NEWS
A6 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
Legislative session
off to a quiet start
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2020
Arts and Crafts on the Dry Side
Tensions simmer just
below surface on
contentious issues
By SAM STITES, JAKE THOMAS
AND CLAIRE WITHYCOMBE
OREGON CAPITAL BUREAU
A contentious proposal
to reduce the state’s green-
house gas emissions dom-
inated political chatter in
the weeks before the 2020
legislative session began.
So much so, that observers
expected “sparks” when
lawmakers convened on
Monday, said Sen. Brian
Boquist, R-Dallas.
But sitting in his offi ce
on the appointed day,
wearing cowboy boots,
jeans and his signature
turtleneck under a sports
jacket, Boquist said, “It
seems like it’s in neu-
tral. This building is never
neutral.”
Then the longtime sen-
ator reconsidered.
Instead, he said, it was
more like the Legislature
was “out of gear” or like
standing on a calm beach
as the water recedes before
a tsunami.
As legislators prepared
for meetings inside the
Oregon Capitol, Boquist
said he was going back to
his district offi ce in Dal-
las to read legislation
and meet with constitu-
ents. This might be his
last chance to do that for
a while.
“As soon as committees
begin, our lives are not our
own,” he said.
The pace is expected to
pick up quickly as legisla-
tors race to meet deadlines
to fi nish within 35 days.
“If it doesn’t hap-
pen fast, it doesn’t hap-
pen at all,” Senate Major-
ity Leader Ginny Burdick,
D-Portland, told reporters
on Monday.
“And that’s the reality
of a 35-day session. So, I
think you’re going to see a
lot of pressure at the very
beginning.”
Republicans have com-
plained that Democrats,
who hold large majorities
in both chambers, would
push through hefty pro-
posals without giving the
public enough time to
weigh in.
Senate Minority Leader
Sen. Herman Baertsch-
iger Jr., R-Grants Pass,
opposes “robust” legisla-
tion in such a compressed
time, and said in an inter-
view that Democrats “have
a large appetite.”
Senate President Peter
Courtney, D-Salem, Ore-
gon’s
longest-serving
Senate president, was at
the Capitol on Monday,
despite worries he might
be absent due to a hip
injury that had kept him
from attending a series of
pre-session meetings ear-
lier this month.
Despite using a walker,
Courtney, 76, gaveled
through a light agenda
speedily, and drew that
day’s fl oor session to a
close in less than an hour.
In the House, things
stretched on a bit longer,
as Republicans voiced
opinions in a series of pro-
cedural “remonstrances.”
“We get in a little too
deep, in my opinion,”
said Rep. Daniel Bon-
ham, R-The Dalles, on
the House fl oor Monday
morning.
Rep. Kim Wallan,
R-Medford, even invoked
the Beatles in criticizing
policies pushed through
by the Legislature in
the recent past, quoting
from “Strawberry Fields
Forever”:
“The line that was in
my head was, ‘Living is
easy with eyes closed,’”
Wallan said. “‘Misunder-
standing all you see.’”
She concluded her fl oor
speech: “We need to really
dig down and see what
our policies do to real
people, really poor peo-
ple, before we just cava-
lierly decide this is what’s
best for everybody,” Wal-
Staff photo by Jade McDowell
Oregon Capital Bureau Photo/Sam Stites
Cap-and-trade architect Sen. Michael Dembrow,
D-Portland, explains how he’s attempted to craft his bill to
overcome Republican opposition.
lan said. “We need to look
a little closer. I hope that
we will keep the Beatles
in mind this session, and
keep our eyes open and try
to understand.”
Rep. Barbara Smith
Warner, D-Portland, who
leads Democrats in the
House, extended an olive
branch — albeit one laden
with platitudes.
“To my colleagues
across the aisle, while I
know that we won’t always
agree on the path forward,
I truly believe that there is
more that unites us than
divides us,” Smith Warner
said.
She added, “I hope
we search for common
ground and where our pol-
icy views diverge, I hope
that we always assume the
best intentions from each
other.”
The House of Repre-
sentatives has sworn in
four new members, and
the Senate one new mem-
ber, since last year’s ses-
sion concluded.
Senate
Republicans
haven’t ruled out a repeat
of their walkout that
marked the last session.
But if Republicans ditch,
they could imperil legis-
lation that would allocate
state money to their dis-
tricts or address constitu-
ent concerns.
“My concern is if the
short session blows up,
there’s some things that
need to be fi xed that we
won’t get to,” said Rep.
Ron Noble, R-McMinn-
ville, speaking before the
session.
While Boquist’s bag is
packed and ready to go in
case of another walkout,
he said he only expects
to be gone for one or two
days. He said he just wants
the greenhouse gas-reduc-
tion bill to be put to the
voters and that a boycott is
a legitimate tool that has a
bipartisan history.
“I’m actually upbeat,”
he said.
Burdick again criti-
cized the tactic employed
twice last year by Senate
Republicans.
“I totally disapprove
of walking out,” Burdick
said. “They’re getting paid
to do a job and it’s their
duty to show up for work.
Their constituents are not
represented if they don’t
show up, and I know that
my constituents would be
very, very mad, if I just
didn’t like the way things
were going and didn’t
show up. So I’m assuming
they will show up.”
On Monday, House
Speaker Tina Kotek,
D-Portland, stressed she
talks regularly with House
Minority Leader Christine
Drazan, R-Canby.
“The vast majority of
members, both Republi-
can and Democrat, want to
work collaboratively, want
to get things done together,
are going to show up for
work,” said Kotek.
“And then you proba-
bly have people both on
the left and right who are
more like, ‘We need to
go further’ or ‘We need
to walk out.’ But I think
those are small groups in
both sides. I think people
want to work together.”
Sen.
Jeff
Golden,
D-Ashland, said he’s con-
fi dent that Republicans
and Democrats will pass
legislation proposed by
Brown and her Council on
Wildfi re Response.
Baertschiger said Mon-
day he agreed with almost
all the Democrats’ views
on wildfi re, with only mild
points of disagreement.
The heavy lifting of
the Legislature got under-
way Tuesday, as com-
mittees moved rapidly to
conduct hearings and con-
sider which legislation to
advance.
That work is likely to
be overshadowed Thurs-
day by what happens out-
side the Capitol.
Timber Unity, a group
agitating against what it
says will be higher costs
for rural Oregonians and
people working in the nat-
ural resource industry,
is planning a rally at the
Capitol for Thursday. The
group opposes proposed
greenhouse
emissions
legislation.
“All I’m asking for is,
I hope people come with
very specifi c suggestions,
and not just ‘We don’t
like the bill,’ because the
reality is, until we have
another plan that can
reduce our greenhouse gas
emissions, we need to go
with this,” Kotek said.
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Rhonda Grahm, left, Mickey Morris and Charleen Wiggins prepare for “high tea” at a meeting
of Arts and Crafts on the Dry Side. The group meets every Thursday from 10 a.m. to noon at
the Harkenrider Senior Activity Center in Hermiston to work on crafts they brought, ranging
from painting to knitting.
Oregon Cultural Trust presents
workshops for grant seekers
HERMISTON HERALD
Organizations
seeking
grants can learn about fund-
ing programs available as
the Oregon Cultural Trusts
hosts “Conversations with
Funders and Partners” at
eight sites across the state,
including Pendleton.
Also, held in conjunc-
tion with three of the sched-
uled events, potential grant
applicants are invited to
attend a free application
writing workshop, which
will be held prior to the
conversation.
The information sessions
feature grant makers offer-
ing more than $5 million in
funding for the 2021 fi scal
year. Those seeking grants
will have an opportunity to
discuss their projects and
programming.
The local session is Tues-
day, March 10 from 1-4 p.m.
at Pendleton Center for
the Arts, 214 N. Main St.
The grant application writ-
ing workshop, presented by
Travel Oregon, runs from 9
a.m, to noon, also at the arts
center.
Aili Schreiner, Cultural
Trust manager, said there
are more than 1,450 cul-
tural nonprofi ts serving
Oregonians. Organizations
encouraged to attend include
community
development
organizations,
libraries,
arts organizations, muse-
ums, cultural centers, parks
and trails groups, historical
societies, arts alliances, lit-
erary groups and heritage
organizations.
“We want to make sure
they know about the signif-
icant funding and program-
ming resources that are here
to support them,” Schreiner
said.
Advance registration for
the conversation event is
not required — however,
people who are planning to
attend the free grant-writ-
ing workshop are asked
to register in advance at
https://fs22.formsite.com/
TravelOregon/69dud71bct/
index.html.
For more information,
contact Schreiner at aili.
schreiner@oregon.gov or
503-986-0089.
Domestic Violence Services
highlights teen dating issues
The numbers are stagger-
ing in regards to adolescents
who are victims of dating
violence.
National statistics pro-
vided by Domestic Violence
Services indicate 1 in 3 girls
has experienced physical,
emotional or verbal abuse
from a dating partner; 1 in
10 high school students have
been hit, slapped or physi-
cally hurt by a boyfriend or
girlfriend; and only 33% of
the teens in abusive relation-
ships report the abuse.
In an effort to help edu-
cate the community, DVS
is highlighting that Febru-
ary is Teen Dating Violence
Awareness Month. Accord-
ing to the nonprofi t orga-
nization’s recent newslet-
ter, violent relationships in
adolescence can have seri-
ous ramifi cations, including
a higher risk for substance
abuse and eating disorders.
Also, victims of dating vio-
lence may engage in pro-
miscuous sexual behav-
ior or experience escalating
domestic violence.
In addition to shel-
ters (Pendleton and Herm-
iston) and advocacy cen-
ters (Boardman, Heppner
and Milton-Freewater), the
agency maintains a 24-hour
crisis line (800-833-1161).
Other services include safety
planning, support groups,
parenting classes, discussion
groups and life skills train-
ing. Agency staff also pro-
vide training workshops for
community and student edu-
cation. Speakers are avail-
able for businesses, clubs,
schools, churches and civic
groups.
For more information,
contact 541-276-3322, 541-
567-0424, administrator@
dvs-or.org or visit www.
dvs-or.org.
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