Thank you for subscribing to the Inside Deschutes County E-Newsletter! Here's what's making news across the County:

November 7 Special Election

The upcoming Nov. 7 Special Election is fast approaching. Two measures have been filed for the election.

About 37,000 voters who live in the Redmond Fire & Rescue District, the Ponderosa Pines East Special Road District and parts of the Crooked River Ranch Fire Protection District will receive a ballot.

The Deschutes County Elections Office has received the following ballot measure filings: 

• Redmond Fire & Rescue - Local Option Levy to Maintain Fire and Emergency Medical Services
• Ponderosa Pines East Special Road District – Five Year Local Option Tax for General Operations

The Jefferson County Elections Office received a measure for the Crooked River Ranch Fire Protection District. Some residents who live in this district are Deschutes County residents.

Property Tax Statements

Deschutes County 2023-2024 Property Tax statements were mailed Oct. 20, 2023, or if you signed up for e-notice statements, an emailed statement was sent in lieu of a mailed statement. Tax payments are due by Nov. 15, 2023. There are three payment options listed on your tax statement:

• Pay in Full - Pay in full by Nov. 15 and receive a 3% discount, if received by the Tax Office or postmarked no later than Nov. 15, 2023.
• Pay 2/3 - Pay 2/3 by Nov. 15 and receive a 2% discount.
• Installment Payments - You may pay your property taxes in three installments. No discounts for installment payments.

9-1-1 Employees Recognized

On October 4, the Oregon Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials hosted an awards banquet at the Riverhouse in Bend to recognize 9-1-1 Public Safety Dispatchers and Administrators for the jobs they do.

In the first picture we recognize our first, first responders who answered the calls during the Safeway shooting in September of 2022 in Bend. From left to right Michael, Ashley, Sara, AJ, Tina , Krista, and Jenny.

In the second picture, Megan Craig is receiving the Oregon APCO Manager of the Year award. Megan serves on the APCO awards committee that selects the state-wide winners each year and the committee was able to keep the award a secret from Megan until the awards banquet.

Congratulations to all!

Medical Reserve Corps Re-launched

Deschutes County has re-launched the Medical Reserve Corps.

A number of volunteers joined members of DCHS Public Health Emergency Preparedness and DCSO Emergency Management to discuss the new mission and goals for the unit.

DCMRC aims to protect the health and safety of our communities through maintaining a pool of medical and non-medical volunteers that are trained, passionate and ready to respond when health-related crises, emergencies and/or natural disasters occur.

Sen. Wyden Visit

This month, Sen. Ron Wyden met with representatives of Deschutes County, Bend-La Pine Schools, and Bend Senior High School including students, to discuss the Healthy Schools program.

Healthy Schools is a partnership between the school district and Deschutes County Health Services to promote positive youth development. The goal is to prevent student health issues from starting or growing worse and to improve student health and academic outcomes.

Healthy Schools embeds Public Health Specialists from the County into the school system to provide essential public health services.

Episodes 10 and 11 of the Inside Deschutes County podcast are now live.

In Episode 10, we talked to Dr. Richard Fawcett and Emily Horton from Public Health to discuss the respiratory virus season and changes to COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

In Episode 11, we talked to Deschutes County Clerk Steve Dennison about the upcoming Special Election.



You can listen to both episodes at deschutes.org/podcast or wherever you listen to your podcasts.

Apple: https://apple.co/3JALtYB

Google: https://bit.ly/3LC8BqZ

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3FptmlX

Amazon Music: https://amzn.to/40uM6bC

Website: deschutes.org/podcast

Employee Spotlight: Jeff Sageser

Passion can be defined as a strong liking or devotion to some activity, object or concept. For Jeff Sageser, his passion is preserving the connection to Deschutes County’s past. Sageser has spent almost the past 25 years as the Recording Supervisor in the Deschutes County Clerk’s Office helping the community find a bit of their history. 

“Back in the day when people rode on their horse and there was only one streetlight in Redmond and Bend and nothing in La Pine and Sisters,” says Sageser. “We didn’t have the infrastructure of government as you see today.”

Many of the records that were produced back then found their way to the Clerk’s Office for preservation. 

“With over 100 years of the County being in existence, the prior clerks did a phenomenal job in the preservation of those records, “says Sageser.

Residents of Deschutes County would be proud to learn the county’s historical records, most notably its land records and marriage licenses, were well maintained.

These days, the Clerk’s Office mainly deals recording real property records, issuing marriage licenses, accepting passport applications and archiving County Commissioners proceedings. However, it didn’t used to be that way.

The Deschutes County archives go back to 1871. It possesses other documents such as incorporation records, chiropractor licenses, records on farms names and even military discharges. 

75 percent of documents received by the County Clerk’s Office are sent digitally, a process that started in 2011. The Deschutes County Clerk’s Office was the first Oregon county to place its land records as well as accept marriage applications online.

But transitioning to digital has its drawbacks.

“The technology is a tool that allows us to keep up with the activity and do things very efficiently. What you lose is, there’s nothing to replace the picking up of old dusty books and seeing the handwriting.”

Most of the archived indexes and documents are in cursive. Sageser believes it might be difficult for today’s digital generation to decipher them in the future. 

 “You will lose history and you will not find those relationships that took place in the past. You lose a connection to the community you call home,” says Sageser.

But until then, Sageser, will continue his passion for protecting and preserving Deschutes County’s past. 

***If you would like to visit the Clerk’s Records Research Room, please visit this link.***

We're hiring!

We know where you choose to live, work and play matters. Deschutes County is one of the largest employers in Central Oregon and the largest municipal government in the region. Our dedicated and passionate workforce of more than 1,200 employees provide County services in a number of departments, divisions, and offices. 

Located in the heart of Central Oregon, between the towering Cascade Mountain Range to the west and the high desert plateau to the east, Deschutes County is the outdoor recreation capital of Oregon. We enjoy a renowned quality of life, with big-city opportunities and small-town neighborhoods.

We hope you’ll consider joining our talented team!

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