League of Women Voters of Deschutes County

Paul Dewey, Executive Director and Attorney for Central Oregon Landwatch, discussed the following topics:

Local Issues: Destination resorts - “Events” on farmland - Skyline Forest - City of Bend Tumalo Creek water diversion - City of Bend Urban Growth Boundary expansion - Recent Deschutes County comp plan revisions -

Broader Issues: Phenomenon of special entitlements bills in the Legislature - Transportation Planning Rule changes

Central Oregon Landwatch occupies an essential niche in protecting Central Oregon's fragile natural landscapes, watershed resources, ecosystems and the livability of its communities. Our activities include shaping state, regional and local policy agendas, strengthening the base of support for conservation at the community level, collaborating with like-minded allies to protect threatened areas and, when necessary, taking legal action. We monitor activities that take place on both public and private land and work to influence conservation policies for natural environments, agricultural and forest land and urban areas.

Paul Dewey, a long-time Central Oregon resident, founded Central Oregon LandWatch and has been active in the organization since its inception in 1986.

A native of southwest Kansas, Paul received his law degree from the University of Virginia, and has practiced law for 30 years specializing in land use, environmental, and Native American law. He is admitted to practice in Oregon, the Federal District Court of Oregon, the Ninth Circuit, the Federal Court of Claims and the Federal Circuit, and has experience with cases involving the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, NFMA and NEPA, and Oregon land use laws. He clerked for the Oregon Supreme Court Justice Berkeley Lent. He has worked for two Oregon governors reviewing roadless areas in the state and was on Governor Kitzhaber's Eastside Forest Advisory Council.

Paul has received a number of land use and environmental protection awards and in 2006, was recognized as Central Oregon's Man of the Year by the Source Weekly. Mr. Dewey has represented LandWatch in numerous land use cases before local governments, the Land Use Board of Appeals, State Circuit Court, and the Oregon Court of Appeals.

Terri Payne AICP, Senior Planner, Deschutes County Community Development Department, spoke about the recently adopted Deschutes County Comprehensive Plan at a luncheon sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Deschutes County.

Information below provided by the speaker:

“The Deschutes County Comprehensive Plan is a statement of issues, goals and policies meant to guide the future of land use in this County. This Comprehensive Plan is intended to recognize the expectations and rights of property owners and the community as a whole. The Plan is not intended to be used to evaluate specific development projects. Instead, the Plan is a 20-year blueprint to guide growth and development.”

Terri Hansen Payne, AICP (American Institute of Certified Planners)

Education

Undergraduate: Bachelor of Science University of Oregon 1989

Graduate: Master of City Planning University of California, Berkeley 1997

Employment

Current Position: Senior Long Range Planner Deschutes County, OR 2005-present

Previous Positions: Associate Planner Walnut Creek, CA 2002-2005

Long Range Planner West Valley City, UT 1998-2002

Focus Areas: Comprehensive planning, destination resorts, affordable housing

The topic for the upcoming First Thursday Luncheon on Thursday November 3, 2011, will be the Central Oregon Health Council and how it has the "potential to unify the public and private health care sectors and improve population health, satisfaction and shared savings through care coordination, regional health planning and effective resource management."

The purpose of the Central Oregon Health Council (COHC) is to promote the health of our region’s residents, making Central Oregon the healthiest region in the nation. The COHC, in partnership with the Oregon Health Authority (OHA), seeks to achieve the Triple Aim: to improve health outcomes, increase satisfaction with our health system and reduce costs. The goal is to manage resources efficiently and effectively, in collaboration with local and State governments, our hospital system, local providers, private insurers, health collaborative(s) and, most importantly, our community and the people we serve. The Health Council was recently established by the Oregon Legislature in 2011. It is taking a leadership role in advancing health reform for the residents of Crook, Deschutes and Jefferson counties.

Speakers will be:

1. Scott Johnson, Director of Deschutes County Health Service which is Deschutes County's behavioral health and public health deparment. He has worked for Deschutes County for the past 17 years and is the former director of the Deschutes County Commission on Children & Families.

2. Robin Henderson, Psy.D., Director, Behavioral Health Services and Interim Director of Health Integration, St Charles Health System, Bend Oregon

Dr. Henderson is the Director of Behavioral Health Services and Interim Director of Health Integration at St Charles Health System in Bend, Oregon since 2001. She manages two psychiatric facilities, an outpatient clinic with services in 13 locations, acute social work services across two hospitals, the hospital's Employee Assistance Program, a psychiatric consult/liaison service with five psychiatrists, and Spiritual Care Services across two hospitals.

3. Tammy Baney, Chair, Deschutes County Board of Commissioners: Tammy was born in Salem, Oregon, was raised in Deschutes County, and has attended Central Oregon Community College, Center for Professional Studies (Real Estate), and the University of Phoenix. She has a background in small business management, and real estate sales.

Commissioner Baney’s government experience includes serving as County Commissioner since 2007, Board Chair 2009; Elected Chair, Deschutes County Commission on Children & Families; Appointed Member, Oregon Commission on Children & Families Budget Committee; Local Public Safety Coordinating Council, Oregon Housing Council - Appointed Member, and the Family Law Advisory Committee.

A dedicated community member, Commissioner Baney has volunteered with many non-profit organizations. Baney has served as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA); Foster Parent; Habitat for Humanity Board Member; Founding Member, Family Access Network Foundation; Co-Founder of the Deschutes County Meth Action Coalition; and served as Chair of the Deschutes County Commission on Children & Families

Representative for District 54 Jason Conger spoke about the last legislative session from the perspective of a new legislator, especially any bill that affected education (our local study for last year and this year).

Reflections on the legislative session from the perspective of a first time legislator
Accomplishments of the last session
Issues that were left to be handled by the next legislative session
New legislation impacting education in Oregon
The Central Oregon Health Council and how it’s work will merge with State and Federal Health Care laws

Jason was elected to the Oregon House of Representatives in 2010, and recently finished his first session as a legislator.

Jason is a partner in the law firm Miller Nash and specializes in mergers and acquisitions, corporate, securities, and venture capital law. He is a co-founder of Cornerstone Realty Holdings, an acquirer of value added multifamily properties, and is a member of the board of directors of Pixelsilk, Inc., a search active content management software company. While earning his JD at Harvard Law School, he served as a teaching fellow in the Harvard University Department of Government and the Berkman Center for Internet and Society. He was also an adjunct professor at the University of San Diego School of Law.

Throughout his career Jason has helped small and large businesses alike to grow and thrive - creating opportunity, innovation, new job opportunities and economic strength. Today, Jason practices law in Bend, volunteer’s time with his church and local community groups, takes an active role in the lives of his five children, and proudly serves the citizens of Bend as their representative in the Oregon Legislature.

Dan Jones and Karen Sue Stiner, coordinators of the CLASS/TIF Projects for the Bend/La Pine Public Schools, were the guest speakers for the League's new season that began on September 1st. They discussed the Chalkboard Project/CLASS (Creative Leadership Achieves Student Success).

Dan Jones has spent 37 years in education of which 34 have been with the Bend-La Pine School District. His current positions include Reading Specialist Marshall High School and Co-coordinator CLASS/TIF Projects for Bend/La Pine Public Schools in which he has engaged for a number of years. He has been a local Union President, Regional Union Council President and Oregon Education Association Board member.

Dan has received three OEA awards: Presidential Citation for Leadership, Organizational Excellence, and Members Rights. He was also a recipient of the Oregon Technology Teacher of the Year Award and is a certified CRISS Strategies trainer for our region.

In addition, Dan was part of the first ever Technology Teacher Exchange with China. He is also the creator of the Techno-Train, a complete applied-technology curriculum and activities for 3rd-5th grade elementary students marketed nationwide through Paxton/Patterson. His background degree is in PTE (Professional Technical Education) with a minor in English.

Karen Sue Stiner is a middle grades mathematics teacher at High Desert Middle School. In 2005, Karen received the prestigious U.S. Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.

Stiner is a past recipient of a two-year Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship in Washington, DC. Her first fellowship year (2007-2008) was spent with the Office of Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists (WDTS), U.S. Department of Energy. Among her responsibilities, Stiner served as lead editor of the 2007 Journal of Undergraduate Research which reported the work of over 600 undergraduate researchers in the Department of Energy’s national laboratories locatedthroughout the United States. She was also editor of the WDTS Annual Report and wasextensively involved in the development and expansion of The California State University STAR(Science Teacher and Researcher) program for undergraduates in partnership with theDepartment of Energy’s national research laboratories and the NASA Ames Research Center.

Karen's second fellowship year (2008-2009) was served with the US House of RepresentativesCommittee on Science and Technology. During her tenure she worked to further pre-professional and professional advancement opportunities for the nation’s students and teachers of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Her role as a Fellow enabled her to continue to provide a classroom teacher’s perspective on STEM education policy and program issues affecting K-12 education initiatives nationwide. Stiner is particularly committed to aggressively helping girls—as early as the fifth and sixth grades—to become much more involved in science and mathematics education. She states:

“Our girls and young women have the capacity to compete with the best and the brightest young minds across the world in mathematics, technology, sciences and engineering—the STEM disciplines. I am deeply dedicated to being part of the nationwide effort to strategically address STEM education initiatives for this critical sector of our population. I am passionate about meeting the need for mathematics curricula and instructional practices that are consistent with the latest and best cognitive research about how girls most effectively learn complex scientific and mathematical concepts.”

Stiner holds a Master's degree from Eastern Oregon University and a Bachelor's degree from San Diego State University. She has completed additional post-graduate studies at the University of Oregon and holds an Oregon School Administrator License. Before beginning her career as a teacher in 1997, Stiner spent six years with the General Dynamics Aerospace Division in San Diego.

Todd Dunkelberg began his library career as a children's librarian after graduating from the University of Texas library school. In 1999 he moved to Central Oregon to manage the Redmond Library. In 2005 he led the new Sisters Library building project. He was promoted to director in 2009.

Mr. Hemingway practiced law in the Washington, DC area for six years after retiring in 1994 from a 23-year career in the U.S. Army. Since moving to Oregon in 2001 he has completed a Masters in Counseling degree with Oregon State University (Cascades Campus), worked with incarcerated youth at the Deschutes County Juvenile Community Justice Center, as an addictions counselor with a residential treatment program and as Case Manager with Bethlehem Inn. He began working with COVO in December 2009.

Dan Despotopolus, Director, Deschutes County Fair and Expo Center, covered the issues listed below during his talk. A short biography provided by the speaker is also provided below.

1. History of the Deschutes County Fairgrounds location and its current and future funding sources.

“Dan Despotopulos has been the Director of the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center for a little more than ten years. Dan worked for the Ice Capades as a regional manager, VP of operations for Dorothy Hamill International and has over 35 years of experience in the area of facility management, while managing, owning and consulting for facilities throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. Dan is one of eight children (4 boys – 4 girls), born and raised in Massachusetts, is married to his wife Sue for 25 years and their son Dustin, a recent graduate of the University of Oregon, now attending UNLV working on his PHD in chemistry.” (bio provided by speaker)

In 2011, the League of Women Voters (LWV) of Deschutes County will study local education issues. The LWV State and National Leagues will also make education one of their top priorities. Therefore, on the first two First Thursday Luncheons in 2011, our speakers addressed education issues.

STATE OF THE LOCAL BEND-LAPINE SCHOOLS: A panel of Bend-LaPine School District Administrators participated in a discussion on the “State of the Local Bend-LaPine Schools” at a luncheon on February 3, 2011. Participants in the discussion were: John Rexford, Deputy Superintendent; Vicki Van Buren, Chief Academic Officer; Bob Jones, Director; Julianne Repman, Communication Director and, possibly, Ron Wilkinson, Superintendent.

Topics for discussion included: Current enrollment and class size; Budget Concerns (present and future); Curriculum; Status of “No Child Left Behind Act”; School Calendar (teacher prep days, actual student “seat” time); Military Recruiting; and Charter Schools (i.e. Redmond Model – Personalized Learning, Inc., Proficiency Learning.

Dennis Dempsey, Superintendent of the High Desert Education Service District, addressed the following topics as well as responding to audience questions:

There was a panel discussion of Issues Regarding Oregon's Long Term Care (LTC) System

Panel Members: Pamela Norr, Executive Officer of COCOA (Central Oregon Council on Aging); Chuck Frazier, Retired Pharmacist; Laura Lenhardt, State Certified Deputy Ombudsman; and Steven Guzauskis, Foster Grandparent Program for COCOA

Brief summary: The Central Oregon Council on Aging (COCOA) Sponsored Panel will address the current issues involving LTC in view of the fact our elder population continues to grow while government budgets decrease.

Alan Unger, Deschutes County Commissioner and member of the Deschutes Water Alliance (DWA), discussed the purpose of the alliance, the membership of the DWA, what they are trying to accomplish, and what they have already accomplished. Other topics included the Deschutes Water Alliance Water Bank and how it is working to move water to other basin needs.

“The DWA Mission: The DWA believes that it is possible to simultaneously meet new and existing demands for water in the Deschutes Basin whether they are for agriculture, cities, or rivers. DWA participants agree to:
          -Move stream flows in the Deschutes Basin toward a more natural hydrograph while securing and maintaining improved instream flows and water quality to support fish and wildlife.
          -Secure and maintain a reliable and affordable supply of water to sustain agriculture.
          -Secure a safe, affordable, and high quality water supply for urban communities.” Taken from Deschutes Water Alliance Summa

Don Webber, Emergency Services Manager, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office discussed the following:

Brad Avakian, Labor Commissioner, Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI), will speak at a luncheon which is open to the public. In addition to his own presentation, he will cover the following issues: How federal immigration laws have impacted the enforcement of Oregon wage and employment laws; whether the state apprenticeship programs have been impacted by the recession; whether housing for the mentally ill is protected from discrimination; whether Oregon’s rising minimum wage has affected Oregon’s unemployment rate during this recession; and other issues suggested by the audience.

Kelly Cannon-Miller, Executive Director for the Des Chutes Historical Museum, discussed the museum highlighting what we can learn about the history of Deschutes County through photographs from the Museum’s collection, as evidenced by a photograph of a group of women suffragette’s posing on the porch of Drake Lodge. She will dig a little deeper into our shared history especially since this is the 90^th Anniversary of the formation of the League of Women Voters which evolved from the suffragette movement.

Kelly has lived in Bend for 11 years, is a graduate of Portland State University with a graduate degree in Public History, and has worked for the Oregon Historical Society, the National Park Service, and the High Desert Museum prior to joining the Deschutes County Historical Society. She is married and the mother of two girls, Chloe and Emily.

Jim Lussier, former President/CEO of Cascade Healthcare Community (CHC) spoke at the luncheon on topics regarding the Integration of Health Care Services in Central Oregon and the following:

-Some historical background as to how the adversarial positions of the health care stakeholders in Central Oregon have developed.

-Whether the divisions between the physicians who have joined the Physicians Hospital Alignment for Central Oregon and the physicians who have united to serve as a counterbalance to the hospital system are good for patient care in Central Oregon.

Do these divisions affect a patient’s ability to choose a provider among the stakeholders?

-Does this rivalry among providers lead to duplication of diagnostic tools (X-RAYS, CAT SCANS, BONE DENSITY SCANS, LABS, SURGERY CENTERS, ETC.) which could result in higher costs to the patient?

-Historically, what attempts have been made to bring all the stakeholders together to try to solve what the public could perceive as a problem?

JAMES T. LUSSIER (Jim) is founder and principal consultant with The Lussier Center/TLC which is focused on the quest for personal and organizational performance excellence through the development of optimum governance and leadership that creates a preferred future for their organizations.

Mr. Lussier has focused his professional life on high performance organizations for over 36 years. He has served at the executive level and as a CEO in healthcare organizations and provided counsel and training to hospitals and health systems in The Netherlands, Africa, Japan, Canada and the United States. He has consulted with the University of Pittsburgh, The American Hospital Association and is currently serving as the Research & Develop Chair for the Facilities Guidelines Institute in conjunction with the American Institute of Architecture. He also serves as a consultant with Transformation Systems International/The Performance Center.

Larry Blanton, Deschutes County Sheriff spoke about the Jail Bond Measure and other issues.

Susan M. Duncan, Accessibility Manager for the City of Bend, will be speaking at a luncheon that is open to the public regarding ongoing ADA (the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990) issues before the City.

.progress on curb cuts

.timeline for compliance with Federal mandates

.any new federal or state ADA issues being considered

“Susan M. Duncan joined the City of Bend as the Accessibility Manager in August 2009. She has combined her 30 years of experience as a Registered Nurse and designer with a firm she founded dedicated to providing information about Universal Access in commercial and residential environments. In 1990, Ms. Duncan embraced The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a civil rights law of 1990, and began providing ADA consultation services to public and private entities including The Boeing Company, Seattle Monorail, Sound Transit, Nordstrom and Hilton Hotels. In addition to the commercial projects she has assisted hundreds of individuals build and modify homes to accommodate their unique abilities, including a project in Saudi Arabia. She is executive producer of an award winning educational video series on accessible design and construction for living environments. Ms. Duncan has also invented and patented a space-planning design tool, the “Visualizer® Set”.” (information from City web site)

Pam Bordner, Laboratory Director, Oregon State Police Bend Forensic Lab, discussed the following topics:

an overview of the Oregon State Police Forensic Services Division and the services it provides; and
the new Bend Laboratory that is currently under construction

“Pam Bordner has a baccalaureate of science degree in Forensic Science and Criminal Justice from Michigan State University. She moved to Portland in 1992 to complete an internship at the Oregon State Police Portland Forensic Laboratory and has lived in Oregon ever since. For over 15 years, she has been employed by OSP; the first 10 years she was a forensic scientist in the Portland and Bend laboratories, and for the past 5 ½ years she has been the laboratory director in Bend.

"Pam has done casework in several forensic disciplines, including drug chemistry, serology, firearms, trace, and crime scene investigations. She has served on the Board of Directors for the Association for Crime Scene Reconstruction, as a vice-president of the International Association of Bloodstain Pattern Analysts, and is currently on the Board of Directors for the Association of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board (ASCLD/LAB).” (Information provided by the speaker.)

Scott Langton, Deschutes County Tax Assessor, discussed the changes in residential and commercial property values and their taxation and plans for handling these changes in the future.

Delores Reynolds, the Regional Technician for the Bureau of the Census, spoke about the upcoming 2010 Census (the census forms will be mailed out in mid-March 2010). She touched on the history of the census and what type of operations will come out of the Redmond office (there are six different types).

The purpose of the census is to count every person in the U.S. The numbers give political representation to those who are counted; and federal dollars are distributed based on the population count for services like education, transportation, health care and job training. Her mission is to make it as easy as possible for people to be counted using the mail-in forms provided for this purpose. If that doesn’t happen then the census bureau employees must go out and collect the forms personally.

Dolores has lived in the Redmond area for 50 years. She retired some years ago from the insurance and accounting industries. In 1988 she signed on with the census as a “lister”, bottom of the totem pole at that time. She has risen in the ranks and in 2000 was at the Redmond office as the local census office manager.

Alan Eisenberg, Central Oregon Community College Political Science Instructor, discussed the History, Background and Conflicts of the Middle East

Jeff Freund, Deschutes County Environmental Health Department spoke on Thursday, March 5, 2009:

Jeff Freund has been with the Deschutes County Environmental Health Department for ten years. He previously worked for Jefferson County and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

He currently administers the drinking water program for the State of Oregon within Deschutes County. His duties include inspection, enforcement and technical assistance for 180 public water systems serving approximately 40,000 people.

He has a B.S. in Natural Resource Management from Oregon State University with a Minor in Wildlife Biology. He has done post graduate work in Soil Science and Rangeland Hydrology.

Pam Fortier, CASA of Central Oregon Executive Director, shared the story of a family currently in the child welfare system, the history of CASA, and the impact of Family Find in relationship to Governor Kulongoski's recently released 6 goals for safely reducing the number of children in foster care.

Tammy Baney, Deschutes County Commissioner, spoke on a variety of topic regarding county issues.

Nancy Blankenship, Deschutes County Clerk discussed a variety of matters related to the county clerk's office

Erick King, Bend City Manager, addressed several issues related to the city including: The Transit District Measure, the Cooley Road Interchange, the dredging of Mirror Pond, possible budget shortfalls and actions considered by the city and signs regarding economic conditions in Bend.

Taffy Gleason, Manager of the Bend Community Center, spoke about what is happening in Bend with regard to food, shelter and donations to help people in need.

Kolleen Yake spoke on Water Issues. Ms. Yake is an education coordinator with the Upper Deschutes Watershed Council. She has led environmental education courses educators, community leaders, and students throughout Alaska, Washington and Oregon for ten years.

Steve Esselstyn will discuss the Forfeiture Ballot Measure to be on the May Ballot.

Michael Gaston, Director of Deschutes Public Library, will present "The Changing Face of Deschutes County." This is a commissioned report by demographer Marc Futterman. The result is an extremely detailed and informative piece of information on how our community is evolving.

Heather Cordie, Chief Academic Officer, Redmond Schools, explained "How Public School Standards and Curriculum are Developed"

Scott Johnson, Director of County Mental Health, and Robin Henderson, Director of St. Charles Mental Health, spoke on "MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES"

Mark Pilliod, Deschutes County Legal Counsel discussed "Legislative Referral Would Modify Measure 37"

Allan Bruckner is a long-time resident of Bend (1970). He is retired after having been a mobile home dealer (15 years) and a property manager and investor (20 years). He has a B.S. and M.S. in economics from the University of Oregon and worked in economic development for Pacific Power and Light for five years prior to moving to Bend.

Judge Alta Brady recently started hearing drug cases in a new family court format. Come and hear how the program is working and whether it is producing the results that were expected. [more on Judge Brady]

Lane Roberts, Director of 9-1-1, spoke on April 5, 2007 about their upcoming replacement levy which will be on the May ballot.

Don Weber of the Deschutes County Sheriff's Department spoke on Emergency Preparedness in Deschutes County. He is the head of Emergency Services for the Sheriff's Department and a local resource for disaster planning, including work with Homeland Security.

Robin Gyorgyfalvy and Mike Ficher were the speakers. They are both members of the Bend 2030 Vision Corps which was formed to promote the Bend 2030 Vision to the community and to give people a chance to learn more about it and how they can get involved.

Robin is Chair of the Vision Corps, a member of the Quality Environment Action Planning Team and a former member and community liaison for the Vision Task Force. She is a licensed landscape architect with a background in regional planning, transportation and urban design and is a member of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academies of Science

Mike moved to Bend in the summer of 2003; he and his family have become active in numerous community organizations, including the Women’s Resource Center, the Kid’s Center, working Wonder Children’s Museum, Commute Options and Bend 2030. Mike is owner/operator of Dance Express, a mobile dance/DJ company since 1986.

Our First Thursday Luncheon for the New Year hosted Marilyn Forrestel, Board Chair, and Brad Porterfield, Executive Director, of the Latino Community Association who spoke on the activities of their organization and its role in Central Oregon.

Joe Hayes, Director of Cascade Youth and Family Center, provided an update and overview of the status of homeless and runaway youth in Deschutes County.

In a debate on home rule for Deschutes County, Ed Fitch, Home Rule Charter Committee Chair, spoke in favor of the Charter proposal, while Lee Smith, former Home Rule Charter Committee member, spoke in opposition to the charter proposal.

The Bend-LaPine new school bond was the topic and the presentation was led by Superintendent Douglas M. Nelson. The bond will raise $119 million for the school district but will not increase the current bond rate because an existing bond will be expiring at the same time the new bond is implemented.

John MacInnis of Cascade Community Development and a representative from Housing Works (formerly CORHA) discussed "Providing Affordable Housing"

Rod Hanson, a teacher at Redmond High School, presented the topic "How to Motivate Student Involvement in Civic Live"

Matt McCoy, COCC Vice President, talked on the topic of "How Our Federal Government Works?"

Nancy Blankenship, Deschutes County Clerk, will talk about changes for voters (Note article on redistricting)

Judge Michael Sullivan, back by popular demand, continued a discussion of our judiciary, with an emphasis on threats to judicial freedom.

Tyler Deke, Manager, and Board Member Jim Clinton gave a presentation about the Bend Metropolitan Planning Organization
September 1, 2005

Katherine "Kappy" Eaton (State Action Coordinator for Governance and Fiscal Policy for the Oregon League of Women Voters) discussed accomplishments and disappointments of the Oregon Legislature's 2005 session.

Professor Jon Bouknight
Associate Professor of Communications at Central Oregon Community College
Topic: Our Waves or Their Waves? The Struggle Over Public Airwaves in the U.S.

Laurie Craighead, Deschutes County Assistant Legal Counsel - Topic: What's What About Special Taxing Districts

Bend Mayor Bill Friedman and County Commissioner Tom DeWolf - Topic: Home Rule Charter vs. General Law

County Tax Assessor Scot Langton Topic: Everything you wanted to know about your property tax

Dennis Luke, Deschutes County Commissioner on Land Use Measure 37: "The Bad, the Ugly, and the Uglier"

Topic: How things have change for children over the last ten years and currents challenges and critical issues facing our community.

Topic: Proposal to form two sheriffs taxing districts with two different maximum taxing rates

Topic: Treatment of women and girls in the county's criminal justice system; Are we less safe in Deschutes County now than in past years because of state budget cutbacks; how we rank nationally in the ratio of officers to clients under supervision; and how can the community be of support?

Topic: First impressions of her new job and how the election process is working in Deschutes County. She also addressed federally funded proposal to have a statewide voter registry in place by 2006 and other federal funding to upgrade our election system due to HAVA (Help America Vote Act of 2002) which needs the approval of the Oregon legislature.

Topic: The basic facts about Oregon's tax and budget systems at the Deschutes Historical Museum. She discussed the question as to how we can get a tax system that is fair, stable and adequate to meet Oregon's needs and introduced us to the range of options and the pros and cons of each.

Cate O'Hagan, Executive Director of Arts Central, held a question-and-answer session for guests with questions related to art in public places and the general state of art in the region.

Topic: Judicial and legal matters and how they are being affected by budgets in Deschutes County on April 3, 2003.

Topic: Land use, expansion of the Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) to include industrial use and will give an update on the Waterway Overlay Zone (WOZ)

Representatives from the Central Oregon Council on Aging and the Deschutes County Commission on Children and Families spoke on possible impacts in the region if Measure 28 fails and steps they will be taking to cope with cuts to regional budgets.

Topic: The initiation of mental health and drug courts, the establishment of a crisis resolution center in Bend, and assuring that the county receives it fair share of state and federal funding which it has not had in the past.

Topic: How Dial-A-Ride is presently working and the future prospects for the system.

Bruce Abernathy, City Councilman, spoke in June, 2002 on the Central Oregon Partnership and its role in combating poverty in Central Oregon.

Dr. Bob Barber, President of Central Oregon Community College spoke on May 2, 2002, on the need to pass a bond measure for expansion of the college facilities.

Patrick Griffiths, Water Program Specialist for the City of Bend, discussed on April 4, 2002 the past, present and future uses of water in and around Bend as well as the city's planning regarding water conservation.

Neil Bryant, local attorney and former state senator, spoke on The Status and Effects of Ballot Measure 7 on March 7, 2002

Tom Carroll, Professor of Economics at COCC, was our guest speaker in February. His topic was the Impact of International Trade on the United States and Oregon