BEND, OR -- Attorneys for Deschutes County and the city of Bend struck a compromise on the wording of the explanatory statement in the March Voters' Pamphlet for the local gas tax measure. Opponents of the tax had filed a petition to change the verbiage, saying it was misleading. Deschutes County Clerk Nancy Blankenship was scheduled to hear the issue Thursday, but lawyers came to a solution prior to that hearing.

Attorney Jeff Eager represents the opponents of the tax. He tells KBND News, "At the end of the day that the explanatory statement would be modified so that it states the actual number of cities that have adopted a gas tax." He says, "The following sentence will be deleted: 'Over 20 cities in Oregon have adopted a motor vehicle fuel tax.' And, it will be replaced with the following sentence: 'Presently, 24 cities in Oregon have adopted a motor vehicle fuel tax.'"  

Eager adds that he would have liked it to say "24 out of 242 Oregon cities," but says he agreed to the compromise to avoid the expense of a hearing.