7 April 2015
Lawmakers send schools budget to governor
A two-year budget for Oregon Schools is on its way to Governor Kate Brown.
Democrats in the state Senate approved the $7.3-billion budget in a party-line vote Monday.
After complaining for weeks that the Democratic budget was inadequate, Republicans offered suggestions to increase it by $200-million. They want to sell off state forestland, freeze state employee pay and eliminate a program that pays counties that offer tax incentives to businesses.
Democrats said that proposal was unworkable.
The Democratic budget is a 9-percent increase over the current two-year budget. But school administrators say there’s been a larger increase in expenses and enrollment.
Democrats responded by saying while it’s not ideal, it’s the best budget they can do right now.
Western Lane Community Foundation Grants
37 different area non-profit groups picked up checks totaling more than $90-thousand last week. The Western Lane Community Foundation announced grant award winners March 31st.
The grants cover a wide variety of categories including the arts, education, hospice and more. The largest grant of $20-thousand was given to the Siuslaw Pioneer Museum and will be used to pay off the facility’s mortgage. Other sizeable grants included $97-hundred to Food Share for an emergency generator and $65-hundred to the Helping Hands Coalition to pay for vouchers used by homeless and disadvantaged people.
Not all of the grants were large. Some of the smaller ones will have an impact. Eight grants ranging from $230 to $3,020 went to different programs at Siuslaw Elementary.
Climate change and the Oregon Coast
The Policy Manager for an Oregon environmental group with close ties to Florence will be in Florence tomorrow evening for a conversation about climate change. Charlie Plybon, with the Surfrider Foundation, says the “Gloom and doom impacts” of climate change from rising sea levels, ocean acidification and more intense storm activity can leave some “dizzied and confused” about what can be done.
Plybon says – quote – “climate change is happening”, adding “the impacts are clear and the drivers might often be politically argued”. But, he says, “what we’re going to do about it is up to us.
Plybon will speak at Siuslaw Public Library, tomorrow at six pm.
