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Friends
and Neighbors,
Our
community was changed forever on Friday May 26th, when two men lost
their lives and one was injured as they attempted to stand up to a known White
Supremacist who was verbally abusing two young women of color on the MAX with
racist and Islamophobic hate speech. These losses are tragic, and strike at the
intersections of race, religion, and discrimination that impact Oregonians
every day.
While
hate crimes are not a new phenomenon, I am increasingly concerned about the rising
magnitude and blatant nature of hateful actions, language, and violence that we
have been experiencing in Oregon and across the country. As we mourn the men
we have lost and the women for whom they spoke up for, we must work together to
celebrate the values of acceptance, support, and bravery that they embody.
If
we don’t act now, Oregon students face more budget cuts to schools, community
colleges and universities. The Oregon Education Investment Initiative (OEII)
will allow our state to invest in the education system our kids deserve. The
details are still in flux, but the proposal in its current state would raise
over $2 billion dollars in revenue – with 75% dedicated to education -- using a
broad base and a low rate to reform the state’s business tax structure.
With
the OEII, we can bring down class sizes, add weeks to the school years and
offer programs, like technical and vocational education, that were cut during
the recession. Crucially, the OEII will invest in proven strategies to improve
Oregon’s graduation rates. Read more about the OEII and pledge
your support here!
Other proposals have been suggested, and I am extremely supportive of bringing forward revenue reform, in its strongest form possible, this session.
My
bill, HB 2131 passed out of the Rules committee on May 25th and is
now being considered in the Joint Ways & Means committee for budgeting
purposes. After the derailment in Mosier, it became all too clear that Oregon
needs further resources at its disposal to protect our citizens and environment
from the dangers of transporting oil by rail. Mosier could have been far worse,
and for the future safety of Oregonians it is essential to have the
comprehensive planning, training, and safety procedures in place like the ones
outlined in HB 2131.
House
Bill 2004 has passed out of the Senate Committee and will be heading to the
floor shortly. The bill has been amended somewhat, and the changes are detailed
in the -9 amendments. While I am disappointed that the amendment has
removed the opportunity to implement rent stabilization and other techniques to
push back against the affordable housing crisis, I still believe that it is a
good bill that will provide important protections for tenants.
The
Education Subcommittee of Ways and Means is beginning to work through the
budgeting process in earnest, now that we have had the final May revenue
forecast. It is my sincere hope that we will have further revenue to invest in
education, but at the moment we have announced a $8.2 billion budget for the State
School Fund. The legislature is constitutionally required to balance the state
budget by July 10, and school districts need some level of certainty in order
to move forward in their budgeting processes. As a parent of two kids in
Portland Public schools, I will keep working hard every day to pass a balanced
plan that will contain costs, reform our revenue structure, and allow for
greater investments in school funding.
In the Committee on Joint Tax Reform, I told a representative from the Oregon Business Plan that Oregon's students cannot wait another biennium. They deserve investment now, and we have thoughtful plans that can work. Check out this video of my comments! (It was my birthday, hence the tiara)
The
Transportation Package Bill, HB 2017, has been put forward in the Joint
Committee for Transportation Preservation and Modernization. We are finalizing
details of the bill and I am working to make it a sustainable, equitable, and
comprehensive approach to congestion relief. I believe that the Clean Fuels and
Safe Routes to School program are essential aspects of the future of Oregon’s
transportation, and I am working hard to protect and support them both.
 I
am hosting an East County Revenue Town Hall this Saturday 6/10 from 2-3:30pm at
Centennial High School in the community room. Please bring neighbors, friends, and children (there
will be coloring), and come hear updates about the budget and share your
thoughts with me and Rep. Diego Hernandez, Rep. Jeff Reardon, Rep. Janelle Bynum, Senator Monroe, and Rep. Carla Piluso. Hope to see you
there!
Follow my page on FB, and RSVP for the event here: https://www.facebook.com/BarbaraSmithWarnerForOregon
 Representative Barbara Smith Warner
House District 45
email: Rep.BarbaraSmithWarner@oregonlegislature.gov I phone: 503-986-1445
address: 900 Court St NE, H-275, Salem, OR 97301
website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/smithwarner
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