The latest and most comprehensive coverage of local News, Sports, Business, and Community News stories in the Klamath Basin, Southern Oregon and around the state of Oregon from Wynne Broadcasting’s KFLS News/Talk 1450AM / 102.5FM, The Herald and News, and BasinLife.com, and powered by Mick Insurance. Call them at 541-882-6476.

 

Friday, February 7, 2024

Klamath Basin Weather

Winter Storm Warning in effect from February 6 until February 7, 12:00 PM
Winter Weather Advisory in effect until February 7, 12:00 PM

Today
Mostly sunny, with a high near 33. West wind 9 to 11 mph. Overnight, cloudy, with a low around 9 degrees.

 

 

Pet of the Week from Klamath Animal Shelter

 

 

Around the State of Oregon

Oregon residents are bracing for continued winter storms bringing heavy snow, ice, and increased risks of falling tree branches and downed power lines.

Emergency management officials urge the public to remain alert, be properly prepared for winter driving, and follow safety guidelines to protect homes, vehicles, and personal well-being. Many regions in Oregon are experiencing snowfall and ice buildup on trees. The added weight can cause branches–or even entire trees–to snap unexpectedly.

Falling branches pose a danger to: Vehicles: Branches can damage cars, so avoid parking under trees whenever possible. Pedestrians: Tree limbs can break without warning, so be extra cautious when walking outdoors.  Power lines: Branches falling onto power lines may cause electrical hazards or widespread outage.  Stock up on essentials: Have flashlights, batteries, portable chargers, and blankets ready in case the lights go out. Keep extra supplies: If safe to do so, store a few days’ worth of food and water, especially in rural areas where utility restoration may be delayed. Stay informed: Monitor local weather updates through official channels.

Follow any advisories from the National Weather Service or your local emergency management office.

 

In the Rogue Valley, Mt. Ashland received nearly a foot of snow, and even Medford got significant snowfall—about 6.5 inches at the Medford Airport on Wednesday. 

Roads were treacherous in Jackson County Wednesday, so much so that officials around Jackson County were urging residents to stay home due to dangerous icy conditions. Medford public works crews have been working to make the roads as safe as possible for drivers. With conditions becoming slick throughout the morning, residents are being urged to stay off the roads. Ashland’s city parks were closed Wednesday, due to damage from the winter storm. 

Interstate 5 going over the Siskiyou Summit was backed up nearly 11 miles due to multiple issues, some vehicles disabled and temporary road closures.  Some motorists waited nearly 2 hours to cross the Oregon-California border near Ashland. 

 

The Medford Fire Department (MFD) responded to a report of a structural collapse with entrapment Wednesday evening after a carport gave way under the weight of snow.

A man was trapped underneath and his calls for help alerted a neighbor who called 911. Technical rescue skills and specialized equipment were used to lift the carport and free the man. He was taken to the hospital by Mercy Flights. MFD warns everyone to be aware of potential hazards that may be risk of collapse due to the extreme weather conditions.

 

The organization that makes policies for Oregon school sports teams is looking into the local implications of President Trump’s order banning transgender women from women’s sports.

The Oregon Schools Activities Association says it is working with the state Department of Education and legal counsel to determine what to do about the order.

The liberal Oregon School Activities Association previously said a ban on transgender athletes would violate the state’s anti-discrimination law.

President Trump signed the executive order this week directing the Department of Justice and other federal agencies to interpret Title IX rules as banning transgender women and girls from participating in female sports. Trump says he’s requiring immediate enforcement of the new rule across the nation.

 

Nurses at eight Providence hospitals reached a tentative contract agreement with the health system’s leaders late Tuesday, nearing a possible end to a strike that was in its 26th day.

The deal covers nearly 5,000 Providence nurses who walked off the job on Jan. 10, beginning the largest health care strike in Oregon history. It does not cover the 70 striking hospitalist physicians who work at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center.

The tentative agreement must be ratified by a vote by the striking nurses. The Oregon Nurses Association, the labor union that represents them, said a vote would begin Thursday and conclude by 4 p.m. Friday for most hospitals.

(The union said nurses in Providence Medford will have until 4 p.m. Saturday to vote due to bad weather.)

The union said key provisions of the nurses’ agreement include “across-the-board” pay raises over the course of the contract, as well as a ratification bonus based on hours worked since a nurse’s last contract expired.

 

 Oregon is seeing a record high number of people facing charges without a lawyer.

The Oregon Judicial Department says four-thousand-187 people were awaiting trial without an attorney to defend them in January. That’s up eleven-percent from December and is an all-time high. A lobbyist for Oregon’s District Attorney Association told lawmakers during a hearing on the problem that the state has been plagued by a lack of public defenders since before the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.

 

For years, legislative Republicans have argued that the Oregon Food Bank strayed from its mission of eliminating hunger by weighing in on political debates.

On Tuesday, the top Republican in the Oregon Senate made his case for increased legislative scrutiny of the food bank and other nonprofit organizations that receive state funding.

Senate Republican Leader Daniel Bonham’s Senate Bill 644, which would create a legislative committee to audit the food bank, had a skeptical reception in the Senate Human Services Committee.

Liberal Democrats who make up the majority on that committee and in the Legislature questioned the need for that bill, as the food bank already publishes annual financial audits and it would cost the state to conduct the audit. Bonham’s proposal reflects growing tensions between the food bank and Republicans, most of whom voted against sending $7.5 million to the food bank in 2023 when the federal government ended its pandemic-era temporary increase to food benefits under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP.

 

City of North Bend says a historic project has now begun. The Coquille Indian Tribe plans to open the first tribal-owned distillery in Oregon, thanks to a new agreement with the OLCC.

Now, North Bend says ground has officially been broken. The distillery will include a tasting room with two full-service bars, indoor digital golfing, a cigar lounge, plus retail and private event spaces. It will be located at the Mill Casino Hotel. The Tribe is partnering with Washington-based Heritage Distilling Company on the project. The new distillery is set to open by the end of 2025.

 

A bill that would require thousands of farmers to report their fertilizer use to the Oregon Department of Agriculture drew a big crowd largely in opposition to the proposal in its first public hearing.

Senate Bill 747 would require farms larger than 200 acres to report their annual fertilizer use — including the quantity applied, the type of fertilizer and the crop grown on the fertilized land — to the department.

The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Khanh Pham, D-Portland, said she wants the state agriculture department to track fertilizer applications to help identify where and how large concentrations of nutrients found in fertilizers, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, are getting into and contaminating ground and surface water. Excesses of those nutrients cause frequent summer algal blooms in parts of the state and are making well water unsafe to drink in critical groundwater areas.

Irrigated agriculture is responsible for the bulk of groundwater nitrate contamination in Morrow and Umatilla counties, according to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.

 

During the Coos County Board of Commissioners meeting Tuesday morning, the commissioners considered approving the proclamation which would release undocumented immigrants from the Coos County Sheriff’s Office to ICE.

While recognizing the predominance of federal law over state law, Sheriff Gabe Fabrizio said this proclamation would violate Oregon’s sanctuary state status which prohibits local agencies from helping federal authorities with immigration enforcement.

Commissioner Rod Taylor, who was in favor of the proclamation, reminding those attending that this would only affect those in jail. But Commissioner Drew Farmer says Oregon’s sanctuary law must be upheld unless it is changed. The Coos County Board of Commissioners voting no on a proclamation in support of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer requests. 

Chair Commissioner John Sweet says when put in the confusing position between state and federal law, the county must make a decision it believes is for the best, adding thankfully situations like these do not happen often.

 

Whale entanglements along the West Coast have reached the highest level since 2018. There were at least 34 incidents last year.

In January, a humpback whale got tangled in a commercial crab pot, and now the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has issued an advisory to the crab fleet. They’re being asked to remain vigilant by keeping gear away from areas where whales are likely to travel. The marine conservation group Oceana says the advisory isn’t enough. They want a plan that will further protect whales from fishing gear.

 

The Oregon Legislature is considering a bill to delay the Advanced Clean Truck Act from taking effect until 2027.

The law requires large truck manufacturers to increase the number of electric trucks sold costing trucking companies millions of dollars. It does not prohibit diesel trucks from being sold, even after the rule is fully in effect in 2035. Opponents of the rule say the technology and charging infrastructure for the trucks doesn’t exist.

 

A Josephine County judge on Monday ordered the city of Grants Pass to halt enforcement actions against homeless campers for two weeks, pending a deeper review of a legal challenge.

Disability Rights Oregon filed a lawsuit last Thursday to stop Grants Pass from closing one of two sanctioned homeless camps and restricting the hours of the other. Circuit Judge Brandon S. Thueson signed a temporary restraining order that prohibits the city from citing, arresting, detaining, fining or otherwise prosecuting any person for camping anywhere in the city for the next 14 days.  The judge signed the order after hearing arguments for about one hour.

 

The Oregon Department of Revenue is encouraging all workers with income in 2024 to check their EITC eligibility.

The Department of Revenue is working with other state agencies and community partners to encourage taxpayers to learn more about this credit and find out if they’re eligible for the credit, which is celebrating its 50^th year in 2025. The IRS estimates that nearly 25 percent eligible Oregon taxpayers are not claiming the EITC. One Oregon organization says that adds up to an estimated $100 million in unclaimed credits. While many are unaware of the EITC and other credits, another hurdle is the need for free help filing tax returns.  Free tax filing assistance is available at sites across the state.

The Earned Income Tax Credit is a federal tax credit for people for making up to $66,819 in 2024. Families may be eligible for a maximum refundable credit of $7,830 on their federal tax return, and a maximum Oregon Earned Income Credit of $940 on their state tax return. Certain taxpayers without children may also be eligible for these credits. Individuals may qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit, the Oregon EIC, and other credits, even if they are not required to file. To receive the refundable credits, however, they must file a federal and state tax return.

 

An Oregon House bill would allow retailers to legally scan ID for people buying tobacco or alcohol, regardless of their age.

The legislation follows a pair of lawsuits challenging the practice, claiming universal ID checks were against existing state law and an invasion of privacy.

In September, KGW reported on the growing number of retailers who implemented universal ID checks for alcohol or tobacco products. Jonathan Polonsky, CEO of Plaid Pantry, said the policy of carding everyone eliminated any guesswork and kept the company in compliance with state and local requirements.  Oregon law prohibits the swiping of a driver’s license except under certain circumstances, including the sale of age-restricted products if there is any reasonable doubt that the person is 21. Reasonable doubt exists if the person appears to be under the age of 26, according to Oregon Administrative Rules.

House Bill 2055 is headed to the House Judiciary Committee. Even if it is adopted, the bill won’t settle the existing lawsuits over ID checks because it’s not retroactive.

 

Oregon’s reading and math scores in 2024 were some of the lowest-ranked in the nation, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress. 

According to a table from NAEP, Oregon had the fourth-worst average math scores in fourth graders, ahead of only Alaska, New Mexico and Puerto Rico. When it came to average reading scores in fourth graders, Oregon had the fourth-worst average scores, behind West Virginia, Alaska and New Mexico.

NAEP gave every state a score from 0 to 500 in all of its reports. For fourth grade mathematics, the average score in the U.S. among all states was 237.

Oregon performed eight scores below that, with a 229 score. This is above Alaska’s 226 and New Mexico’s 224.  The state with the highest performance in fourth grade mathematics was Massachusetts at 246. 

The national average among fourth grade reading scores was 214, with Oregon 7 points below at 207.

Oregon is only above West Virginia at 206, Alaska at 202 and New Mexico at 201. While Oregon’s scores are some of the lowest in the country comparatively, there has been a decrease in scores across the nation. 

Students are also missing more school. The report said about 31% of fourth graders reported missing three or more days of school the month before taking the assessment. This was a decrease from 35% of students missing school in 2022, but still significantly worse than 24% in 2019. 

 

Oregonians who receive supplemental federal food benefits need to be more vigilant than ever against fraud, say officials. The word is, if their monthly benefits are stolen, they’ll be gone for good.

In the past, the federal government replaced benefits lost to fraud, but that policy changed late last year. The federal government is no longer replacing stolen benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

That could mean a total loss of tens of thousands of dollars in SNAP benefits in Oregon, primarily through “skimming,” according to officials from Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon. That happens when a device is inserted into a credit card reader and steals financial information when the card is run through the reader.  Only a small minority lose their benefits this way.

Oregon has nearly 447,000 households receiving SNAP benefits. From Oct. 1 through Dec. 20, nearly 200 households had their benefits stolen, losing $77,000 in food aid. The average household receives $310 in SNAP benefits, which are not meant to foot an entire food bill, but the money is often crucial for those who need it. Jake Sunderland, press secretary for the Oregon Department of Human Services, said SNAP users should take several precautions to protect themselves from fraud:

• Only manage your account through the ebtEDGE website or mobile app, which can be downloaded from the Apple App Storeor Google Play.
• Freeze your card right away after each use and unfreeze it before you make purchases and block purchases made outside of Oregon or online through Cardholder.ebtEDGE.com.
• Keep your PIN secret and cover the keypad when you enter it.
• Check your account activity regularly and cancel your card immediately if you see purchases you didn’t make.

 

The Jackson County Expo is announcing its 2025 summer concert lineup to take the stage during the Jackson County Fair this July.

According to the Expo, musical acts including Outlaw Mariachi, Jo Dee Messina, and a Taylor Swift tribute will take the stage in Central Point this summer. The Jackson County Fair runs from July 15 through July 20.

Fair tickets start at $12 and include lawn seats at the Bi-Mart Amphitheater. Meanwhile, concert ticket prices start at $25 and go on sale to the public on Tuesday. Fair admission is included with the purchase of a reserved seat.

For more information or to purchase a ticket, visit the Jackson County Expo’s website.

 

The Britt Festival Orchestra (BFO) announces its 2025 season, with three weeks of exciting outdoor programming in historic Jacksonville, Oregon, June 12 – 28, 2025.

Under the leadership of four guest conductors, Damon Gupton (June 12-13); Chia-Hsuan Lin (June 15-18); Roberto Kalb (June 21-23); and Normal Huynh (June 26-28) the Orchestra’s 63^rd season highlights a feature film alongside beloved classical favorites.

The season features seven extraordinary guest artists: pianist Clayton Stephenson performing Ravel’s Concerto in G Major; violinist William Hagen performing Korngold’s Concerto in D Major; violinist Tessa Lark and cellist Wei Yu performing Brahms Double concerto for Violin & Violoncello in A minor; vocalist Sun-Ly Pierce performing Ravel’s Shéhérazade; pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko performing Rachmaninoff’s Concerto No. 3 in D minor; and violinist Simone Porter performing Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto in D and Ravel’s Tzigane. The season will begin with two evenings of Jurassic Park in Concert where John Williams’ score will be performed live-to-picture by the full orchestra in one of the most beloved films of the 20^th Century.

Britt Music & Arts Festival shares extraordinary live performances and arts education experiences that inspire discovery and build community, anchored at the Britt hill amphitheater. Since its grassroots beginnings in 1963, the non-profit organization has grown from a two-week chamber music festival to a summer-long series of concerts in a variety of genres, including a three-week orchestra season, and year-round education and engagement programs. For more information, visit www.brittfest.org

 

You can nominate your kids’ favorite teacher for the Oregon Education Department’s 2025 Teacher of the Year.

Nominations are being accepted through February 6th for teachers Pre-K through 12th grade. The winner is the face and voice of educators across the state.

Candidates first run for regional teacher of the year and then the statewide honor.

 

You’ll need a Real ID to fly domestically, starting in May of 2025, that’s unless you have a passport or enhanced driver’s license issued by several states.

The deadline is May 7, 2025, but you probably don’t want to wait until the last minute to get your Real ID. You can apply for your Real ID driver’s license or ID card through your local Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

Real IDs are marked with a star on the top of the card. Real IDs will also be needed to access certain federal facilities. Congress mandated the real IDs in 2005 on the recommendation of the 9/11 Commission.

 

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