By SHAYLA ESCUDERO/Lincoln Chronicle
NEWPORT – More than a dozen prominent Lincoln County community members sat around a table Saturday discussing the impacts of federal decisions – NOAA layoffs, stalled grants that fund safety training for fishermen, and other fiscal uncertainties.
As they passed around a cell phone and a paper cup Saturday morning – slightly garbled on the other line was Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.
“Can everyone hear me okay?” Wyden asked.
His voice came through the phone at the center of a long conference table – an impromptu move to connect after the 79-year-old senator tested positive Friday for Covid-19.
The room was filled with community members eager to tell Wyden of the issues they were facing, including Newport Mayor Jan Kaplan, Lisa Ballance, interim executive director of the Hatfield Marine Science Center, former NOAA employees, and leaders from the fishing industry and nonprofit organizations.
Wyden had two meetings scheduled Saturday in Newport – a town hall in the afternoon and a morning roundtable at the Central Coast Food Web. But half an hour before the roundtable, Wyden’s staff got the call that he had caught Covid-19 and immediately cancelled the town hall.
“I know you have probably heard the bad news about Ron, but his staff is here to listen to us,” said Oregon Coast Food Web director Jim King.
The senator’s staff told the group that Wyden probably wouldn’t be able to talk for long because he wasn’t feeling well, but he remained on the line for an hour to hear from the group.
And there were lots of concerns.
Oregon Sea Grant has not received its full federal funding for the 2025 fiscal year that ends Sept. 30, Karina Nielson said. Without the full allocation, the Sea Grant program has a $1.2 million hole in its budget, she said. The program funds a variety of programs including safety training for fishermen and the effort to distribute free life vests.
“This is about life, health, safety and jobs,” Nielsen said.
The uncertainties of federal funding also affect education. Like most research centers, Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center is largely dependent on federal grants, said Lisa Ballance, its interim executive director.
Typically, Hatfield’s programs are funded on a one- to four-year basis and OSU is continuing to finish funded research projects and will know more when the 2026 federal budget comes out, Ballance said.
Hatfield isn’t just an extension of OSU, she said. It’s the third largest marine science center in the country, Ballance said, its oceanographic program is ranked third in the country, and it arguably has one of the most impactful marine mammal institutes.
Hatfield is also unique because of its many partnerships with NOAA, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
NOAA is expected to lay off 17 percent of its workforce next year, after firing hundreds of probationary employees across the country earlier this year.
“We are highly leveraged with our federal partners and state partners,” Ballance said. “So, as federal funding is eroding, it’s eroding everything that makes Hatfield powerful.”
Newport Mayor Jan Kaplan reiterated the city’s struggle to secure federal funding to help it replace its two Big Creek dams, which holds back the city’s water supply. Their replacement cost has ballooned to $185 million and without more state and federal support, the city is now evaluating other options.
Wyden asked the group how tariffs may be impacting local industry.
So far, for the fishing industry there isn’t much – yet. But there is concern that things could get worse if there are retaliatory tariffs. Newport is the Dungeness crab capital of the world and the busiest time for that industry is December when crab is shipped overseas for Lunar New Year, said Angela Doerr, Oregon Sea Grant and Oregon State University Extension specialist.
“A concern that has been voiced to me is that a lot of money comes from our fishing and our biggest month for Dungeness crab is December, and there have been concerns if we will see exports drop to Asia because of tariffs and retaliatory tariffs,” Doerr said.
Community leaders continued to share their concerns and issues after Wyden hung up and while his staff took notes. For some, the meeting brought a realization that they didn’t often have an opportunity to share information with each other. Kaplan invited group members to give presentations to the Newport City council.
“I think we are all a little siloed,” said Heather Mann, executive director of the Newport-based Midwater Trawlers Cooperative. “I think we need a better way that we’re all communicating on a more regular basis.”
- Shayla Escudero covers Lincoln County government, education, Newport, housing and social services for Lincoln Chronicle and can be reached at Shayla@LincolnChronicle.org
