An unusual event at the beach
Moratorium extended Page A3
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FRIDAY, AUGUST 20, 2021
VOL. 130, NO. 16 Serving the Lower Columbia Region since 1891
SNAP to see largest, permanent benefit increase
Health care workers, K-12 staff required to be vaccinated STAFF REPORT chiefnews@countrymedia.net
Gov. Kate Brown has announced two new vaccination measures to address Oregon’s hospital crisis, caused by the Delta variant surge, and to help keep Oregon students safe in the upcoming school year and minimize disruptions to in-person instruction. • Oregon’s vaccination requirement for health care workers will no longer have a testing alternative. Health care workers will be required to be fully vaccinated by Oct. 18 or six weeks after full FDA approval, whichever is later. • All teachers, educators, support staff and volunteers in K-12 schools will be required to be fully vaccinated by Oct. 18 or six weeks after full FDA approval, which ever is later. In both cases, Brown said health care workers and educators who are not yet vaccinated are urged to speak with their doctor or primary care provider to get remaining questions about vaccination answered immediately, so they can begin the vaccination process in time to meet the new requirements. During a morning news media briefing Thursday, Aug. 19, Brown also outlined steps Oregon is taking to support hospitals during the ongoing surge in cases and hospitalizations, including deploying the National Guard and nurse strike teams, establishing temporary decompression units to free up bed space and removing barriers to discharging patients who no longer require hospital-level care. Brown said Oregon has made requests to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Biden-Harris administration for additional federal resources and support. Brown has formed a Hospital Care Prevention and Response group consisting of health care stakeholders to problem solve in real time and suggest new measures to aid health care workers and hospitals during the ongoing-hospital crisis.
JEREMY C. RUARK jruark@countrymedia.net
Bel Air Dr.
This fall, individuals and families in Columbia County, across Oregon and the nation who depend on food stamp assistance will see what the Biden Administration calls a significant and permanent increase in benefits. It is reportedly the largest single increase in the food stamp system’s history, which now operates as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Impact in Oregon
improvements starting
Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) Press Secretary Jake Sunderland said the Biden Administration made the announcement Monday, Aug. 16, and his department is still analyzing the changes and what they will mean to SNAP in Oregon. “According to federal government, this change will increase SNAP benefits distributed in Oregon by $337 million,” Sunderland said. “For SNAP households this change on average will be about $36 more in money to buy food per person – or about $1.20 per day.” The change in benefits takes effect Oct. 1. Currently, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most SNAP households are temporarily receiving the maximum benefit amount for their household size, according to Sunderland. “These are called emergency allotments and we have been providing these emergency allotments since March 2020,” he said. SNAP benefit amounts vary depending on household size, income and other factors. SNAP benefits range from $0 a month (while receiving other services like employment and training services) to the maximum benefit amount for the household size.
Jeremy C. Ruark / The Chief
A major street repair and paving project is set to begin Monday, Aug. 23 along Bel Air Drive in Clatskanie. JEREMY C. RUARK jruark@countrymedia.net
City of Clatskanie officials have announced that a $180,260 street repair and paving project will begin Monday morning,
Aug. 23 along Bel Air Drive. “This is a key transportation improvement project because it is a key access to a large residential neighborhood, the high school and the adjacent shopping center,” Clatskanie City Manager Greg Hinkelman told The Chief
in an earlier published interview. The street project is designed to repair and repave Bel Air Drive from Highway 30 to the entrance of Clatskanie Middle/ See REPAIR Page A2
Who We Are Spreading HOPE in Columbia County
Letter to school districts Brown issued an open letter to Oregon superintendents, school board members, and education leaders, Tuesday, Aug. 17, calling on them to take action to ensure Oregon’s K-12 students can return to full-time, in-person instruction in the classroom this year, with minimal disruptions from COVID-19. “Throughout this pandemic, my north star for decisions about our schools has been to do what is best for our students,” Brown said. “We know that students’ mental, physical, behavioral, social, and emotional health is best served when they can be in schools for full-time, in-person instruction,” she said. “The Delta variant puts this goal at risk. It puts our children’s health and lives at risk. But, by again taking simple and effective precautions, we can still return our children to classrooms full-time this fall.” While most Oregon school districts are moving forward with health and safety plans to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 during the upcoming school year, the governor See MANDATE Page A6
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The need
Courtesy photo from Kelly Miller
Sunderland said COVID-19 has had an incredible impact on Oregon’s economy and hunger and food insecurity in Oregon,citing an OSU study from December 2020 that estimates the rates of hunger and food insecurity more than doubled in 2020 and that there are about 1 million Oregonians experiencing hunger and food insecurity. From January 2020 to January 2021, the number of people receiving SNAP in Columbia County increased by more than 1,500 people, a 21% increase. The current and new maximum amounts are in the table on A4. Households whose income is 185% of the federal poverty level or less qualify for SNAP benefits. “This means that a family of 4 making $49,000 a year is eligible for SNAP,” Sunderland said. “This is surprising for a lot of people. You can have a parent earning $23 an hour, while the other stays home with their two kids to save on daycare, and still struggle with hunger and food insecurity.”
A pickup full of local donations collected for the needy during the July food drive held by the Rainier Grocery Outlet. JEREMY C. RUARK jruark@countrymedia.net
Over the past few weeks, Kelly Miller has been opening letters that contain $100 donations to HOPE of Rainier. Miller is the executive director of Hope of Rainier and Turning Point in Clatskanie, two social service nonprofits that operate food pantries and thrift stores in the two cities. The $100 donations are coming from the Longview, Washington based Women Who Care organization. Each member donates $100 to an area charity selected by the group. HOPE of Rainier had been nominated for a $10,000 grant by the group. Miller said she outlined to the group the need to replace four of HOPE’s aging refrigerators that are used to store food for needy
families. “They decided to chose my nonprofits to receive the grant, which was absolutely humbling to us to receive such a generous grant,” Miller said. “It is unbelievable.” In July, the new operators of the Rainier Grocery Outlet conducted the store’s annual food donation drive collecting 1,236 pounds of food and $878.69 in cash to be used by HOPE to serve the area’s needy. Miller credits the store’s new owners Jody and James Day for their commitment to the community. “They jumped right in to support us and to collaborate with us to come up with other ways to give back to the community as well as supporting our clients,” Miller said. The continued support from the community and the Columbia Pacific Food Bank is welcomed, Miller said, due to the steady increase in need across Columbia County.
Miller said the clients range from the homeless to executives who have had their hours reduced. “The biggest demand is coming from single and two parent families,” she said. “We estimate that our numbers have increased steadily 10% to 12% with 25% to 30% spikes that don’t necessary hold steady like the 10% to 12% that we have seen over the past 18 months.” According to Miller, there are a variety of reasons for people turning to the social service agencies. “The heat wave, lack of employment, people still not able to go back to their jobs as they knew them due to the pandemic, and with school starting there is another need and expense,” she said. Miller said this month Turning
Snap History SNAP provides nutritional assistance benefits to children and families, the elderly, the disabled, unemployed and working families. SNAP helps supplement monthly food budgets of families with low
See HOPE Page A6
Phone: 503-397-0116 Fax: 503-397-4093 chiefnews@countrymedia.net 1805 Columbia Blvd., St. Helens, OR 97051
ColumbiaCountyOR.Gov/Vaccine | 503-397-7247
See SNAP Page A4