East Multnomah Soil & Water Conservation District
Measure No. 26-71
BALLOT TITLE
East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District Permanent Rate Limit
QUESTION: Shall the District be authorized to have a permanent rate limit of $0.10 per $1,000 assessed value beginning FY 2005-2006?
SUMMARY: This permanent rate limit will enable the East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District to provide education and technical assistance to urban and rural residents, farmers, businesses, municipalities, and others to meet rising legal and public expectations for healthy and sustainable land management. The District does not make or enforce regulations.
The permanent rate limit will support current District programs including Naturescaping for Clean Rivers, conservation technical assistance, help for landowners navigating regulations, and cost-share funding for conservation projects. The District may purchase conservation easements in ecologically sensitive areas, provide youth education, make capital expenditures, and develop new programs to improve the quality of our streams and natural habitat for fish, wildlife, and people.
This measure establishes a permanent rate limit of $.10 per $1,000 of assessed value. It will cost the owner of a property valued at $200,000 a maximum of $20.00 per year and yield an estimated $2,862,200 to the District. The District may levy a lower rate. This permanent rate is an upper limit that by law can never be raised.
NO EXPLANATORY STATEMENT WAS SUBMITTED
Submitted by:
East Multnomah Soil & Water Conservation District Board
No arguments AGAINST this measure were filed
Measure No. 26-71 | East Multnomah Soil & Water Conservation District
ARGUMENT IN FAVOR
We all benefit from clean air and clean water. If our streams are to provide healthy drinking water for people and good habitat for salmon, however, some of us — farmers, loggers, builders — must disproportionately learn new land management practices — and pay the costs.
Measure 37 seeks to remedy that imbalance by effectively doing away with many land use regulations, some of which are necessary to make our communities great places to live.
Measure 26-71 offers a better way to balance the rights of landowners and their responsibility to cooperate in improving the environment we all share. Instead of lowering standards, it helps gardeners, farmers, landscapers, builders and others meet our rising public and legal expectations for water quality and wildlife habitat through the East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District.
Conservation Districts were created in response to the Dust Bowl of the 1930s to help farmers prevent their soil from blowing and eroding away. To overcome the distrust of government that was then widespread — as it is now — these Districts did not create or enforce regulations, but instead provided education, technical assistance, and sometimes financial help to farmers. They earned trust by including farmers on their boards. They are one case where government by, for, and of the people really was there to help.
The ecological challenges we face today in Multnomah County are different, but our Conservation District is still a particularly good way to help people, both urban and rural residents, improve our shared environment. Our programs, such at Naturescaping for Clean Rivers, are now especially important because the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Specie’s, and other regulations demand more of land managers. At the same time, other services, such as OSU Extension, have been cut or eliminated. If you believe we all share the responsibility to leave future generations a healthy and sustainable environment, vote YES on Measure 26-71. Your dime per mil can make a difference.
VOTE YES 26-71!
(This information furnished by Xander Patterson, Save Our Streams)
The printing of this argument does not constitute an endorsement by Multnomah County, nor does the county warrant the accuracy or truth of any statements made in the argument.