A voluntary merger may still be on the horizon for the Union-Baker Education Service District.

The Umatilla-Morrow Education Service District Board is indicating

it is still interested in participating in a merger involving the

Union-Baker ESD. This news comes after a voluntary merger plan

involving the Union-Baker, Umatilla-Morrow and Malheur ESDs recently

collapsed.

The plan would have split the Union-Baker ESD. It called for the

U-BESD’s Union County portion to join the Umatilla-Morrow ESD and its

Baker County area to consolidate with the Malheur ESD.

The plan died April 2 when the Malheur ESD Board voted to pull out. The board did so after Malheur County residents complained that the merger would have placed an unfair tax burden on their side of the county line.

Merger hopes were revived Wednesday at a Umatilla-Morrow ESD Board work session. The board indicated via consensus at the meeting that it was interested in exploring a voluntary merger with both Union and Baker counties.

“We still believe a voluntary merger is in the best interest of the students of Eastern Oregon,” said Umatilla-Morrow ESD Superintendent Mark Mulvihill in a press release. “We’re not done; we’re going to shift gears and dig in and get back to work on finding the best and most efficient ways to serve our kids.”

Union-Baker ESD Superintendent Mike Sowder is encouraged by the news.

“A merger is still possible,” Sowder said.

The Umatilla-Morrow ESD Board will vote Wednesday on whether to pursue consolidation. Should it vote to proceed, the Union-Baker ESD Board will decide at its Thursday meeting whether to seek a merger with the Umatilla-Morrow ESD.

Should both boards formally agree to seek a merger the wheels of transition will quickly be put in motion. A timeline would be created and a petition would be sent to the Oregon Department of Education. The ODE would then conduct public hearings on the proposed merger. Next the State Board of Education would vote on it.

Assuming there are no glitches, Sowder hopes that approval of a voluntary merger would be received soon. A transition year would then begin and the new consolidated ESD, which might be known as the InterMountain ESD, would be operating in about 12 months.

Elections for InterMountain ESD board positions would likely be conducted in November. The board members’ terms would not start until July 1, 2011, but Sowder said it would be important to have to have the future board chosen eight months early. This would allow the “board-elect” to guide the transition process.

There is a sense of urgency at the U-BESD regarding a merger for two primary reasons:

andbull; the Union-Baker ESD is financially strapped and hardpressed to provide adequate funding for educational services.

andbull; the state may soon mandate consolidation of ESDs throughout Oregon. This is a real possibility because a bill was introduced in the 2009 Legislature calling consolidation of ESDs throughout the state. It died at the end of the session but there is a strong sense that legislators will seriously consider another consolidation bill in the near future.

Sowder believes a voluntary merger would be far preferable to one dictated by the state. The superintendent explained that the needs of local ESDs would be better met under a voluntary consolidation plan.