Two bills sponsored by Washington State 14th District Representative Gina McCabe received approval from the Senate Law and Justice Committee this week.  On is the Travis Alert Act, which would allow people to submit information pertaining to an individual’s disability to the Enhanced 911 program so dispatchers could deliver critical information to first responders during emergencies, and also review existing procedures and ask the Department of Health to create a training program for first responders, providing instruction for how to best respond to emergencies involving persons with special needs.  The other bill would create the crime of voyeurism in the second degree.  McCabe introduced the legislation to combat the practice of “upskirting,” during which someone uses their mobile device to take a photo or record video under individuals’ skirts.  Under current law, a person must prove he or she was engaged in voyeurism for the purpose of arousal or sexual gratification.  The two bills now await Senate floor action prior to the 2017 legislative session adjournment set for April 23.

Baseball Hood River Valley 9, Lake Oswego 3:  The Eagles grabbed control with a five-run second inning to go on to the win at the Coach Bob Invitational in Phoenix.  Caden Leiblien drove in three runs and Adam Cameron two to lead the HRV offense.  The Eagles finish their Arizona trip with a game against California High School of Whittier, California today. Stevenson at LaCenter, doubleheader postponed to today.   Softball Hood River Valley 13, Rancho Alamitos 3:  Zoe Munn hit a grand slam as part of a ten-run first inning in the Eagles’ victory in Southern California.  Kaylin Winans drove in two runs as HRV took advantage of seven Rancho Alamitos errors. Santa Margarita 4, Hood River Valley 1:  Makenzie Chambers drove in the only run for HRV as the Eagles finish their trip to Anaheim with a 2-2 record. Washougal at Columbia, postponed.   Track and Field Columbia won the boys’ half and Trout Lake the girls’ half of a four-school track and field meet at King’s Way Christian.  The CHS boys earned seven first place finishes, while Sidney Baker and Liz Fink won two events apiece for the Trout Lake girls.  

The Dalles Mayor Steve Lawrence is joining with some other mayors in small Oregon cities to question the City of Portland’s program of giving bus tickets to homeless people who say they have places they can go.  Lawrence believes The Dalles has had six people show up through this program, while noting it’s difficult to confirm that because Ticket Home program officials cite privacy concerns.  Lawrence says he and officials in other cities are going to put pressure on Portland through the League of Oregon Cities and plan to attend a Portland City Council meeting to voice their concerns.  Lawrence was part of a KGW Television report on the issue.  In its report, KGW found that out of the 275 tickets given out by Portland and Multnomah County through the Ticket Home program, only 131 were confirmed to remain in stable housing three months later.

Coming out of a set of listening sessions with the public earlier this month, Hood River County School District Superintendent Dan Goldman faces trying to put together a budget for the 2017-18 school year with an uncertain funding level from the state.  School officials have said they need the state’s K-12 funding level to reach eight-point-four billion dollars for the next two years to maintain where they are at, and most budget proposals have been closer to eight billion dollars.  Goldman says while operational changes over the past few years have helped the district be in a position to withstand this biennium, a potentially worse situation two years from now could put them on a funding cliff.  Goldman expects a long legislative session going into the summer, and the district must have its 2017-18 budget ready by the end of June.

The U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs gave bipartisan support to the Columbia River In-Lieu and Treaty Fishing Access Sites Improvement Act, passing the bill out of committee on a voice vote.  The legislation is sponsored by Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and Washington counterparts Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell would enable the Bureau of Indian Affairs to make safety and sanitation improvements at the tribal treaty fishing access sites along the Columbia River.  The Army Corps of Engineers designed the sites to be used primarily for daily, in-season fishing access and temporary camping, but in many cases tribal members now use the areas as longer-term or even permanent residences.  The legislation is supported by the four Columbia River Treaty tribes and the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission.

Oregon Second District Congressman Greg Walden hopes some kind of answer to ensuring area orchards have a legal workforce can be found in spite of the climate surrounding immigration issues.  Walden says he has had conversations with area orchards about the issue, and has told Trump Administration officials the lack of a legal workforce for the agriculture sector is a real problem.  Walden says there is work being done behind the scenes in the House on legislation to address agricultural workforce concerns, and he’s urging the administration to participate in that.  He does add he believes border security must be addressed as well.

Baseball Ridgewood, Illinois 6, Hood River Valley 5:  The Eagles hurt themselves with four errors as they dropped a second straight game at the Coach Bob Invitational in Phoenix.  Greyson Losee had two hits and two runs batted in for HRV, who play Lake Oswego today in Arizona. Columbia sweeps  Corbett 18-2 and 11-5 Lyle-Wishram-Klickitat 7, Goldendale 4   Softball Hood River Valley 15, Katella 3:  Lauren Decker had four hits, drove in two runs and scored three as the Eagles won their first game of their Southern California trip.  Haylee Baker had three hits for HRV while Kaylin Winans drove in three runs. Garden Grove 6, Hood Rvier Valley 1:  The Eagles were limited to one hit in game two of the day.   Boys Soccer Toledo 2, Columbia 0:  Toledo stayed unbeaten in the Trico League while handing the Bruins their first loss. Stevenson 2, Castle Rock 1

City of The Dalles and Columbia Gateway Urban Renewal Agency officials will formally hand over the keys to the Granada Theatre to purchasers Chuck Gomez and Debra Liddell at a ceremony on Friday afternoon.  The pair own a similar theatre in Watseka, Illinois, and plan on a full historic restoration of the Granada.  Urban Renewal purchased the property for $365,410 dollars in 2010, and City Manager Julie Krueger says Gomez and Liddell are paying $60,000 and promising to make $300,000 in improvements over the next three years.  Mayor Steve Lawrence says it is a positive move for downtown.  The ownership change ceremony will take place on Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. in front of the Granada.  

The Hood River City Council has decided to revise its bag ordinance, including removal of the requirement to charge a nickel per paper bag.  The Council also directed staff to prepare revisions that will relax the requirement for decorative bags to be recyclable and contain 40 percent post-consumer waste content, and a mandate for reusable bags to be available for sale at every retail store that uses bags will be removed.  City Manager Steve Wheeler says the revisions came from feedback the Council received, noting the real purpose of the ordinance was to eliminate single-use plastic bags.  Wheeler says staff will prepare a revised ordinance to give to Council at a future meeting.  He noted the ordinance was not scheduled to go into effect at smaller retail outlets until July 1.  It is in effect for larger grocery stores.

Klickitat County will be making some decisions on reordering of prioritization of public works projects for this spring and summer with winter damage creating new needs to make repairs, particularly to roads.  Commissioner David Sauter says they will get the pot holes created by the severe winter conditions fixed, but some other planned projects might have to be delayed.  Sauter notes the big issue is the capacity the County road crews can handle.  He says they do have money in reserves to handle the increased costs that resulted from the winter, adding they don’t want to defer too much maintenance.  Sauter adds the County public works department will be submitting recommendations to the Commission.