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Hello Friends,
We have heard from many of you regarding the contentious cap and trade legislation- on the Senate side known as SB 1530, and on the House side known as HB 4159. Most media coverage has been about SB 1530, which had a 177-amendment dropped late Wednesday evening. This amendment was then adopted without the support of Senator Olsen or Senator Findley, after several amendment motions had been made by Senator Findley that were shot down by the majority party in committee. HB 4159 also moved forward without any time given toward the bill, and without time allowed for public testimony to the House Committee on Rules. Co-chair Bonham vocalized his frustration with this decision, and the minority party left the hearing without voting due to disagreement and frustration with the process. The majority party continues to push theoretical and experimental policy forward despite significant public concern, without a fiscal and economic analysis, and against the will of thousands of Oregonians- including the hundreds of residents from District 10 that have called and emailed my office.
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I thought long and hard on what my one priority bill would be this session, looking for one that would bring our district together, support families, reduce trauma, and restore funding to a proven program. It was exciting to introduce SB 1558 in the Senate Committee on General Government and Emergency Preparedness. We had overwhelming support from Marion and Polk County stakeholders and elected officials that represent area residents. This is a bill Representative Piluso and I co-sponsored last session that died when we tried to expand its reach. So, this session we simplified the legislation to restore Court Care to Marion and Polk Counties based on results of prior work. The program provides child care with partners like Family Building Blocks so parents don't have to bring their children into the courtroom for their hearings, or to file to get restraining orders in domestic violence cases. It has strong bi-partisan support, and sailed through committee unanimously.
Co-sponsored by Representative Drazan and myself, this legislation was drafted after I met with a family in the fall of 2018 whose daughter was the victim of bullying in a local school. Although the parents were eventually notified, they had not previously discovered the severity of the assault- a concussion, until it went viral on a Facebook video feed. Representative Drazan and I drafted the legislation for the 2019 session, but it failed to advance, so we decided to bring it back for the short session. Although school districts have policy and protocol in place regarding bullying, HB 4149 is a straight forward bill which amends ORS 339.356, the school district policy that prohibits harassment, intimidation, bullying, or cyberbullying, and would require that parents be notified immediately if the student is physically harmed, and within a reasonable period of time even if they are not physically harmed. It passed out of the House Committee on Education and will now head to House Rules Committee
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email: Sen.DenycBoles@oregonlegislature.gov I phone: 503-986-1710
address: 900 Court St NE, S-301, Salem, OR 97301
website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/boles
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