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Thursday, May 2, 2024

Klamath Basin Weather

Today’s Headlines

A candidate running for a Klamath County commissioner seat decided not to participate in the candidate forum Tuesday evening.

Sally-Ann Palcovich announced on her campaign’s Facebook page Tuesday morning that she would not attend the Klamath County Chamber of Commerce candidate forum due to, the post said, a lack of “impartial atmosphere.”

The candidate raised an issue with a comment publicly posted on Instagram by an account (“Harterseafood”) associated with a business that’s in the name of the Chamber’s executive director, Heather Harter.

Palcovich’s campaign page posted a screenshot of a comment on Instagram in which the business account endorses incumbent Commissioner Derrick DeGroot.

Another photo shows the business license for the company Lucky Landings Guided Service on which Harter is listed as both the registrant and the authorized representative.

Harter responded to requests for comment but was unable to return the call due to the timing of the inquiry and the candidate forum she was moderating.

The Klamath County Clerk Rochelle Long said she reached out to the Secretary of State after receiving multiple phone calls about the issue.  Long said that, if reported, the office would look into whether to proceed with an investigation for bias, but that it was unlikely to result in an official investigation.

 

A Klamath Union alum is in the running for America’s Favorite Teacher, but needs a final push to cross the finish line.

Tiana Eck, a former first- and fifth-grade teacher at Conger Elementary School who currently is educating at Ethel Boyes Elementary School in Idaho Falls, was chosen to be part of a nationwide contest called America’s Favorite Teacher where she has the chance to win $25,000, a trip to Hawaii and have a feature in Reader’s Digest magazine.

Decided by public vote, Eck started the competition against 125 other educators in her grouping, which quickly dwindled to 20, 15 and 10, and now the top five finalists are vying for that number one spot to move on to the final round and compete against other groups’ finalists. Eck currently ranks second place.

Inspired to teach since the sixth grade, Eck said it was from the “tremendous” experience she had while learning from her teacher Evan Mortenson (2002 Wal-Mart’s Teacher of the Year) at Riverside Elementary School. Eck was the final sixth-grade class of Riverside before it closed in 2004.

Eck supports her students not only in the classroom, but outside as well, attending their sporting events, musical recitals and theater performances.

Eck said that if she wins, she plans to use a portion of the winnings to pay back her student loans and throw a party for her students at a local pizzeria. 

 

Klamath Community College students will now have a new logistical resource to use to train for firefighting, as well as other disasters and emergencies.

Thanks to a grant from Green Diamond Resource Company, the college’s Public Safety Regional Training Center has added a computer simulation table which will replicate various types of terrain through computer-generated models.

Green Diamond is a sixth-generation, family-owned forest products company that owns and manages working forests in nine states throughout the western and southern U.S.

The new simtable will aid the college in teaching tactics about fighting wildfires, by allowing any mapped area to be shaped into a 3D replica.

The maps can be used to establish the quickest evacuation routes during an emergency, as well as indicating where homeowners need to create defensible space.

 

Klamath IDEA announced Wednesday that it has received a donation of nearly $100,000 from Klamath Community Development Corporation (KCDC).

The donation will supplement operational funding for the next six years, helping Klamath IDEA to connect entrepreneurs to the right resources at the right time. The funding comes at an opportune moment for Klamath IDEA, which recently became a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.

Until recently, it operated under the auspices of the Klamath Community College Foundation.

Established in 1995, KCDC was formed to facilitate economic development and job creation by providing a resource to startup and existing businesses in Klamath County. KCDC consolidated funding from the City of Klamath Falls and Klamath County, along with state and federal grants to provide funding resources for some notable companies that either started in, relocated to, or expanded in Klamath County, such as Electro Scientific Industries (ESI), International Paper, Thermo Pressed Laminates, SYKES, and others.

Along with support from South Central Oregon Economic Development District (SCOEDD), KCDC made loans and grants primarily to companies with outsized financial risk that were unable to secure conventional funding.  

In recent months, KCDC’s board determined that the organization had expended its useful life and voted to dissolve. In addition to the donation to Klamath IDEA, KCDC also made a significant contribution to the Oregon Tech Foundation Fieldhouse project.

 

New information has been released about the incidents on Sunday in and around Klamath Falls that left one man dead and multiple people arrested. As it turns out, the robbery of Tyler’s Lottery Lounge on Oregon Avenue and the eventual murder scene about 10 miles away were related.

Officers responded to 1414 Oregon Avenue, Tyler’s Texas BBQ,  around 8:30AM Sunday morning for the report of a robbery. Two individuals entered Tyler’s Texas BBQ, one displaying a handgun while the other was displaying a shotgun. The two individuals menaced the clerk with the weapons while throwing a bag on the counter demanding for him to fill it with money. The suspects fled with approximately $3,000 of cash.

Video was reviewed and showed two subjects, one with camouflage pants, black Nike shoes with white Nike swoosh, White sports jersey, black cowboy hat, and black mask, using a handgun. The second subject was wearing red Boston hat, red bandanna over his face, dark colored athletic pants, red athletic shoes with white and black soles, and gloves, using a shotgun. The two suspects left out the front door and ran to a white vehicle parked in the alley between Oregon Avenue and Sargent Street.

While officers were investigating the robbery on Oregon Avenue, deputies were also responding to a shooting at 14540 Keno Worden Road.

Upon arrival, it was found a man, Ole Rendahl, had died from several gunshot wounds. Deputies contacted multiple individuals on the property attempting to leave the property who were taken into custody which included Tyler William Patrick.

Tyler Patrick admitted to shooting a man, Ole Rendahl, and being the first individual to enter Tyler’s for the robbery.

It was also found that Ole Rendahl was the driver in the robbery.  Patrick was still wearing the same camouflage pants he was wearing in the robbery while in custody at the Klamath Falls Police Department.

Isaiah Trigo of Klamath Falls was taken into custody on Fulton Street later in the day, where some of the clothing worn in the robbery was located. Trigo was in possession of a large amount of cash upon his arrest. Trigo admitted to the robbery and admitted the money on his person was from the robbery. Isaiah has a felony conviction in 2022 for dangerous drugs.

 

Klamath Falls Downtown Association has been designated as an Accredited Main Street America program for meeting rigorous performance standards.

Each year, Main Street America and its partners announce the list of designated programs to recognize their exceptional commitment to preservation-based economic development and community revitalization through the Main Street Approach™.

In 2023, the Main Street America programs generated $5.68 billion in local reinvestment, helped open 6,630 net new businesses, facilitated the creation of 35,162 net new jobs, catalyzed the rehabilitation of 10,556 historic buildings, and leveraged 1,664,763 volunteer hours.

On average, for every dollar that a Main Street program spent to support their operations, it generated $18.03 of new investment back into their downtown and commercial corridor communities.

Klamath Falls Downtown Association’s performance was evaluated through assessments conducted by the organization’s personnel and board of directors, and Oregon Main Street, which works in partnership with Main Street America to identify local programs that meet rigorous national community evaluation standards.

 

Two Republicans are competing for the Klamath County Senate district currently held by Republican Sen. Dennis Linthicum: Linthicum’s wife and a Klamath County Commissioner. 

No Democrats are seeking the seat in the heavily Republican 28th District, which stretches from the California border to central Oregon just south of Bend and includes all of Klamath County and parts of Deschutes and Jackson counties. That means the primary winner will replace Linthicum, who is disqualified from re-running because of his participation in the 2023 GOP-led Senate walkout. He’s running for instead.  

His wife, Diane Linthicum, has obvious name recognition but so does her opponent, Dave Henslee, who is a former police chief in Klamath Falls and currently serves on the  county commission. 

In an interview, Henslee said he would bring a long record of public service and a willingness to work with others to find solutions. 

Linthicum, whose husband has endorsed her, didn’t respond to multiple emails and phone calls seeking an interview.

She has served as chief of staff in her husband’s Senate office and also worked as a rancher. In her statement in the state’s voters guide, Linthicum said she’s committed to rural values and liberty without government interference.

 

Despite the hurdles of transportation, lack of hydraulics to keep wing flaps stationary, and the initial acquisition of a retired Air Force jet, the controversial Veterans Memorial Park static jet display installation is well underway.

The installation of the jet onto the concrete slab in the park took place earlier this week.

According to Klamath Falls Public Works Director Mark Willrett, discussions on the jet began in approximately 2015, with the application for acquiring a decommissioned jet submitted in 2016.

The city’s request was approved and placed on a list with 39 other requests for decommissioned jets.

The static jet display has been a controversial topic since residents’ discovery of the city’s plans in 2022.

One month after the project was discussed, the city approved funding for the jet display — $300,000 from federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds.

Klamath County officials entered into a memorandum of understanding with the city, agreeing to match the funds with an additional $300,000 also allocated from ARPA money.

Residents gathered in protest, both at city council meetings as well as at the park itself, where civil protestors laid flowers outlining where the base of the jet was originally planned to be placed.

The city later decided to relocate the static fighter jet display to the concrete amphitheater within the park where it now resides on its metal base.

A ceremony to unveil the static jet display is being planned for Memorial Day.

 

Klamath Folk Alliance (aka Klamath Music) and the Klamath County Museum are pleased to announce the return of their rave-reviewed “Under Klamath Skies” program for its first of three 2024 events.

Featuring original songwriters, storytellers and various artists and speakers highlighting the history, cultures and creativity of our region, “Under Klamath Skies” takes the stage on May 2 at 6:30 p.m. at the Klamath County Museum.

Doors open at 6 p.m. Each evening will feature a seasonal theme.

Thanks to proceeds from Klamath Music’s 2023 Klamath Folk Festival, admission is free, and all ages are welcome.

According to Klamath Music executive director Nic Depew, what makes this event special is it combines music, arts, and history in one setting, while celebrating many of positive facets our community has to offer.

Attendees can expect a couple musicians and speakers each evening and a visual artist of some variety inside the main Klamath County Museum space. There will be an intermission about halfway through, where attendees can view the specific visual artist’s work on display and speak with said creations.

 

The Ross Ragland Theater once again hosts the highly anticipated “Dancing With Your Klamath Stars,” at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, May 10.

Voting is already open digitally through the event’s fundraising page. Vote for your favorite contestant, or just donate to help the cause, by visiting givebutter.com/dwyks2024.

Modeled after the beloved television series, the event pairs prominent community figures with professional dancers from the Utah Ballroom Dance Company. Together, they’ll grace the stage in a friendly competition to raise funds for deserving causes in Klamath County.

This year’s lineup features six dynamic duos, each representing a different charity close to their hearts:

• Lyle Ahrens, former reporter at KOBI-TV NBC5/KOTI-TV NBC2, dancing on behalf of United Way of Klamath County;
• Nic Phair, branch principal at Highstreet Insurance & Financial Services, dancing on behalf of the David R. Kingsley Foundation;
• Heidi Gaither, director at Klamath County Developmental Disability Services, dancing on behalf of SMART Reading of Klamath County;
• Cora Christ, agency owner at Country Financial, dancing on behalf of the Assistance League;
• Tessa Gutierrez, HEP director at Klamath Community College, dancing on behalf of the KCC Foundation;
• Chris Benjamin, director of choirs at Henley High School, dancing on behalf of Youth Rising.

The real stars of the night are the audience members, who play a crucial role in determining the winner.

Through a voting system, attendees can support their favorite contestant by making a minimum $1 donation per vote. Whether through phone, in-person, or text-to-vote, every contribution counts toward the overall audience score.

Leading up to the main event, contestants will undergo rigorous rehearsals with the Utah Ballroom Dance Company to perfect their routines.

While votes are tallied, the audience will be treated to an exclusive performance by the talented dance troupe. The winner will walk away with a trophy and $500 towards the charity of their choosing.

The Ross Ragland Theater donates part of the proceeds to the charities from around the Klamath Basin that help this event be a success.

Friends of the Children – Klamath Basin invites the community to its annual fundraising dinner auction, Friend Raiser, presented by Lithia Ford of Klamath Falls, Thursday, May 30th. Doors open at Mike’s fieldhouse at Steen Sports Park at 5 p.m.

“This year’s event theme is ‘You Belong!” because we help children feel the belonging and value they need to develop hope and skills for bright futures,” said Executive Director Amanda Squibb. “Our community health depends on our kids’ well-being, and I’m excited to see everyone come out to support professional mentoring in the Klamath Basin.”  

Friend Raiser begins with dinner and cocktail stations, a silent auction, wine and bourbon games, and raffle sales. A seated program and live auction follow at 7 p.m.  

To reserve seats, visit friendsklamath.org or https://fckb.ejoinme.org/FR2024. Silent and live auction items will be added May 23rd for preview. 

Friends – Klamath Basin was established in 2000 to impact generational change by empowering youth facing the greatest obstacles. It pairs youth with professional mentors for 12+ years, no matter what, and will serve 72 youth this year. 

Summer Camp Registration Now Open for ages 6-18!! 
CLICK HERE:  https://ragland.org/theater-camps/

Around the State of Oregon

Oregon Congressman Cliff Bentz is defending America’s ranchers when it comes HR 764, the “Trust the Science Act”.

Under HR 764, the Gray Wolf would be removed from the Endangered Species Act in the lower 48 states.

Bentz gave a speech on the house floor during a recent discussion on the topic. The congressman said he didn’t think he had encountered such ignorance regarding the nature of a wolf, adding, “a wolf is not a pet dog. It’s not some schnauzer or golden retriever, or a dash hound. It is the truth of the matter, a natural born killer.”

He said he believes those on the other side of the aisle have no idea what ranchers have to go through when they have to get up in the middle of the night to protect their livelihood from wolves. Bentz specifically referred to Highway 395 which bisects his district down the middle, he says on one side a wolf kills an animal it’s protected and on the other side it’s not. He calls this situation hardly ideal especially for a single-ownership ranch that falls on both sides of the highway.

Bentz also went on to ask the question, “how many wolves are enough?” saying there are tens of thousands in Canada, Minnesota, and Alaska collectively. He says in Oregon there are about 250, a number that he says is adequate for survival under the Endangered Species Act.

He argues that wolves need to be removed from the Endangered Species List so that humans “have some means of controlling an apex predator.”

Police are releasing the identities of a man who was killed and a woman who was injured when half a dozen officers opened fire on them following a car chase in Linn County.  

Authorities say 30-year-old Cameron James Bielman of Anacortes, Washington was killed, while his 30-year-old passenger Yasmina Destinee Teal, also of Anacortes, was hospitalized for injuries.  Police were chasing the pair’s vehicle in connection to a shooting a few hours earlier in Coburg that left one person critically injured on Sunday when the suspect vehicle crashed on I-5.  At some point after the crash, officers opened fire on the vehicle.  

Six law enforcement members involved in the shooting have been placed on paid administrative leave pending an investigation.

Bail is set at one-million dollars for a convicted felon arrested in connection to a shooting on Old Highway 42 in Coos County.  

The sheriff’s office says 28-year-old Blaine Monson is charged with attempted murder, felon in possession of a firearm, unlawful use of a weapon and menacing for the shooting in Myrtle Point last Thursday.  Police say the victim was in his vehicle when Monson fired multiple rounds at him, hitting his car several times.  No injuries were reported.

A California-based nuts company is working with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today to warn people about a walnut recall.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is warning about an E coli outbreak tied to organic walnuts sold in bulk. Some stores that could have them are in Southern Oregon and Northern California, including Sherm’s Thunderbird market of Klamath Falls.

Several other grocery stores in Medford, Ashland, Grants Pass, and Mt. Shasta are included in the warning.

The CDC said it has reports of 12 people in two states infected with this outbreak strain of E coli.

It says seven people have been hospitalized, with two people developing hemolytic uremic syndrome. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) describe hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) as a rare but potentially serious condition, often due to infection. 

CDC said no related deaths have been reported.

It said almost all sick people purchased organic walnuts from bulk bins in food co-ops or natural food stores in California and Washington supplied by Gibson Farms, Inc., which has recalled these products.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced loan interest rates for May 2024, which are effective May 1, 2024.

USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) loans provide important access to capital to help agricultural producers start or expand their farming operation, purchase equipment and storage structures or meet cash flow needs.

FSA offers farm ownership, operating and emergency loans with favorable interest rates and terms to help eligible agricultural producers, whether multi-generational, long-time, or new to the industry, obtain financing needed to start, expand or maintain a family agricultural operation. For many loan options, FSA sets aside funding for underserved producers, including, beginning, women, American Indian or Alaskan Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and Hispanic farmers and ranchers.

FSA also offers guaranteed loans through commercial lenders at rates set by those lenders.

To access an interactive online, step-by-step guide through the farm loan process, visit the Loan Assistance Tool on farmers.gov.

Oregon is being called one of the best states in the nation for nurses.  

The personal finance website WalletHub ranks the Beaver State number six in its top ten list of the best states for nurses to work in.  WalletHub compared states on 20 different metrics of job satisfaction, including average salaries, job openings per capita and the quality of nursing homes.  Washington state came in first place.  The report notes that Washington nurses enjoy high-median salaries across various work settings in Washington as well as high levels of educational attainment.  WalletHub also notes Washington has some of the best-ranked nursing schools in the nation.

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Sen. Edward Markey, D-Mass., have requested the Federal Trade Commission investigate major automakers for breaking a pledge to protect their customers’ location data, in a letter to Chair Lina Khan sent yesterday.

The automakers had deceptively pledged that they would insist on warrants or other court orders before turning over location data from their customers’ connected automobiles to law enforcement agencies.

The letter comes in response to an inquiry by Sen. Wyden’s office, which asked the association representing automakers how their members respond to law enforcement requests for location information collected from internet-connected cars and trucks. He found that only five — GM, Ford, Honda, Stellantis and Tesla — require a warrant to provide location data to law-enforcement. And only Tesla notifies auto owners about government demands.

Toyota, Nissan, Subaru, Volkswagen, BMW, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz and Kia all confirmed that they will disclose location data to U.S. government agencies in response to subpoenas, which do not require a judge’s approval. Volkswagen indicated that it will require a warrant for more than seven days of location data, but will disclose six days or less in response to a subpoena. Volvo, which is owned by Geely, a Chinese company, did not respond to the request. These responses directly contradict a public pledge by the auto industry, that the companies signed onto, committing to require that “requests or demand from governmental entities for geolocation information, must be in the form of a warrant or court order,” except in emergency situations or with the owner’s consent.

Wyden and Markey warned that failing to protect Americans’ privacy could have dangerous consequences. Vehicle location data can reveal intimate details of a person’s life, including for those who seek care across state lines, attend protests, visit mental or behavioral health professionals or seek treatment for substance use disorder.

Despite rampant drug use and addition problems in the U.S., the Biden administration will take a historic step toward easing federal restrictions on cannabis, with plans to announce an interim rule soon reclassifying the drug for the first time since the Controlled Substances Act was enacted more than 50 years ago. This according to sources with knowledge of the plan.

The Drug Enforcement Administration is expected to approve an opinion by the Department of Health and Human Services that marijuana should be reclassified from the most strict Schedule I to the less stringent Schedule III, marking the first time that the U.S. government would acknowledge its potential medical benefits and begin studying them in earnest.

Recreational use and personal sales of marijuana have been legal in Oregon for the past 4 years.

Since 1971, marijuana has been in the same category as heroin, methamphetamines and LSD. Each substance under Schedule I classification is defined as a drug with no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. Schedule III substances include Tylenol with codeine, steroids and testosterone.

By rescheduling cannabis, the drug would now be studied and researched to identify concrete medical benefits, opening the door for pharmaceutical companies to get involved with the sale and distribution of medical marijuana in states where it is legal.

On April 29th, a man was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of sexually abusing a little girl in a Grants Pass YMCA pool.

68-year-old Rex McCurdy faced Judge Brandon Thueson after being found guilty by a jury for two counts of sex abuse. Amanda McGeorge of the District Attorney’s Office told Judge Thueson McCurdy has previous convictions in three California counties for sex-crime related charges. This brought McGeorge and the DA’s Office to ask the judge to sentence McCurdy to life in prison.

McCurdy’s Lawyer, Clayton Lance, asked the judge for 75 months. He said it is the court’s job to find the proper sentencing for the crime committed. He also said, in the context of the case, McCurdy’s previous convictions are incredibly old.

In the end, Judge Thueson sentenced McCurdy to life in prison without parole, saying McCurdy is one of the nightmares that keep parents up at night.

A former state crisis worker who kidnapped a disabled woman in his care, drove her in a state van to a dead-end road near a cemetery in Aumsville and sexually assaulted her was sentenced Tuesday to 25 years in federal prison.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Gavin W. Bruce urged a 30-year prison term after Zakary Glover pleaded guilty in January to depriving the woman of her liberty. Glover’s defense lawyer, Peyton Lee, argued for a 10-year sentence.

The assault occurred on Nov. 2, 2021, when Glover, who worked as a crisis specialist, took the woman on an outing in a state van to Taco Bell but then headed 10 miles away to a remote road by the cemetery, parked and opened the back passenger door where the woman was seated and sexually assaulted her, according to the indictment.

He then drove her back to the Stabilization and Crisis Unit, a 24-hour residential program that serves people with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

A federal civil rights suit filed Monday against a public school district in Clatsop County alleges a former teacher engaged in repeated sexual abuse of a student starting when she was 14 and that the district did little to stop it.

Despite multiple complaints about the teacher “being too comfortable with kids” and a consultant’s warning that the teacher wasn’t safe to be around children at Jewell School, the district didn’t intervene but allowed the teacher, David Michael Brandon, to quietly resign and get a different teaching job with younger students at an elementary school, the suit alleges.

The abuse occurred at Jewell School, a K-12 school with about 175 students in Jewell, an unincorporated town between Vernonia and Seaside. It’s the only school in the Jewell School District.

Brandon was 39 when he began grooming the seventh grader, who took his shop class, the suit says.

Brandon, now 46, was arrested in 2021 in the case and convicted last year in Clatsop County on two counts each of third-degree rape and third-degree sodomy and one count of unlawful delivery of marijuana. 

A Lincoln County transit bus was stolen on Sunday and recovered thanks to a cell phone.  

The driver parked the bus at the Lincoln County fuel pumps, went inside to use a bathroom, and the bus was stolen when the driver returned.  The driver left a cell phone in the bus which police used to track it to a home in Newport.  

The suspect who stole the bus fled the scene.  Security video from inside of the bus showed the suspect had a red beard and was wearing a “Rip City” hoodie.  Police are asking for help identifying the suspect.

Oregon voters who want to cast a ballot in the May 21 primary have until Tuesday (today) to register to vote or to update their party affiliation.

There are more than 3 million registered voters in Oregon, but 1.3 million aren’t registered as either a Democrat or Republican, according to the Secretary of State’s Office. Those voters won’t get a say in which Democratic or Republican candidates are nominated for Congress, the statewide offices of secretary of state, treasurer and attorney general or for the Oregon House and Senate, unless they register as a member of one of those parties.

You can check whether you’re registered with a major party or update your party affiliation by going to oregonvotes.gov/myvote. Enter your first and last name and birthday and you’ll see whether your registration is current and which party, if any, you belong to.

Oregonians who don’t have a valid and current Oregon driver’s license, permit or identification card must fill out a paper voter registration card.

The winners of the last month’s $1.3 billion Powerball were revealed Monday afternoon at Oregon Lottery headquarters in Salem, with one of them reading a statement and answering brief questions from the media.

Cheng “Charlie” Saepen and Laizo Chao shared the winning ticket. Saepen said he is splitting his half with his wife, Duapen Saepen. The Saepens are from Portland and Chao from Milwaukie.

They are the first Powerball winners in Oregon since 2018, when a Salem man won $150.4 million.

This jackpot was nearly nine times that, having swelled to record proportions during the more than three months without a Powerball winner. The $1.326 billion prize was the fourth-largest Powerball jackpot and eighth-largest ever won in the U.S. Powerball is played in 45 states plus Washington, D.C.; Puerto Rico; and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Their winning ticket matched all six numbers plus the Powerball and was the lone winning ticket in the April 6 drawing, purchased at a Plaid Pantry in northeast Portland. The convenience store received a $100,000 bonus selling the winning ticket.

The winners came forward the Monday after the drawing, when the Oregon Lottery announced it was working with the ticket holder, saying the process involved security measures and vetting that would take time before a winner could be announced.

Per state law, players in Oregon, with few exceptions, cannot remain anonymous. Just a handful of lotteries in the U.S. allow anonymity.

The Oregon Public Utility Commission (PUC) is asking community members to weigh in on a potential general rate increase by Pacific Power.

Recently Pacific Power filed a request to increase overall rates by 17.9% or about $322.3 million for all customers combined. If the request is approved, single-family customers using an average of 950 kilowatt hours could see an increase of over $30 per month. For multi-family customers using just 650 kilowatt hours, that’s a jump of over $18 per month.

The power company cite multiple reasons for the proposal to raise rates, including investments in transmission infrastructure, wind generation to serve customer load, upgrades to the customer service system, increased costs of capital to match updated market conditions and risks, as well as wildfire and vegetation management costs. Pacific Power is also proposing an insurance cost adjustment and funding for a catastrophic fire fund.

According to the PUC, “Pacific Power’s general rate case filing is undergoing a nearly year-long review and will be fully investigated on behalf of electricity customers by the PUC, the Oregon Citizens’ Utility Board, and others.”

Members of the community can give their input at a virtual meeting happening April 30 at 6 p.m. or comments can be submitted via phone or mail through June 14.

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