VAAC Report June 2018 by Oregon Department of Veterans' Affairs

Air Force Tech. Sgt. Derek Smiling holds a U.S. flag before a National Police Week opening ceremony at Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., May 14, 2018. The base flew the flag throughout the week to honor military and civilian police who lost their lives in the line of duty. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Kathryn R.C. Reaves

JUNE 12, 2018

REPORT TO THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE

ADVISORY COMMITTEE June 12, 2018 ADVISORY COMMITTEE Tony García, Chair .............................................................................................Portland Kim Douthit, Vice Chair ....................................................................................Portland Mike Jones, Secretary ....................................................................................... Ontario Dennis Guthrie ................................................................................................ Redmond John F. Howard ................................................................................................ Medford Reyn Leno ................................................................................................. Grand Ronde Rosy Macias .......................................................................................................... Salem Val Valfre, Jr .……………………………………….....................................................Forest Grove Vacant Position ...............................................................................................................

ODVA STAFF Mitchel Sparks......................................................................................... Acting Director Martha-Estela Garcia ................................................... Special Assistant to the Director Laurie Skillman ...............................................................................Senior Policy Advisor Bruce Shriver ................................................................................ Chief Financial Officer Sheronne Blasi ........................................... Statewide Veteran Services Acting Director Ana Potter .................................................................... Aging Veteran Services Director Kelly Breshears.…………………………………….……Aging Veteran Services Assistant Director Nicole Hoeft ........................................................................... Communications Director Cody Cox ........................................................ Veteran’s Home Loan Program Manager John Haytas .................................................................... Information Services Manager John Osborn .......................................................... Facilities and Construction Manager Julie Owens ......................................................................... Human Resources Manager

ADVISORY COMMITTEE Quarterly Meeting Agenda Tuesday, June 12, 2018 | 9:30 AM – 12:00 PM Sunridge Inn & Resort / 1 Sunridge Ln, Baker City, OR 97814 I. WELCOME AND ADMINISTRATION • Call to Order – Chair Tony García • Pledge of Allegiance – Chair García • Committee Member Introductions • Meeting Rules – Kim Douthit • Audience Introductions • Review and Approval of March 7, 2018 Minutes II. ODVA DIRECTOR’S REPORT – Mitch Sparks III. SUBCOMMITTEES UPDATES – ODVA Staff • Finance – Bruce Shriver • Statewide Veteran Services – Sheronne Blasi • Home Loans Program – Cody Cox • Aging Veteran Services – Kelly Breshears • Legislative Affairs and Policy – Laurie Skillman **********************************BREAK************************************* IV. Committee Work Update of By-Laws Establish members of Sub-Committees and how the Sub-Committees will work V. OLD BUSINESS ITEMS VI. NEW BUSINESS • Committee Elections • Meeting Locations for 2019: December – Marion County, Salem March – Curry County, Brookings June – Wallowa County, Enterprise September – Clatsop County, Seaside • Open for Committee Members • Next Advisory Committee Quarterly Meeting: Date: Wednesday, September 5, 2018 | Time: 9:30 AM – 12:00 PM Location: Holiday Inn Express, 375 W. Harvard Blvd, Roseburg OR 97470

VII. PUBLIC COMMENT (Speakers Limited to 3 Minutes) Public comment time is set aside for persons wishing to address the Advisory Committee on agenda matters. Action will not be taken at this meeting on citizen comments. However, the Advisory Committee, after hearing from interested citizens, may place items on a future agenda so proper notice may be given to all interested parties. At the conclusion of the meeting, there will be a Town Hall forum for individuals to bring up broader veteran community issues. Members of the community may also submit written public comments to the Committee at the following email address: vaac@odva.state.or.us VIII. BUSINESS MEETING ADJOURNED OPEN FORUM

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The Following Pages include the March 7, 2018 Meeting Minutes for Advisory Committee Approval

ADVISORY COMMITTEE Quarterly Meeting Agenda Wednesday, March 7, 2018 | 9:30 AM – 12:00 PM 4Spirits Distillery / 3405 SW Deschutes Street, Corvallis OR 97333 Chair Tony García called the meeting to order at 9:30 AM. A moment of silence was taken for Linda Campbell who had recently passed. Committee Members Present - Introductions: Tony García - Portland, US Army John Howard – Medford, US Navy, former legislative assistant to Congressman Walden Val Valfre – Forest Grove, US Air Force Dennis Guthrie – Redmond, US Army Kim Douthit – Portland, USCG, Multnomah County VSO, Navy spouse Reyn Leno – Grand Ronde, US Marine Corps Rosy Macías – Salem, US Marine Corps Mitch Sparks – US Navy, Acting Director ODVA Martha García – Special Assistant to the Director, ODVA, US Army Members Absent: Mike Jones – Ontario, US Army Meeting Rules: Kim Douthit, Secretary, reviewed the rules of Advisory Committee public meetings for those in attendance. Audience Introductions: Sheronne Blasi – US Navy, ODVA Assistant Director Statewide Veterans Services Shannon Compton – US Army & ORARNG, Transition Assistance Advisor Meloni Beauchamp – US Army, Military One Source Andy Smith – US Navy, Association of Oregon Counties Laurie Skillman – ODVA, Policy & Legislative Affairs Ana Potter – ODVA, Director Aging Veterans Services Kelly Breshears – ODVA, Deputy Director Aging Veterans Services Kevin Dial – US Army, AUSA Van Moore – VCCO/Westcare Kelly Odegaard – Oregon Veterans Home, Lebanon Jeremy Woodall – US Army Reserves, ODVA, Oregon Veterans Home Program Manager Bruce Shriver – ODVA, Chief Financial Officer Jay Lillie – US Marine Corps, Marine Corps League Coordinating Council, Portland

Andrew Holbert – US Marine Corps, WOU Director Veterans Services Kyle Hatch – US Marine Corps, Samaritan Veterans Outreach Ralph Priest – US Army Joshua Stork – US Army Mark Whitney – US Army, ESGR, OSU Veterans Advisory Committee, USO Richard Phelps – US Army Derral Hunt – US Marine Corps, Vets Helping Vets HQ, Marine Corps League Bernie Pasqualini – US Navy, Vets Helping Vets HQ Jerry Glessman – US Army, AUSA Chris Tenney – US Marine Corps, Walking Point Farms Frank Wasson – US Army, MOPH Jaya Conserlapham – Linn Benton CC contract employee William Elfring – US Army, Military Resource Advisor Oregon State University James Reith – US Army, ESGR John Maine – US Army, American Legion Post #10 Riders Charlie McCarthy – US Navy, American Legion Post #10 Riders Dawson Officer – US Army, 4 Spirits Distillery Cody Cox – ODVA Home Loans Review and Approval of December 6, 2017 Meeting Minutes : A motion was made to accept the minutes with edits, motion seconded, and motion passed. Director’s Report – Mitch Sparks, Acting Director ODVA Mitch started by saying that the 79th Legislation was in session and that the conclusion of the 2017 session was successful in generating many new program and partnership initiatives. With these new partnerships and initiatives, it brought over more focus on implementing budget and policy efforts for the benefit of the veteran community. He also went on to speak on the leadership changes that ODVA had experienced at the same time that Cameron Smith was taking on a new role at DCBS. Sheronne Blasi came on staff in October and is currently the Acting Director of Statewide Veterans Services while Mitch fills the agency director role. Mary Jaeger moved on and Ana Potter took her place as Director of Aging Veterans Services in March. ODVA also had other new hires in key program areas. ODVA Staff Updates: Statewide Veterans Services – Sheronne Blasi, Assistant Director Statewide Veterans Services Sheronne shared the following from her submitted report: • Portland office was in training with the Federal VA on the new Rapid Appeals Process • Marion County VSO’s are in training with the Salem office • Pat McGuffin to fully transition over to Incarcerated Veterans, with an additional person to be added to that program area

• • • • • • •

Bob Small to fully transition over to Campus Veterans & Education, working with the community colleges and universities in the state A third trainer will be added to ODVA’s training team The Oregon Women Veterans Conference occurs every two years; this year will be happening in Sunriver The Highly Rural Transportation Grant is closing in on reaching one million miles driven Emergency Assistance Grant average grant was $1,413.00 Just renewed the contract with Lines for Life Money for Suicide Prevention that comes to ODVA through charitable contributions is going to be distributed to counties to leverage locally for their own Suicide Prevention program in September

Home Loans – Cody Cox, Home Loans Manager Cody reviewed his submitted report. His highlights included: • Calendar year 2017 was a record-breaking year for ODVA, funding over $74 million in home loans • Average home loans amount at $264,598 • Delinquency ratios are very low – only one state-owned home in inventory • In 2018 funding was dedicated to upgrade the system used in Home Loans. The original system will be upgraded. • Our new employee, Taisheka Broom will be working payoffs, conveyances, and transfers. Aging Veteran Services – Kelly Breshears, Assistant Director Aging Veteran Services Kelly provided a brief review of her submitted report that included the following highlights: • There is currently two positions being recruited • Lebanon Home was full during the time of the report • 3rd Annual Spring Fling, Saturday April 14th at the Lebanon Home, includes a car show • The Dalles was in the last steps of completing Charlie Wing, picking out paint colors Finance – Bruce Shriver, Chief Financial Officer Bruce reviewed his submitted report and included the following highlights: • H.R. 1 was not enacted into Federal Law • Federal grant application process is underway to request funding for construction grants to facilitate upgrades to the two Veterans Homes • The process for developing the 2019-2020 budget has started • A RFP for interested parties to operate the Veterans Homes has been publicized. Legislative Affairs and Policy – Laurie Skillman, Legislative and Policy Advisor Laurie reviewed her submitted report and included the following highlights:

• • • •

A list of the schools and dollar amount of the grants awarded were provided as a handout. The composition of the Veteran Services Grant Committee was shared with everyone Lines for Life was awarded the RFP for Suicide Prevention Review of the Legislative Short Session was given

Presentation: Campus Veterans Grants – Laurie Skillman Laurie gave an overview of the Campus Veterans Grant by going over the list of the schools that were awardees of the grant. She invited Jaya Conserlapham from Linn Benton Community College, William Elfring from Oregon State University, and Andrew Holbert from Western Oregon University to speak about their programs that were funded by the grant money they received. • One of the things that Linn Benton was able to do with their grant money was to bring on a Veteran Resource Coordinator. • Oregon State University was able to get new tables, ergonomic chairs, and new computers for their veteran center; an interactive, self-paced program that teaches the faculty and other students about the veteran community; and professional development training for the Military Resource Advisors. • Western Oregon University was able to do a similar renovation that OSU did to their veteran center and a campus veteran’s culture program, and launch a veterans advisory board. Old Business: New Business: • Open for Committee Members From Chair García: • Gift for Former ODVA Director Smith • Mike Jones will be resigning from the Advisory Committee • There is a Social the night before the meeting - all are invited • By-Laws need to be reviewed • Next Advisory Committee Quarterly Meeting: Date: Wednesday, June 6, 2018 | Time: 9:30 AM – 12:00 PM Location: La Grande, OR (Changed to Tuesday, June 12, 2018 | Time: 9:30 AM – 12:00 PM Location: Sunridge Inn & Resort, 1 Sunridge Ln, Baker City OR) Public Comment: None Chair García - Thank you to Dawson Officer for hosting our meeting at 4 Spirits. Meeting adjourned at 1230. 8

The Following Pages Includes Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Meeting Reports

ODVA DIRECTOR’S REPORT Mitch Sparks

One year following the largest funding boost to Oregon veteran services, ODVA has been in the thick of the intensive work involved in implementing new programs, developing and awarding grants, growing partnerships and remaining committed and involved in community outreach and awareness. This is also the time of year that much of our work for the 2019-21 budget and 2019 Legislative Session begins to ensure ongoing funding for key veteran programs and further investments into successful veteran initiatives. Through the budget and legislative processes, and the veteran community’s advocacy, the new and supplemental investments to better serve Oregon’s veterans and their families has been highly successful - particularly investments for veteran services and veterans housing efforts. ODVA has been working closely with Oregon Health Authority and Oregon Housing and Community Services on many key initiatives including the start of a veteran behavioral health study, the launch of a pilot program for veteran peer support, and community based solutions to address homelessness. Even as our leadership has shifted slightly, major efforts have remained constant in our partnership efforts. Partners, with ODVA input and guidance, are delivering relieve and solutions to some of the most challenging veterans issues that we have faced in Oregon. In April, we began transitioning our Salem office Veteran Services Officers into new roles. Beginning June 4, Marion County will take on all claim work for local veterans. Following Polk County’s transition last year, Marion’s commitment to serving veterans in their community solidified all 36 counties in Oregon as having local support for veteran benefits and advocacy. We will continue to work with Marion County leadership and veteran services office through this transition to ensure its ongoing success for the more than 24,000 Marion County veterans that have relied on ODVA’s Statewide Veteran Services. Heading into the 2019-21 budget development cycle, we will continue to emphasize focused investments in veteran services and continued partnership opportunities to leverage existing resources and fill gaps in veteran services, veterans’ housing and student veteran supports. We also understand that in order to continue to meet our goals and directives for veteran services going forward, we must continue to align ODVA staff and resources into training, administrative functions claims review, appeals and statewide outreach. The ODVA team has worked incredibly hard this past year. We have identified some key resources that are needed to continue to implement new programs and support the future efforts of veteran service work in Oregon. Please take the time to read through the other key program updates that follow and our team looks forward to seeing you all in September!

FINANCIAL SERVICES DIVISION

Bruce Shriver, Chief Financial Officer

Legislative Actions From the 2018 Oregon State Legislature Session Impacting the Department’s 2017-2019 Biennial Budget During the 2018 Oregon Legislative Session, House Bill 4038 was passed which provided the Department with approximately $137,000 in additional Lottery Fund expenditure authority for a new position (and its related services and supplies costs) to help provide services to incarcerated veterans. This new position will augment the services currently provided on a part time basis to the incarcerated veteran population by an existing veteran service officer. The Department also received an additional $500,000 in Federal Funds expenditure authority for the transportation of veterans in highly rural areas. Ten Oregon counties are considered to be highly rural and eligible to receive up to $50,000 in federal grant funds under a program from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (USDVA). The USDVA is expected to renew this grant program next year and if it approves the Department’s grant application, the $500,000 of additional expenditure authority will allow this program to operate throughout the second year of the biennium. The Department requested and received approval from the Oregon State Legislature, to apply for USDVA construction grants to facilitate physical plant upgrades for the State Veteran Homes in The Dalles, Oregon and in Lebanon, Oregon. If these grant requests are ultimately approved and funded by the USDVA, the two federal grants will provide approximately $6.3 million of Federal Funds for facility upgrades. State matching funds from Department resources consisting of approximately $3.4 million Other Funds would also be utilized in the facility upgrades. The Legislature approved the additional expenditure authority totaling approximately $9.7 million for these projects to proceed once USDVA grant approvals are received. The Department anticipates completing the grant applications no later than August 2018 and receiving federal grant funding in either calendar year 2019 or 2020. The Department also received expenditure limitation increases consisting of approximately $188,000 in General Funds, $206,000 in Lottery Funds and $209,000 in Other Funds.to pay for employee costs resulting from bargaining agreements and other budgetary adjustments.

FY 2018 Unaudited Quarterly Financial Statements The December 31, 2017 unaudited quarterly financial statements show an overall decrease in net position in the Veterans’ Loan Program of approximately ($2.4) million for the first six months of fiscal year 2018. The same period for the prior fiscal year showed an overall decrease in net position of approximately ($2.1) million. The current fiscal year reductions in net position are primarily attributable to increased bond related expenses and a reduction in other fees and charges revenue. The Veterans’ Home Program unaudited quarterly financial statements show an overall increase in net position of approximately $0.9 million for the first six months of fiscal year 2018, compared to an increase in net position of approximately $2.3 million for the same period of the prior fiscal year. Included in these figures were transfers and capital contributions into the Veterans’ Home Program 13

FINANCIAL SERVICES DIVISION

Bruce Shriver, Chief Financial Officer from the Veterans’ Home Trust Fund and federal grant monies which totaled approximately $0.0 million and $0.2 million respectively in fiscal years 2018 and 2017. The Changes in Net Position for both the Veterans’ Loan Program and Veterans’ Home Program are shown in comparative form in the graph below.

Other Financial Services Division Activities: Over the past several months, the Financial Services team worked on budget development activities relating to the 2019-2021 Agency Request Budget, contracting & procurement efforts, processed federal grant reimbursements, conducted post-issuance bond compliance activities, exercised early bond redemptions, coordinating an internal audit review, set up the appropriate funds/tracking needed for veteran service related lottery monies and performed other related financial activities as needed.

STATEWIDE VETERAN SERVICES Sheronne Blasi, Acting Director

PROGRAMS Statewide Veteran Services, Salem Office—Pat McGuffin, Manager In preparation of supporting their own veteran services office, Marion County has been training their two veteran service officers and office support staff at ODVA. The county office will open in their new location June 4. During this quarter, 175 new claims were filed for Marion County veterans. Statewide Veteran Services, Portland Office—Martin Ornelas, Manager During the quarter, SVS Portland staff attended 97 Travel Board and Video hearings and 59 DRO hearings, and reviewed 3,861 Ratings Board decisions. They have filled the long-standing administrative vacancies and are processing hundreds of Power of Attorney letters each week, and working hard to stay current with scanning and uploading documents issued in response to veteran claims. Training, Certification and Outreach—Gus Bedwell and Joe Glover, Program Analysts This quarter, Gus and Joe led three Introductory, four Regional, and two targeted county training sessions. They led three VA education benefits seminars at Dept. of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST), two training sessions for service organizations, and one Oregon National Guard assistance training session. They were able to test a new service officer for accreditation and two new service officers were evaluated with a milestone exam, which will lead to their eventual accreditation. Success story: A veteran was discharged from the military due to her sexual orientation in 1979. In 1983 she applied to have her discharge upgraded and was denied. ODVA’s training and certification officers, in partnership with her local federal representative, applied for disability and healthcare seeking to overturn this. Through these collaborative efforts she is now receiving disability and healthcare, and received a retroactive payment of $30,000. Women Veterans Coordinator—Liz Estabrooks, Program Analyst This quarter has been filled with activities for Liz. Screenings of the Lioness movie, exhibits of the I Am Not Invisible display, offering instruction for two classes of introductory Veteran Service Officer training, participating in or leading veteran focus groups and listening sessions, regular meetings with VA staff, and meeting with individual veterans who have reached out to her for assistance with attaining benefits and care are but a few examples. Success story: This quarter was also spent heavily involved in preparation for the tenth Oregon Women Veterans’ Conference in Bend. Liz and the team did an outstanding job of attaining corporate sponsorships for the event, which eased the department’s financial outlay for a quality event, hosting nearly 400 women veterans from across Oregon. The feedback on breakout sessions, vendors, location, and speakers has been very positive.

STATEWIDE VETERAN SERVICES Sheronne Blasi, Acting Director

LGBTQ Veteran Coordinator—Nathaniel Boehme, Program Analyst Nathaniel participated and led events and trainings with more than one hundred different community providers to include a first-ever ODVA-led workgroup for LGBTQ veterans at the National LGBTQ Taskforce’s Creating Change Conference, the world’s largest gathering of its kind. Nathaniel continued with ongoing support to the LGBTQ veteran and service member community through a variety of services to include provision of direct service to over thirty veterans. This came in the form of support groups, VSO claims work, and military records corrections. Success story: One particular Vietnam veteran who originally had difficulty, was able to file a presumptive claim for their diabetes and was awarded a “life-changing” service-connection. Incarcerated Veterans—Pat McGuffin, Program Analyst In addition to leading the transition from Salem ODVA VSO work to Marion County, Pat completed eight facility visits and verified the veteran status of 184 inmates. Success story: Pat was contacted by the Oregon Department of Corrections concerning an incarcerated veteran releasing in two weeks with a pressing need for medical care following major surgery and facing homelessness. First look indicated veteran was not eligible for VA healthcare or transition assistance. Pat reached out to the VA re-entry social worker who was able to determine the veteran was previously enrolled in VA Healthcare and still eligible for healthcare and transition assistance. Pat scheduled an appointment to meet with the stillincarcerated veteran and complete the VA-required applications the next day and provided those documents to the re-entry social worker who enrolled the veteran in VA HealthCare and began identifying possible housing options. Campus Veteran Coordinator—Bob Small, Program Analyst During the first quarter of the Campus Grant program, $160,512 was spent on various projects, including construction/ renovation for new Veteran Resource Centers (VRCs), supplies and furnishings for the VRCs, and special student veteran events. Bob visited three campuses, and consulted with numerous other campus veteran programs. Once more of the program resources are deployed, we expect additional increase in veteran student enrollment and engagement across all of the campuses. Success stories: three Veteran Resource Centers were opened this quarter (Chemeketa CC, Rogue CC, and Southwestern Oregon CC). Klamath Community College reported a 5% increase for veteran students this last term (Spring 2018), due to outreach efforts from the new part time Veteran Outreach Coordinator.

STATEWIDE VETERAN SERVICES Sheronne Blasi, Acting Director

Grants Management Emergency Financial Assistance Third Quarter 2017-18 (January – March): 30 applications for grants were received, with eight of those approved for a total of $12,857. The average grant was $1,607. Most approved grants are for mortgage/rent and utility payments. Success story: Veteran lost her job at age 64, and was forced to seek employment at 1/3 the previous rate. Disabled daughter and ten year old grandson live with her, and she provides what assistance she can to her 89 year old mother with end stage lung cancer. During the very challenging winter months the veteran requested assistance with payment of heating oil bill. She was able to budget for remaining items, but heating oil costs soar during cold weather months however, this grant helped to keep the family warm. Highly Rural Transportation Grant Ten highly rural counties are receiving assistance transporting veterans to VA medical appointments. The grant has been a successful cooperative arrangement between USDVA, ODVA, and rural counties and their transportation entities. Success story: the fourth year of the grant has begun, and during this quarter participating counties achieved the milestone of one million total miles driven! It is the creativity and dedication of these county and transportation districts that has made this program such a success. Campus Veteran Grants – please see above regarding projects and monitoring. ***Note*** – SB 143 (2017) requires, NLT September 15, 2018, the Veterans’ Affairs Advisory Committee to review and consider the grant programs, including quarterly reports submitted by the grant recipients and the report prepared by ODVA, and report to the interim legislative committees relating to veterans. The Committee shall evaluate the merits of the grant programs, how grants were awarded to community colleges and public universities and how grant funds were used by grant recipients. Statewide Veteran Services Grants The 10 selected grants have been awarded and instructions on quarterly monitoring reports have been provided to grantees. It is our intention to visit each grantee over the course of the grant period to learn more about their innovative programs for serving veterans. The first monitoring reports are due July 31, 2018. Lines for Life Lines for Life provides 24 hour phone and text services to at-risk veterans and their families. For the period January 1 – March 31, 2018, 885 calls from 21 identified counties were logged. The calls had an average wait time of 33 seconds, and the average duration of a call was 16.2

STATEWIDE VETERAN SERVICES Sheronne Blasi, Acting Director

minutes. Referrals were given to 37% of the callers for mental health appointments, drug and alcohol treatment, and assistance with the VA. Emergency services were notified for sixteen calls this quarter. Veteran Suicide Awareness and Prevention Funds This year we are offering funds of approximately $4,200 to interested counties for activities relating to Veteran suicide prevention and awareness. We have encouraged the counties to consider joining ODVA in recognizing September 22nd, in reference to 22 veteran suicides a day. Counties have until June 15, 2018 to submit plans for how they intend to use the funds. Funds will be distributed early July. Additional Information â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) - Lottery funds for veteran homelessness Using Lottery funds, OHCS is hiring a Homeless Veteran Integrator to assist local communities to engage key stakeholders (veterans, veteran service providers, landlords, housing providers, etc.) to develop partnerships designed to leverage and align resources creating streamlined homeless veteran service delivery systems with share performance metrics. An additional investment of Lottery funds ($760,000) were awarded to the 2017-18 NOFA for the development of permanent housing for homeless or at-risk of homelessness veterans. The Veteranâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Project Advisory Committee (that ODVA participates in) is currently determining the best way to deploy Lottery funds ($150,000) for community technical assistance and consultation (creating a by-name list system). OHCS and ODVA are again partnering to host the 2nd Homeless Veteran Convening. The event will be held in Salem on June 14 and 15. The purpose of the convening is to highlight existing best practices, share resources, and train practitioners on serving homeless veterans in Oregon with the goal of effectively ending veteran homelessness. Oregon Health Authority (OHA) - $2.5M budget note for veteransâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; behavioral health services OHA has selected a contractor to perform a study on Veteran Behavioral Health Services Improvement, Needs Assessment, and Recommendations. Comprehensive study is to be completed by the end of 2018, and reported to the 2019 legislative assembly. OHA also intends to hire a Veteran Behavioral Health Care Liaison, and is considering funding a pilot project for veteran peer-to-peer support, and fund the development and deployment of training for behavioral health clinicians on risk assessment, treatment and management of veterans at risk of suicide.

Veterans’ Home Loan Program First Quarter 2018 Cody Cox , Program Manager

Production Review •

For the 1st Quarter, 2018, the Home Loan Program closed 43 loans for a gross dollar volume of $11,571,382. For the same period in 2017, the Home Loan Program funded 67 loans for $16,503,855. Funded loans for 1 QTR 2018 were slowed due to a below average origination period in 4th Qtr 2017. Our average loan amount has grown to $276,016.

•

The chart below shows a 2014 - 2018 YTD monthly production comparison of dollar volume funded for the OrVet Home Loan program. $10,000,000 $9,000,000 $8,000,000 $7,000,000 $6,000,000 $5,000,000 $4,000,000 $3,000,000 $2,000,000 $1,000,000 $-

•

2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

At the end of the 1st Quarter 2018, ODVA has a total of 1,851 loans in portfolio, with a total dollar amount under servicing of $310,409,196. Of these, 1,530 units and $299,495,875 are new loans. Old loans were at 301 units totaling $10,913,321. At the end of the 1st Quarter 2017, the ODVA had a total of 1,849 for $2814,853,050 under servicing, with 1,447 units at $268,090,497 as new loans and 402 units at $13,762,553 were Old Loans. Our loan servicing portfolio has grown 1st Quarter over 1st Quarter by $28,556,146 (or 10.13%).

Loan Delinquency Review • • • •

For the reporting period of 03/31/20148, there was 2 State Owned Properties/Real Estate Owned (SOP/REO) in inventory, an increase of one from the previous quarter. There were 5 loans in a Foreclosure status, unchanged from the last report date. At the end of 1st QTR 2018, ODVA has 2 loans in a bankruptcy status. The total of all loans reporting in the 90-day or greater delinquency position was at 14, expressed as 0.8% unit delinquency on a portfolio of 1,853 loans and at 0.3% per dollar amount under portfolio.

Veterans’ Home Loan Program First Quarter 2018 Cody Cox , Program Manager

•

ODVA continues to experience reduced delinquency rates as compared to other Government Residential Loan Programs. The Mortgage Bankers Association publishes a quarterly National Delinquency Survey and the following represents Oregon specific comparative data from the most recently available First Quarter 2018 report. The delinquency rate expressed as a percentage of total loans (units) past due for the Federal Veterans Affairs home loan program in Oregon was 2.09%, FHA home loans in Oregon were at 4.73 % and Conventional Prime home loans Oregon were at 1.81%. For this reporting period, the total delinquency for the ODVA home loan program was 1.5% at 28 units, down 2 units from the previous report.

Quarterly Staffing News •

No changes to staff during 1st QTR 2018.

AGING VETERANS’ SERVICES

Ana Potter, Director Kelly Breshears, Assistant Director Aging Veteran Services sponsored the Stronger Together Conference. This conference brought together professionals who work to prevent, protect and investigate abuse in both Washington and Oregon. The RFP for the homes is in process. Ana Potter and AVS staff have visited both homes a couple of times, including when Sen. Merkley toured Lebanon and when staff from the Governor’s office toured The Dalles. She has been asked to be a member of the Behavioral Health Advisory Council and the Older Adult and People with Disabilities Advisory Council. Aging Veteran Outreach Kelly Breshears presented information on VA caregiver support programs and ODVA’s Aging Veteran Services prgrams at the 2nd annual Aging in Rural Oregon conference put together by the OHSU Office of Rural Health. Veteran Volunteer On March 1 Jacade Hanson, the Veteran Volunteer Coordinator, left the agency. Interviews were performed from the original pool of applicants. Mark Newell was selected and started in the position on May 15th. Mark comes to ODVA from Oregon Dept. of Fish and Wildlife. Mark has over twenty years’ experience in working with and training volunteers. st

Conservatorship Helen Ireland, Conservatorship Manager A Trust Officer Assistant left the agency mid-March. This position has been opened for recruitment and we are still in the process of interviewing candidates for a replacement. Conservatorship currently has two temporary employees. One is temporarily filling the Trust Officer Assistant position and one is helping with the representative payee program. All staff attended a training event hosted by the Guardian Conservator Association of Oregon and Jordan Killian, the Property Manager, attended a Financial Abuse Conference.

AGING VETERANSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; SERVICES

Ana Potter, Director Kelly Breshears, Assistant Director Conservatorship and Representative Payee Demographics 3 10 5

15 31

86 41

8 12 13

121

Nursing Home

Residential Care Facility

Adult Foster Home

Assisted Living Facility

Room & Board Facility

Hospital

Independent Living

Relative Care

Incarcerated

Homeless

WWII

Korea

Vietnam

Peace Time

Gulf War

Other (non-veteran)

(Note: some veterans have served in multiple campaigns of war.)

Updates

Oregon Veteransâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Home, Lebanon Jeremy Woodall, Program Director

State and Federal Survey. The OVHL recently completed our annual CMS State Survey (inspection) in early March. The facility received six low level federal tags, two tags specific to the memory rules, and six Life Safety federal tags. All have been corrected and the facility was back in full compliance as of May 3rd. The annual Federal VA inspection occurred in mid-March. One problem related to a construction issue was identified. This is expected to be corrected in the coming weeks. Military Spouse Appreciation Event. On May 9th OVHL celebrated spouses of veterans with a lovely meal and live music to thank those who have honorably cared for and supported our veterans. OVHL Honor Guard. We have recently transitioned to using staff for Walkouts. The staff are thrilled to have learned the proper etiquette for this tradition and grateful for another way to honor our veteran residents. Fourth Annual Spring Fling Event. This event hosted on April 14th, was a huge success with classic cars, fun events for the kids, cookout style lunch, and a chance to dunk Jeremy in the water tank.

AGING VETERANS’ SERVICES

Ana Potter, Director Kelly Breshears, Assistant Director OVHL Demographics 2 16

43 55

39 13 2

WWII

Korea

Vietnam

Air Force

Army

Coast Guard

Peace Time

Gulf War

OIF/OEF

Marine

Navy

Spouse

(Note: some veterans have served in multiple campaigns of war/ branches, veteran of spouse (resident) not included.)

Updates:

Oregon Veterans’ Home, The Dalles Michael Springston, Program Director

Michael has passed the test is now an accredited representative for VA claims. OVHTD is in the last steps of the remodel and all major projects should be finished by the end of May. Most important is that the veterans/spouses are thrilled with all of the upgrades. OVHTD has been working with Portland News Channel 8, KGW to get a weather camera installed on top of OVHTD. The camera was installed on April 5th and is now running live on KGW. Please look for us during local news broadcasts or visit www.kgw.com/live-cameras to view the live look from our Home. Staff continue to work with our community partners such as Wasco and Hood River County. Some examples include: • The Program Director and Wasco County have spoken with the spokesperson of the local 4th of July firework show to help put a focus on Aging Veterans in our community. • Staff attended a lunch meeting on May 16th to discuss ideas to assist AVS and the local county in completing our mission to serve veterans. • The May 2nd board meeting for the Wasco County Veterans took place at the home and included a tour of the remodeled facility.

AGING VETERANS’ SERVICES

Ana Potter, Director Kelly Breshears, Assistant Director •

Staff participated in two veteran outreach events in Hood River; one for aging veteran’s benefits specifically and one was a job fair with the goal of getting veterans interested in working at OVHTD.

OVHTD census reflects 89 men and 31 women with 2 women Veterans. The average age of our residents is 80.05 years old. OVHTD Demographics

28 21

2 15

26 49

5 3

WWII

Korea

Vietnam

Air Force

Army

Coast Guard

Peace Time

Gulf War

OIF/OEF

Marine

Navy

Spouse

(Note: some veterans have served in multiple campaigns of war/ branches, veteran of spouse (resident) not included.)

Legislation, Administrative Rules and Agency Policy Laurie Skillman, Senior Policy Advisor

1. Implementation of Veteran Services Grant Fund under HB 2891: Measure 96 Funds On April 13, 2018, $550,000 in grants were awarded under the Veteran Services Grant program, established House Bill 2891 (2017). The bill specified that grants could be awarded in the amount of $25,000 - $250,000 per grant recipient. The purpose of grants is to provide outreach and services to Oregon veterans in eight basic categories: mental health, physical health, housing, employment opportunities, education and training, transportation accessibility and availability, veteran service organization providing critical services, any programs identified by VAAC. The response to the Request for Grant Proposals was overwhelming: 59 grant proposals were submitted, totaling $5,354,422. The requests for grant funds were approximately ten times the amount of the available funds. The Evaluation Committee, based on the scoring criteria for the grant proposals and a limitation of $550,000 in available funds, was able to fund 10 proposals. Two of these proposals were partially funded. The committee was only able to fund 19% of all the proposals. Unfortunately, there was not enough money to award grants to many organizations that submitted very worthy proposals. A list of grants awarded is provided as Attachment A. 2. February 2018 legislative Session Legislative sessions during even-numbered calendar years are called “short sessions” and usually last about five weeks. The 2018 Legislative Session began on February 5 and adjourned Sine Die on March 3. ODVA reviewed all bills with VAAC during the March 7, 2018 advisory committee meeting. At that time, most of the bills that passed out of the Legislature had not been signed by the Governor and, therefore, did not have an “effective date.” Attached is a report on all bills that have become law and their effective date (Attachment B). 3. Upcoming Legislative Days and 2019 Session May 21 – 23, 2018 No veterans’ issues will be addressed during House or Senate Veterans Committees; they will be focusing on Emergency Preparedness.

Legislation, Administrative Rules and Agency Policy Laurie Skillman, Senior Policy Advisor

September Legislative Days 2018 (usually mid-September) Most likely Senate confirmations of Governor appointments for an ODVA Director and any new Veterans Affairs Advisory Committee members in Senate Rules Committee, then to Senate floor for a vote.. December Legislative Days 2018 (usually mid-December) February to June 2019 2019 legislative session. Most likely begin February 1 and end in early June.

Legislation, Administrative Rules and Agency Policy Laurie Skillman, Senior Policy Advisor Attachment A

GRANTS AWARDED Proposer

Location

Purpose

Grant Award

Community Connection of NE Oregon (non-profit organization)

Baker and Union Counties

Veterans Rides to Wellness. Transportation for veterans to local medical appointments.

Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde (sovereign tribal community)

Yamhill, Polk and Marion Counties

Outreach to all veterans, including tribal and provide medical, dental and eye care. Partial funding of request.

8,688

Coos County Area Transit Service District (a component of Coos County)

Coos County - south coast

130,840

Klamath/Lake Community Action Services (non-profit organization)

Klamath and Lake Counties

35,000

Lane Council of Governments, Seniors and Disability Division (intergovernmental; assn. of local gov.) Native American Rehabilitation Association of the Northwest (non-profit organization)

Lane County

46,933

74,990

Oregon City Police Department (City government)

Oregon City

26,664

Polk County. Family and Community Outreach Department. (County government)

Polk County

39,160

Project ABLE (non-profit organization)

Marion, Polk, Yamhill, Linn, Tillamook, Washington and Multnomah Co Yamhill, Columbia, Clackamas, Washington and Multnomah Co

Establish shuttle service for veterans between Coos County and Roseburg VA hospital. Partial funding of request Emergency housing for veterans/families awaiting rehousing/permanent. Plus job training/SOAR program. Transportation. Case management for veteranâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s access/use of community services/benefits; develop action plan, assist on applications. Outreach and case management for Native American/Alaska Indian homeless veterans address health/mental health care, housing. First responder for veteran homelessness prevention and assistance. Rental assistance, job training assistance. Provide homeless veterans meals, stable transitional housing, laundry, shower, connection to veteran service organizations Train veterans as veteran-specific Peer Support Specialists to support veterans with behavioral health issues

87,725

Provide full legal services to veterans with a focus on issues of economic stability and housing security

50,000

St. Andrew Legal Clinic (non-profit organization)

Greater Portland

Total Grant Awards

50,000

550,000

Activity Report Report Date: May 14, 2018 Bill #

Division / Position

Division / Priority

Last Three Actions

Next Hearing

HB 4007 EN L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 4/18/2018 - Chapter 109, (2018 Reviewed Bills: 1 Laws): Effective date June 2, M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 2018. Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 4/13/2018 - Governor signed. S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 3/13/2018 - President signed. Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Permits individual to create first-time home buyer savings account with financial institution to pay or reimburse account holder's eligible costs for first-time purchase of single family residence. 1/25/2018 Eff: June 2, 2018. ODVA NOTE: Bill includes Document Recording Fee (DRF) increase from $20 to $60. 25% of DRF goes to to veterans housing/homelessness. $40 increase = $30.5 million additional generated 2017-19 for housing/homelessness admin. by Housing /Community Services Dept.. (OHCS). $15.9 million in OF expenditure limitation and 6 positions (2.34 FTE) for OHCS budget . B. Small/Education 4/11/2018 - Chapter 53, (2018 HB 4035 EN B. Small/Education Issues: Not Reviewed Issues: 1 Laws): Effective date April 3, L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 2018. Reviewed Bills: 1 4/3/2018 - Governor signed. M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 3/13/2018 - President signed. Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Requires Higher Education Coordinating Commission to provide grants to qualified members of Oregon National Guard to attend community colleges or public universities. 1/25/2018 Eff: Emergency claause: when Gov signs. ODVA NOTE: Provides 100% tuition assistance for up to 90 credit hours at a CC and up to 180 hours at a public university. $2.5 in tuition assistance and some funds to HECC for implementation, total costs $2.7 million. Applicants for assistance must apply for and use all other available grants first. HB 4038 EN L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 4/18/2018 - Chapter 91, (2018 Reviewed Bills: 1 Laws): Effective date April 10, M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 2018. Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 4/10/2018 - Governor signed. S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 3/13/2018 - President signed. Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Directs Director of Veterans' Affairs to study progress of establishment of Roseburg Oregon Veterans' Home. 1/25/2018 Eff: when Gov. signs. ODVA NOTE: ODVA incarcerated veteran VSO, cost of $136,351 2018-19. Bill includes: o ODVA shall study progress of Roseburg Vet Home and report to Legislature in September 2018 o Prohibits sale/destruction of military medals by Dept. State Lands;.permits delivery to certain custodians. o Directs Director of Veteransâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Affairs to identify potential sites for veteransâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; cemeteries. o Establishes program to provide outreach and assistance to incarcerated veterans o Rep Evans amendment: vet preference in employment for service connected disabled vet receiivng VA comp

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Activity Report Report Date: May 14, 2018 Bill #

Division / Position

Division / Priority

Last Three Actions

Next Hearing

B. Small/Education 3/26/2018 - Chapter 30, (2018 HB 4098 EN B. Small/Education Issues: Not Reviewed Issues: 1 Laws): Effective date June 2, L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 2018. Reviewed Bills: 1 3/16/2018 - Governor signed. M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 3/3/2018 - President signed. Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Directs Department of Veterans' Affairs to develop written material regarding apprenticeship opportunities and provide material to certain agencies, county veterans' service officers and veterans' organizations for distribution to veterans. 1/26/2018 Eff: June 2, 2018. ODVA NOTE: ODVA worked with Rep Meek (sponsor) re: implementation. Concept from Building Trades Council. Pacific NW Carpenters Union supports. All stakeholders and HECC , will provide input on materials. HB 4129 EN K.Breshears/Cons: Not K.Breshears/Cons: 4/11/2018 - Chapter 61, (2018 Reviewed 2 Laws): Effective date April 3, L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 2018. Reviewed Bills: 2 4/3/2018 - Governor signed. S. Blasi/SVS: Not S. Blasi/SVS: 2 3/8/2018 - President signed. Reviewed Tracked Bill : 2 Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Allows Health Licensing Office to issue residential care facility administrator license to qualified applicant. HCR 202 EN L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 3/3/2018 - Filed with Secretary of Reviewed Bills: 1 State. M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 3/3/2018 - President signed. Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 3/2/2018 - Speaker signed. S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Recognizes and honors First Lieutenant Frederick E. Pokorney, Jr., for his service to his country. 3/5/2018 ODVA NOTE: First Lieutenant Pokorney (1971-2003) was a United States Marine from Corvallis who was KIA in Iraq. Awarded the Silver Star posthumously for his “conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action against the enemy” and his display of “courage under fire during the engagement through rapid decision-making and confident actions.” HCR 205 EN L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 3/3/2018 - Filed with Secretary of Reviewed Bills: 1 State. M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 3/3/2018 - President signed. Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 3/2/2018 - Speaker signed. S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Recognizes and honors Private First Class Brice M. Scott (1988-2011) for his service to his country. 3/5/2018 ODVA NOTE: Private First Class Brice M. Scott ( 1988-2011) was born in Eugene, Oregon and joined the United States Army. PFC Scott was KIA in Afghanistan in 2011. 5/14/2018 - Page: 2 29

Activity Report Report Date: May 14, 2018 Bill #

Division / Position

Division / Priority

Last Three Actions

Next Hearing

HCR 209 EN L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 3/3/2018 - Filed with Secretary of Reviewed Bills: 1 State. M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 3/3/2018 - President signed. Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 3/2/2018 - Speaker signed. S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Recognizes and honors Lance Corporal Bryan Pahl Bertrand (1978-2002) for his service to his country. 3/5/2018 ODVA NOTE: Lance Corporal Bertrand (1978-2002) was a United States Marine and was born and raised in Coos Bay, Oregon. Lance Corporal Bertrand died when the KC-130 he was flying in crashed near Shamsi Airfield in Pakistan. Lance Corporal Bertrand was Oregon’s first military death in the war against terrorism. SB 1506 EN L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 4/11/2018 - Effective date, April 3, Reviewed Bills: 1 2018. M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 4/11/2018 - Chapter 69, 2018 Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 Laws. S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 4/3/2018 - Governor signed. Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Directs Department of Transportation to issue Oregon Wounded Warrior parking permits to qualified applicants. 3/5/2018 Eff: when Gov signs, but operative date is jan 1, 2019. ODVA NOTE: Creates a “Oregon Wounded Warrior” parking permit for honorably discharged veterans with a service-connected disability of at least 50%,. Permit will allow the holder to park for free in metered and time-limited public parking spaces. The measure takes effect upon passage. The Oregon Department of Transportation is required to begin issuing the new permits on January 1, 2019 SB 1517 EN L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 4/17/2018 - Effective date, Reviewed Bills: 1 January 1, 2019. M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 4/17/2018 - Chapter 100, 2018 Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 Laws. S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 4/10/2018 - Governor signed. Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Authorizes State Department of Fish and Wildlife to annually issue limited number of big game hunting tags without charge to nonprofit organizations for use by veterans qualifying as disabled veterans. 3/5/2018 Eff: jan 1, 2019. ODVA NOTE: Dept. of Fish and Wildlife Director may issue big game tags free of charge to organizations for use by disabled veterans (as defined in ORS 408.225) . Tags issued must be for black bear, deer, elk or pronghorn antelope. Department may issue up to 20 tags each season; and not more than 5 to one organization. An organization is limited to two tags for black bear annually.

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Activity Report Report Date: May 14, 2018 Bill #

Division / Position

Division / Priority

Last Three Actions

Next Hearing

SB 1548 EN L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 3/29/2018 - Effective date, March Reviewed Bills: 1 16, 2018. M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 3/29/2018 - Chapter 042, 2018 Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 Laws. S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 3/16/2018 - Governor signed. Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Designates June 27 as Oregon Post-Traumatic Stress Injury Awareness Day. 3/5/2018 Eff: when Gov signs. ODVA NOTE: Establishes June as Oregonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Post-Traumatic Stress Injury Awareness Month. Establishes June 27th as Oregon PTSD Awareness Day. Urges OHA, ODVA and OMD continue working on educating victims of trauma about the causes, symptoms, and treatment of post-traumatic stress injury. Declares emergency, effective upon passage. SB 1557 EN L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 4/11/2018 - Effective date, April 3, Reviewed Bills: 1 2018. M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 4/11/2018 - Chapter 82, 2018 Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 Laws. S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 4/3/2018 - Governor signed. Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Requires community colleges, public universities and Oregon Health and Science University to provide certain rights to students ordered to federal or state active duty for 30 or fewer consecutive days. 3/5/2018 Eff: when Gov signs. ODVA NOTE: Allows students at community colleges, public universities, or OHSU who are ordered to active duty for 30 days or fewer to complete missing assignments or exams in accordance with policies and practices for excused absences, allows teachers to award grades without requiring students to complete assignments or exams, and prevents missed assignments or exams that are completed after the student's return from adversely impacting the student's grades. Allows HECC to adopt rules relating to scholarships and grants funded by the Office of Student Access and Completion. Applies to students ordered to active duty after the beginning of the 2018-2019 academic year. Declares emergency, effective on passage. SCR 204 EN L. Skillman/Vet Bills: Not L. Skillman/Vet 3/6/2018 - Filed With Secretary of Reviewed Bills: 1 State. M. Sparks: Not M. Sparks: 1 3/6/2018 - Speaker signed. Reviewed S. Blasi/SVS: 1 3/3/2018 - President signed. S. Blasi/SVS: Not Tracked Bill : 1 Reviewed Tracked Bill : Not Reviewed Recognizes and honors Sergeant Sean Patrick Fennerty and Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jonathan Shelby Gibson for their service to their country. 3/5/2018 ODVA NOTE: Sergeant Sean Patrick Fennerty (1981-2007), lived in Portland, Oregon and served in the United States Army. He was KIA in iraq in 2007 and posthumously awarded a Purple Heart and Bronze Star. Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jonathan Shelby Gibson (1981-20013), lived in Aurora, Oregon and joined the United States Navy. Chief Warrant Officer Gibson was deployed to the Middle East and died when his helicopter crashed while trying to land aboard the USS William P. Lawrence in heavy seas.

5/14/2018 - Page: 4 31

FACILITIES AND CONSTRUCTION John Osborn, Program Manager

THE DALLES VETERANS’ HOME The interior renovation of the home is substantially complete. Currently the contractor is working on completing the punch list items and as built documents. The general contractor (LMC Construction) has done an excellent job working with the operator to moving residents with as little disruption as possible and complete the work four months earlier than we had anticipated.

LEBANON VETERANS’ HOME The ITB for the parking lot is now out for bid. This project will provide an additional 120 parking spaces on the property next to the home for the home’s staff and volunteers. When this parking area is put into service, it will free up spaces at and around the home for visitors and family member of our residents. The anticipated start of construction is the end of June and completion by the first of October.

Future Grants The 2018 construction grants for the 2019 grant cycle have been submitted. The next submission to USDVA will be completed by the end of June which will place Oregon in the position to receive funding for the 2019 grant awards. The Dalles grant will involve replacing the roof, redesigning the soffit to siding connections; redevelop the garden area between C & D wings, and various interior and exterior items. The Lebanon grant will further develop the area west of the new parking lot adding a storage building and additional staff offices. In addition, an activity room will be built off the existing D-wing spine similar to the one constructed at The Dalles Veterans Home. ODVA Building It has been more than a decade since the ODVA building interior has been remodeled. We are working on the final design for upgrading the interiors of the building. This will include new carpet, flooring, paint, and casework. We are redesigning the lobby to create a more welcoming atmosphere. In addition, we will consolidate all sections of Veteran Services into the first floor for improved customer service. We anticipate beginning work by the fall of 2018.

COMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION SERVICES Nicole Hoeft, Director

Communications ODVA Communications continues to support agency initiatives and general messaging regarding state and federal benefits and legislation. Higher profile event planning, staffing and support is ongoing including the 2018 Veteran Benefit Expo, Women Veteran Conference planning, Breaking the Silence documentary viewings across the state. Ongoing activities include continued web development, blog content, Veterans News Magazine and general veteran community happenings communication.

Information Services Information Services continues to support core operations and maintain resources for application development and support for current systems while continuing work to form a project team to implement new Conservatorship and Home Loans solutions. Security planning is ongoing and involves the development of an information security implementation plan and a business continuity and disaster recovery plan. Ongoing projects include continued coordination with OSCIO, consolidation of agency-wide multi-function printing and scanning and the evaluation of Mobile Device Management solutions and video surveillance solutions.

Records and Information Management Records is working with State Archives to finalize the agency’s updated retention schedule and implement a new records management policy. As the result of an Executive Order, the state has developed new guidelines and policy to ensure transparency across government. The team is also working to get the new records management system, which meets the federal requirements for official electronic records, documented as the “official record” of the agency. This change will enable ODVA to no longer keep paper copy documents, lessening the need for physical space management.