Oregon State 59th District Representative Daniel Bonham is hoping the result of the battle over House Bill 2020, the carbon cap-and-trade bill, is that the measure goes to the ballot box.  The Dalles Republican believers if voters get a chance to weigh in, the plan will fail.  He also believes a number of different bills still to be voted on will increase the cost of living in the state.  Bonham did note the Capitol is a tense place right now as the session draws near its scheduled end.

The White Salmon Valley School District is beginning the planning process for doing their various construction projects after passage of a bond measure.  Superintendent Jerry Lewis says they are currently putting together a timeline for all of the projects, of which construction of a multi-purpose facility on the Columbia High School campus is the largest.  The first two projects to be built are covered play areas for Whitson Elementary and Stevenson Intermediate schools.  Lewis hopes they are both completed by winter.

With school out for summer, the next phase of construction for the new May Street Elementary School in Hood River will begin.  It will require May Street to be closed from 8th to 10th starting on Monday and continuing through August 16.  There will be traffic detours, revisions, and delays around the school during that period of time.  The closure is necessary for building demolition set to begin on July 15 along with the installation of new curbs, gutters, sidewalks, and paving.

The Port of Hood River will repair deteriorated asphalt on portions of the Waterfront Trail and North 1^st Street next week, requiring detours to access the Event Site and Frog Beach Monday through Wednesday.  Beginning Monday morning, Port crews will close North 1^st Street from the intersection with Riverside Drive north to the intersection with Portway Avenue until paving is complete on Wednesday.  Access to the Event Site parking lot and Frog Beach will be via a detour – north on North 2^nd Street and right on Portway Avenue to the Event Site parking lot entrance.  Access to all areas south of Riverside Drive will not be impeded.

The City of White Salmon is starting plans to replace the main water line from Buck Creek into the City.  It will require eight million dollars in funds to do it.  Mayor David Poucher says the current main line is very leaky, and they need to get it replaced.  The majority of funding will come through bonding, even though Poucher indicated they may get some funding from the state Department of Ecology.  In addition, they are going out for bid this year to increase the size of their line from downtown to the junction with its Bingen tie-in.  That’s expect to cost about one million dollars.

Pacific Power gave a presentation on its wildfire mitigation plan to the Oregon Public Utility Commission on Tuesday, which includes provisions for “Public Safety Power Shutoff” when there are extreme conditions in areas at risk of fast-spreading wildfires, including portions of the Hood River-Mosier area.  When asked by a commissioner when Pacific Power would reveal criteria conditions for a shutoff, company vice president of operations David Lucas said they are reluctant do that right now as they add equipment to refine their guidelines.  He told the PUC that they consider the plans “internal and operational” and are somewhat concerned about getting “stealth data out in the public they would never be able to get back.”  No one from the Mid-Columbia testified to the panel, but Josephine County Commissioner Lily Morgan, representing another county at high risk for wildfire, said while Pacific Power has been making sure they are at the table as plans are put together they still have concerns about the shutoffs, including the amount of area involved, and the impact on infrastructure and medical facilities, noting it is a lot to ask of small counties in a short amount of time to be prepared for the shutoffs.  Pacific Power’s wildfire mitigation plan includes more aggressive vegetation management around its facilities, increased inspections of those locations, and training employees to be able to respond to fire when they see something happen.

Hood River County Commissioners unanimously approved a budget for the 2019-20 fiscal year essentially as recommended by the County’s budget committee.  The one change was in regard to Oak Grove Park, as Commissioners accepted an offer from Friends of Oak Grove Park to continue to pay for maintenance of that facility for another six months.  Commissioners did point out while they passed the budget, that doesn’t mean they have to spend the money allocated, and they plan to embark on developing priorities for what County services will look like if they cannot get voters to approve new funding.  The Commission will hold a worksession on July 1 at 3 p.m. in the County Administration Building to discuss that while also sorting through their options for another attempt at a tax levy of some kind, either this November or next May.  Commission Chair Mike Oates says they will need to sift through a lot of information during that process.  The Commission is also hoping to gather consultants at the July 1 meeting to get advice on how to go about crafting a new ballot measure for a levy after seeing two proposals go down to defeat in May.

Wasco County received final formal FEMA approval of their updated Multi-Jurisdictional Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan.  This plan covers the County and the City of The Dalles.  Updating the plan is a federal requirement that must be undertaken every five years to maintain eligibility for certain mitigation grants, and to establish a comprehensive community level mitigation strategy.  Last week about 40 representatives from more than 20 different local, state, and federal agencies convened to examine the recently approved plan brainstorm and prioritize mitigation actions, learn about grants and mitigation best practices, and receive the latest community outreach materials and tools available.  The Wasco County Commission is now seeking a FEMA grant to update their Community Wildfire Protection Plan, which has not been done since 2005.

Both the Hood River Police Department and Hood River County Sheriff’s Office are reporting cougar sightings.  Hood River Police say a cougar was reported underneath a vehicle on 18th Street and Cascade Avenue on Monday night at around 11 p.m.  The reporting party said they watched the cougar walk around the building, but officers searched the area were unable to located the animal.  It was seen again near 13th Avenue and Sherman walking south towards May Street, but again officers could not locate it in the dense creek near Katie’s Lane.  The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife was notified.  The sheriff’s office has also had multiple sightings of a cougar in Cascade Locks, as well as one in the Post Canyon area.  If you come in contact or see a cougar call 9-1-1 immediately.

A bill sponsored by 29th District Senator Bill Hansell to make farmers, ranchers, and volunteers immune from civil liabilities was signed by Governor Kate Brown.  Senate Bill 290 was inspired by the 2018 Substation Fire in Wasco and Sherman counties last year.  Hansell calls it a “Good Samaritan” bill to protect the farmers and ranchers who plow fire lines from liability.  Hansell and members of the Oregon Wheat Growers League witnessed the ceremonial signing of the bill by the Governor.  The new law will become effective at the start of next year.