I would like to thank our veterans who have served our nation and endured unimaginable dangers, and yet overcome. The sacrifice you and your family have made deserves our utmost respect and honor. To support you, I carried the Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs budget, Senate Bill 5539, on the Senate floor yesterday. Passing unanimously, the budget will soon be voted on in the House. The Department of Veterans’ Affairs facilitates home loans, training, and a veterans’ suicide intervention telephone hotline.

Toxic chemicals pose serious health risks, ranging from learning disabilities to cancer. However, companies are allowed to sell kids' products which include known hazards, like arsenic, formaldehyde, mercury, and phthalates. Children are especially sensitive to these dangerous chemicals. Senate Bill 478A, the Toxic Free Kids Act, would require the Oregon Health Authority to maintain a list of chemicals of high concern for children’s health, and require manufactures to disclose and in some cases, eliminate or reduce their use in children’s products. It passed out of the Joint Ways and Means Human Resources Subcommittee on today and I will soon have the opportunity to support it in the full Ways and Means Committee and on the Senate floor. I love kids and am really excited to see this bill move forward to protect our children’s health and safety.  

After working tirelessly for months, the Joint Senate and House Marijuana Committee passed legislation Monday that will help Oregon implement Measure 91 in a reasonable and compassionate way. House Bill 3400 creates a $20 patient card for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and allows caregivers to continue to make tinctures and other types of concentrates for their patients. Additionally, counties and cities which voted against Measure 91 by at least 55% can prohibit marijuana growers, processors, and dispensaries in their area. 

With the highest funding levels ever, the higher education budget (House Bill 5024) passed out of the Ways and Means Education Subcommittee, which I chair, on Tuesday. It signals a dramatic shift from the drought conditions universities and community colleges endured during the recession. A 30 percent funding increase from last year, universities will receive $665 million. Likewise community college funding will increase by 20 percent, totaling $550 million. This funding boost will enable Oregon universities and community colleges to keep tuition costs from rising substantially, while bolstering their career technical training and maintaining high quality education. Additionally, sports lottery funds will be used to support smaller universities’ women’s sports programs.

Campus debit card companies often charge students excessive fees in order to access their financial aid. These fees include a $0.50 debit card transaction fee and a $2.50 fee for every time it is used at an ATM that is not operated by the contracting company. The Student Debit Card Fairness Act encourages student debit card competition, transparency, and prohibits swipe and inactivity fees. I carried House Bill 2832 on the Oregon Senate floor on Tuesday. Watch my speech. 

Four of the five most dangerous Oregon interceptions are in Portland. In my district, 82nd and SE Causey Ave had 80 traffic crashes in 2013, resulting in 41 injuries and one death. House Bill 2621, in the Joint Ways and Means Public Safety Committee, will allow the City of Portland to operate at its own cost a fixed photo radar system in locations where the crash rate is 25 percent higher than similar highways and the city has determined speeding has a negative impact on that area's safety. Warning signs precede the photo radar. This is an important public safety measure to save lives. Thank you, Representative Jeff Reardon from Happy Valley/East Portland, for sponsoring this legislation.

For some individuals, gambling can be problematic and potentially an addition. On June 9th, I carried House Bill 3318 which establishes the "Oregon State Lottery Responsible Gambling Code of Practices", outlining a variety of approaches to address problem gambling. It passed unanimously and is awaiting Governor Brown's signature. 

Thank you for coming to my town hall. I really appreciated the opportunity to hear about how I can help address the problems that face our community. I always enjoy hearing your thoughts or the opportunity to address issues you face. Keep in touch with my office by following my Twitter @SenatorMonroe, my Facebook page, by emailing us at Sen.RodMonroe@state.or.us, or calling us at the State Capitol, at (503) 986-1724.