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61 °F Forecast | Road Cams Sunday, September 12, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Prime Times Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Rogue Valley's Finest EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 26, 2004 Kupillas puts salvage on agenda By DAMIAN MANN Mail Tribune County Commissioner Sue Kupillas has apologized to an environmental group over its claims she breached the open meetings law. Headwaters Executive Director Tonya Graham said Kupillas violated the meetings law when she sent a letter dated March 5, 2004, to the Bureau of Land Management that stated a "majority" of the commissioners recommended a timber salvage proposal. "The commissioners didn’t discuss it in public," said Graham, citing Oregon statutes that require that decisions of governing bodies be arrived at openly. A copy of the letter was also sent to Kupillas’ former husband, Ed Kupillas, chairman of the Natural Resources Advisory Committee. County Commissioner Dave Gilmour, in an e-mail sent to the BLM on March 9, stated, "For the record, since the opinion was not adopted as a formal vote in a public meeting, it has no legal standing." Advertisement Kupillas said neither she nor Gilmour was qualified to judge the legality of this issue. She said she checked with county counsel and doesn’t believe she was in violation, but added she plans to make sure in the future to discuss any issues in an open meeting before sending off letters. She said she felt rushed to get the letter sent off to meet a March 8 noon deadline. "In this case, I felt like I was in a big hurry and everything, and I told them (Headwaters) I apologized," she said. "If there is a public perception that people are getting cut out of the process, I don’t like that." Kupillas has placed the matter on the agenda for Wednesday’s commission meeting. She questioned whether there was some political motivation behind the accusations. Kupillas is up for re-election, running against Sue Densmore in the May 18 primary. "The timing of it makes me think it was a political move to discredit me," she said. But Graham said, "Why is it at this particular moment, she chooses not to bring it (the letter) forward? She set the timeline." She suggested Kupillas might have been trying to "sidestep" public debate over an issue as controversial as timber salvage. "You get to skip a real thorny issue right before a primary," she said. The letter sent by Kupillas recommended salvaging 29.4 million board feet from the Timbered Rock Fire, while an e-mail from Gilmour personally recommended a different alternative of 23.4 million board feet. Headwaters, however, has recommended 8 million board feet, said Graham. Her group, which advocates forest and water conservation, wants Kupillas’ letter stricken from the public record. Graham said that because of the seriousness of the issue, Headwaters would have raised objections to the letter no matter when it was written. "We would have preferred to have it open to the public during the first go-around," she said. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities