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Greetings from Salem!
This was an important week at the Legislature, as Tuesday was a deadline for legislation to either move forward or to fail this legislative session. Tuesday’s deadline comes mid-session, so lawmakers can let go of bills that don’t have enough support, and then we focus on the ones that remain. There are two main ways to save a bill, either have a committee send it to the floor for a vote, or have the bill referred to the Rules, Revenue or Ways and Means committee.
Here is the status of several of the bills I am sponsoring:
SB 808 Oregon Resilience Plan 2.0 dealing with Human Service response following a disaster, has been referred to the Ways and Means committee with a “Do Pass” recommendation from the House Veterans and Emergency Preparedness committee.
SB 85 Authorizing local governments to implement programs to facilitate retrofitting of buildings with seismic upgrades, was unanimously approved in the House Veterans and Emergency Preparedness committee and is awaiting a House floor vote.
HB 3042 Establishing April 14th as the day to honor Oregon Artists passed unanimously on the House floor and now is in the Senate Rules committee.
SJM 9 Directs Congress to appropriate money to monitor and prevent the spread of quagga and zebra mussel aquatic invasive species in the Pacific Northwest was approved on the Senate side and is now in the House Agriculture and Natural Resources committee.
HB 2270 Establishes the position of Resilience Policy Advisor in the Governor’s office, and was approved in the House Veterans and Emergency Preparedness Committee and is in the Ways and Means committee.
HB 2818 Oregon Volunteer Firefighters Association Tax Check-off was approved in the House Veterans and Emergency Preparedness Committee and has been assigned to the House Revenue committee.
HB 2187 Requires the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to consider ocean energy when planning for regional transmission. I carried this bill on the House floor on Wednesday where it was approved 57-1, and now moves to the Senate.
HCR 25 Shirley Kalkhoven’s Memorial bill was unanimously approved in the House Rules committee this week and I will carry this bill on the House floor in early May.
SB 93 Allows for 90 day prescription medicine reimbursement for chronic medical conditions. This was proposed for emergency preparedness needs, so people will have much needed medical supplies when a disaster strikes. The bill has had a public hearing and work session in the Senate Health committee and awaiting transfer to the Senate Floor.
I’m feeling positive that most of this legislation will continue through the legislative process. The other bills I introduced this session, I either withdrew, or worked with my colleagues to merge them into other legislation.
On Monday, Seaside visitors Steve Wright, Dennis Brophy and Jay Barber spent a “Day at the Oregon State Capitol” with me. They won the “Day at the Oregon Capitol” prize at the Sunset Empire Parks and Recreation District’s A Sweet Affaire fundraiser in February. My Seaside visitors had lunch in the Capitol Café, toured the building and then climbed the Capitol dome stairs to the Golden Pioneer atop the building.
On Wednesday, I was able to take a tour of the site of a new Veteran’s Resource Center and shelter in Salem. Elan Lambert of Westcare Oregon is taking on this ambitious project, renovating a former nursing home into a resource center and program facility that will house 30 veterans. There is a lot of work ahead, but volunteer work parties and dedicated staff like Ellen are making this happen. The Resource Center will be open in July, and the shelter facilities by this fall. I’m hoping that this effort will become a model we can employ back in the district in the future.
 Rep Boone, Elan Lambert, and Bella
Back in the district, the Emergency Volunteer Corps of Nehalem Bay will hold their Annual meeting on Monday April 27th from 3 to 5pm. This year’s featured speaker is George Priest of the Department of Geology and Minerals. George is known as the agency’s guru of all things Tsunami, and will share information that is specifically focused on Oregon’s north coast region, and North Tillamook County. George is prepared to talk about the estimated time between a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake and the resulting tsunami, areas of concern due to land slides or liquification, and what to do if you are fishing in a boat during an earthquake. The Emergency Volunteer Corps has also developed their 2015-16 strategic goals and will share that information, Monday afternoon at the Pine Grove Community House on Laneda Avenue in Manzanita.
The Clatsop Community College Marine and Environmental Research and Training Station (MERTS) Campus will hold an open house Friday May 1st from 3 to 6pm at 6540 Liberty Lane in Astoria. Tours of the MERTS Campus, their training vessel M/V Forerunner, the Fire Safety House, as well as displays from the Air National Guard and National Guard will be on hand. There will be activities for all ages, demonstrations, vendor displays and free hotdogs and hamburgers from 4:30 to 6pm. Clatsop Community College’s specialized facilities and programs of the MERTS Campus have earned the designation of Oregon’s Maritime Training College.
In order to best represent my district, I need to hear about your concerns. My door is always open to constituents from House District 32, and I enjoy meeting with friends and neighbors when they visit Salem. My office has moved to the fourth floor, I’m now in H-481. If you are planning to visit the Capitol, let my office know a few days in advance so we can schedule an appointment. If you have a concern or comment about a state agency or legislation under consideration, you can write, phone or email my office.
If you are interested in the legislative process, you can learn all about the Oregon Legislature, follow proposed bills, and watch committee meetings and floor sessions live, by accessing the Oregon Legislative Information System via the following link:
https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/citizen_engagement/Pages/Legislative-Video.aspx
It is my privilege to represent you in the Oregon House of Representatives and I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Deborah Boone
email: Rep.DeborahBoone@state.or.us I phone: 503-986-1432
address: 900 Court St NE, H-481, Salem, OR, 97301
website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/boone
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