THURSDAY EVENING UPDATE: More than 50 people donated to “Dollars for Disclosure.” on Thursday, a solid vote for open and honest government in Malheur County. Malheur County, we need your help. The Malheur County Economic Development Department and its director, Greg Smith, still want $875 for public documents. The Malheur[Read More…]

Help us decide at the Enterprise whether to pursue a particular story. Malheur County said it intends to charge the Enterprise $875 for documents showing what work has been done at public expense by a county department. The charge, we’re told, is because what the newspaper is asking for isn’t[Read More…]

The remembrances of Sept. 11, 2001, over the weekend sit in contrast to how Malheur County is enduring the pandemic. Former President George W. Bush prompts the comparison. He spoke in Pennsylvania, where hijacked Flight 93 crashed into a field instead of the U.S. Capitol. He honored those aboard that[Read More…]

Let me explain why you’re reading a lot about the pandemic these days from the Malheur Enterprise. Our job is to deliver information about the community. Our small team would love to be writing about anything else besides Covid. We are tired of the topic. We know many of you[Read More…]

School superintendents around Malheur County are trusted with enormous responsibilities. They are trusted by their communities, and Gov. Kate Brown should trust them as well. She should reverse course and drop her directive from Salem regarding face masks. Covid has made people cranky. And the surge going on now is[Read More…]

Les Zaitz, editor and publisher, The Enterprise (Robert Quick photo) Local people find their name on a ballot typically when they are running for office. I’m not running for anything, but Ontario voters still will find my name on the ballot. That’s as surprising to me as it likely is[Read More…]

Finally, a person with guts to stand for decency has emerged on the Ontario City Council. Councilor Eddie Melendrez, just five months into his term, deserves the applause and thanks of the people of Ontario, and indeed across Malheur County. He called out Councilor Freddy Rodriguez’s conduct last week –[Read More…]

Letters to the editor may be sent to [email protected]. To the editor: Following an unprecedented (tumultuous?) four years for public lands, the confirmation of Deb Haaland as Secretary of the Interior is a breath of fresh air. There is a lot to do. Across the West, the previous administration withdrew important conservation measures for some of[Read More…]

The Ontario School Board has made a bit more of a mess of the controversies in the local school system. The actions by the board last week involve more secrecy than is wise. Board members apparently don’t understand how much community trust is at stake. At first blush, it would[Read More…]

The Ontario school system is giving students a poor lesson in how to deal with conflicts. The clashes between some Ontario administrators and board more resembles a school yard fight than professionals focused on education. That has to stop. Tension between educators trained to teach kids and citizens representing the[Read More…]