Rogue Valley News, Friday 9/13 – Task Force Busts Phoenix Black-Market Cannabis Grow Connected to Illegal Northern California Marijuana Operation, Central Point School District Says There is ‘no credible threat’ to TikTok Post Threatening Violence at Crater High School, Happy Tails Festival on Saturday & Other Local and Statewide News…

Study Shows Oregon Seeing Higher Business Growth Than All Other States

A new study from DesignRush shows that Oregon had more business growth than any other U.S. state between September 2022 and 2023. The study, which used data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, found that Oregon had a 9.9% increase in new businesses- that’s a net increase of 18,273 businesses.

Oregon is the best U.S. state for entrepreneurial success, according to the latest study published by leading B2B marketplace DesignRush.

Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, DesignRush conducted research to find the number of business establishments in U.S. states between September 2022 and 2023.

Each state was ranked based on the highest percentage increase of businesses over the period.

Oregon took the top spot with a 9.9% increase in business establishments with a net increase of 18,273 businesses, from 185,096 in 2022 to 203,369 in 2023.

Second on the list is Montana, with an estimated 9.4% gain in businesses (5,762 net increase) over the year. Montana was followed by Michigan and Hawaii, placing third (8.9% increase) and fourth (8.6% increase) respectively.

The rest of the top 10 in the list are ranked as follows:

• Tennessee (8.0% increase)
• Idaho (7.9% increase)
• South Carolina (7.7% increase)
• Mississippi (7.4% increase)
• North Carolina (7.2% increase)
• Arizona (6.8% increase)

Gianluca Ferruggia, DesignRush’s General Manager, shared his insights on the study saying that with states from all areas of the U.S. making it to the top 10 list, this finding suggests the U.S. is well-equipped for entrepreneurs and business ventures.

“It’ll be interesting to see if any new states make the ranking in the future as more establishments are founded,” Ferruggia said.

Some States Experience Major Business Decline

While most states performed well in terms of entrepreneurial success, there remain some that performed negatively.

Virginia falls under this category, for example, experiencing a net loss of 16,522 — a 5% decrease from 2022 to 2023. Maryland and Iowa also experienced their fair share of losses, with a 1.1% and 0.6% decrease in businesses respectively.

Expounding on the findings, Ferruggia cited geographical location as one of the many factors that can determine whether one’s business will take off or not.

“At least five of the leading ten states are on the east side of the U.S. This indicates one of two things: it’s either extremely competitive in this region or the West is more suited for entrepreneurs and their fresh ideas. Perhaps new states will make the ranking in the future,” Ferruggia concludes.

(SOURCE)

Husband and Wife Arrested for Witness Tampering in Child Sex Abuse Case

UPDATE 09/11/2024 8:30 PM

GARDINER, Ore. – On Monday, September 9, 2024, detectives with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office were made aware of an attempt to tamper with the female victim in this case. Detectives were advised that 36-year-old Eric Cumming and his wife, 38-year-old Tabitha Cumming, both of Gardiner, were conspiring to get the juvenile victim to change her story in order to get Eric released.

“Detectives launched an investigation into the allegations and determined that Eric, who is currently lodged in the Douglas County Jail was communicating with his wife via letters. In those letters they discussed having Tabitha persuade the victim into changing her story,” Lt. Kelley Bean said.

Bean says Tabitha went as far as to contact the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office and advise them that the juvenile had recanted her story and wanted to set the record straight.

DCSO Detectives spoke with Tabitha and the juvenile, determining that Tabitha and Eric had in fact taken steps toward tampering with the witness/victim.

Tabitha was taken into custody and lodged in the Douglas County Jail on a single charge of Tampering With a Witness, a class C Felony. Eric, who was already in custody on the original charges was also charged with the crime of Tampering With a Witness.

ORIGINAL RELEASE 08/19/2024 8:00 AM

GARDINER, Ore. – A Gardiner man has been arrested and lodged in the Douglas County Jail on sex crime charges.

On Saturday, August 17, 2024, at approximately 10:00 am, deputies were dispatched to a reported disturbance in the 70000-block of Highway 101 in Gardiner. After arriving, deputies determined there were no crimes committed during the disturbance.

As deputies were preparing to leave, they learned information that a juvenile had previously reported to an adult that they had been the victim of sexual assault by 36-year-old Eric Thomas Cumming of Gardiner. Cumming is known to the victim.

Deputies began investigating and developed probable cause for the arrest of Cumming. He was taken into custody and transported to the Douglas County Jail where he was lodged on the following charges:

• Unlawful Sexual Penetration in the First Degree x10
• Sexual Abuse in the First Degree x10

Cumming remains in custody at the Douglas County Jail.

Feds grant more than $9 million to Oregon for wildfire prevention

As wildfires continue to threaten homes, rangeland and communities in Oregon, the federal government has announced millions in new funding to prevent the blazes that have blackened a record amount of acreage.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday it has approved $100 million to reduce the threat of wildfires in 14 states, including Oregon. The money will be used for restoring forest health, prescribed burns and other wildfire prevention strategies in 18 national forests that border homes and communities. The USDA, which oversees the Forest Service, allocated $9.4 million to forests in eastern and southern Oregon and $345,000 for a project in the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area in Washington, which is also expected to benefit Oregonians.

The news comes as Oregon’s wildfire season roars on, with Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek announcing Wednesday she again invoked the Emergency Conflagration Act, this time for the Service Fire in Wheeler County, one of five blazes in the Fossil Complex northwest of Spray. The Service Fire has scorched nearly 22,000 acres and prompted the Wheeler County Sheriff’s Office to issue Level 3, or go-now, evacuation orders for local residents.

This was the 17th time this year that Kotek has invoked the conflagration act in what has turned out to be a record fire season, with more than 1.7 million acres burned. Analysts say the threat of devastating wildfires in Oregon, California and elsewhere in the West is likely to continue with warmer weather and an extended drought in the region.

The $100 million grant follows $500 million announced in February, including more than $38 million for Oregon, as part of the USDA’s wildfire prevention strategy from Oregon and Colorado to New Mexico and Tennessee.

In announcing the latest funding, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack noted that states are again confronting challenging wildfires this year, underscoring the “urgent need to continue to protect our communities and infrastructure by restoring forest health across the country.”

The biggest chunk of the Oregon grant – $4.9 million – will go toward a restoration project in the Elk Creek watershed in the Umpqua National Forest in southern Oregon. The project will build on an existing collaboration between the Forest Service and Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians and focus on prescribed burns and creating fire breaks in the watershed, which is a patchwork of private, tribal and national land.

Lindsay Campman, spokesperson for the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians, said in an email that after the Milepost 97 Fire, which burned more than 13,000 acres in 2019, the tribe has worked to prevent another fire in the area and that this money will help with that endeavor.

“We are thrilled to continue working with our partners in forestry on this project,” she said.

The USDA allocated another $4.4 million for a project in a watershed in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. The money will be used for planning, hiring of staff and forest restoration in an area of conifer trees that have not been hit by wildfires for much of the past 125 years. As a result, they have high levels of live and dead vegetation that could pose a fire danger.

The third Oregon project involves an allocation of nearly $133,000 for work in the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest. The money will allow officials to complete an environmental analysis in the La Grande Ranger District, paving the way for forest restoration work.

The Columbia River Gorge project in Washington will cover 5,000 acres now owned by the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation, with the $345,000 going directly to tribal staff and businesses to foster their traditional work against wildfires and land maintenance.

Oregon’s Democratic U.S. senators, Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, said the region needs the funding.

“Oregonians know all too well the threat of climate chaos, which is fueling increasingly frequent and severe wildfires that threaten our homes, businesses and way of life,” said Merkley, who chairs the Senate subcommittee that funds the Forest Service.

Wyden added: “Protecting lives and property from these destructive wildfires demands an all-out approach.”

Wyden has repeatedly pushed for wildfire funding, including in June, when he and Democratic U.S. Rep. Kim Schrier of Washington state introduced the National Prescribed Fire Act of 2024. The act would direct hundreds of millions of federal dollars to the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Department of the Interior for prescribed burns. This was Wyden’s third attempt to get the legislation passed after it died in the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources in 2020 and 2021. (SOURCE)

With around 5,000 firefighters currently dispatched across the state, they have worked for almost two months straight and are experiencing fatigue.

Kotek said that the state has been able to protect a lot of communities but the team has been pushed to the brink this season. She also predicts that fire seasons are not going to get easier and Orgeon must figure out how to have consistent funding to do the necessary work.

Kotek confirmed that Oregon received approval for seven FEMA grants that will provide help in the form of significant levels of reimbursement. Other states and even other countries like Australia and New Zealand have sent help to Oregon.

Wildfires have burned more than 1 million acres across the state, making Oregon by far the worst off out of all the states in terms of acres burned this summer.

Preventing wildfires requires a collective effort from everyone—help mitigate the risk of human-caused wildfires and protect our forests and communities.

Monitor Fires in Oregon – Updated Daily

Large Fires in Oregon Past 2 Weeks 9/13/24 9:00am per INCIWEB

https://app.watchduty.org/

Please Help Prevent Wildfires!

In these dry conditions, a single spark can cause a lot of damage. Learn how you can prevent wildfires by visiting the Oregon State Fire Marshal’s wildfire prevention page.

U.S. Forest Service Hiring in Oregon

The U.S. Forest Service is looking to shore up its wildland firefighting force in the Pacific Northwest.  Recruitment events will take place across Oregon next month, with stops in Bend, Sandy and La Grande on September 12th, in an effort to hire a couple hundred permanent seasonal positions.

“That’s our goal, is to hire up to 200, maybe even a little more if we can, into these what we call entry level, perm-fire-hire positions, which are typically your six to nine-month timeframe employment within the agency,” said Jason Heinz who works in regional workforce development for the Forest Service.  He added those jobs are spread around Oregon, Washington and Alaska, and in most cases fill a currently vacant position.  Heinz says several factors make it more difficult to recruit wildland crews.

“We are increasing the number of individuals that work for the agency, our fire seasons are getting longer, burnout is a real thing. And so, we’re trying to work on adding more capacity to our crews so that we can have a better work-life balance.”  — Applications can be submitted now through September 24th. Visit USAJobs.gov to apply.

Oregon Farm Bureau — Thanks to the generous support of our agricultural community, we are now receiving both monetary and feed donations through our Wildfire Relief Fund. If you are a farmer or rancher affected by the wildfires, please take a moment to complete our short application for relief. https://www.oregonfb.org/

OSP asking for the public’s help to locate wanted man —  Oregon State Police 

Suspect wanted for sex crimes in Oregon and Alabama

WASCO COUNTY, Ore. 9 Sept. 2024 – Oregon State Police and the Mobile (Alabama) Police Department are seeking the public’s help to locate Adam Renk (39) who is wanted in both states for sex crimes against child victims.

On June 21, 2024, OSP detectives responded to a sexual abuse disclosure made by a minor. The minor disclosed Renk as the perpetrator. Renk has since been indicted on multiple crimes against a child victim under the age of 12. He is charged with Unlawful Sexual Penetration in the First Degree, Sodomy in the First Degree, and Sexual Abuse in the First Degree.

As part of their investigation, OSP detectives learned Renk had been charged in another case involving a minor victim in Mobile, Alabama. The Alabama charges include Child Sexual Abuse and Torture involving an 11-year-old victim. The victims in the two states are not related. Alabama law enforcement agencies and the U.S. Marshals Service are attempting to locate Renk who posted bond in Alabama and was released from pre-trial custody.

Renk was last seen leaving Alabama on August 7, 2024. He has ties to Oregon and Wasco County. He is believed to be traveling in a converted Ford Ambulance that is now painted two-toned white over gray. Renk is a white male, 6 ft. 1 in. tall, 175 pounds, with blue eyes and brown hair.

Anyone with information about Renk’s whereabouts or information about possible additional victims is asked to contact the Wasco County Sheriff’s Office at 541-506-2580 or OSP Detective Cassie Bantz through dispatch at 800-442-0776 or by dialing OSP (677) on a mobile phone.

Oregon Employment Department Resumes Taking Monday Calls As Hold Times Ease

The Oregon Employment Department reopened its phone lines on Mondays this week, declaring it has made progress on a large backlog of issues that were holding up jobless claims and paid leave benefits.

The agency stopped taking inbound calls on Mondays last June and cut the number of hours the phones were open by one hour each in the mornings and afternoons. At the time, it was facing a growing backlog of jobless claims and jammed phone lines as laid-off workers sought information about their stalled benefits.

By reducing phone hours, the employment department said it could devote more time to processing claims and resolving issues that stood in the way of it paying benefits. The change affected both jobless insurance claims and the new Paid Leave Oregon benefits program, which is also administered by the employment department.

The shorter phone hours confounded some unemployed Oregonians, who couldn’t get through on the phone lines to find out why they weren’t receiving their aid.

In June, more than a third of callers to the employment department spent over an hour on hold. Many others couldn’t get through at all.

Hold times began dropping, though, as the employment department finally began making progress on unresolved claims. The number of people on hold for an hour or more fell to 25% in August, the lowest point in a year — though some callers still get a busy signal or are immediately disconnected when lines are especially slammed.

The employment department blamed its declining performance on a falloff in federal pandemic funding, which prompted a steep reduction in the number of staffers processing claims.

August was the first month that the employment department had 70 new staff to process claims. Their positions were funded out of a $45 million allocation from the state Legislature this year.

Meanwhile, the employment department has resumed paying the vast majority claims within three weeks. That’s the federal standard for timely payments. Oregon paid 76% of unemployment claims within three weeks in August, according to the latest federal data, up from just 54% in April.

The employment department said this week that it is resolving issues with claims much faster than it did in the spring and is confident that it will continue making progress.   Daily hours remain shorter, though; the phone lines are open daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.   (Source)

Illegal Marijuana Grow Site Bust In Bly

On Tuesday, September 10, 2024 the Klamath County Sheriff’s Office served a search warrant at a property located on Maple Way in Bly, Oregon. Law enforcement surveillance of the property revealed what appeared to be an illegal outdoor marijuana grow site.

Gerado Javier Ceja-Caloca, 41, of Portland, Oregon and Raquel Rosales-Ceja, 44, of Vancouver, Washington are the listed owners of the property on Maple Way. Neither were located on scene and a recommendation of criminal charges was sent to the Klamath County District Attorney’s Office.

Ramon Arellano-Diaz, 46, of Madera, California and Miguel Cardoza-Romero, 37, of Hughson, California were located on scene. Both were arrested and charged with:

• Unlawful Possession of Marijuana (ORS 475B.337)
• Unlawful Manufacture of Marijuana (ORS 475B.349)

The on-scene investigation confirmed a large outdoor illegal marijuana grow site containing 5,350 marijuana plants. Three firearms and ammunition were seized during the search. Also discovered was the illegal use of water used to irrigate the marijuana plants from a domestic well. It is estimated that more than 706,000 gallons of water was illegally used to grow this amount of marijuana. The investigation for the crime of Unlawful Use or Appropriation of Ground Water (ORS 537.535) continues.

Investigators observed a considerable amount of trash and debris consisting of plastic coverings, toxic fertilizers and more scattered throughout the property. The property also showed evidence of future expansion and illegal manufacturing of marijuana.

The Klamath County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Klamath County District Attorney’s Officer, Oregon State Police, Basin Inter-Agency Narcotics Enforcement Team, Klamath County Solid Waste, Klamath County Code Enforcement, Oregon Medical Marijuana Program, Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission, Oregon Department of Agriculture and the Oregon State Water Master.

Inside the Oregon Department of Corrections’ push to build a new state penitentiary

DOC leaders want lawmakers to see how much it would cost to repair or replace the state prison in Salem, saying it’s “oppressive” and aging.

Oregon Department of Corrections leaders are pushing for a new state prison, asking state lawmakers to add it to the top of their priority list and see how much it would cost to repair or replace the Oregon State Penitentiary in Salem.

The big request — in the hundreds of millions of dollars — could both reshape the state’s budget plans and its criminal justice system.

DOC Director Mike Reese said the Oregon State Penitentiary is “oppressive” and aging past the point of repair. Reese, the former Multnomah County Sheriff, toured all 12 DOC institutions when he assumed directorship in the fall of 2023. For him, OSP stood out as the worst of the bunch.

“I think this is the top priority for me, in terms of looking at that replacement or remodel,” Reese said. “Is this the right place for us to house adults in custody and is it also helping lead to better outcomes, or is the institution itself a barrier to a progressive correctional facility?”

The DOC estimates it would cost $624 million to replace OSP with a new state prison, which could take about 5-10 years to build.

The alternative, Reese said, is a backlog of more than $110 million in deferred maintenance requests at the current facility and tens of millions more in needed improvements and upgrades.

“We do that work and then what breaks next?” he said. “This institution has a vibe to it that makes it challenging to talk about rehabilitation and restoration of people’s humanity and dignity.”

The department is asking lawmakers to approve a feasibility study in the upcoming legislative session to evaluate the cost-benefit of a new or repaired state penitentiary.

State Senator Janeen Sollman, who co-chairs the Oregon Legislature’s Ways and Means subcommittee on public safety, said she visited the state prison and she supports the idea of building a one.

“It can’t be something we continue to ignore because it will go away, it only get more expensive,” Sollman said. “How much money do you continue putting into an aging facility?”

Reese, in a letter to all DOC staff members, acknowledged that building a new state prison could be a fairly unpopular political proposition.

“The last major prison project in Oregon was the Snake River Correctional Institution expansion in 1994, its $175 million price tag was the largest public works project in the state’s history at the time, inviting a great deal of scrutiny,” Reese wrote. “The OSP replacement/rebuild will have an even larger price tag and will likely cause similar conversations with taxpayers and their representatives.”

The Oregon State Penitentiary houses about 1,800 adults in custody. It’s the only maximum-security prison in the state, and about 460 DOC staff members work there.  (SOURCE)

Summer EBT application deadline extended to Sept. 30, 2024
(Salem) – The application deadline for the new Summer EBT program has been extended to midnight Sept. 30, 2024. The program offers $120 per child to help cover grocery costs when school food programs are not as easy to access. Eligible families should act now.

Thousands of families may be unaware that they qualify for this essential benefit. The Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) and the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) urge families to check their eligibility and apply before the extended deadline. Remember, once benefits are received, they must be used within 122 days.

Most eligible children received their benefits automatically on June 28, 2024, if their households:

1. Participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
2. Participate in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
3. Are Oregon Health Plan (Medicaid) members in households with incomes under 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Level

Children in foster care also automatically received Summer EBT.

However, families who did not receive benefits automatically, particularly those with children enrolled in a school during the 2023-2024 school year who were eligible for the National School Lunch or Breakfast Programs, should still apply to determine their eligibility.

Families are encouraged to visit sebt.oregon.gov or contact the Summer EBT Call Center to verify their eligibility and apply. ODHS Director Fariborz Pakseresht said, “We are grateful to our federal partners for making this extension. The extra time is so important for us to reach families who may be eligible because we know access to nutritious food is critical.”

“Staying engaged in school and active in life requires proper nutrition,” said ODE Director Dr. Charlene Williams. “We know that there are many more families out there who have children who may be eligible for the $120 Summer EBT benefit and this important extension boosts our opportunity to reach them.”

Since June 28, 2024, more than 336,198 eligible school-aged children have been issued $40.3 million in Summer EBT food benefits. More than 60 percent of families receiving benefits in the initial issuance were able to immediately use benefits on existing Oregon EBT cards; the rest received new cards in July.

Act now and don’t let this opportunity pass by. Make sure your family receives the assistance it deserves by applying for Summer EBT before midnight Sept. 30, 2024.

To learn more:

1. Call 833-ORE-SEBT (833-673-7328). The call center is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific Time.
2. Visit sebt.oregon.gov.

 Oregon State Police are reminding parents and students of the SafeOregon hotline.

It takes reports of potential threats against students and schools. The tips can be made anonymously. They can include safety threats, fights, drugs, weapons on campus, cyberbullying and students considering self-harm or suicide. A technician reviews the reports and assigns them either to police or school administrators. Tips can be made by phone, text, email or on the website https://www.safeoregon.com