Union County commissioners respond to Greater Idaho letter sent by Wallowa County

DICK MASON, The Observer, La Grande, Ore.
·2 min read

LA GRANDE — The Union County Board of Commissioners will not be following in its Wallowa County counterparts’ footsteps with regard to the Greater Idaho issue.

The Wallowa County Board of Commissioners on April 1 sent a letter to the governors of Oregon and Idaho — and legislative leaders in both states — calling for the leaders to discuss moving the state line so that the county would be part of Idaho. The three Union County commissioners don’t believe there is a need to send a similar letter.

“This letter just asks to move it forward for discussion and says that they don’t support or oppose it. We have already sent a similar letter to our representatives,” Union County Commissioner Donna Beverage said.

Beverage said the Union County Board of Commissioners wrote to state Sen. Bill Hansell, R-Athena, and Rep. Bobbie Levy, R-Echo, about two years ago. Both letters informed Hansell and Levy of the passage in Union County of Measure 31-101 in 2020 that requires the commissioners to meet three times a year to discuss the pros and cons of the county joining the state of Idaho. The letter to Hansell and Levy asked that they begin discussing the Greater Idaho movement in the Oregon Legislature.

Union County Commissioner Matt Scarfo said it would be pointless to send a letter to Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek encouraging her to begin discussions about Greater Idaho. He said Kotek is well aware of the movement.

“She is not in the dark about this,” he said.

Union County Commissioner Paul Anderes said he has written several letters to Idaho Gov. Brad Little about the passage of Measure 31-101 and what it requires.

“I have not received a reply to any of the letters sent to the governor of Idaho,” he said.

The letter sent by Wallowa County makes reference to a ballot measure, similar to Union County’s Measure 31-101, passed by county voters in the May 2023 election. The Wallowa County ballot measure, which passed by seven votes, calls for the commissioners to meet twice a year to discuss “how to promote the interests of Wallowa County that would be relevant to a relocation of state borders, and to prepare the county for becoming a county of another state.”

The letter from Wallowa County’s commissioners notes the closeness of the vote on the ballot measure, and adds: “We, as the governing body of Wallowa County, neither support nor oppose the measure, but only represent the will of the voters of Wallowa County.”

Wallowa and Union counties are two of 12 Oregon counties in which measures have been passed that require county leaders to conduct regular meetings to discuss the Greater Idaho movement and take public input on it. The others in addition to Wallowa County that have passed similar measures are Baker, Grant, Harney, Jefferson, Klamath, Lake, Malheur, Morrow, Sherman and Wheeler counties.