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The INDEPENDENT, Decomber 21,1994
The
INDEPENDENT
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Serving the upper Nehalem River valley. Published
twice monthly on the second and fourth Wednesdays of
each month, by Public Opinion Laboratory Ltd., 1206
S ta te A venue, V ernonia, OR 97064, as a free
new spaper. E ditors and P ublishers, Dirk & Noni
Andersen, (503) 429-9410.
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Officials between a
rock and a hard place
Local government officials throughout Oregon have
been put in an extremely difficult position because of
the passage of Measure 8, which directs all state and
local government employers to stop putting six-per
cent of their employees’ salaries into the Public Em
ployees Retirement System and, at the same time,
requires the same employees to put six-percent of
their take-home pay into PERS. This directive results
in a six-percent decrease in the employees’ take-
home pay because the employer-paid amount was
not deducted from their pay, but was a fringe benefit.
The legality of the measure will certainly be re
viewed by the courts. In the meantime, local govern
ments are relying on a state attorney general’s opin
ion that contracts agreed upon prior to Dec. 31, 1994,
will not be affected by Measure 8.
The dilemma for local governments lies in the con
flict created by concern for their employees, the six-
percent reduction in those employees’ wages, and if,
by taking care of the employees with new contracts or
extensions of existing contracts, they are ignoring the
will of the voters.
In some cases, as in the City of Vernonia, voters
reje cted the m easure, though it passed on a
statewide basis. Even on a statewide basis, the vote
was so close it required a recount. Though the courts
will eventually sort out what can and can’t be done,
that will probably take years and the officials must
make decisions before the end of 1994.
Predictably, some officials have felt it isn’t right to
ignore the vote, regardless of how they feel about the
results of Measure 8. Others officials have felt that it
isn’t right to make employees take a six-percent pay
cut even though the voters approved the action. Both
views are understandable.
Though the Measure 8 campaign focused on highly
paid, long-term state employees, it might be more in
structive to look closer to home. Public employees in
clude school cafeteria cooks and helpers, beginning
police officers and teachers, clerks and classroom
aides, custodians and groundskeepers. Any implica
tion that they are overpaid is truly ludicrous. Not only
are th e ir salaries modest, in many cases their
salaries aren’t enough to take care of a family—even
before the six-percent is removed.
These are the people who are truly harmed by the
pay cut, and they are the reason local government of
ficials are divided in how to handle the situation.
No matter what decisions are made, it seems that
the officials are damned if they do and damned if they
don’t.
It is too bad there isn’t some sort of “common
sense” test that could be applied to initiatives so tax
dollars wouldn’t have to keep being used for litigation,
but that’s another subject.
Nevertheless, at this special time of year, instead of
railing at the officials, perhaps the citizenry should
show some compassion. Let’s wish them all a Merry
Christmas and hope the whole mess gets through the
courts in time to have a Happy New Year—at least by
1998.
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By David Michael Jones, member
Isaak Walton League, Nehalem Valley Chapter
Putting something b ack.. .
Thoughts on catch and release fishing.
Why should an angler practice “catch and
release” fishing? Well, there are a number of
reasons and one of the first is that, on many
streams and other waters of the State, it is the
law. This applies in recent years to the Native
Steelhead in most waters of Oregon and also
to many of the salmon species that are in dire
straits, such as the Coho or Silver Salmon.
Catch and release has been practiced on
som e o f O regon’s waters for a number of
years at the request of fishing groups that de
sire a quality fishery that will be here for our
children and our grandchildren. Rivers such
as the Deschutes, Metolius and the North
Fork of the Umpqua readily come to mind
when an angler thinks of “fishing the way it
used to be”. Many rivers that still provide qual
ity fishing have restrictions on the use of bait,
the type and size of hooks and what type of
lure one may use.
These are restrictions that an angler may
also impose on himself to insure that the fish
he releases will survive, even though it may
be legal to fish without the restrictions. I found
years ago that de-barbing the hooks on my
dry flys allowed me to often “release” small
trout and smolts by simply throwing slack in
my line and, if I had to “land” the fish, I could
often take hold and turn the hook with a for
ceps and the fish could swim away without be
ing handled. I will no longer use bait for Native
Steelhead. I will debarb the majority of my
hooks and am converting many of my lures to
single hooks. These things are being done to
insure that all fish I release will have a better
chance of survival. Now let’s return for a mo
ment for reasons why we should want this fish
to survive or why we should release it.
It is real hard to catch a fish again after it is
dead and it is a lot harder for that fish to
spawn and reproduce its own kind after it has
been konked on the head. A properly released
fish can grow larger, be caught again, and re
produce. How many times have we heard “I
used to catch cutthroat of sixteen and seven
teen inches in that stream”?...... Do you really
need that fish to eat? Wouldn’t a nice picture
be as good or better a trophy than a cold, stiff
fish? Gently holding a fish under its belly while
a friend snaps a photo will give you a memory
to share with others. If the fish is large (and I
hope it is), a hand around the wrist of the tail
will hold it for the few seconds needed to take
a photo.
Often, being prepared ahead of time to re
lease a fish will insure the survival of that fish.
Have a forceps or pair of long-nosed pliers at
hand to enable you to grasp the hook without
even touching the fish and this can often be
done while the fish is still in the water. I have
found that long-nosed pliers work very well for
releasing plug-caught fish alongside my boat
without having to even touch the fish, just
grasp and turn the hook. If a fish is bleeding
from a deep hook, as when bait is used, it is
often better to cut the leader and leave the
hook in. It will break down in a short period of
time and it is much easier on the fish. A small
pair of scissors works better than a knife. If
anyone begrudges a hook to the fish, I will be
happy to reimburse you if you contact me.
We also need to e lim in a te the phrase
“throwing a fish back” from our minds and
manner and replace it with “slipping a fish
gently into the current until it is breathing” (gill
covers moving). A large fish can be grasped
around the wrist of the tail (preferably with a
gloved hand) and moved gently back and forth
with its nose toward the current. It is some
times necessary to hold the fish in the current
for a while, until it recovers from the fight. Of
ten it is best to release it into a gentle flow on
the second time that it feels “strong” .
Good Luck fishing!
JTTcrry Christmas
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