KWSO News for Thur., Aug, 26, 2021

It’s back to school for in-person classes starting September 7th for 1st thru 8th grade students at the Warm Springs K thru 8 Academy.  Kindergarten students will have individual meetings with teachers and then half the Kinders will attend on September 8th with the other have going in September 9th.  Friday September 10th all the Kindergarten students will have school.  September 7th is the start date for Madras High School Freshman.  White Buffalo 10th thru 12th grade students are back September 8th. Masks are required at all times during regular school hours and on school buses expect for the following:  when an individual is alone in a private room or workspace, When practicing or playing sports,  Performing while playing music or when delivering a speech or engaged in theater school hours.

School hours at the K8 are 8:45am to 3:55pm except on Late Start Mondays when school begins at 10:15 with doors opening at 9:55. At Madras High School and Bridges High School – the school day is 8am to 3:05pm except late start Mondays when school starts at 9:30. Right now – the Jefferson County 509J school district is planning for in person instruction this fall.  As we have learned this past year – plans can change so keep updated on the latest COVID-19 information that could impact your students.  Masks will be required to start the school year in an effort to prevent the spread of coronavirus and to keep everyone safe.

Oregon will deploy “crisis teams” of hundreds of nurses, respiratory therapists, paramedics and nursing assistants to regions of the state hardest hit by a surge in COVID-19 hospitalizations that have stretched hospitals to the limit. Gov. Kate Brown said Wednesday that up to 500 health care providers from a medial staffing company will head to central and southern Oregon, as well as 60 additional nurses under a different contract provider. COVID-19 hospitalizations have increased 990% in Oregon since July 9. The personnel will head to Bend, Redmond, Medford, Ashland, Grants Pass and Roseburg and can move as conditions require

tuning in. Have a great day all listeners. I am Mitchell for KWSO news.

The Bull Complex fire is roughly 60 miles east of Salem, near the Warm Springs Reservation in the Mt. Hood National Forest has grown nearly 900 acres since Sunday, reaching 7,464 acres. But remains at 0 percent containment. Two more helicopters and 70 additional firefighters have arrived this week to support ground crews, which have steadily grown since the complex began as several separate fires on August 2. Officials say three more hand crews arrived Wednesday and they immediately went to work on the containment. Besides burning when possible, current efforts include creating hand lines and using heavy equipment to build and strengthen existing containment lines by removing as much nearby fuel as possible.

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced new outdoor mask requirements that go into effect statewide this Friday, Aug. 27. Masks will be required in most public outdoor settings. The new rule will require masks for all people in outdoor settings where people from different households cannot maintain physical distance, such as large outdoor events. The mandate applies to everyone ages 5 and up, regardless of vaccination status. Exceptions are allowed for people who are actively eating or drinking outdoors, people involved competitive sports or public performance. Oregon Occupational safety and health will enforce the rule while working with employers and entities that host public events.

The Warm Springs tribal council was in session last week on August 17^th and August 18^th. The meeting was called to order at 9am August 17^th. The tribal council received an update from the following departments: purchasing update, Human resource update, governmental affairs/planning update, Finance update, admin. Services update was not submitted to the Secretary-Treasurer, Education update, health & human services, natural resources, public safety update and to end the day there was an executive session. On august 18^th, the meeting was called to order at 9:20. Tribal council received updates on this day from the following departments: Public utilities, tribal court update, cannabis commission update, gaming commission, TERO, Veterans office, and the meeting adjourned at 2:15 August 18^th.

Oregon could send out a massive $1.9 billion “kicker” tax refund next year due to surging income tax receipts. Oregon Public Broadcasting reports if the projections hold, the refund — which takes the form of credits on 2021 tax returns filed next year — would be Oregon’s largest-ever kicker. The state’s unique kicker tax law sends money back to taxpayers whenever personal income tax revenues come in at least 2% above initial projections during a two-year budget cycle. The new projection was delivered to a joint meeting of state senators and representatives Wednesday morning. In May, economic forecasters had anticipated the state would see a $1.4 billion kicker. Under the anticipated kicker, the median income taxpayer would receive a $420 credit on this year’s state taxes.