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If you're having trouble viewing this message, please visit my legislative web page at http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/prozanski/, click on "News" in the lower left-hand column and scroll down.
Dear friends,
Yesterday, Governor Brown announced that she was putting on hold for seven days all county applications for further reopening, including Multnomah County's application to move into Phase I, due to a noticeable increase in COVID-19 infections in Oregon over the past week. This one-week pause is intended to give public health experts time to assess what factors are driving the spread of the virus and determine if we need to adjust our approach to reopening. This should serve as a reminder to all of us of the need to remain vigilant: maintaining six feet of social distancing, wearing a mask in public, washing hands frequently and isolating at home if we feel sick.
On June 5, the Legislature's Emergency Board met remotely for the second time during the COVID-19 pandemic to approve around $232 million in funding for Oregon's response to economic fallout. You can watch the meeting and view materials at: https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2019I1/Committees/EB/2020-04-23-10-00/Agenda. Here's an outline of the funding:
- $75 million to support rental assistance, affordable housing and mortgage payment assistance
- $10 million in additional support to the Oregon Worker Relief Fund, which supports Oregonians who are not otherwise eligible for unemployment insurance like farmworkers
- $15 million to support individuals having difficulty paying their utilities
- $4 million to support survivors of domestic violence
- $25 million to bolster behavioral health for Oregonians statewide
- $3 million to provide assistance to minority-owned businesses
- $50 million in hospital grants
- $30 million in support for childcare providers
- $20 million to support broadband connections (with a rural focus) for schools, healthcare providers and businesses
Below you will find information on:
- Latest Oregon COVID-19 Infection Data
- Planning for Next School Year
- Scam Alert: Scammers Filing Unemployment Claims
- Primary Resource Links
I hope this information is helpful and informative for you or someone you know. As always, feel free to share your comments, questions or concerns with me by phone, mail or e-mail.
Latest Oregon COVID-19 Infection Data
As of June 12, 2020, our state has experienced the following number of positive cases and deaths attributable to COVID-19:
- 5,076 cases in Oregon
- 161,643 people tested for COVID-19 in Oregon
- 171 deaths reported in Oregon
Planning for Next School Year
This week, the Oregon Department of Education (ODE) released its plans for the 2020-21 school year based on input from parents, school board members, educational staff, and public health experts. The "Ready Schools, Safe Learners" guidance is available here.
ODE's plans include flexibility for individual school boards to develop strategies that work for them, protecting students and workers while adjusting to local conditions. Some schools may choose to begin the fall continuing to use remote learning entirely, while others may choose to return to face-to-face entirely, and others may choose a hybrid combination of the two. As long as districts are protecting health while assuring that all students have the means to succeed, they will have the flexibility to create plans that work for them. Districts (including private schools and public charter schools) need to submit plans to the state by August 15.
Scam Alert: Scammers Filing Unemployment Claims
Oregon's Attorney General is warning Oregonians that scammers may be taking advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to file claims for unemployment benefits using the names and personal information of people who have not filed claims. Oregonians may only learn about the fraud when they get a notice from the Employment Department (OED) or their employer about their supposed application for benefits. This even happened to State Representative Janeen Sollman, who received a letter saying her application had been denied, when she had never applied in the first place!
If this happens to you, there are four steps you can take to help you protect your finances and your credit:
- Report the fraud to the Oregon Employment Department online at www.workinginoregon.org.
- Report the fraud to your employer.
- Visit www.IdentityTheft.gov to report the fraud to the FTC and get help with the next important recovery steps. These include placing a free, one-year fraud alert on your credit, getting your free credit reports, and closing any fraudulent accounts opened in your name.
- Review your credit reports often. For the next year, you can check your reports for errors every week for free through www.AnnualCreditReport.com
If you do get benefits you never applied for, report it to OED. Do not respond to calls, e-mails, text messages, or messages on social media telling you to wire money, send cash, or put money on gift cards. OED will never ask you to repay money that way, and they will never ask for your personal identifying information via social media.
For more information on fraud and scams related to the COVID-19 crisis, see www.oregonconsumer.gov/COVID-19.
Primary Resource Links
Here's a list of government resources that you may find useful:
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