By Friday, Umatilla County will have two full-time employees in its veterans services office in Pendleton — double what it had before — and more services are coming to Hermiston. But the county may have to rely on state help for months to file and check on veteran claims.

About a month ago the county hired Stan Getz as a full-time veteran services officer, and more recently brought on Glenn Scott as a second full-time officer. He starts Friday. Both men live in Pendleton, county human resources director Doug Olsen said, and both are veterans.

Their hires, though, mean the county laid off Peggy Raines and Calista Winnett. Raines worked for years as the services officer, then retired and stayed on. But she could not work more than 1,040 hours a year without affecting her retirement benefits. And last Friday the county laid off Winnett, who worked part time as an aid in the veterans office for the past seven years. She was not a veteran, Olsen said, and that was a key hiring preference for the positions.

Raines and Winnett, though, had the vital accreditation that allowed them to file disability claims for veterans and help vets understand services available to them. Neither Getz nor Scott have that qualification, which can take months to achieve.

The East Oregonian was not able to contact Raines and Winnett declined to talk on the record.

Umatilla County Commissioner George Murdock said the lack of certification is not a concern. He said the Oregon Department of Veteran Services reassured the county its officers will bridge the gap and make for a smooth transition.

“There isn’t going to be anybody that doesn’t get what they need,” Murdock asserted.

Just how that could work, though, remains a question. Olsen said the county has not had to rely on the state yet and they are not sure how fluid that process will prove.

Pendleton resident Denise Null said she did not buy the county’s reasoning. Her husband uses county veteran services, she said, but now she worries he and others may have to go to Walla Walla or the Tri-Cities, Washington, or Portland for help with claims. Recent reports also show the Department of Veterans Affairs is a mess on a national scale, and some offices lied about how long it took to help vets. The agency has a huge backlog of claims, Null said, and the county’s reorganization could mean local vets will be waiting far too long to hear back on claims.

She called the county’s actions a disservice to vets.

Murdock said that is just what the county is seeking to avoid. The county worked with the state veterans office and the Association of Oregon Counties, he said, to craft a long-term solution to providing an “ideal model” for vet services. Two full-time officers expands what the county can do, he said, and allows the county to bring services at least once a week in Hermiston, where need has increased.

“All three commissioners have a high regard for vets,” Murdock said. “We think in the long run our expansion will better serve them.”

The county in March also advertised its veterans services on one billboard each in Pendleton, Hermiston and Milton-Freewater. Murdock said “a fairly low percent of vets” get the full scope of services they earned, and the county aims to rectify that. Olsen said the billboards are paying off with more vets seeking services from the county.

The county is paying $325 a month for a year to have the illuminated billboard in Pendleton, Olsen said, but he did not have costs for the other two immediately available.