Oregon license plate money, meant for endangered salmon, instead funds Salem bureaucrat's salary

Oregon introduced the salmon license plate in the late 1990s as a way for drivers to help fish recovery efforts. One state agency, the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, is now using the money for staff salaries instead. (Oregon DMV)

Spend a little more to put an Oregon salmon license plate on your vehicle, and your money is supposed to directly benefit the iconic fish.

One state agency promised to use the money exclusively to undo roadblocks impairing salmon streams across Oregon. Culverts, the drains that carry creeks beneath roads, frequently stop salmon migration to rearing habitat.

But that promise is being broken, The Oregonian found.

Since 2013, the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board hasn't spent a cent of salmon plate money on fixing road impacts.

Instead, drivers have paid the salary and office expenses of OWEB's small grants administrator in Salem. Drivers are also set to pay for a $150,000 website improvement to make it possible to apply online for grants from OWEB, another project that won't retrofit a single culvert.

Across Oregon, nearly 32,000 people have salmon plates on their cars and trucks. They pay an extra $30 every two years to buy or renew them. When the plate was created in .... http://www.oregonlive.com/environment/index.ssf/2014/12/oregon_license_plate_money_mea.html