Klickitat PUD will hold its 2021 budget and electric rate hearing on Tuesday online.  PUD Manager Jim Smith says presentations will be made on the proposed 2021 budget and an electric rate increase proposal of 1.5% for all rate components in all rate classes effective on April 1, followed by comment from the public.  Klickitat PUD only electric rate increase in the last four years was a 1.5% hike in 2019.  Smith indicated there are many cost divers involved in the rate increase, including wholesale power costs from the Bonneville Power Administration.  He adds the BPA has indicated it may increase the costs for transmission service, which is the cost of poles and wires, by as much as 17%  Smith says that represents about 10% of the bill they receive from BPA, and that the PUD staff is continuing to refine its rate proposal leading up to Tuesday’s hearing.  It will begin at 3 p.m., and log-in information is available at klickitatpud.com.

Three Bingen/White Salmon- area organizations have received grants from the Washington Youth Development Nonprofit Relief Fund to support out-of-school programming for vulnerable youth.  The White Salmon Valley Education Foundation is receiving $33,000 for the White Salmon Valley School District’s after-school and summer school program called A-List Adventures.  CultureSeed, which provides year-round outdoor immersion and mentorship programs for youth that are historically underserved or face economic barriers, is receiving $15,000 to double the numbers the program can serve.  And Gorge MakerSpace will receive $10,000 to offer free programs to children and families who have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic.  The funding was made possible in part by the federal CARES Act.  

A juvenile male was arrested in Hood River and lodged at NORCOR after a search of two Hood River homes where photographs and videos depicting sexually explicit conduct involving children had been downloaded.  In a statement Hood River Police Chief Neal Holste said several subpoenas had been issued for IP addresses and wireless numbers involved in the uploading of the material, and an Oregon Department of Justice task force investigation unearthed information tracing one IP address and one wireless number to a Hood River residence.  On Tuesday the Hood River Police Department, with assistance from the County Sheriff’s Office, served search warrants on two Hood River homes.  Several pieces of electronic equipment were seized during the search, and the juvenile was taken into custody.

Searches have found a pair of travelers from the Seattle area that became stuck in their SUV on a Forest Service road on the way to a cabin in Glenwood and spent two nights in the snow.  The Skamania County Sheriff’s Office says 26-year-old Heidi Tran of Lynwood and 28-year-old Andy Nguyen of Seattle had been reported missing by their family on Monday.  An air search spotted the couple’s vehicle stuck in deep snow at milepost 32 on the Forest Service 23 Road north of Trout Lake.  Skamania County Search and Rescue deputies and team members used snow equipped utility terrain vehicles to reach the pair and take them back to the Trout Lake area.  They were not injured and did not require medical attention.  The Sheriff’s Office indicated they had followed directions found by computer or a navigation unit, adding people should not rely solely on computerized navigation, and if traveling on forest roads or areas that are not maintained during winter months, please consider changing your route.

FISH Food Bank in Hood River County is experiencing its highest demand for food assistance in its 51 year existence.  Marianne Durkan of FISH says the jump in requests has been substantial during to the pandemic, and many are people who have never had to come to a food bank before.  She adds their numbers are up about 30 percent this year.  FISH is taking monetary donations online at Fish-Food-Bank.com.  They also accept food and monetary donations at their Tucker Road facility on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 8 a.m. to noon.  Items they particularly need include canned vegetables & fruit, shelf stable milk, rice, boxed cereal, chicken noodle or vegetable soup, peanut butter, pasta except spaghetti, macaroni and cheese, vegetable or olive oii, granola bars, crackers, cookies, hominy, mole sauce, canned green chilies and jalapenos, refried beans, chicken boullion, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, soap, shaving cream, toilet paper, feminine hygiene products, and dry pet food.

North Central Public Health District Health Officer Dr. Mimi McDonell said in the local area the strain on the health system from COVID-19 is not so much about hospital beds as it is human resources.  During Wednesday’s Wasco County Commission meeting, McDonell said representatives of Mid-Columbia Medical Center and long-term care facilities all said they are experiencing shortages of staff that can give direct care to patients and residents.  McDonell doesn’t forsee the situation changing anytime soon.  She adds if there is an outbreak in a medical clinic or long-term care facility, staff is impacted as well.

Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley Tuesday introduced new legislation to incentivize utility companies to do more to reduce wildfire risks as aging power infrastructure ignite wildfires in Oregon and the West.  Wyden and Merkley’s Wildfire Resilient Power Grid Act of 2020 would call for power companies to reduce the risk of wildfires through power system upgrades such as the undergrounding of power lines, fire safety equipment installation and proper vegetation management.  The Act would establishes a $1 billion-per-year matching grant program for power companies through the Department of Energy to reduce the risk of power lines and grid infrastructure causing wildfires, and gives special priority to smaller, rural electric companies to ensure mitigation efforts are targeted to forested rural areas.

Oregon Senator Ron Wyden joined Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and a group of other Senators to introduce a bill that would retroactively extend the $600 weekly federal boost to unemployment insurance benefits through October 2021.  The American Worker Holiday Relief Act would also tie the additional weeks of federal benefits and new Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program for gig and freelance workers to economic conditions on the ground.   The additional weeks of federal benefits and the program for gig and freelance workers would not expire as long as the three month average national unemployment rate is above 5.5 percent, and will stay available longer in states where unemployment remains high.  The bill would add 26 weeks of federal benefits for workers receiving traditional unemployment insurance.  Wyden said the bill is designed to provide relief for workers who are hanging by a thread.

The Oregon Attorney General’s Office is reminding Oregonians to make careful and informed decisions when donating to charities.  Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum advises people to do their research, and use websites like Guide Star, Charity Navigator, and the Better Business Bureau to find the missions and programs right for you.  Only give to registered charities, be wary of telephone, text, e-mail, or door-to-door solicitations, and remember that not all gifts are tax deductible.  If you have concerns about a solicitation, call the Attorney General office’s Charitable Activities Section at 971-673-1880.

The Project ELFF (Everyone Loves A Firefighter) canned food drive put on by the Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue Volunteer Association will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday in The Dalles with some changes due to the pandemic.  Instead of fire trucks going through town to collect canned food, the public is asked to bring donations to public schools in The Dalles, Columbia Gorge Community College, St. Mary’s Academy, or the closest fire station between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday.  Fire apparatus and personnel will be on location awaiting your donation.  Dallesport-Murdock firefighters will still do front porch pickup in their community on Thursday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.  Just leave the donation on your porch with the light on.