Siuslaw News Letters to the Editor

(Editor’s Note: Viewpoint submissions on these and other topics are always welcome as part of our goal to encourage community discussion and exchange of perspectives.)

Supply Chain Issues

Impacting Central

Lincoln P.U.D.

Like utilities nationwide, Central Lincoln Public Utility District is being greatly challenged by supply chain delays, material shortages and massive cost increases for materials delivered. Demand for electrical supplies is robust, while transportation bottlenecks and raw material constraints are causing us significant concern over our ability to meet construction timelines. As we address these issues, Central Lincoln will strive to maintain supply levels to meet customer needs, while still maintaining emergency inventories.

We’ve all seen supply chain issues impact many aspects of life today. In some cases, lead times for Central Lincoln have increased sixfold in the last two years when we’ve placed orders for materials. For example, new residential transformers typically took four months for delivery prior to the pandemic, and now they take between one year to 20 months to arrive.

Costs for materials are also soaring — transformers that were $2,500 two years ago are now $15,000 each and is continuing to increase. This is not an exaggeration.

We were pleased to learn in June that the Defense Production Act has been invoked to boost the production of transformers. That’s an important step, but the material shortages also extend to equipment beyond transformers and we don’t expect the situation to be fixed quickly.

We appreciate our customers’ patience and understanding, and we will do our best to continue to meet their needs in a timely fashion; however, many of these delays are beyond our control. We will continue to be clear about our challenges with regard to supplies, and will work closely with our customers and suppliers to handle these difficult times together. We ask that builders and construction companies give us as much advance notice as possible about their upcoming projects, and for their consideration in this unprecedented time.

Thank you — Ty Hillebrand, P.E.,General Manager, Central Lincoln P.U.D.

An Issue for the States

Once in a generation the earth’s surface moves.

Roe vs. Wade, that unconstitutional 1973 Supreme Court decision, is now swept away by present Constitutionalists in black robes. The nation is now free to practice democratic speech, allowing local legislatures to actually discuss pros and cons of this issue at the state, not national level, where the 10th Amendment rules.

Maybe, just maybe, common sense morality and good ethical behavior will be enshrined and justified by a Supreme Court that will practice jurisprudence by the Framers of our Constitutions’ original understanding. That understanding is this: if it ain’t there, it’s the states!

May God bless America the Beautiful.

Joel Marks — Florence

On Guns

When does our nation say enough is enough when it comes to gun violence?

When does our nation stop producing, selling and disallowing individuals to purchase or own tactical weapons?

When does our nation require an individual to go through an extensive background check before purchasing a weapon?

When do we stop states like Texas from selling guns to teenagers?

When do we start, as individuals, seeing private posts on social media and reporting them to law enforcement?

Gun control should not be a state’s right but a national mandate and law.

The Second Amendment was not written to bear arms to slaughter children and until we have national legislation and laws passed, we will still have the likes of the NRA and their sick philosophy.

Win Jolley — Florence