Liz Writes Life 7-10-19

July 10, 2019

Liz Writes Life

After I reported, last week, that the Siskiyou County Supervisors were able to come up with a balanced budget, things changed during the supervisors’ board meeting on Tuesday, July 2, 2019. Ray Haupt, Dist. 5 Siskiyou Co. Supervisor, reported at the Scott Valley Protect Our Water meeting on June 27, it looked like the budget was going to balance. But on July 2, the board learned that the State of California was not going to pay Siskiyou Co. $1.5 million that it owed through the Payment in lieu of Taxes program.

After the July 2^nd board meeting, Ray told me department staff were instructed to dig-in and find more ways to cut costs. The only department that received a budget increase was Sheriff Jon Lopey’s and Ray said he will likely still receive the increase of $500,000 or $600,000 because public safety is a priority.

Currently, equipment purchases and employee travel have been put on hold.

My comment to this dire situation is to blast over-regulations, which have so drastically reduced the mining and timber industries that they provide little to the county tax base even though the county is rich in those resources. And, I will say it again, the trees must be thinned to healthy stands instead of the over-growth forests burning up.

This is must be pretty disheartening to the supervisors, whose job is to fiscally manage the county and provide needed services to the public.

Ray also told the Protect Our Water meeting that Sheriff Lopey reported there are an estimated 1,500 to 1,700 illegal grows of marijuana (cannabis) in the county private lands, so that number doesn’t include the illegal cartel grows on USFS managed lands.

Regarding hemp – the county still has a temporary ban in place. The reason is because the state must complete its regulations for authorized hemp grows and it has not done it. The state had deadlines in Feb., then April and most recently July 1st and failed to comply with its own legislation.

LaMalfa

Erin Ryan, staff for Dist. 1 Congressman Doug LaMalfa, also attended the Protect Our Water meeting. She first spoke about the “foolishness” of the Democrats hammering about Medicare for all. Congressman LaMalfa opposes Medicare for all and agrees with fellow Congressman Ron Estes (R-KS), who stated that reimbursement rates for rural hospitals would be slashed by 40 percent below current payment rates. This would shutter rural hospitals and clinics.

Estes has been doing his homework and learned that rural hospitals are among the most vulnerable, because they often are relying on Medicare and Medicaid payments and have fewer private people supporting them.

Republicans are fighting for better health care access for rural patients and were able to move several bills through the House Ways and Means Committee. Two bills cleared with strong bipartisan support – The Beneficiary Educaton Tools, Telehealth, and Extenders Reauthorization Act of 2019 and the Republicans also championed the Hearts and Rural Relief Act of 2019.

LaMalfa agrees with the $4.6 billion emergency border supplemental bill that was passed by the U.S. Senate the end of June. In a press release, LaMalfa said the delay tactics used by House Democrats against the measure was shameful, but was “pleased that logic and reason won in the end. This is a good, bipartisan compromise that the President should sign into law in short order. Our folks at the southern border desperately need it.”

Election

Three more candidates have thrown their hats in the ring in the special election for Dist. 1 CA. Assembly seat that was vacated when Brian Dahle won Dist. 1 State Senator seat on June 4^th. Elizabeth Betancourt is a Democrat from Shasta County, who is Chief, Cannabis Permitting and Compliance Unit at Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board. Caitlin Dalby is listed as a “teacher” and no party affiliation. I was not able to find the county where she lives. The other candidate is Lane Rickard, who worked as staff for Ted Gaines, when he was state senator and lives in Shasta County.

Last week, I mentioned the first three candidates who are: Patrick Jones, Republican from Shasta County, who served two terms on the Redding City Council and is a Second Amendment advocate; Megan Dahle, a Republican, and newly elected State Senator Brian Dahle’s wife, farmer and businesswoman; and Joseph Turner, Republican from Lassen County, who served as Lassen County Republican Central Committee chairman.

The election is coming up fast as the sample ballots will be mailed out the week of July 19^th and the ballots on the week of July 29^th. The top two vote-getters in the special primary election on Aug. 27, 2019 will then advance to the Nov. 5^th Special Election. So, get ready to learn more about these candidates and vote!

Garden

Noticed a half-inch deep hole chewed into a medium-sized green tomato and a few extra bites on the side. Looks like a tomato worm and it must be pretty good sized to eat that size of a hole. Gotta get up before the sun and see if I can find him. It surprised me, cuz I haven’t had many tomato worms here. Other places we have lived, they tended to attack in August. So, I was a bit surprised. They camouflage so well, I really have to check from all angles to find them.

I stopped irrigating the garlic several weeks ago and decided to dig them up last week. There are about 10 good-sized ones and six more small to dinky sized. I planted more than 30 cloves and notice that about half of them grow to maturity.

Liz Bowen began writing ranch and farm news, published in newspapers, in 1976. She is a native of Siskiyou County and lives near Callahan. Columns from the past year can be found at: lizwriteslife.blogspot.com. Call her at 530-467-3515.

# # #