The Bentz Amendment

Here we go . . .

Republicans don't have much of a chance in Salem nowadays. That is, unless you have common ground with northwest and southwest Oregon utility problems, such as the disaster that has been Liquefied Natural Gas (regional links: http://oregonfirst.net/links.html)

Oregon House Democrat Brian Clem of the Natural Resources Committee wrote House Bill 3153 "to keep energy facilities, such as pipelines and powerlines, away from forests and farm land. Energy facilities would be banned from these rural areas if most of the power being generated goes to cities and towns." http://www.naturaloregon.org/2009/04/09/anti-lng-bill-may-also-block-ne-oregon-power-line/ Not only that, condemnation of rural property would be at urban prices.

Smooth-talking alfalfa seed grower Larry Price hobnobbing with Paulette Pyle of Oregonians for Food and Shelter and Tammy Dennee of the Wheat League about amendment language

The bill was handed off to the Sustainability and Economic Development Committee, of which Ontario resident Cliff Bentz is Vice-Chair. It wouldn't have been given a hearing without the letter writing campaign of interested Oregon residents. In fact, it has been assigned a work session, which means it won't just vanish following the hearing.

Ontario onion grower Ken Teramura chatting with Rep. Cliff Bentz outside the hearing room. A smaller group met with Gov. Kulongoski Aide Mike Carrier and Katy Coba of the Oregon Dept of Ag, while a larger group spent time with Senator Ted Ferrioli.

The hearing room and overflow were full, not just of our 25 who came by bus, but other eastern Oregon residents already in Salem, well wishers and interested parties. The bill will face certain changes in work sessions before it can be reconciled with the Oregon Senate.

At the outset, following Brian Clem's introduction of his bill, Bentz introduced an amendment narrowly specific to high voltage transmission lines, proposing to give county courts process jurisdiction over whether to limit towers to 50 feet in cases of aerial spraying over exclusive farm use (EFU) ground.

Land use statute ORS 215.275, while allowing towers under 200 ft in height on EFU ground, already gives county courts jurisdiction over the siting of energy facilities. This specific amendment would offer another tool to keep productive farmland being overrun by high voltage transmission lines.

Ready for the hearing to begin: Tobias Read, Chairman of the Sustainability and Economic Development Committee (left) and Vice-Chair Cliff Bentz (right)

Our eleven eastern Oregon presenters did an outstanding job of informing the committee of the circumstances peculiar to our side of the state, including irrigated high desert, the large market share of onions produced here, leaf cutter bees developed to service the alfalfa seed industry, the Oregon Trail, and the high percentage of public land ownership, ranging from more than 50% in Baker to over 80% in Malheur County.

Gary Pearson and Pat Phillips supplied excellent maps demonstrating just how deliberately Idaho Power has carved through the narrow ribbon of private property along the Snake River in creating its original routes, all but ignoring uninhabited BLM ground that makes up the bulk of eastern Oregon.

Speaking in support was Kate Kimball of the 1000 Friends of Oregon, who again pressed the issue that utility companies need to look at privately held farm businesses as a last resort, rather than a first resort, when routing utilities. “You wouldn’t site a utility on an Intel or a Nike site, but farmland and ranchland are in the same situation,” Kimball told the committee. “This is the land where people earn their living.”

Then came the opponents to the bill, two from Portland Gas and Electric and one from Northwest Natural Gas. They complained that they had to cross private ground because Oregon was forcing renewable standards on them, and they seemed dismayed and surprised that we really didn't want transmission lines on prime farmland. They insisted that they always looked at public lands first when siting routes, although it is apparent they don't stay there long.

Bentz dogged them on this issue, although all they would finally concede is that "we look at a lot of things."

Field Trip Day in the State Capitol. Check out the Capital Press article at http://www.capitalpress.com/main.asp?SectionID=67&SubSectionID=617&ArticleID=50428&TM=70894.18

Representative Brad Witt asked pointed questions about why utilities insist on avoiding public lands so spectacularly (my words), and compared putting a center pivot sprinkler under a high-voltage transmission line to "putting a toaster in a bathtub." (his words)

The most forlorn of all was John Brenneman, the Idaho Power lobbyist, who didn't know about the extra amendment until two hours before the hearing. We think this might be a result of Idaho Power pretending if they ignore us long enough, we'll become invisible.

Brenneman's employers evidently encouraged him to spread the last-minute gospel of Citizens Advisory Projects, Town Halls, and We've Taken Sand Hollow Substation Off The Table. Call your lobbyist, IPCo, and thanks for paying for our lunch.

This was our Chukar bus. I heard a lady outside the Shari's Restaurant in Troutdale tell one of her friends, "I found out what Chukars are!" after conversing with one of our group. *

And then we got back on the bus and drove into Ontario by half past midnight! Great trip, great company, and a good report to tell our home people at the end of it. Make sure you send thank-yous to our House committee legislators (all on an earlier blog post.)

I think I'm going to go take a nap.

*P.S. Make sure no one tells Idaho Power we rode on the Chukar Bus, or they might not let us ride on it ever again!