SALEM — For sheep breeder Monte Forster, the ribbons his Horned Dorsets won at this year’s Oregon State Fair provide more than just gratification.

The awards verify that Forster is maintaining champion-quality animals and progressing with his breeding efforts, which is important to buyers.

“By having the bloodlines we have, we sell them throughout North America,” said Forster.

In 2016, Forster received the award for premier exhibitor and his sheep racked up a champion ribbon and two reserve champion ribbons.

This year also marked the 55th season that he’s shown sheep at the Oregon State Fair, where the livestock pavilion is named after his late father, Lloyd “Bud” Forster, a longtime livestock supervisor at the event.

“We are the ambassadors of agriculture here in Oregon. This is our showcase,” Forster said of livestock producers who show at the fair.

Horned Dorsets are judged for how well they stack up against the standard appearance of the breed, as well as for their frame size and correct position of feet and legs.

The breed is prized by chefs for its tender meat and by farmers for the gentle disposition of the animals, Forster said.

“They’re docile. They’re actually emotional,” said Jed Forster, Monte’s son, adding that getting accidentally hit with a stray horn is the main danger. “Other than that, they don’t have a mean bone in their body.”

Apart from temperament, the breed is know for giving birth outside the regular lambing season, providing growers with more forage flexibility.

The Forster family has been farming near Tangent, Ore., for 131 years and breeding Horned Dorsets for 75 years. The 400 sheep they run on 100 acres are primarily for breeding stock, though the family also sells their meat directly to consumers.

By bringing animals to the state fair, the family also provides visitors with a connection agriculture they might not otherwise experience, said Forster. “There’s never a bad question.”

Overall participation in livestock competitions at the Oregon State Fair has been flat to up in 2016, depending on the type of animal, said Ellen Hannan, livestock office manager at the event.

The fair has seen a big uptick in swine and dairy goats this year, while beef cattle and sheep have stayed about the same, said Hannan.

“It really just fluctuates,” said Caleb Forcier, animal competition coordinator at the fair.

Cycling animals through the livestock facilities has been complicated due to the large number of FFA kids who want to compete in open class livestock shows, where they’re matched against professional breeders, she said.

“It’s a good problem to have,” said Forcier.

That’s because it’s heartening to see that children are excited enough about showing livestock to see how they stack up against the adults, Hannan said. “It shows enthusiasm.”

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A federal judge agreed Tuesday to let Oregon standoff defendants Ryan Bundy and Kenneth Medenbach represent themselves at their upcoming trial, despite concerns they won’t follow court rulings in the presence of the jury.

The men, along with co-defendant Shawna Cox, have been acting as their own lawyers in the run-up to the trial, with varying degrees of help from appointed standby attorneys.

U.S. District Judge Court Anna Brown threatened to take away their right to self-representation because they have repeatedly challenged the court’s jurisdiction. At a hearing Tuesday, she said the right to serve as your own lawyer is not a license to do whatever you want in a courtroom.

She wanted them to promise to follow her rulings and not raise issues in front of the jury that have already been resolved.

“I will follow all the rules,” Medenbach said.

Bundy was much more hesitant. The judge wanted a yes or no answer, but Bundy wouldn’t supply one, despite the urging of a female supporter in the gallery: “Say yes, Ryan.”

“I still have questions on some of those rulings,” Bundy said. He eventually agreed to only raise concerns when the jury is out of the room.

The men are among eight defendants preparing to stand trial on a charge of conspiring to impede federal employees from doing their jobs at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. The armed takeover of the refuge started Jan. 2 as a protest against the imprisonment of two local ranchers. It lasted 41 days.

Jury selection is scheduled to begin Sept. 7 and opening statements are tentatively slated for Sept. 13.

Tuesday’s hearing got off to tough start for Bundy when the judge wouldn’t let a new volunteer paralegal sit at the defense table. The paralegal, identified as Jeremy Baker, arrived from Texas on Monday night.

Courtroom security ejected the paralegal when he left his seat, moved to the front bench of the gallery and tried to loudly whisper legal advice to Bundy while the judge was speaking.

Brown scheduled the hearing because she doesn’t want the trial to become a circus, and Bundy has repeatedly challenged the court’s jurisdiction while filing motions the judge considers frivolous. Medenbach, meanwhile, has questioned whether the government owns the refuge and if the judge took the proper oath of office after her 1999 appointment.

The judge said those matters are resolved and can’t be mentioned in front of a jury.

Matthew Schindler, Medenbach’s standby counsel, said his client only made those arguments to preserve the record for a potential appeal. Schindler is expected to take more active role during trial than Bundy’s standby counsel, but said Medenbach is still the one calling the shots. One of those orders apparently is to not pin the blame on the leaders.

“He doesn’t want me to denigrate Ryan Bundy; he doesn’t want me to go after Ammon Bundy,” Schindler said.

PRINEVILLE, Ore. (AP) — Elected officials in an Oregon county rejected a proposed plan on Tuesday from a group of residents that sought greater local control over the management of federal lands.

The development came as local officials in the West are wrestling with ways to have greater say in how the vast swaths of federal land are managed.

The issue came to a head in adjacent Harney County, where an armed group from out of state seized the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge and held it for 41 days.

About half of Crook County in Central Oregon is public land, most of it managed by the U.S. Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management.

Passing the proposed Crook County Natural Resources Plan would create an “adversarial relationship” with federal agencies, BLM District Manager Carol Benkosky warned the three-member Crook County Court. About 100 spectators packed the meeting room in Prineville, the county seat.

The plan, drafted by a political action committee, would have ostensibly required the county court to be involved in “coordination” with federal agencies in managing hundreds of thousands of acres of forests and watersheds, prohibited retirement of grazing allotments and called for “the forest industry and the forest products commerce within the county” to be strengthened. Opponents of the plan said it had no legal basis.

Tyson Bertone-Riggs, federal forest health coordinator of the Oregon Department of Forestry, also said it would result in more litigation and “blocking actions” instead of moving things forward. He and other officials instead trumpeted consultations early and often between agencies and local stakeholders.

Resident Darlene Harpster got up and spoke on behalf of the plan, and denounced what she said was over-regulation by the U.S. government.

“The only thing I want to say is I want my freedom,” she said. “Government agencies want more regulation ... I don’t.”

At stake is the economic well-being of Crook County, which is 2½ times the size of Rhode Island, and other parts of the West that have been hit by restrictions on timber harvesting on federal lands and other regulations.

One woman who went to the microphones to speak about the plan indicated emotions have been running high.

The court voted 2-1 to reject the plan, with those opposed saying it could conflict at times with an existing county plan. The court suggested supporters refine it and submit it to the planning commission as a possible addition to the existing plan.

“This is an opportunity for the citizens of Crook County to have their voices heard,” county commissioner Seth Crawford, who voted for the plan, told The Associated Press. “So what I think we need to do as a county is listen, and try to use our natural resources more effectively.”

Tom Case, a backer of the plan, said the issue is not over.

“This has been an ongoing battle,” he said. “I didn’t expect it to end today.”

MOXEE, Wash. (AP) — Hop harvest in the Yakima Valley is underway and growers are expecting a record 91.8 million pounds in the Northwest this year.

The Yakima Herald-Republic reports that the expected figure is a 16 percent increase over 2015 and can be attributed to the growth of craft breweries and America’s budding taste for very hoppy beers. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, production of hops has grown 50 percent since 2012.

However, the growth is being greeted cautiously as such a large supply may outpace demand.

Hop Growers of America Executive Director Ann George says unlike a few years ago, some hops are now sitting in warehouses, which signals that demand and supply are close to meeting.

The Yakima Valley grows about 75 percent of the country’s hops.

The Oregon State University Extension Service has issued a pest alert regarding the presence of true (common) armyworms in Willamette Valley grass seed crops.

The service wrote that large numbers of the pest have been spotted in tall fescue and orchardgrass seed fields in the past two weeks in both the south and north Willamette Valley.

The pest, Mythimna unipuncta, also has been seen on sudan grass planted as a cover crop between nursery stock rows.

“Extensive damage may result if the population is not treated,” the alert states. “Large numbers of larvae feed so voraciously that mass migrations of larvae can occur within a field and to adjacent fields very quickly.”

Armyworm outbreaks occur suddenly, the alert states, and in large numbers. In the alert, extension personnel Amy Dreves, Nicole Anderson and Clare Sullivan compared the pest to the new winter cutworm, which erupted in grass seed fields last summer.

According to an extension publication issued in February, cutworm damage is less uniform than armyworm damage, but both pests move en masse, potentially inflicting widespread damage to new growth in late summer and early fall.

The armyworm, like the cutworm, also inflicts damage sporadically. The last time an armyworm outbreak occurred in the Willamette Valley was 2004-2006, according to the alert. In that outbreak, the pest also was found in Southwest Oregon near Myrtle Point, and damaged grass pasture and corn in that area, according to Dreves.

In grass seed crops, the pest damages new growth by feeding on leaves and stems, leaving notched leaves and jagged leaf edges, according to the alert. Armyworms, like cutworms, can cause extension defoliation of plants over broad areas.

The alert advises growers to scout for the pest in and around crowns where birds are feeding and to dig around in the thatch of a plant and at its base. The pest feeds at night and curls into a C shape in the day in areas where it can avoid daylight.

The pest is not well adapted to light and needs moisture, according to the alert.

“We expect larval activity may slow down for a short period of time,” the Aug. 29 alert states. “However, activity will likely pick back up.”

The pest looks similar to winter cutworm, but the true armyworm is more smooth-bodied, tan-to-brown in color, about 0.5 to 1.5 inches long, with several alternating dark and light stripes and yellow-orange bands.

The alert states that several pesticide products are labeled for armyworm control, and that insecticides are most effective when applied while larvae are small.

“There is little benefit to spraying when the (larval) pest is full grown,” the alert states. “We recommend spraying at night, and rotating chemistries if more than one application is needed.”

A planned roundup of wild horses from the Three Fingers herd in Malheur County, Ore., has been canceled due to a rangeland fire in the area.

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management decided to withdraw its decision to gather 100 of the herd’s 200 horses near Jordan Valley, Ore., in late August, forestalling at least temporarily an animal rights group’s lawsuit seeking to block the action.

Of the gathered horses, the BLM planned to remove half for eventual adoption and release the remainder after treating females with a contraceptive to slow the herd’s growth.

Friends of Animals, a New York-based nonprofit, filed a lawsuit against the agency, arguing the roundup was ordered without an environmental review, as mandated by federal law.

According to the complaint, BLM relied on an outdated environmental analysis from 2011 that didn’t take into consideration new information about the negative impacts of the fertility control drug Porcine Zona Penucide, or PZP.

The planned August roundup was also aimed at protecting sage grouse habitat and fire restoration projects, neither of which were studied under the 2011 analysis, the complaint said.

Since then, a study has found that PZP can remain effective longer than expected, causing foals to be born outside the normal birthing season, and is associated with ovulation failure, according to Friends of Animals.

The nonprofit group asked U.S. District Judge Michael Simon to issue a temporary restraining order blocking the roundup, which BLM opposed in court documents.

The BLM argued that it was permitted to rely on the 2011 analysis in forming its most recent decision to gather horses and that Friends of Animals hadn’t followed the proper administrative process to stop the roundup.

If the horses continue to multiply, they will spread out and damage areas that are only now beginning to recover from fires last year, the BLM said.

“That will lead to further degradation of the range, ultimately destroying the habitat on which they and numerous other wildlife rely,” the agency said in a court document.

Before oral arguments in the dispute could be held, however, BLM issued a notice that the roundup won’t take place because a wildfire had burned much of the area where it was to occur.

The BLM apparently referred to the Cherry Road Fire near Jordan Valley, which ignited on Aug. 21 and burned more than 35,000 acres before firefighters contained it on Aug. 28.

Friends of Animals has withdrawn its motion for a temporary restraining order, though it’s not dismissing the lawsuit while it weighs its options, the group said in a court filing.

A ewe was killed and eaten in northeastern Oregon’s Umatilla County in what Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has labeled a probable wolf attack.

The attack happened about 4 p.m. Aug. 16 on public land in ODFW’s Mount Emily wildlife management unit. A sheep herder heard a noise near his camp and found one of his guard dogs fighting with a black wolf. The herder fired his rifle into the air three times, scaring off the wolf. He found the ewe dead near where the dog and wolf were fighting.

The herder told a U.S. Wildlife Services agent about the attack two days later, and ODFW joined in a followup investigation. By then, the sheep carcass had been nearly consumed with only the skeletal system, small amounts of connective tissue, hide, rumen, and wool remaining, according to an ODFW report.

No evidence of a wolf attack could be found at the site, but trail camera video and tracks show a single wolf had used the area, according to ODFW. Coupled with the herder’s statement, it was enough for ODFW to declare the incident a “probable” wolf attack.

PORTLAND — Discovery of a Japanese beetle outbreak in Northwest Portland has state ag officials scrambling to determine the size of the infestation.

The Oregon Department of Agriculture said 265 beetles were caught in traps this summer in the vicinity of Northwest Saltzman Road and Northwest Thompson Road. Others were found feeding on homeowners’ roses, and the agency believes a localized breeding population has established itself in the area. They’ve probably been present for a year, the department said.

Japanese beetles are not native to the Pacific Northwest. In the past, they’ve been found near Portland International Airport, suggesting they hitched a ride on air cargo containers. The beetles feed on a variety of plants and pose a particular threat to crops such as cannabis, hops, nursery plants and wine grapes, according to the department.

The ag department does not plan an eradication campaign this year because it’s too late in the season, spokesman Bruce Pokarney said. The department will monitor the situation with the likely intent to do localized spraying next year, he said. The department probably would spray in two phases: Once to spray turf to get the beetles in their grub stage, and a second time to spray bushes once the beetles have emerged as adults.

In the meantime, the manager of ODA’s Insect Pest Prevention and Management program said homeowners can best help by cooperating with field technicians who are maintaining traps. Homeowners also should avoid moving plants, roots or soil from the infestation area because that could spread the beetles elsewhere, program manager Clint Burfitt said in a news release.

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon police and two FBI agents could face a lawsuit from the widow of an Arizona rancher who took part in the Malheur Wildlife Refuge occupation and was killed in a confrontation with authorities.

California-based attorney Brian Claypool told the Oregonian/OregonLive that the lawsuit on behalf of Jeanette Finicum and the family has not been filed but that they are pursuing it “with 100 percent certainty.”

Prosecutors determined the shots fired at 54-year-old Robert “LaVoy” Finicum were “in fact, necessary.”

“All six shots fired by the Oregon State Police, the three into the truck and the three that struck Mr. Finicum, are justified,” Malheur County District Attorney Dan Norris said.

Claypool says evidence shows shots were fired contrary to statements made during the investigation.

The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating whether an agent lied about firing two shots that did not hit Finicum and if four others worked to hide it later.

Claypool said more details about the lawsuit would be announced at a news conference planned for September.

Jeanette Finicum has said in a statement that her “husband was murdered.”

A family statement said Finicum was “executed in cold blood.”

Claypool also represents Ryan Bundy in his case related to the occupation.

Sundays

LANGLOIS — A month-long Silent Auction fundraiser is in progress at the Langlois Public Library. The Auction continues through Saturday, Sept. 10 when the annual Blueberry Bash ends the Silent Auction. You are cordially invited to the Blueberry Bash, a…

SATURDAY, AUG. 27

PORTLAND — There’s no reason to panic, but nursery producers should begin preparing to weather the next downturn in the U.S. economy, according to horticulture economist Charlie Hall.

Several indicators suggest the economy will continue slowly chugging along for the time being, but based on historical data, the country is overdue for a recession, Hall said at the Oregon Association of Nurseries Farwest Show in Portland, Ore.

“We don’t have a lot of red flags over the next 18 to 24 months, but we will go into recession at some point,” he said.

Nursery producers should consider this current time frame as a reprieve and develop a game plan for dealing with various financial scenarios, said Hall, a professor at Texas A&M University.

“We need to start right now informing our contingency plans,” Hall said. “There’s nothing holding us back but ourselves.”

Sales of nursery products and services surged for years as the baby boomer generation married, had children and bought houses, but they began slowing in the 1990s and are now flat, he said.

Because they’re in a mature industry, nurseries are prone to disruptions — as evidenced by the large number of companies that went out of business during the last financial crisis, Hall said.

“The interesting thing about this stage is that any disturbance will cause a shakeout,” he said.

At this point, housing starts are getting back to normal and there’s growth in the number of mortgages, both of which are positive for the nursery industry, he said. People are also quitting jobs to take higher-paying ones, and members of the millennial generation — known for delaying marriage and family — are beginning to form more households.

Lower fuel prices also provide consumers with more spending money, though they won’t necessarily spend all of it on nursery goods and services, Hall said.

Only 42 percent of consumers buy plants in an average year and 25 percent spend money on landscape services, he said. While these numbers aren’t great, they do imply the industry has the potential to increase sales frequency, he said.

Nurseries tend to emphasize prettiness and newness in plants, while they should be focusing on their functionality, Hall said. For example, studying in the presence of plants has been shown to improve students’ academic performance and test results.

Other research has indicated that plants and landscaping increase property values, building occupancy rates, improve water quality and reduce healthcare costs.

Pet-related sales have grown despite the recession, which shows people are willing to spend money to feel happy, he said. Nurseries should find a way to tap into this dynamic.

“We will pay whatever it takes to improve the quality of our lives,” Hall said.

Nurseries can appeal to the altruism of the millennial generation by promoting the environmental benefits of plants, such as helping butterflies and pollinators, said Brie Arthur, “green industry communicator” who writes and speaks about horticulture.

“I want the world to be a better place with how I spend my money,” she said.

Selling rare or heirloom varieties of plants can also help nurseries stand out from the pack, Arthur said. “You should be differentiating yourself through the plants you carry.”

Don’t count Friends of Family Farmers among the groups praising the legacy of Katy Coba, the departing director of the Oregon Department of Agriculture.

In a prepared statement, the Salem-based advocacy group said Coba has overseen a “growing shift towards promoting large, corporate, factory-scale farming operations in Oregon even as the state has been losing small and mid-sized family farms in large numbers.”

The group called on Gov. Kate Brown to “pro-actively shift the agency in a direction that better represents the strong commitment that Oregonians have to supporting sustainable, family-scale farms and agriculture.”

Brown’s office announced Aug. 24 that Coba has been appointed the state’s chief operating officer and director of the Department of Administrative Services, the state’s top administrative agency. The appointment is effective Oct. 1, pending confirmation by the Oregon Senate in September. Coba has been ag director since 2003.

Ivan Maluski, Friends of Family Farmers policy director, said Coba’s experience in state government should serve her well, and said the group appreciated being able to raise issues and make its points during her tenure.

But he noted several disagreements with Coba’s administration over the years.

He said the department was unwilling to support regulations that would protect farmers from genetically engineered crops and the growth of “factory farms.”

He said the department tried to expand canola production areas in the Willamette Valley in 2012. Specialty seed producers and food safety activists filed suit to stop the action, and the state Court of Appeals sided with opponents. The Legislature eventually allocated money for Oregon State University to set up canola test plots and report back by November 2017.

In the past, the group criticized the appointment of Marty Myers to the Oregon Board of Agriculture, which advises the director and the department. Myers is general manager of Threemile Canyon Farms in Boardman, which describes itself as one of the nation’s largest dairy operations. It has 24,000 dairy cows that produce an estimated 170,000 gallons of milk daily. The operation also maintains a herd of 25,000 replacement heifers, according to the company website.

Maluski said the group is concerned about the increasing presence in Oregon of large agri-business firms such as Threemile Canyon Farms and Lost Valley Ranch, which is seeking state permits to operate a 30,000 cow dairy, also in the Boardman area. The state has “almost never said no to a large CAFO (confined animal feeding operation) permit,” he said.

The group also questions the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement. Maluski said it could result in Oregon becoming an outlet for “factory farm” production flowing to Asia.

Maluski said Friends of Family Farmers doesn’t have a specific person in mind to replace Coba.

“As we indicated, we hope Gov. Brown sees this as an opportunity to shift the agency a little bit and help make sure there’s a stronger commitment to support small and mid-size farmers in this state, and sustainable agriculture,” he said.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife will allow fishing and shellfish gathering without a license through Tuesday while cyber investigators probe a computer security breach that exposed the personal information of hunters and anglers in several states.

WDFW shut down the sale of all fishing and hunting licenses Thursday when the breach was discovered in a system maintained by Active Network. The Dallas, Texas-based company provides online registration services.

The breach affected other Western states, including Idaho and Oregon.

The Idaho Department of Fish and Game suspended online sales, but said licenses could still be purchased at offices and businesses, which use a separate system.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife also has indefinitely suspended online sales. Licenses are available from dealers and ODFW offices, a spokeswoman said.

WDFW suspended all sales, including those made by phone or from dealers.

WDFW is working with the state Office of Cyber Security to investigate the breach and restore sales as soon as possible, according to WDFW.

Through Tuesday, WDFW will not require anglers to have a vehicle pass to park at state fishing sites.

Other rules, such as seasons, size limits, bag limits and closures will remain in effort.

Current fishing regulations are online at wdfw.wa.gov/fishing/regulations/

Licensing requirements will go back into effect Wednesday, according to WDFW.

Hunters will have to wait to buy licenses until the sales system can be restored. The agency said it anticipates being able to sell licenses before major hunting seasons begin in September.

Anglers will not be required to complete a catch record card for any salmon, steelhead, sturgeon or crab they catch from Aug. 25 to Aug. 30.

Efforts to reach Active Network were unsuccessful. According to its website, the company has 42,000 customers and handles 100 million online transactions annually for a variety of events, and government and business services.

SPRINGFIELD, Ore. (AP) — Employees of an Oregon grocery store are cleaning up after a police say a woman drove her SUV into the store and down the aisles.

Springfield police say a 43-year-old Glenwood woman tried to purchase $2,200 of gift cards and became upset when her check bounced and Safeway employees would not complete the transaction.

The Register-Guard reports that she angrily left the store Tuesday afternoon and returned just after midnight Wednesday morning. Police say she parked in front of the store and was yelling about wanting her gift cards.

Police say the woman then drove the SUV through the store entrance, up and down an aisle, and out the other side of the Safeway.

Police arrested her at her home.

No one was injured.

Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., has officially asked President Obama to designate a remote area in southeastern Oregon as a national monument.

Blumenauer is the only member of Oregon’s congressional delegation to openly ask Obama to create an Owyhee National Monument.

Blumenauer highlighted the Owyhee’s outdoor recreation opportunities and wildlife habitat, and suggested that protection could lead to economic growth in Malheur County.

Conservationists cheered Blumenauer’s support for Owyhee protections.

“I think it’s a pretty important moment in time,” said David Moryc with the conservation organization American Rivers. “Rep. Blumenauer’s letter recognizes the outstanding value and importance of protecting the Owyhee Canyonlands.” 

Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, both D-Ore., have introduced legislation that would protect the high desert and red rock canyon area from future mining operations.

Although Merkley said in March that he wasn’t opposed to an Owyhee National Monument, he said at a Harney County forum in May that the president shouldn’t pursue it without fully addressing community concerns. Last spring, an overwhelming majority of Malheur County voters rejected the idea of a monument in an advisory vote.

“The families of Malheur County are disappointed that a congressman from Portland would suggest to the president that the opinions and thoughts of the local residents shouldn’t be listened to,” said Ryan Frank, spokesman for the Owyhee Basin Stewardship Council, a coalition that opposes a monument.

Frank said many local residents are concerned that the federal designation could limit access for cattle grazing.

“Ranching is an important driver of the Oregon economy,” said Frank. “By continuing to restrict access to public lands in this area, we believe it’s going to decimate the livelihoods and economy of this area.”

Conservationists emphasize that existing roads and access points can remain open for ranchers, hunters, or hikers, even under a national monument designation. They want the area protected from future developments such as mining, or oil and gas drilling.

“It’s really an unparalleled desert landscape,” said David Moryc of American Rivers. “It’s a landscape, given its remoteness and aridness, that we’ve got to be really careful to protect because a large landscape like that deserves large-scale protections.”

The president has the power to designate monuments under the Antiquities Act, but so far, Obama’s office has given no indication that it has plans for the Owyhee. Although conservationists have been talking for years about a potential wilderness designation for the Owyhee, a national campaign initiated by Keen Footwear spurred support for a national monument designation for the area instead.

LANGLOIS -- The annual ongoing silent auction at the Langlois Public Library features an eclectic shopping resource, from local foods, quilts, handbags, framed photos and gift certificates to portrait sessions and more. For a preview of some of the silent…

GRANTS PASS, Ore. — A judge here is considering whether parties that unsuccessfully defended a legal challenge to Josephine County’s GMO ban should pay the plaintiff farmers’ attorney fees.

In May, farmers Robert and Shelley Ann White convinced a judge the county’s GMO ban, approved by voters in 2014, was pre-empted by a state law passed the prior year.

Supporters of the ban — Oregonians for Safe Farms and Families, a non-profit, and Siskiyou Seeds, an organic company — intervened in the lawsuit to defend the county ordinance.

Now, the plaintiff farmers are seeking to recover $29,205 in attorney fees from the intervenors for unnecessarily complicating the litigation.

“All we want is compensation for time that we had to waste,” John DiLorenzo, attorney for the growers, said Wednesday during a hearing on the matter.

The intervenors unsuccessfully argued that Oregon’s seed pre-emption law was unconstitutional because lawmakers created a “regulatory void” by not imposing rules on GMO production.

DiLorenzo said this wasn’t an objectively reasonable argument because the intervenors could point to no legal precedent in Oregon, but instead relied on a ruling from Ohio.

“It had absolutely no bearing on Oregon law,” he said.

Legal questions over state pre-emption of local ordinances have long been settled by previous court rulings, he said.

“Ignoring them would upset years of decisions and throw state pre-emption law into complete disarray,” DiLorenzo said.

OSFF and Siskiyou Seeds countered that the plaintiffs are not allowed to recover attorney fees and are simply trying to send a “chilling message” to prevent similar defenses of local ordinances elsewhere.

The intervenors’ arguments were plausible even if they ultimately didn’t persuade the judge, and attorney fee sanctions can only be awarded when claims are entirely without legal merit, according to their attorneys.

The authority of local governments to set their own rules should be revisited by higher courts in Oregon, which the intervenors are pursuing through an appeal, said Stephanie Dolan, their attorney.

“There are instances where the law is shaken up and changed,” Dolan said.

Because Josephine County’s GMO ban presented a novel legal question, the intervenors were allowed to cite case law from Ohio to argue Oregon’s pre-emption statute was unconstitutional, the intervenors claim.

Sanctions of attorney fees can only be awarded when a party acts in bad faith, but that wasn’t the case here, said Melissa Wischerath, attorney for the intervenors.

“Just losing an argument doesn’t rise to that level,” she said.

The plaintiffs, whose lawsuit is supported by biotech interests, should not be allowed to instill fear about making arguments that challenge the status quo, she said.

“We want to be able to ensure that safe space remains open in our court system,” Wischerath said, paraphrasing a court ruling.

The fee request is also excessive because their lawyers are claiming to have worked unreasonably long hours at higher-than-normal rates, she said.

“Those rates are literally off the chart for this area,” Wischerath said.

Both OSFF and Siskiyou Seeds would be financially devastated by the proposed award, which would discourage similar public policy litigation in other counties, they claim.

“This battle may be uphill but these claims are in no way frivolous and sanctions should not be applied,” said Dolan.

Josephine County Circuit Court Judge Pat Wolke asked DiLorenzo, the plaintiffs’ attorney, whether it would be wise to postpone the sanctions question until the lawsuit is resolved on appeal.

DiLorenzo said any ruling on attorney fees would likely be consolidated with the overall appeal.

Wolke has taken the matter under consideration and said he will issue a written ruling.

Oregon farm organizations are still absorbing news of longtime Oregon Department of Agriculture Director Katy Coba’s appointment as the state’s chief operating officer and director of the Department of Administrative Services.

Word spread quickly through Oregon’s agricultural groups Wednesday morning. Coba used her 11:30 ag budget conference call with producer organizations to tell them first-hand.

“It’s a hard one for me,” said Katie Fast, executive director of Oregonians for Food and Shelter. Coba’s appointment as DAS director is probably a good move for Oregon in terms of good government because of her experience and management skill, she said.

“However, for Oregon agriculture, we’re all at a little bit of a loss,” she said. “Those are some big shoes to move into.”

Fast said Coba has been a strong advocate for Oregon ag at the state Legislature. She’s also overseen a department management structure that is collaborative with staff and with the industries they regulate, and industry will want to see that continued in the next director, Fast said.

Jerome Rosa, executive director of the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association, said Coba’s departure from ODA is “a huge loss to Oregon agriculture.”

Rosa said Coba is the longest serving state ag director in the country and has done a “tremendous job.” He said her marketing background is unparalleled and has helped commodity groups.

Rosa served on the Oregon Board of Agriculture, which advises Coba and the department, before taking the job with the cattlemen’s association. In both positions, “Her door was always open and very accessible to me,” he said. “She always made time.”

Rosa said he hopes the next director will take a similar approach.

Dave Dillon, executive vice president of the Oregon Farm Bureau, said it’s premature to talk about possible successors. He said Coba was a successful director because she understood the industry, collaborated with producers and kept the department from being “politicized.”

“In my view, Katy’s been a director who wants to make sure decisions are made on good principles, good science, and are thoughtful — not ideological,” Dillon said.

In a state with such a wide variety of crops and producers, that’s important, he said.

He called on Gov. Kate Brown to consult with the people whose livelihoods depend on agriculture before choosing the next ODA director. “To me it’s of vital importance to make sure producer voices are heard,” he said.

Coba’s appointment is effective Oct. 1 but requires confirmation by the Oregon Senate in September, according to a news release from the Governor’s Office.

Coba, who has been agriculture director since 2003, started working in state government in 1985.

Kristin Grainger, a spokeswoman for the governor, said Coba, a Pendleton native, was a “proven leader” and “committed to excellence” in state government.

“Her roots in rural Oregon and Eastern Oregon were influential as well,” Grainger said.

Grainger said the state’s budget development process will likely be a focal point for Coba in her new position.

The Department of Agriculture’s deputy director, Lisa Charpilloz Hanson, will serve as interim director starting Oct. 1, until a successor to Coba is appointed.