County still lags behind state
in census response
HEPPNER
G T
50¢
azette
imes
VOL. 139
NO. 35 8 Pages
Wednesday, August 26, 2020
Morrow 44 percent participation, Oregon
67 percent
By David Sykes
Morrow County still
lags behind the state aver-
age for census participation,
the county commission was
told at last week’s meeting.
The commissioners heard
from Marc Czornij, Part-
nership Team Leader for the
Oregon US Census Bureau,
who said although the coun-
ty rate is low, it is still ahead
of 23 other counties.
Commissioners are
concerned with the low par-
ticipation rate for citizens of
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
County’s offer of power line easement
won’t stop condemnation process
Could ease impact on other landowners, however
Morrow County’s census rate at 44%
County has 5-acre parcel located next to Tallman property offered for power line easement.
By David Sykes
While the county’s of-
fer to grant Umatilla Elec-
tric Co-op (UEC) a power
line easement across county
land at Laurel Lane near
Boardman is “generous” it
will not stop condemnation
proceedings against other
property owners in the area,
co-op CEO Robert Echen-
rode told the Morrow Coun-
ty commission last week.
The co-op has already
filed paperwork with the
Oregon Public Utility Com-
mission (PUC), that if ap-
proved would allow the
condemnation of several
parcels of private land in the
area necessary for construc-
tion of a new power line.
The 230kV line is needed
to service current UEC
customers and additional
growth expected in that
area and would run from a
Hwy 730 electric switch-
yard near the I-84 freeway,
4.3 miles east to Olson Rd
at Boardman. The PUC is
moving forward, having
already held a hearing and
taken public comment on
the proposed condemna-
tion, but as yet, not made a
decision.
UEC has been in ongo-
ing negotiations with sever-
al area landowners to secure
the necessary easements for
construction of the line. So
far deals have been struck
with all landowners except
two, former county judge
Terry Tallman and his wife
Cheryl, who own a 10-acrea
farm adjacent to the county
parcel, and the Hobbs, who
own a business on land in
the path of the proposed
power line.
The Morrow County
Commissioners became
involved in an effort to stop
the undesirable condemna-
tion process. They offered
to allow an easement across
a nearby 5-acre parcel of
county-owned land, and
maybe alter the path of
the new line enough so
condemnation of private
property wasn’t necessary
At last week’s meeting
the commission met with
Echenrode for a second
time to talk about the new
power line and its pro-
posed route. At a July 22
meeting Echenrode gave
a presentation to the com-
missioners, using Google
Earth to show the various
-See CONDEMNATION/
PAGE EIGHT
Morrow County as it will
affect the amount of federal
grant dollars received in the
future. The census is also
used to decide how many
US representatives are al-
lowed from each state to
the congress.
Czornij said the cur-
rent participation for the
county is at 43.6 percent
of the population. He said
Morrow County lags be-
hind the state which is at
67.2 percent. Twenty-three
Oregon counties are lower
than Morrow, he added.
Within the county Ione has
the lowest rate while Board-
man and Irrigon are highest.
Lexington and Heppner’s
rates were not given.
Commissioner Lind-
say, who has been working
hard for a higher county
participation rate, asked if
the state could not do more
to make people aware of
the importance of partici-
pating in the census, and to
boost participation. She has
been trying to put together
funding for a mailing urg-
ing people to complete the
census. An earlier mailer
sent out by the state was not
very effective in Heppner
as many of the addresses
were for people’s physical
addresses and not the boxes
so they were not delivered
by the post office.
On a positive note,
Czornij said the county’s
participation is only slight-
ly behind last year’s rate
of 43.9. “You are only .3
percent away from break-
ing last year’s record,” he
pointed out. Anyone want-
ing to fill out their census
can go to the web site at:
oregon2020census.gov/
In other business at last
week’s meeting, the com-
mission heard a report from
county Community De-
velopment Director Gregg
Zody, who reported he was
working on making appli-
cation to the state for grant
money from the Cultural
-See COUNTY CENSUS/
PAGE TWO
Governor’s treatment of counties ‘disheartening’
says commissioner
‘Stand atop our money and chastise us’
By David Sykes
Oregon Governor Kate
Brown’s recent press con-
ference chastising counties
for not doing more to fight
the COVID-19 pandemic
came as a surprise and was
‘disheartening’, Morrow
County Commissioner and
President of the Oregon
Association of Counties
(AOC), Jim Doherty said
this week.
Brown made the com-
ments during a press con-
ference last Friday, where
she said counties need to
do more leading by ex-
ample, education of their
citizens and enforcement
of her executive orders. She
said until counties increase
these efforts and reduce
COVID-19 rates, Oregon
schools will not reopen
this fall.
“It was extremely dis-
appointing to hear the Gov-
ernor take that position,”
Doherty responded. “The
voters in Morrow County
have asked the commission-
ers to approach the work in
a nonpartisan fashion. We
have done our level best
to set aside our ideologies
and address these issues as
a team, working in partner-
ship with the state. Only to
have the Brown adminis-
tration intercept the $624
million intended to salvage
the lives and livelihoods of
our local families and dev-
astated businesses. Then
to see our, ‘partner,’ stand
atop our money and chas-
tise us was disheartening,”
Doherty said in a statement
to the Gazette-Times.
The $624 million
Doherty was referring to
was part of a $1.6 billion
federal coronavirus aid
package sent to Oregon
intended for disbursement
down to local governments
for use in virus related
expenses. Doherty says
the money never got to
the county level and was
instead kept by the Brown
administration for use at the
state level.
Doherty is also pres-
ident of the AOC which
issued a press release last
week saying Brown’s chas-
tising of counties came as
a surprise for counties as
they “have been leading the
way,” in the fight against
COVID. “We are partners
with the state, delivering
critical services to Orego-
nians on their behalf. Today,
we ask the governor and
state officials to support
counties. These increased
expectations the governor
announced require addi-
tional resources that the
state has yet to distribute,”
the AOC said.
“Morrow County
should be celebrated, for
the vital role we play and
associated COVID-19 chal-
lenges we face in ensuring
the agricultural sector con-
tinues to feed those, both far
and near,” Doherty added
about the county’s role
in producing food for the
country.
The AOC addressed
each of the governor’s three
press conference remarks:
Lead by Example –
Counties are working in
their communities to reduce
transmission of the virus.
Counties are calling on the
governor to provide finan-
cial and other resources
directly to counties to con-
tinue to fight the virus.
Education – Counties
are communicating with
their citizens. The gover-
nor’s office is many times
unclear on how virus statis-
tics are being used to make
state level Covid decisions.
The virus varies from coun-
ty to county and more de-
cisions should be made at
the county level than in
Salem. “A one-size-fits-all
approach will not work as
well as community-based
responses,” the AOC said.
Enforcement – Coun-
ties have limited means of
enforcement for state man-
dated Covid rules. Enforce-
ment is with the sheriffs,
independent elected offi-
cials. If the state wants the
sheriffs to enforce Covid
mandates it should provide
more funding to the sher-
iff’s offices.
“The decision of the
state to withhold, and ul-
timately spend resources
intended for counties and
local government response
efforts makes it even more
difficult for counties to
effectively respond to the
governor’s call for more
assistance from counties,”
AOC said of the money that
was not properly distributed
to counties by Brown.
The AOC also point-
ed out that the governor’s
actions are badly hurting
small businesses, which
are proving not to be the
source of virus infections.
“The primary source of
COVID-19 outbreaks in
many Oregon communi-
ties has not been a failure
of businesses to follow
mandates and guidance,”
the AOC pointed out. “The
primary source is family
and other social gatherings
that are not capable of being
prevented by enforcement.
Retail businesses should
not be penalized in an al-
ready economically devas-
tating time, when they are
not the source of spread,”
it said.
“As President of the
Association of Oregon
Counties, I have helped
craft this, and other letters
Morrow County Commis-
sioner and Association of
Oregon Counties President
Jim Doherty
asking, only that the state
recognize their partner and
pass through the funds to
Oregon’s 36 counties al-
lowing them to support
and enrich the lives of our
brethren as the Local Health
Authorities,” Doherty con-
cluded.
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