GOLD BEACH – The Curry County Board of Commissioners has invited members of the public to apply for membership to the Citizens’ Committee which will explore options to address the county’s pending financial crisis.

“The purpose of this committee is to identify and explore all viable revenue and expenditure opportunities to achieve fiscal solvency and stability for Curry County Government now and in the future,” the commissioners said in their announcement.

Members of Oregon Consensus at Portland State University are helping to organize the committee, which will have at least 12 members drawn from a cross-section of interested people from various parts of the county.

“Membership will be broadly drawn from the community for representation of diverse views and interests of the citizens that reside within our County. Priority will be given to those applicants who represent this diversity as well as those who have a track record of contributing to productive dialogue or the development of actionable solutions,” the commissioners said. 

The Citizens’ Committee will be asked to examine the county’s financial status and contribute to the development of potential options for addressing the County’s budgetary shortfalls. It will then present those options to the commissioners for their consideration. 

Those selected for the committee are expected to attend and participate in meetings, as well as to review and prepare materials for the meetings. 

“Applicants must be willing to serve as representatives for the greater community and be willing to accept input from the general public,” the announcement said. 

The deadline to apply is 5 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 16. 

Application forms are available online at http://www.co.

curry.or.us/commissioners/BOCADVISE.htm. 

Paper applications are also available at the commissioners’ office at the county office building on Moore Street in Gold Beach.

Commissioners will appoint the committee at a special meeting at 10 a.m. Nov. 22. The first committee meeting will be from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30, at the County Fairgrounds, with the second from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 15, at the fairgrounds.

Gov. John Kitzhaber asked Oregon Consensus to help the county form the committee after the commissioners wrote him asking what the state could do if Curry County ran out of money.

In his reply, Kitzhaber told Curry County commissioners that the county must consider a property tax increase even if Congress reauthorizes the Secure Rural Schools Act, granting county payments a continuation at the same rate they receive this year.

“However, as you pointed out in your letter, the low tax rates that some counties have enjoyed during times of federal payments will need to be raised if those payments are terminated,” he wrote in a letter Dated Oct. 20. 

“In particular, Curry County has a tax rate that is much lower than other counties that receive county payments. In any scenario, providing an adequate level of service to the public in Curry County will require re-examination of this tax rate going forward,” the governor wrote.

County commissioners had earlier approved an order forming The Curry County Citizens’ Committee to help the county find ways to head off the financial crisis that will occur after Secure Rural Schools funding ends in November.

One of the actions that may come from the committee is placing a tax increase on the ballot next May.

Kitzhaber wrote that he appreciates the failure of Congress to reauthorize the SRS would place Curry County and a number of other Oregon counties in a dire fiscal position. 

“The ramp-down in federal payments over the past several years already has put a number of Oregon counties under severe fiscal stress,” he wrote.

Kitzhaber said he is committed to the ongoing effort to obtain reauthorization of the Secure Rural Schools Act, which is designed to compensate counties for the loss of revenue resulting from the retention of large areas in federal ownership in certain parts of the country. 

Curry County is set to receive its final SRS payment this month, totaling $1,079,053, only a fraction of what the county has received in the past.

County Accountant Gary Short recently estimated that the commissioners will have to look at cutting $2 million out of next year’s general fund budget.

Anyone with questions about the Citizens’ Committee can contact the commissioners’ office by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or calling 541-247-3296.