Put rural lessons on the slate for Gov. Brown

Published 9:25 am Tuesday, February 24, 2015

Gov. Kate Brown, installed last week, is taking the helm of a state embroiled in a scandal – a governor under investigation for influence peddling and ethical transgressions – unlike anything seen here before.

She takes charge of a state government that is controlled by the Democratic Party, her party, which gives her plenty of opportunity to be effective in the short time before the next statewide election in November 2016.

While the Kitzhaber mess is likely to grab headlines for months to come, the Democrats nonetheless will continue to maintain strong majorities in both the state House and the Senate. That’s not seen as welcome news in Republican-dominated Eastern Oregon, where we need a lot of friends in the Valley in order to get anything accomplished. Despite his foibles in Salem, Kitzhaber could claim to be one such friend.

A case in point was Kitzhaber’s support for increasing water from the Columbia River to expand irrigation and agriculture production in the Umatilla Basin. That goal seemed near reality just a few weeks ago, but has been thrown back into limbo by the recent political upheaval.

Kitzhaber’s proposed budget featured money for such water development, as well as other projects to help the still struggling rural areas. One of the early tests for Brown will be what she does with the governor’s budget and with the staff that coordinated policy with rural Oregon communities.

Obviously, water is just one of many issues important to our communities. The change in command has left county and city officials across this region wondering about the ramifications for their specific needs, whether that comes down to water, forest health, sage grouse habitat, or road maintenance, to name just a few items on the rural list.

In her early statements, Brown weighed in for ethics reforms – no surprise, given the circumstances of her ascent to power. But more important for this region, she also said she wouldn’t forget the needs of areas of Oregon that have been left behind by the economic recovery. In other words, places like Grant and Harney counties.

Political analyst Jim Moore told the Capital Bureau he thinks she’ll follow through on the pledge to rural areas.

“The reason she will is because that is where the economic problems of the state are right now,” he told reporter Peter Wong. “The Legislature has said we are going to focus on the rural Oregon economy. She has to be in on that conversation.”

As do we. With some key players changing, Eastern Oregon leaders must be prepared to adjust their strategies and build new relationships to keep rural recovery from slipping down the priority list. Let the rural education of Gov. Brown begin now – and with a chorus, not a whisper.