State Library eClips
* Kitzhaber probe aftermath spells trouble for state data managers
* Sage grouse, ecosystem further threatened by wildfires, report says
* Deforestation a problem in Oregon despite replanting, analysis says
* David Sarasohn: Virtual charter school uses smaller district for bigger money — Opinion
* Attempt to recall Floyd Prozanski fails to make ballot, ending attempts to oust gun bill supporters
* Clatskanie whistleblower; Governor’s fleeting commitment to transparency — Opinion
* Allow more Oregonians to officiate at weddings — Opinion
* Steve Duin: You can’t fix the Port if you don’t think it’s broke — Opinion
* DHS accidentally sends $500,000 in payments
* Higher ed workers reach contract settlement
* Salem community gathers in the name of safety
* Voters, please don’t abuse our democracy — Opinion
* Oregon remains safe for sexual predators — Guest Opinion
* Parents wrong to let kids skip state school tests — Opinion
* State Rep. Val Hoyle celebrates and sounds alarm about women leadership
* Prozanski recall effort narrowly fails
* College is hard to reach for some immigrants
* Willamette National Forest proposes premptive burn on 1,725 acres in wilderness
* A deadly relationship — Opinion
* Klamath Sheriff Faces 9 Criminal Charges
* Reducing Oregon’s Reliance On Sheltered Workshops
* Why 4,700 Rape Kits In Oregon Have Yet To Be Tested
* Josephine County wont enforce GMO ban while lawsuit is pending
* Farmers, nonprofits redirect leftover food to help needy
* Congressional bill could speed up business at Pendleton UAS Range
* Commercial thinning needed to reduce wildfire threats — Guest Opinion
* Turning the disenfranchised into registered voters — Opinion
* Sudden freeze decimates Milton-Freewater cherry crop for two seasons
* Haves, have-nots in Jackson County further apart than ever
* Airport on pace for 700,000 passengers in 2015
* Building in fire zones increases risk — Opinion
* Grandfathered in
* Drought means huge drop in crop revenues
* Dry times
* Watermaster sees increase in well permits
* County Court: No monument in Canyonlands
* Prison officials: Solitary confinement a ‘grave problem’ — Guest Opinion
* Virus killing local deer
* Touring the burn: Fires effects are haphazard — Opinion
* State sides with EPA over ag industry — Opinion
* OSU-Cascades outlines plans for growth
* Upskirting: a loophole, recently closed
* Bend employers have trouble filling jobs
* Leave the phone alone when driving — Opinion
* Protect ski areas and snow riders — Opinion
* The challenge for new wood technology — Opinion
* Sheltered workshops help the disabled — Opinion
* Dairy was not on trial — Opinion
* Firewise program helped save Pine Creek homes — Guest Opinion
* D.L. Johnson Co. producing wood laminate as strong as steel
* The courage to die
* Why is Lake Abert Drying? Many say drought
* Alliance blames irrigators for declining lake
* Take second look at pot bans after a few years — Opinion
* New food standards good idea — Opinion
* Forest management questions reflect larger risk of climate change — Guest Opinion
* Remember she’s governor for all Oregon — Opinion
* Gov. Brown: Confident opportunity gap will close
* Governor Nominates Crook County DA To Safety Board
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KITZHABER PROBE AFTERMATH SPELLS TROUBLE FOR STATE DATA MANAGERS (Portland Oregonian)
Two state data administrators continue to face consequences for their conduct as a federal criminal probe of former Gov. John Kitzhaber unfolded.
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SAGE GROUSE, ECOSYSTEM FURTHER THREATENED BY WILDFIRES, REPORT SAYS (Portland Oregonian)
If increasingly destructive wildfires in the Great Basin can’t be stopped, the sage grouse population will be cut in half over the next three decades, scientists say.
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DEFORESTATION A PROBLEM IN OREGON DESPITE REPLANTING, ANALYSIS SAYS (Portland Oregonian)
Deforestation isn’t just happening in well-known global hotspots like Indonesia and Brazil’s rainforest.
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DAVID SARASOHN: VIRTUAL CHARTER SCHOOL USES SMALLER DISTRICT FOR BIGGER MONEY — OPINION (Portland Oregonian)
They ran perpetually throughout the summer TV ads for schools along with other hot-weather spots for fast food and beach wear.
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ATTEMPT TO RECALL FLOYD PROZANSKI FAILS TO MAKE BALLOT, ENDING ATTEMPTS TO OUST GUN BILL SUPPORTERS (Portland Oregonian)
Critics of state Sen. Floyd Prozanski, D-Eugene, failed to gather enough valid signatures to trigger a recall election, state Elections Director Jim Williams announced Friday.
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CLATSKANIE WHISTLEBLOWER; GOVERNOR’S FLEETING COMMITMENT TO TRANSPARENCY — OPINION (Portland Oregonian)
Peaks:
Clatskanie police complaint.
Valleys:
Transparency: When you’ve messed up as much as the Oregon Department of Energy has in recent years, it’s kind of your duty to go the extra mile to show the public that you can be trusted, right?
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ALLOW MORE OREGONIANS TO OFFICIATE AT WEDDINGS — OPINION (Portland Oregonian)
So far, the scrutiny of devout Oregon judges who refuse to conduct marriages including, notably, same-sex marriages – raises no red flags. Perhaps that will always be so.
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STEVE DUIN: YOU CAN’T FIX THE PORT IF YOU DON’T THINK IT’S BROKE — OPINION (Portland Oregonian)
The aborted assault on West Hayden Island. The departure of Hanjin. The doomed push for Pembina. The Columbia River Crossing disaster.
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DHS ACCIDENTALLY SENDS $500,000 IN PAYMENTS (Salem Statesman Journal)
Technology is not without its problems.
The Oregon Department of Human Services accidentally sent out more than $500,000 in electronic payments and checks from the agency’s child welfare program this week due to a computer glitch.
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HIGHER ED WORKERS REACH CONTRACT SETTLEMENT (Salem Statesman Journal)
Oregon’s classified higher education workers have reached a contract settlement with the state.
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SALEM COMMUNITY GATHERS IN THE NAME OF SAFETY (Salem Statesman Journal)
“It’s all about being prepared.”
That was the sentiment most frequently uttered Saturday on the steps of the state Capitol as about 500 people gathered in the name of safety.
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VOTERS, PLEASE DON’T ABUSE OUR DEMOCRACY — OPINION (Salem Statesman Journal)
It is good news for Oregonians, but barely, that a Lane County legislator survived a recall attempt.
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OREGON REMAINS SAFE FOR SEXUAL PREDATORS — GUEST OPINION (Salem Statesman Journal)
Ughh. Charges were recently dismissed against 67-year-old Terry Bean, who had been indicted on charges of sexually abusing a 15-year-old boy in 2013.
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PARENTS WRONG TO LET KIDS SKIP STATE SCHOOL TESTS — OPINION (Salem Statesman Journal)
Oregonians who allowed or encouraged their children to skip the Smarter Balanced assessments in the school year that just ended did their kids no favor. Moreover, if their numbers grow, they could cause problems for all school-age children in Oregon.
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STATE REP. VAL HOYLE CELEBRATES AND SOUNDS ALARM ABOUT WOMEN LEADERSHIP (Eugene Register-Guard)
The message state Rep. Val Hoyle delivered Saturday to the monthly meeting of the local American Association of University Women was celebratory: When women take the lead, whether socially or politically, we do things differently, and we make things happen.
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PROZANSKI RECALL EFFORT NARROWLY FAILS (Eugene Register-Guard)
An attempt to recall Democratic state Sen. Floyd Prozanski of Eugene ended Friday when the secretary of states office found that the recall campaign narrowly failed to collect enough signatures to trigger a vote.
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COLLEGE IS HARD TO REACH FOR SOME IMMIGRANTS (Eugene Register-Guard)
Brayan Gonzalezs story is one of hard work and determination. And very bad timing.
The 23-year-old from Madras graduated from Central Oregon Community College in June.
He plans to attend Portland State University this fall to earn a bachelors degree.
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WILLAMETTE NATIONAL FOREST PROPOSES PREMPTIVE BURN ON 1,725 ACRES IN WILDERNESS (Eugene Register-Guard)
Officials from the Willamette National Forest are asking the public for their thoughts on a proposal to use controlled fire to burn a big tract of forest in the Mount Washington Wilderness as early as fall 2016.
It would be the first time prescribed fire was used in a wilderness area in the Willamette National Forest and in Western Oregon.
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A DEADLY RELATIONSHIP — OPINION (Eugene Register-Guard)
-Lax gun laws lead to more gun-related deaths-
After Roanoke, Va., TV reporter Alison Parker and her photographer, Adam Ward, were shot to death Aug. 26 while doing a live interview, the Washington, D.C.-based National Journal compared state gun restrictions and shooting deaths in 2013, the latest year for which statewide numbers are available.
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KLAMATH SHERIFF FACES 9 CRIMINAL CHARGES (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
The Oregon Department of Justice announced Friday that Klamath County Sheriff Frank Skrah is being indicted on nine charges. The charges include counts of harassment, official misconduct, attempted assault in the fourth degree and strangulation.
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REDUCING OREGON’S RELIANCE ON SHELTERED WORKSHOPS (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
Many Oregonians with intellectual and developmental disabilities want to work, and they do. They’re people with conditions like Down syndrome.
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WHY 4,700 RAPE KITS IN OREGON HAVE YET TO BE TESTED (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
Law enforcement agencies and prosecutors in Oregon received nearly $4 million last week to DNA test an extensive backlog of sexual assault kits.
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JOSEPHINE COUNTY WONT ENFORCE GMO BAN WHILE LAWSUIT IS PENDING (Capital Press)
Oregons Josephine County will not enforce its prohibition against genetically engineered crops while a farmer lawsuit against the ordinance is underway.
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FARMERS, NONPROFITS REDIRECT LEFTOVER FOOD TO HELP NEEDY (Capital Press)
-Food waste continues to be a serious challenge for farmers, consumers and those in need.-
Elise Bauman wants to work herself out of a job.
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CONGRESSIONAL BILL COULD SPEED UP BUSINESS AT PENDLETON UAS RANGE (East Oregonian)
The Pendleton Unmanned Aerial Systems Range remains on the verge of signing its first contract with a well-known company and could start testing in the fall, according to Pendleton economic development director Steve Chrisman.
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COMMERCIAL THINNING NEEDED TO REDUCE WILDFIRE THREATS — GUEST OPINION (East Oregonian)
Federal forest management is once again in the spotlight with 43,000 fires burning over eight million acres so far this year. Eastern Oregon hasn’t been spared from the heartache, with three fires alone burning nearly 200,000 acres on three national forests. This is the time for communities to come together to help those who’ve been affected.
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TURNING THE DISENFRANCHISED INTO REGISTERED VOTERS — OPINION (East Oregonian)
-As is the tendency of most hot topics, Oregon’s motor voter bill that passed the Legislature this past session has cooled off considerably now that its into the nitty gritty implementation phase.-
Interim Secretary of State Jeanne Atkins is making her way around the state now, asking for feedback on how to apply the rule that will go into effect on January 1.
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SUDDEN FREEZE DECIMATES MILTON-FREEWATER CHERRY CROP FOR TWO SEASONS (East Oregonian)
Umatilla County fruit growers might not have a cherry crop until 2017 after last year’s freeze that decimated orchards.
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HAVES, HAVE-NOTS IN JACKSON COUNTY FURTHER APART THAN EVER (Medford Mail Tribune)
The divide between the haves and have-nots is growing wider, threatening the long-term economic vitality of Jackson County and Oregon as a whole, a new study shows.
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AIRPORT ON PACE FOR 700,000 PASSENGERS IN 2015 (Medford Mail Tribune)
-Travelers laud convinience, cost of flying out of Medford-
Three successive months of 70,000-plus passengers has all but assured the Medford airport will reach the 700,000 plateau this year.
“If the economy were to crash or something major occurred, we could have a drop-off,” airport Director Bern Case said. “From this point, if we stay even with last year, we’re going to have a really good year.”
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BUILDING IN FIRE ZONES INCREASES RISK — OPINION (Albany Democrat Herald)
This weeks recent cooler weather has been a boon to firefighters, but were not out of the woods yet, so to speak, with this years brutal fire season.
Another stretch of hot weather as we are expecting over the next week or so could mean that the fire season could wrap up with a fiery climax, and that wouldn’t be good news for anyone.
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GRANDFATHERED IN (Argus Observer)
-Oil, gas leases safe but extraction impacts possible if wilderness, monument declared-
In the heart of the Owyhee River Canyon, past the pale green sagebrush hills, the cliffs marked by tribal hands and black volcanic fields, sits a decaying brick building.
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DROUGHT MEANS HUGE DROP IN CROP REVENUES (Argus Observer)
The message from local farmers is clear: Because they have been making their reduced irrigation water go further does not mean they can afford to cut back in the future when water supplies have improved.
In addition, water conservation measures have their costs beyond the financial aspects.
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DRY TIMES (Argus Observer)
-Unclear whether winter will bring drought relief-
Severe drought began in the southeastern part of the state in the spring. By this month, it had extended to more than half of the state.
That was part of the drought report given to members of the Oregon Water Resources Commission Friday, the last day of its meeting at Four Rivers Cultural Center in Ontario.
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WATERMASTER SEES INCREASE IN WELL PERMITS (Argus Observer)
Watermasters work to ensure the distribution of water in the state is done according to state law.
In Malheur County, that person is Ron Jacobs, who has the second largest district in the state. He has been a watermaster since 1999.
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COUNTY COURT: NO MONUMENT IN CANYONLANDS (Argus Observer)
The Malheur County Court has added its voice to the Owyhee Canyonlands debate, which is heating up.
The court adopted a resolution Wednesday opposing any move to create a new national monument to include the Owyhee Canyonlands or establish any other national monument, national conservation area or wilderness area on public lands within southern Malheur County.
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PRISON OFFICIALS: SOLITARY CONFINEMENT A ‘GRAVE PROBLEM’ — GUEST OPINION (Ashland Daily Tidings)
A report issued last week by the Association of State Correctional Administrators and Yale Law School titled Time-in-Cell found that prison officials have characterized inmate isolation as a grave problem and are searching for alternatives for most inmates.
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VIRUS KILLING LOCAL DEER (Baker City Herald)
A virus spread by midges, a type of biting fly, has killed at least one whitetail deer in Baker Valley, and is the suspected cause in the death of about a dozen other whitetails in the area between Washington Gulch and Marble Creek.
A lab test confirmed that one deer died from Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease EHD, said Justin Primus, assistant district wildlife biologist at the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlifes Baker City office.
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TOURING THE BURN: FIRES EFFECTS ARE HAPHAZARD — OPINION (Baker City Herald)
I spent a few hours last week having a look at a small part of the biggest wildfire in Baker County history. As with every other blaze Ive toured, I was intrigued by the random nature by which flames inflict their marks on the land.
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STATE SIDES WITH EPA OVER AG INDUSTRY — OPINION (Baker City Herald)
The saddest part of the following question is that we even need to ask it.
Does Oregon’s state government care more about empowering federal bureaucrats than it does about the ranchers and farmers whose operations contribute billions of dollars annually to the state economy?
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OSU-CASCADES OUTLINES PLANS FOR GROWTH (Bend Bulletin)
-Enrollment expected to hit 3,735 by 2025-
OSU-Cascades plans to grow no bigger than 5,000 students, but estimating how quickly it may approach that limit is a mix of art and science.
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UPSKIRTING: A LOOPHOLE, RECENTLY CLOSED (Bend Bulletin)
Kristina Barragan was shopping at the Bend OfficeMax the morning of May 15 when she noticed a man following her around the store, using a black organizer tray to film up her dress with a cellphone.
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BEND EMPLOYERS HAVE TROUBLE FILLING JOBS (Bend Bulletin)
-Lack of applicants, skills and housing costs contribute to shortage-
Mountain View Heating Inc. employs 38 people, less than half its workforce during the housing boom, and it intends to keep it that way, said service manager Jolie Perkins.
The Bend company, which installs and maintains residential and commercial heating and air conditioning systems, posts a standing now hiring link on its website.
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LEAVE THE PHONE ALONE WHEN DRIVING — OPINION (Bend Bulletin)
You’ve heard it before. Driving with your cellphone glued to your ear is dangerous business, and illegal to boot. So, too, is texting. Yet the practices are so widespread that Bend police cited 46 drivers recently for doing one or the other. Worse, they did so in the space of just three hours at two busy intersections.
Will we never learn?
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PROTECT SKI AREAS AND SNOW RIDERS — OPINION (Bend Bulletin)
Oregon law provides some protection from lawsuits to ski operators, farmers and others whose businesses are inherently risky. Yet where skiing, snowboarding and some other sports are concerned, the law may not go far enough.
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THE CHALLENGE FOR NEW WOOD TECHNOLOGY — OPINION (Bend Bulletin)
A lumber mill in Riddle is now the first in the country certified to produce a new wood building material.
Cross-laminated timber is pitched as environmentally sustainable. It sequesters carbon. And it can be as strong as steel.
Gov. Kate Brown announced Thursday that the state and some partners will host a $200,000 design competition to encourage use of the product.
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SHELTERED WORKSHOPS HELP THE DISABLED — OPINION (Bend Bulletin)
Sheltered workshops seem on the surface to be a form of discrimination. But they are a more nuanced answer to the challenge of helping some disabled people find work.
The workshops are places where people with disabilities work mostly alongside other people with disabilities. The work can be menial. Pay is sometimes pennies an hour far below minimum wage.
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DAIRY WAS NOT ON TRIAL — OPINION (Bend Bulletin)
Dairy cows can be controversial. You might like milk, cheese or yogurt others think they know better.
The Oregon Department of Agriculture held a hearing earlier this month about changes planned at five Oregon dairies. Two are in Tillamook, and Bonanza, Coquille and Keizer each have one. Four of them are looking to expand.
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FIREWISE PROGRAM HELPED SAVE PINE CREEK HOMES — GUEST OPINION (Blue Mountain Eagle)
It was early afternoon when the fire took off, producing significant columns of smoke, watched by an already devastated community. Homes, barns and forests were impacted for more than three weeks by the Canyon Creek Complex fire.
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D.L. JOHNSON CO. PRODUCING WOOD LAMINATE AS STRONG AS STEEL (Douglas County News-Review)
A two-year project at D.R. Johnson Lumber Co. to develop a new wood product has come to a successful conclusion.
The family-owned, Riddle-based company has constructed a production line for cross laminated timber CLT, and the product is now being made to fill two orders.
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THE COURAGE TO DIE (Herald and News)
The day he was to die, Vernon Gearhard had breakfast with Fran, his wife of 57 years, their three children and their spouses.
He listened to some of his favorite music classical pianist Johannes Brahms and opera singer Kathleen Battle and around noon, he and Fran sat on their terrace.
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WHY IS LAKE ABERT DRYING? MANY SAY DROUGHT (Herald and News)
For many people, the reason Lake Abert is drying up is no mystery.
Most of Lake Abert’s water comes from spring snow melt, says Craig Foster, a biologist with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Lakeview office. When you don’t get a good snowpack in the mountains the water drops. Anytime you get two drought years, the level drops.
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ALLIANCE BLAMES IRRIGATORS FOR DECLINING LAKE (Herald and News)
Yes, there is an ongoing drought and, yes, ranchers along the lower Chewaucan River between Paisley and Valley Falls have legally valid water rights to use river for irrigation.
But members of the High Lakes Aquatic Alliance Foundation think and some insist that ranchers are taking more water for irrigating fields, and believe a taller dam built at the Rivers End Ranch, where the Chewaucan spills into Lake Abert, are factors in Abert drying up.
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TAKE SECOND LOOK AT POT BANS AFTER A FEW YEARS — OPINION (Herald and News)
-The question: Do they do more harm than good?-
The Klamath Falls City Council did what we expected it to this week and voted to ban recreational pot sales inside the city. We believe its likely Klamath County commissioners will do the same county-wide when they reach a decision.
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NEW FOOD STANDARDS GOOD IDEA — OPINION (LaGrande Observer)
New rules for food manufacturers in the United States released Thursday are a good, optimistic first step regarding an ongoing problem.
The new mandates set for execution later this year will compel food producers to fashion safety blueprints for the government to outline the methods they use to ensure cleanliness and that they are aware of the potential risk associated with the particular food they manufacture.
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FOREST MANAGEMENT QUESTIONS REFLECT LARGER RISK OF CLIMATE CHANGE — GUEST OPINION (LaGrande Observer)
Tthe Pacific Northwest is burning. We’ve seen lives lost and homes destroyed. This is no once-in-a-lifetime event. This is our future. Oregon State Climatologist Kathy Dello says, the Future is now. A widespread drought two years in the making set the stage for these fires and OSU researchers report the Northwest can expect warmer, wetter winters and hotter, drier summers.
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REMEMBER SHE’S GOVERNOR FOR ALL OREGON — OPINION (The World)
-We’ve yet to see how Gov. Kate Brown will address South Coast issues-
Kate Browns visit last Wednesday was a quite pleasant if not busy first meeting between the new governor and the residents of Coos Bay.
In a few short hours the governor got a pretty good overview of who we are: a community that tries to meets the educational needs of its offspring, living in an overall still very working-class economy, and so proud of our heritage that we erected a new monument in its honor.
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GOV. BROWN: CONFIDENT OPPORTUNITY GAP WILL CLOSE (KOIN)
-Gov. Kate Brown spoke with KOIN 6 News on Thursday-
Gov. Kate Brown said she knows she has a big job to help change the fact Oregon has one of the lowest high school graduation rates in the country.
During a conversation with KOIN 6 News at Durham Elementary in Tigard, the governor said lawmakers have taken 3 steps toward improving the schools.
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GOVERNOR NOMINATES CROOK COUNTY DA TO SAFETY BOARD (mycentraloregon.com)
Governor Brown is nominating Daina Vitolins to the Board on Public Safety Standards and Training PBSST. The Oregon Senate will review all new nominations for approval later this month.
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