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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Emergency services A memorable year Unnatural corridor 5 Things to do This Weekend Get Up & Go: Jan. 1 Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Emergency services Community blog: Mentoring=Crime Prevention Two Eagle Point men charged in Lake Creek Road poaching case MADGE bust at Medford Walmart nets meth, $20,000 in cash Drug raid in Rogue River leads to two arrests Politics and Elections Councilman stirs online dust-up with anti-marijuana post State certifies recount showing failure of GMO-labeling measure Time running out for O&C funds GMO vote recount still shows little change Education Traveling artist sets the stage for Ruch School amphitheater Ruch school class focuses on the natural environment Bethel Church helps families at McLoughlin Middle School Logos may offer students 'fifth year' at RCC or SOU St. Mary's plays host to youth robotics tournament Environment Monument expansion expected to increase tourism, protect resources Biologist resigns over LNG reporting failure Bird flu discovered in Winston backyard flock Jackson County holds back on enforcing GMO ban for now No fish, no funding for problem dams State News Oregon minimum wage rises to $9.25 Storm brings snow, cold to West Idaho shooting victim supported gun rights Dam problems force early fish transfer into Willamette Valley lakes Portland mattress stowaway cat back home Nation - World Obama makes Maduro’s ‘insolent Yankees’ line harder to sell Obituaries Dr. Kenneth Emerson Janet E. Leonard Lyle Roberts Death Notices Sidney A. Stitt Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Shareable In memoriam: 2014’s notable deaths Looking back: Do you remember 2014’s biggest stories? Sports Latest Stories No. 6 TCU crushes No. 9 Ole Miss in Peach Ohio State’s Jones getting quite an education Ravens head of security charged with sex offense Going great lengths Lions’ Suh refuses to talk about incident Varsity 541 College Sports No. 6 TCU crushes No. 9 Ole Miss in Peach Ohio State’s Jones getting quite an education Going great lengths Michigan AD Hackett: Harbaugh a long-term answer Facebook responses suggest Ducks win Pro Sports Ravens head of security charged with sex offense Lions’ Suh refuses to talk about incident Aldridge comes back strong in Blazers win Bryant's triple-double carries Lakers Lions’ Suh cleared top play Sunday Community Sports Business Latest Stories Rising prices bear fruit for local pear growers Dear Monty: Best start for 1st-time homebuyers Milken economist headlines Southern Oregon Business Conference Ride & Drive: 2015 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Silvio Calabi: Infiniti Q50 offers business-class driving Real Estate News Dear Monty: Best start for 1st-time homebuyers Rental owners group reports 2.48 percent vacancy rate More sales, but no change in residential housing median price People In Business People in Business, Dec. 3 Transportation Falling gas prices help spur travel at Medford airport Agriculture Rising prices bear fruit for local pear growers K-BAR ignites agriculture boom beneath Table Rocks Opinion Latest Our View: Help clear the air for the new year Letters to the Editor, Jan. 1 Dana Milbank: America's Slacktivist generation George Will: A strike against rent-seeking Granlund cartoon: Resolutions redux Editorials Our View: Help clear the air for the new year Our View: Caves expansion worth the wait Other Views: Oregon incomes still lag behind Our View: Council is barking up the right tree Other Views: Roseburg VA director sets the right goals Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, Jan. 1 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 31 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 30 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 29 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 28 Guest Opinions Guest Opinion: Loved one chose death with dignity in Oregon Guest Opinion: Forest thinning means water for the future Guest Opinion: Suit threatens family farms and democratic vote Guest Opinion: SOU pool decision short-sighted Guest Opinion: It's time for biologists to let OR-7 go dark Lifestyle Latest stories Dear Monty: Best start for 1st-time homebuyers Community blog: Ring in new flavors with year's last appetizers Community blog: We Don't Have To Conspire Against Good Health Mark L. Hopkins: New Year’s resolutions and more HealthStyle: New year, new you Food Community blog: Ring in new flavors with year's last appetizers Food for Thought: Tips for cooking when you have food allergies Food for Thought: Wintertime wining and dining Kitchen Call: The comfort of creamy soups Community blog: Baking contest finalists combine cookies, candies Home and Garden Dear Monty: Best start for 1st-time homebuyers Dear Monty: Can a rookie real estate agent be a good choice? Bathtub or shower: What’s best for you? Home Help: Home safety tips for a safe and happy winter season How NOT to install drywall Health Community blog: We Don't Have To Conspire Against Good Health HealthStyle: New year, new you Health Watch: Build up your glutes in the off-season Dr. Jeff Hersh: What's a monoclonal antibody? Dr. Murray Feingold: Have a happy and stress-free holiday Hiking Biking Faith (No heading) Churches, synagogs host seasonal events Bethel Church helps families at McLoughlin Middle School Milestones and Achievements Local landowners see no public good in proposed pipeline Pear Blossom queen has open heart surgery Hundreds enjoy Christmas dinner, gifts at St. Vincent de Paul SinceYou Asked: SBA would work with Mt. Ashland Ski Area about loan Fans, friends and family welcome home victorious SOU team at airport Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories New Schneider Museum exhibits highlight First Friday Camelot's 'Fiddler' is a charmer Top 10 CDs of 2014 Ring in 2015 at a New Year's celebration near you Dobra Tea menu offers hundreds of brews Theater Camelot's 'Fiddler' is a charmer ACT presents reading of 'The Quality of Life' Meet the real Jacob Marley This Nutcracker ballet will have a superhero twist Plumbing the depths of meaning Music The Farr Side: Top 10 album count-up for 2014 Top 10 CDs of 2014 A tribute to Joe Cocker Ring in 2015 at a New Year's celebration near you SugarBeats headline an all-ages dance party at Historic Ashland Armory Community Events New Schneider Museum exhibits highlight First Friday Celebrate winter solstice with the Bad Film Society Tomaseen Foley's "A Celtic Christmas" returns to the Craterian Theater Stefan Baumann and Eugene Bennett highlight Third Fridays Dancing People Company celebrates the solstice Dining Dobra Tea menu offers hundreds of brews Food for Thought: Wintertime wining and dining Coffee shops roll out holiday-inspired drinks Over Easy serves 'pop-up' brunch Sundays Ooblies Artisan Waffle Sandwiches Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Magazines & Special Sections NEWS NOW Unnatural corridor ... Our View: Help clear the air for the new year ... Two Eagle Point men charged in Lake Creek Road poaching case ... Unnatural corridor ... Our View: Help clear the air for the new year ... Two Eagle Point men charged in Lake Creek Road poaching case ... Officials outline 'a system that is broke' Representatives from five counties back O&C trust bill that would restore lost timber funds through sustainable logging Economically hard-hit Oregon counties are on the ropes and are about to go down for the count. Comment By Paul Fattig MailTribune.com By Paul Fattig Posted Aug. 23, 2013 @ 12:01 am Updated Aug 23, 2013 at 2:40 AM By Paul Fattig Posted Aug. 23, 2013 @ 12:01 am Updated Aug 23, 2013 at 2:40 AM About the proposed O&C trust bill --> The O&C Trust, Conservation and Jobs Act would place the roughly 2.7 million acres of O&C land into two trusts, with roughly half of it managed for conservation while the remainder would focus on s... » Read more X About the proposed O&C trust bill The O&C Trust, Conservation and Jobs Act would place the roughly 2.7 million acres of O&C land into two trusts, with roughly half of it managed for conservation while the remainder would focus on sustainable timber production to help fund county coffers. There are no projections on how much timber would be produced from the 1.47-million-acre O&C Trust, which would consist of previously managed timberlands. The proposal calls for those lands to be sustainably managed to meet the federal government's obligation to the 18 O&C counties. The plan would transfer management of older forest stands to the U.S. Forest Service for preservation and disperse timber production on the lands to meet the needs of mills throughout Western Oregon. It also would add 58,100 acres to the Rogue Wilderness Area in the Lower Rogue River drainage. The proposal designates 93 miles of 35 tributaries of the Rogue as either "wild," "scenic" or "recreational" under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. In addition, it would withdraw 19 tributaries on the Rogue from mining as well as 11 miles on the Chetco River. The proposal is supported by both the Oregon House and Senate, 15 boards of commissioners, the Oregon State Sheriffs Association and industry groups. However, some environmental groups and mining interests have expressed skepticism about the bill. » Social News Economically hard-hit Oregon counties are on the ropes and are about to go down for the count. That was the gist of a news conference Thursday afternoon in Medford in which 11 officials from five Oregon counties gave a sobering assessment of the impact the loss of dollars from federal timberlands has had on their counties. "I'm here today to give you a preview of coming attractions to your area if we can't fix this problem," said Josephine County Sheriff Gil Gilbertson, who now has one patrol deputy. "We are buried," he said. "Burglary has increased 1,594 percent over the last year. Auto theft has increased 1,714 percent. Theft increased 1,435 percent. Domestic assault, 1,100 percent increase." County officials also weighed in with their support for a bill now before the U.S. House which they believe would restore timber monies to the counties. "Counties are about to hit the wall financially, with public services in a steep decline, especially those connected with public safety," said Doug Robertson, a Douglas County commissioner and head of the Association of O&C Counties. "The solution is pending in Congress as we speak in the form of the bipartisan O&C Trust, Conservation and Jobs plan offered by Reps. DeFazio, Walden and Schrader," he stressed. The proposed O&C Trust act — authored by U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Springfield; Greg Walden, R-Hood River; and Kurt Schrader, D-Canby — is expected to come before the full House next month. It is part of the Restoring Healthy Forests For Healthy Communities bill (HR 1526) which county officials say would fund critical public services for one more year by providing short-term bridge financing for the counties. The O&C measure will cut through government red tape that has created gridlock on federal forestlands, according to the officials. Senior U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., is expected to release his own O&C proposal in a few weeks, a Wyden spokesman told the Mail Tribune on Thursday. Wyden chairs the powerful Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. County officials say economic relief is desperately needed for the 18 Western Oregon counties that have been dependent for decades on timber-related payments from former Oregon & California Railroad Co. lands now under U.S. Bureau of Land Management jurisdiction. With timber harvests down, the counties have had to cut deeply into all areas, from public safety to libraries, they say. "The path to maintaining the status quo will inevitably lead to insolvency and a rapid decreased livability in many areas of our state," Robertson said. "There is another path, one that provides an innovative and balanced alternative to managing our national forest and BLM land. "This approach includes significant gains in the area of conservation while creating thousands of new jobs, adequate resources for county government and the sustainable flow of raw materials for the wood-products industry," he added of the O&C trust act. Jackson County Commissioner John Rachor agreed. Seven years ago the county received about $23 million in federal timber revenue, a figure that has dropped to zero this year, he said. As a result, there have been severe cuts in county law enforcement, libraries, the veterans department and other services. "The root of this is federal timber management," he said. "There are so many restrictions on our ability to harvest our natural resources. It is tough to get anything done." The forest bill would open up the federal woods while taking conservation measures to protect valuable resources, he said. Josephine County Commissioner Simon Hare said the bill establishes a conservation fund and provides for greater riparian setbacks for logging along streams. "It establishes over 90,000 acres in wilderness and special places designation," he said. "And it permanently protects old-growth forests." Yet it would also create jobs and provide predictability to the counties, he said. "I think we are poised really well toward a solution," he said. "At the end of the day, most of the county commissioners in the O&C counties no longer want what is considered a welfare check. What they want is the jobs and the economy that is tied to this important legislation. "I think that people in Oregon are starting to realize that our do-nothing management style has really brought us nowhere," he added. For the county sheriffs and district attorneys in attendance, the issue clearly was public safety. Jackson County Sheriff Mike Winters, a former Oregon State Police trooper, expressed empathy for what his fellow sheriffs in Josephine and Curry counties now face because of cuts in the state police. He said he faced dangerous situations while he was a trooper with no backup. "I know what we are facing and it is not good," he said. "What we're talking about today is a system that is broke, and badly broken." Curry County Sheriff John Bishop said he only has four patrol deputies, all of whom are utterly inundated. "They are 20 to 30 reports down at any single time," he said, adding they have no time to spend writing reports. That lag has an impact on the legal system, he said. Moreover, many calls they used to routinely respond to are now answered with a form sent in the mail, he said. "I have a problem with that," he said. "It erodes the public trust and cooperation all of us sheriffs have enjoyed over the years." "It is the public — our friends and neighbors — who suffer," said Douglas County District Attorney Rick Wesenberg. "They pay their taxes. They vote on Election Day. They lead productive lives, believing when they need help, help will be there for them. "But it is these innocent citizens for whom help is often delayed, if it arrives at all," he added. In Jackson County, the cuts are being felt, acknowledged Jackson County District Attorney Beth Heckert. "Victims have to wait longer in order to get services from our office, cases are being filed later or not being filed at all," she said. "We have started to not prosecute some cases. We cannot do everything we've done in the past because of fewer resources." When a county makes cuts in public safety, the problem doesn't stay in the county, said Josephine County District Attorney Steven Campbell. "With regards to our misdemeanor case load, we have had to cut almost all our misdemeanors," he offered as an example. "Driving under the influence is a misdemeanor. Those are people who cross county lines under the influence." On average, there are now only two deputies patrolling Lane County because of budget cuts, said Lane County District Attorney Alex Gardner, noting the county is the size of the state of Connecticut. "We are not living in Mayberry anymore — we have serious crime," he said. "But there is a point in which you can't do more with less. And we are there." As a case in point, he said an emergency call came in of a burglar armed with a gun who had broken into a house one night east of Cottage Grove. "It was a very high priority call and the nearest deputy on duty was 80 miles away," he said. "That is the level of danger none of us should be willing to tolerate." Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 541-776-4496 or email him at [email protected]. By Paul Fattig MailTribune.com By Paul Fattig Posted Aug. 23, 2013 @ 12:01 am Updated Aug 23, 2013 at 2:40 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. 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