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The INDEPENDENT, January 4, 2012
Willamette sturgeon not open yet
Power of the People
By W. Marc Farmer, General Manager,
West Oregon Electric Cooperative
WOEC Santa Photos
a Success!
Thank you to everyone
who came to see Santa
Claus and support the an-
nual fund raiser for our
WOEC “Care to Share”
energy assistance pro-
gram. We were able to
raise $1,000 to help families in the West Oregon
Electric Co-op community pay their electric bills
this winter.
Thanks to a generous donation from our new
headquarters building contractor, Five Star
Builders, many families were able to take ad-
vantage of getting their initial $5 photo for free.
Not only did the Santa Photos raise money
for energy assistance, but it provided a local
place to get quality photos for keepsakes and
Christmas presents. Many members expressed
their appreciation of having a local Santa, so
they did not have to drive out of town to the mall.
During the three days of the fund raiser, over 78
groupings of kids and families were pho-
tographed by our fantastic volunteer photogra-
pher, John Murray. WOEC employees Kellie
Murray, Michael Benedict and Sarah Rossi vol-
unteered their time, putting in extra hours to
make the fund raiser a success. All their hard
work paid off, as members were pleased with
their Santa Photos and we were able to raise
$1,000 to further help WOEC members through
our Care to Share energy assistance fund.
If you are in need of assistance, find yourself
in a difficult situation, and are unable to pay your
electric bill, please call the West Oregon Electric
Cooperative office at 503-429-3021, before the
last day to pay prior to being disconnected for
non-pay. We would like to help by making pay-
ment arrangements with you. If you are discon-
nected, the costs increase and you will have to
pay all past due amounts up front to get your
power back on. Oregon Heat, St. Vincent de
Paul, and WOEC’s Care to Share energy assis-
tance funds are available to qualifying members.
If you are in need of assistance paying your
electric bill, please call Mary at 503-366-8014.
If you are on a fixed or limited income and
need help paying your electric bill, the Low In-
come Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) may
be your answer. LIEAP funds are used to help
pay electric, oil, wood, natural gas or propane
heating bills. Eligibility is based on the number
of people and total gross income within a house-
hold. Gross income is money from all sources
before taxes and other deductions. To qualify, a
household must meet federal income guide-
lines.
A list of utilities, state and local social service
agencies, community and charitable organiza-
tions, and other resources are on the Depart-
ment of Energy’s web site at www.ore
gon.gov/energy, or call 1-800-221-8035.
To learn more about the LIEAP or to schedule
an appointment, call one of these numbers:
Columbia County – 503-397-4951
Clatsop County – 503-325-1400
Washington County – 503-648-6646
Yamhill County – 503-472-0457.
New transportation laws in effect now
Drivers accustomed to
sneaking a phone call in here
and there — hoping they might
get away with it — now have
few, if any, excuses left after
January 1, 2012. That’s when a
law modifying Oregon’s ban on
cell phone use went into effect,
along with a few other trans-
portation-related laws aimed at
increasing safety on our roads.
Here’s an overview of several
specific laws:
HB 3186, Cell phone use
and texting while driving modi-
fications. For most drivers, it is
already against the law to use
a hand-held cell phone while
driving in Oregon. The original
law, however, allowed cell
phone use “in the scope of the
person’s employment if opera-
tion of the motor vehicle is nec-
essary for the person’s job.”
That exemption is removed
with House Bill 3186 effective
January 1, 2012, so that the
only drivers allowed to use a
hand-held mobile communica-
tions device are those over 18
who are 1) operating a road-
side assistance or tow vehicle
or 2) operating a utility vehicle
for the purpose of servicing a
utility.
In addition, the bill outlaws
texting for all drivers. In
essence, it is illegal for nearly
everyone to use a cell phone
and/or text while driving, unless
it is a hands-free device (no ex-
emptions for drivers under age
18). See the enrolled bill at
http://www.leg.state.or.us/11re
g/measures/hb3100.dir/hb318
6.en.html. The violation is a
Class D offense, with a new
base rate, effective January 1,
2012, of $110.
HB 3590, Child safety seat
See New on page 9
State Farm ®
Providing Insurance and Financial Services
Home Office, Bloomington, Illinois 61710
Bunny Girt, Agent
503-901-1705
1229 N. Adair
PO Box 543
Cornelius, OR 97113-0543
Bus 503-357-3131 Fax 503-357-9667
bunny.girt.b71g@statefarm.com
For a second straight year
the traditional January 1 open-
er for white sturgeon retention
on the lower Willamette River,
including Multnomah Channel
and the Gilbert River, has been
delayed because of an antici-
pated cut in the harvest quota.
ODFW fishery managers will
consult with the Fish and
Wildlife Commission at the
January 6 meeting regarding
2012 sturgeon management.
Based on Commission guid-
ance, dates for the retention
season in the lower Willamette
will be announced around mid-
January.
According to John North,
ODFW Columbia River fish-
eries manager, when the reten-
tion season does open in Feb-
ruary it’s likely to be even short-
er than the 12 day season in
2011, “With the reduced catch
quota and more anglers target-
ing Willamette River sturgeon, I
expect the retention season to
last just a couple of weekends,”
he said. “However, the lower
Willamette and other sturgeon
fisheries are currently open to
catch-and-release fishing all
year.”
In the meantime, the Colum-
bia River below Bonneville
Dam and the reservoirs be-
tween Bonneville and McNary
dams did open to white stur-
geon retention on January 1
under permanent rules. The
seasons below the Wauna
power lines and in the three
pools above Bonneville Dam
will initially be open seven days
a week while the area from
Wauna upstream to Bonneville
Dam will be open three days a
week (Thursday – Sunday). Fi-
nal 2012 retention seasons for
mainstem fisheries will be dis-
cussed and set at a Joint State
Hearing on January 26.
Columbia County
Mental Health
800-294-5211
-----------------
Suicide Hotline
Domestic Abuse
1-800-
784-2433
or
1-800-273-
TALK(8255)
-----------------
Hotline
503-397-6161
or
866-397-6161
Military Helpline
888-HLP-4-VET
(888-457-4838)