Rep. Greg Walden powers up in The Dalles

Rep. Greg Walden, 63, of Oregon's Second Congressional District, was in The Dalles this morning to receive an award for bird-dogging the Bonneville Power Administration for more than 30 years.

He also said he was thankful that firefighters and a good turn of weather helped curtail flames on the Mosier Creek Fire, which started on Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2020 and has been 75 percent contained. Walden, who represents people from 20 counties in central, southern, and eastern Oregon, will finish his term in January 2021 and then plans to retire. He is the top Republican on the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee. He was first elected in 1998.

Ron Holmes, president of the Northwest Public Power Association presented Rep. Greg Walden with the Homer T. Bone Award this morning, July 18, 2020, for his 30 plus years of representing the people of his district on the issue of power. During the course of his legislative career, Walden said there were times where he had to fight to keep the Bonneville Power Administration from being sold. BPA is the major player in Northwest electricity and a fundamental building block in Wasco County’s and Eastern Oregon’s economy by providing power. In good part, inexpensive power rates, for example, led the three Google server farms, to be built in The Port of The Dalles. BPA markets wholesale electrical power from 31 federal hydroelectric projects in the Northwest, one nonfederal nuclear plant and several small nonfederal power plants.