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SOHS chief to step aside By JILL BRISKEY With trials and tribulations facing the Southern Oregon Historical Society, Brad Linder said he still plans leave his post as executive director. "I tend to be kind of a shy guy," the Applegate resident said. "I believe this organization needs someone who's a lot more political, a lot more public." Linder said he doesn't know when exactly he'll leave his post, or if he'll take another position with the historical society. "That hasn't been decided," he added. His decision was announced in March, prior to a Jackson County Circuit Court ruling announcing the county has no obligation to allocate funding to the historical society. The Southern Oregon Historical Society, on behalf of 14 smaller local historical societies, filed a lawsuit in 2001 because the society's annual county funding had been reduced by 14 percent in 2000. The annual budget formerly provided the organization with an estimated $2.2 million each fiscal year. But Circuit Court Judge Mitchell Karaman ruled that county funds created by a bond levy passed in 1948 did not have to go to the historical society, and agreed that Measure 50 lifted the county's obligation further. Once the ruling has been filed, the historical society will have 30 days in which to appeal the summary judgment. Linder said the decision to appeal will come from the board of directors, and has not been announced. "Who knows what they'll do," he said, and added that the board will discuss the matter during a May 15 meeting. The county's budget committee agreed last week to strip another $100,000 from the historical society's annual budget, leaving the organization with $1.3 million for the 2002-03 fiscal year. Linder anticipates program cuts and layoffs. Since the county began decreasing their funding, Linder said operating costs have been cut by 40 percent. More than 15 staff positions have been eliminated, he said. "We've been over this before," Linder added. "It's nothing new to us." No specific cuts have been announced, and Linder said the decisions will be made at a later date following an analysis of the operating budget and the historical society's programs. Reach reporter Jill Briskey at 776-4485, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.