County set to leave statewide lobbying effort

Jackson County commissioners have given notice they will drop out of a 105-year-old lobbying organization for Oregon counties because of a growing rift over legislative direction.

This is the only county in recent memory to have left the Association of Oregon Counties. Of the 36 counties in Oregon, Jackson will be the only one that won't be part of the association.

Commissioner C.W. Smith had resigned from the association's board of directors this summer because of radiation treatment for cancer and was in line to be selected president of the association's board of directors next year.

He said Jackson County wanted support from the association to back legislation that would help compensate county assessors offices throughout the state for taxes collected for other agencies.

"We did get at cross purposes over some legislation," Commissioner C.W. Smith said.

The county tried to get a letter sent out through the association in support of the legislation, but failed to get it in a timely manner, he said.

Smith said the general lack of support means the county will not renew its membership in January.

The county sent a letter Dec. 14 stating the association has forsaken the counties to maintain relationships with other groups such as the League of Oregon Cities and the Oregon School Boards Association.

Jackson County pays $31,000 annually in dues, representing about 5 percent of the total dues collected from all counties by the association.

Commissioner Jack Walker said the association has had a history of not helping counties in Southern Oregon.

In 1996, he remembers trying to get support on land-use issues. They weren't willing to help us at all," he said.

The county not only spends money for dues, but also incurs significant travel expenses going back and forth to Salem or Eugene. With teleconferencing, he said there is no reason for that anymore.

Walker said the county wanted support from the association to create a tax base for assessors' offices throughout the state that collect for a number of agencies. Every time a new agency is created, it gives the Assessor's Office additional work but no extra revenue.

Walker said the proposed legislation would likely step on somebody's toes, but he said he sees the association's job as sticking up for the counties.

In general, the association appears to have more allegiance to counties in the northern part of the state, he said.

"There hasn't been, in my estimation, a good effort to communicate with the rural counties," he said.

Mike McArthur, executive director for the association, said he was surprised to get the letter Thursday from Jackson County.

He said there have been differences of opinion of legislation, but with an association that is comprised of 36 counties that's nothing new.

"I'm hopeful about clearing up a misunderstanding about some sequence of events that happened during the last legislative session," he said. "We've got a failure to communicate."

McArthur said he thinks the association didn't react fast enough to get behind the legislation Jackson County was pushing. He said it is difficult to get that kind of support quickly because it has to through various committees in his organization, but ultimately it was supported.

Commissioners may not be aware of all the issues the association is currently grappling with, including trying to get agreement from the counties of the tax initiatives, Measure 66 and 67, he said.

"With C.W.'s physical problems, and Jack's too, and Dave's busy schedule, they have a tough time staying up on what's going on here," McArthur said.

McArthur disagreed that the association was showing more support for other special interest groups.

He said it is sometimes necessary to reach a compromise with other groups, which have the power to kill legislation. Paying the assessors' offices would take about 2 percent from tax revenues that are badly needed by schools, he said.

McArthur said Commissioner Walker has often criticized his organization for not taking a tougher stand on some land-use issues.

However, he said the organization will be pushing for legislation that might provide some relief for those who sought relief from property rights laws under Measure 37.

McArthur said he plans to draft a letter responding to Jackson County with board president Steve Grasty. He hopes to meet with local commissioners in the near future to help resolve some of the differences.

McArthur said no county has dropped out of the organization since he's been executive director in 1992.

"That doesn't mean we haven't had people upset with us," he said. "But we've always managed to work through that."

Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail dmann@mailtribune.com.

Source:mailtribune.com/

Van Scoyoc Assoc

Total Lobbying Income: $13,000,000

Groups That Have Retained Van Scoyoc Assoc: Client Total Subsidiary (Lobbied For)
ADA Carbon Solutions $50,000 -
Aerovironment Inc $90,000 -
Ahura Scientific $30,000 -
Airborne Tactical Advantage Co $10,000 -
Airports Council International $60,000 -
Alabama State Port Authority $60,000 -
Alaka’i Consulting & Engineering $30,000 -
Alameda Contra Costa Transit District $50,000 -
Alcoa Inc $80,000 -
American Herbal Products Assn $20,000 -
American Insurance Assn $60,000 -
American Library Assn $50,000 -
American Medical Technologies $30,000 -
Angion Biomedica Corp $0 -
Anheuser-Busch InBev $50,000 Anheuser-Busch
Apollo Group $80,000 -
Aquarium of the Pacific $20,000 -
Army Alliance Inc $70,000 -
Arotech Corp $60,000 -
Ashbury International Group $70,000 -
Assn of American Railroads $40,000 -
Assn of Procurement Technical Assistance $30,000 -
Assn of Univ Programs in Health Admin $20,000 -
Assn of Univs for Research in Astronomy $20,000 -
Astrotech Corp $50,000 -
Audubon Nature Institute $30,000 -
Austal USA $120,000 -
Autism Speaks $30,000 -
AWS Convergence Technologies $90,000 -
Baldwin County Commission $60,000 -
Ballard Power Systems $20,000 -
Battelle Memorial Institute $60,000 -
Bechtel Group $0 Bechtel Infrastructure Corp
Bechtel Group $0 Bechtel National
Bentley Systems $40,000 -
Borough of Manhattan Community College $10,000 -
Boston Museum of Science $40,000 -
Bowling Green State University $40,000 -
Boys & Girls Clubs of America $30,000 -
Brenau University $20,000 -
Building Educated Leaders for Life $10,000 -
California Academy of Sciences $60,000 -
California University of Pennsylvania $50,000 -
Cambria Community Services District $30,000 -
Capitol Decisions $0 -
CenTauri Solutions $30,000 -
Center for Responsible Lending $50,000 -
Chester County Hospital $10,000 -
Cimcor Inc $60,000 -
Citizenship Trust $30,000 -
City of Baltimore, MD $40,000 -
City of Calera, AL $30,000 -
City of Cathedral City, CA $40,000 -
City of Dana Point, CA $20,000 -
City of Elk Grove, CA $30,000 -
City of Fayetteville, AR $10,000 -
City of Gadsden, AL $30,000 -
City of Galt, CA $20,000 -
City of Glendale, AZ $50,000 -
City of Gulf Shores, AL $30,000 -
City of Imperial Beach, CA $20,000 -
City of Iola $30,000 -
City of Long Beach, CA $80,000 -
City of Manteca, CA $10,000 -
City of Mount Vernon, WA $20,000 -
City of Newport Beach, CA $30,000 -
City of Norwalk, CA $20,000 -
City of Orange Beach, AL $30,000 -
City of Pismo Beach, CA $20,000 -
City of Portsmouth, VA $30,000 -
City of Redlands, CA $30,000 -
City of Rocklin, CA $20,000 -
City of Santa Maria, CA $40,000 -
City of South Salt Lake, UT $20,000 -
City of Stockton, CA $20,000 -
City of Stockton, CA $30,000 Redevelopment Agency/City of Stockton
Clark County Public Trans Benefit Area $30,000 -
Clean Water Services $30,000 -
Coalition of Epscor States $200,000 Coalition of EPSCoR States
Coalition of Urban Serving Universities $50,000 -
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory $20,000 -
College Board $60,000 -
College on Problems of Drug Dependence $30,000 -
Communications Training Analysis Corp $20,000 -
Computer Sciences Corp $130,000 -
County of Mobile, AL $60,000 Mobile County Commission
Cross Match Technologies $20,000 -
Cummins Inc $10,000 -
Dallas Area Rapid Transit Authority $150,000 -
Dana Farber Cancer Institute $70,000 -
Debrunner & Assoc(Chester Cnty Hospital) $10,000 -
Del Norte County, CA $30,000 -
Denver Justice Council $15,000 -
Desert Research Institute $100,000 -
Distributed Solutions $30,000 -
Dona Ana County $30,000 -
Ducommun Technologies $60,000 Miltec Corp
Dun & Bradstreet $30,000 -
DuPont Co $90,000 -
E-Duction Inc $40,000 -
Eastern Michigan University $70,000 -
Eastern Municipal Water District $70,000 -
Edison Learning $40,000 -
Educate Inc $60,000 -
Education Industry Assn $70,000 -
Educational Testing Service $50,000 -
EFJ Inc $70,000 -
El Dorado County, CA $20,000 El Dorado County Transp Commission
ELSAG North America $30,000 -
Excelerate Energy $60,000 -
Exploratorium $40,000 -
Federal Home Loan Bank $150,000 Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco
Federal Technology Group $90,000 -
Federation of State Humanities Council $40,000 -
FedEx Corp $60,000 Federal Express Corp
FedEx Corp $60,000 -
Finmeccanica SpA $160,000 DRS Technologies
First Horizon National $30,000 -
Florida Keys Community College $30,000 -
Friends of CDC $10,000 -
Friends of the Griffith Observatory $20,000 -
From the Top $30,000 -
Galveston County, TX $10,000 -
General Electric $30,000 NBC Universal
Georgetown Divide Public Utility Dist $20,000 -
Georgia State University $50,000 -
Gordian Medical Inc $20,000 -
Higher Learning Commission $90,000 -
Hood Canal Sand & Gravel $60,000 -
Humanetics Corp $0 -
HW Management Co $30,000 -
ImageTree Corp $40,000 -
Implementation Group $90,000 -
Information Manufacturing Corp $40,000 -
Insight Technology $80,000 -
Interstate Natural Gas Assn of America $60,000 -
Intersystems Corp $50,000 -
IOMAX Management Group $70,000 -
IPKeys Technologies $0 -
J2 Technologies $30,000 -
Jackson & Tull Chartered Engineers $40,000 -
JAM Equity Partners LLC $0 -
John I Haas Inc $50,000 -
John Jay College of Criminal Justice $20,000 -
Johns Hopkins University $100,000 Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab
Kenyon College $50,000 -
KidSave Washington DC $0 -
Knowledge Learning Corp $60,000 -
Kronos Inc $50,000 -
L-3 Communications $50,000 -
Lab-Volt Systems $0 -
Language Line Services $20,000 -
Laureate Education $30,000 -
Lee County, FL $60,000 -
Level 3 Communications $60,000 -
Lightwire Inc $40,000 -
Lockheed Martin $70,000 -
Lyme Disease Assn $10,000 -
MacAndrews & Forbes $40,000 -
Madison Center $20,000 -
Martin County $20,000 -
McConnell, James F $20,000 -
Medical University Hospital Authority $70,000 -
Medicines for Malaria Venture $20,000 -
Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority $70,000 -
Mentis Sciences $20,000 -
Merced County Assn of Governments $30,000 -
Methodist Hospital $90,000 -
Mikros Systems Corp $20,000 -
Mission Springs Water District $20,000 -
Mobile Airport Authority $30,000 -
Montana State University $100,000 Montana State University/Bozeman
Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce $40,000 -
Morgan State University $50,000 -
Motion Picture Assn of America $30,000 -
Mount Desert Island Biological Lab $10,000 -
NASA Aeronautics Support Team $60,000 -
National Asphalt Pavement Assn $50,000 -
National Assn of Community Health Ctrs $40,000 -
National Assn of Enrolled Agents $50,000 -
National Assn of Water Companies $40,000 -
National Inst for Water Resources $40,000 -
National Interest Security Co $80,000 -
National Rural Electric Cooperative Assn $0 Hoosier Energy Rural Electric Coop
National Space Grant Alliance $30,000 -
National Urban League $40,000 -
Nationwide Realty Investors $20,000 -
Natl Assn of Councils on Devel Disabilit $30,000 -
Natl Assn of Foster Grandparents $20,000 -
Natural Products Assn $30,000 -
Naval Aviation Museum Foundation $70,000 -
Neurofibromatosis Foundation $0 -
Neurofibromatosis Inc $20,000 -
New York Botanical Garden $30,000 -
New York University School of Medicine $70,000 -
Nipomo Community Services District $30,000 -
Northwestern Memorial Hospital $50,000 -
NRI Equity Land Investment $60,000 -
Ochsner Clinic Foundation $40,000 -
Oldcastle Inc $50,000 Oldcastle Materials
Optical Alchemy $20,000 -
Orange County, CA $30,000 Orange County Fire Authority
Otoka Energy $10,000 -
Padgett Business Services $30,000 -
Panavision Federal Systems $30,000 -
Parry, Romani et al $40,000 -
Pennsylvania House Redevelopment $10,000 -
PlanetSpace Inc $0 -
Port Authority of New York & New Jersey $120,000 -
Promodel Corp $50,000 -
Rancho Mission Viejo $20,000 -
Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic $90,000 -
Reed Elsevier Inc $20,000 Lexis-Nexis Special Services
Renco Group $80,000 AM General Corp
Revenge Advanced Composites $70,000 -
Ricardo US $20,000 -
Rotary Foundation of Rotary Intl $70,000 -
Rotordynamics Seal Research $20,000 -
Royal Dutch Shell $100,000 Shell Exploration & Production
Sacramento County Airport System $60,000 -
SAIC Inc $70,000 -
Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation $60,000 -
San Bernardino Associated Governments $50,000 -
San Diego Composites $50,000 -
San Joaquin Area Flood Agency $30,000 -
Schering-Plough Corp $20,000 -
Sgt Inc $90,000 -
Shotspotter Inc $50,000 -
Sigma Space Corp $50,000 -
Skin Cancer Foundation $40,000 -
SLM Corp $60,000 -
Smiths Group plc $40,000 Smiths Detection
Southeastern Universities Research Assn $100,000 -
Southern Co $50,000 -
Southern Research Institute $50,000 -
Southwest Research Institute $110,000 -
Spectra Energy $90,000 -
Spokane Transit Authority $10,000 -
St Clair County, AL $30,000 St Clair County Commission
St Lucie County, FL $10,000 -
Stidd Systems $20,000 -
Stowe Foundation $0 -
Strata-G Solutions Inc $30,000 -
Sts International $50,000 -
Suburban Mobility Auth Regional Transp $50,000 -
Support Jessie's Law $0 -
Susquehanna University $15,000 -
Tachyon Networks $10,000 -
Technologies & Devices International $0 -
The Continuum of Care Coalition $0 -
Therm-O-Lite $20,000 -
THINK Together $0 -
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital $30,000 -
Time for Lyme Inc $10,000 -
Town of Queen Creek $40,000 -
Travelers Companies $100,000 -
Troop Support Coalition $310,000 -
Trust Digital $10,000 -
Tulane University of Louisiana $60,000 -
Union Pacific Corp $40,000 -
United Space Alliance $60,000 -
University of Alabama $180,000 -
University of Arkansas $90,000 -
University of Connecticut $90,000 -
University of Guam Foundation $10,000 -
University of Idaho $60,000 -
University of Maryland $60,000 -
University of Memphis $70,000 -
University of Nebraska $50,000 -
University of Notre Dame $100,000 -
University of Pennsylvania $90,000 Univ of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
University of South Carolina $40,000 -
University of South Dakota $40,000 -
University of St Francis $60,000 -
University of St Thomas Florida $40,000 -
University of Toledo $40,000 -
University of Wisconsin $40,000 -
Urban Serving Universities $40,000 -
US Capitol Police Labor Cmte $0 -
US Chamber of Commerce $90,000 -
US Park Police Labor Cmte $0 -
US Space & Rocket Center $60,000 -
Utica College $30,000 -
Virginia Air & Space Center $60,000 -
Virginia Polytechnic Inst & State Univ $50,000 Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties
Vmware $90,000 -
Volusia County, FL $30,000 -
Washington County, OR $30,000 -
Waterford Research Institute $40,000 -
Wexler, Dan $0 -
Weyerhaeuser Co $60,000 -
Wills Eye Health System $50,000 -