for dumping at
Finley Buttes, referred to as “Tippage Fees.” Should three
entities that make up 68 percent of the taxing value for the
CREZ make decisions for how the money given up by 13
entities is spent? Should the remaining 10 taxing entities
have a say in the enterprise zone tax abatement and fee
distribution? That, to me, is the real question.
)