Candidates speak about issues

The 2010 general election is bearing down on the voters of Wahkiakum County; the county auditors office will mail the vote-by-mail ballots to votes on October 15.

Candidates for local and regional offices gathered at the Skamokawa Grange September 28 for a forum; another is scheduled next Tuesday, 7 p.m., at Johnson Park, Rosburg. The Grays River Grange is sponsoring that forum.

Following are some highlights of the give and take at the Skamokawa forum.

State representative, Position 1

Incumbent Dean Takko, a Democrat, reviewed his history: He graduated from Wahkiakum High School in 1968, attended college, served in the armed forces, returned to Cathlamet, was elected assessor, moved to Cowlitz County to work as an appraiser in the Cowlitz assessor's office, and he later was elected Cowlitz assessor. He left that position to serve in the legislature.

Takko's opponent, Republican Kurt Swanson, didn't appear, so Takko summarized legislative issues.

Recent sessions of the legislature have been very tough, he said, because of the continued revenue shortfalls. The revenue package that came out of the session wasn't what he wanted, but he voted for it. "If we hadn't passed it, we would have lost too much," he said.

Cuts would have included school levy equalization, which benefits the 11 school districts in the 19th District, life line services for the disabled and mentally ill, and a state prison or perhaps the Naselle Youth Camp would have been closed.

"We're short again going into next year's session, so we're looking at all parts of the budget," he said. "You're not going to like a lot of what comes out of this session."

In response to questions, Takko said he thought Init. 1098 which would establish a state income tax for high earners "is the wrong way to go. Our tax structure is what we have. We need a total revamp of our tax structure."

State representative, Position 2

Incumbent Brian Blake, a Democrat, reviewed his history: He graduated from high school in Aberdeen, worked as a logger and was injured by a falling tree; he returned to school and decided to get into politics. Like Takko, Blake said the realities of the economic downturn have led to unwelcome choices.

"We didn't foresee the national and international economies falling so far," he said. "We've been responsible in pulling back. I didn't like the budget package, but we had to go ahead."

Blake was asked his opinion on Init. 1082, which would authorize employers to purchase industrial insurance from private companies. "I get nervous when an industry writes and funds an initiative for themselves," he replied.

Blake's opponent, Tim Sutinen, Lower Taxes Party, didn't appear.

Wahkiakum County sheriff

The two candidates for Wahkiakum County Sheriff, Jon Dearmore and Troy Norris, both appeared and spoke. Both are running as Independents.

Speaking first, Dearmore told the crowd the being a law enforcement officer is his life's calling. He has a 22-year career, with 16 as a deputy in Wahkiakum County, the last eight as undersheriff. His experience and connections in the community and in law enforcement are what set him apart, he said.

Norris highlighted his business and volunteer experience. He has been a volunteer fireman and emergency responder and was a reserve deputy. He now works as a truck driver.

He said he has been studying the sheriff's budget to find expenses that could be trimmed. He pledge to return, if elected, $7,000 of his salary to a community outreach program.

"I'm working on a play to reduce spending while providing the public the best service possible," he said.

One questioner asked the men how they would have handled the recent alleged mistreatment of a prisoner in the jail.

Dearmore said his career includes training in handling confrontations. Officers should talk first, and use force only when necessary. "Most of the time we can control them easily," he said.

Norris said because he didn't know the circumstances, he couldn't say exactly what he would do in the situation.

Another person asked Norris if he had completed reserve academy training when he was serving as a reserve. He replied that his wife had given birth to twin daughters at the time, and he left the reserve program.

The candidates were asked to comment on what they want to do as community policing programs.

Dearmore responded that he wants officers to be out in the public to build relationships. There are already programs in place to involve citizens in programs, he said.

Norris agreed that programs are in place, but he added that Dearmore has had his chance to build them and hasn't done so.

The candidates were asked to comment on implementing physical fitness programs for deputies.

Dearmore explained that officers have a standard to meet, based on their age group, when they're hired, after that there is no requirement. He said he wants to address that, but "it's tough" because of union contract provisions.

"I'm currently working on that," he said. "With the union, you can't force anything, but you can give incentives. I'm looking at a variety of things."

Norris referred to the Revised Code of Washington provisions concerning tenure and discipline of employees. Physical fitness can be part of a job performance standard he said, and employees can be disciplined for not meeting performance standards just as they can be punished for losing their guns or having trouble with alcohol.

Norris said that if elected sheriff, he would have 12 months to complete the state Basic Law Enforcement Academy.

Wahkiakum PUD commissioner

Challenger Dennis Reid grew up in Skamokawa, graduating from WHS in 1965. He served in the US Navy, graduated from college and worked in central Washington in commercial banks and the US Department of Agriculture. He is retired.

"My financial background would bring something new to the PUD, he said.

The PUD needs to be working on the leakage in the Western Wahkiakum Water System and its connection and disconnection policies, he said.

Esther Gregg moved to the Rosburg area in 1987 and has been involved in community affairs since then. She served a term as a county commissioner, and was county fair manager almost five years.

She agreed that the Western Wahkiakum Water System needs attention; it is 35 years old.

"We are working to find these leaks," she said. The PUD has replaced leaking water main on Puget Island she said, and it has embarked on a tree trimming program to reduce electric system power outages.

"We're doing a good job of delivering product," she said. She added that the board is looking at its disconnect policy which appears "very harsh."

"It's a situation where one size doesn't fit all," she said.

Gregg commented that as a PUD commissioner she is lobbying against the state Department of Ecology plan to require metering of all wells.

This drew a response from county Commissioner Blair Brady, who sits on the regional committee working on water system management plans. The DOE has withdrawn its suggestion to monitor private wells, he said.

"They're chomping at the bit for metering all wells," Gregg responded. "It's really not a practical thing."

Wahkiakum County commissioner

Incumbent Commissioner Brady, a Democrat, and challenger Lori Scott, an Independent discussed their experience and issues. The Eagle profiled both of them in an article last week.

Scott, a 35-year Wahkiakum County resident, is retired from owning real estate and hardware businesses. She is now a certified mediator and has a business doing that work.

The biggest difference between her and the incumbent, she said, would be "how we accept and value information that comes in."

"I'm a professional mediator; I have learned to listen and ferret out issues," she said.

In issues such as the national heritage area proposal and proposed biosolids ordinance, Brady has shown the tendency to follow popular opinion rather than consider the issues carefully, she said.

Asked to comment on the petition that came to the board to reject the national heritage area, she said that a quick move to implement the petition wasn't the best move.

"The prosecuting attorney said it wouldn't do the job; it would be ineffective," she said. "It made a statement it wasn't getting the job done. Not only wouldn't it meet the people's needs, it wouldn't get the job done."

Brady told the crowd he became interested in serving on the commission when Westend residents suggested it several years ago. Since joining the board, he has gained a lot of knowledge and made a lot of contacts that put him in the position to provide good leadership, he said.

He said he is a property rights advocate who wants to keep county regulations "user friendly." He has been working with colleagues to form bi-state lobbying groups on fishery issues and he is working with Congressman Brian Baird to create a fund that would allow counties to purchase timberland that would provide revenue for them.

"I lead by example," he said. He said he has donated $30,000 of his salary to community agencies such as St. James Family Center since taking office.

Wahkiakum county assessor

Incumbent Assessor Sulema Zerr, a Republican, and challenger Bill Coons, an Independent, reviewed their goals for the department.

Coons won the coin flip to speak first. He told the audience he earned a degree in electrical engineering and worked many years in the communications industry in the San Francisco area. He moved to Puget Island in 1993. He retired from that career and took up real estate a few years ago.

"I've known the good times of 2006 and the bad times of 2009," he said.

He was appointed to the county board of adjustment and became interested in the operations of the assessor's office, eventually deciding to run for the position. He has, on his own time, taken training to become a certified real estate appraiser.

He said one check for the assessor is to see how close the office appraisals come to actual sales. As assessor, he would implement a program to closely monitor the relationship between sales and appraisals.

Zerr, completing her first term in office, admitted it is a challenging position. Funding for office staff has been cut by county commissioners; the office is implementing a new computer program, and there is all the regular work to do.

"He is correct in a lot of ways," she said, "but it takes time to come up with the studies."

"I would really like to finish the job (installing the new computer system and switching to an annual revaluation)," she said. "The changes have allowed us to go to annual revaluations."

Coons was asked why he was running as an Independent when he once sought office as a Democrat.

"There's no Democrat or Republican way to assess," he said. "I want to assess as a professional."

Coons was asked how he would get the county on an annual revaluation. He replied that he would rely on modeling. It could be done with current staff, he said.

Candidates were asked why property assessments don't go down if property values go down.

"I would love to do that, but talk to the Department of Revenue," Zerr said. "They're meeting with us in October.

"It takes some planning. In the meantime, we have to do what we have to do to get through the year. If we go to annual revaluation next year, it will give lower values, just because of the sales."

Coons said that, if he had been in office, he would have held values at past levels and adjusted them after implementing the new computer system.

"You're probably right," she said. "If I had more experience, I probably would have done it."

Prosecuting attorney

Incumbent Dan Bigelow, a Democrat, finds himself challenged by Dennis Gordon, semi-retired college professor without a law degree.

Gordon, a nutritional research scientist, expressed dissatisfaction with the county's criminal justice system based on his experience in a divorce.

"For two years, I was harassed by the judicial system in this county," he said. "The bottom line is that the people you elected allowed perjury to take place in the court."

Bigelow reviewed his family connections to the community and how he moved here 20 years ago after completing law school. He worked in private practice until just a few years ago, and has been a member of the Cathlamet Fire Department and its First Aid Division as an EMT.

The job entails providing civil law advice to county officials, directing criminal prosecutions, and, by statute, serving as coroner.

Gordon was asked how he would serve if he isn't an attorney. He replied that he thought he could appoint an attorney to hold the position.

Bigelow agreed there would be a vacancy because of the requirement to be a lawyer, but he thought county commissioners would make the appointment to fill it.

The candidates were asked if there are different standards of justice in this county for different groups of people.

"In this county, there's too much family connection in the justice system," Gordon said. "There are conflicts of interest. So, something has to change in the hierarchy."

"I didn't get into this job not to prosecute criminals," Bigelow said.