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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
We are heading into colder temperatures with sobering case data. We are now averaging more than 500 new cases per day in Oregon. This summer we came together as a state, and protected ourselves and our communities by limiting our contacts and keeping our activities outside and with masks. We can do that again, by thinking carefully about the risks of our activities and taking all the mitigating actions possible. I encourage everyone to ask yourself 4 questions whenever you are making plans: Who is involved? Where will you be? How close will you be to others? How long will you be around people from outside your household? Together we will make it through these challenges! Thank you for everything you are already doing!
 
New Developments
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COVID-19 Temporary Leave: The COVID-19 Temporary Paid Leave Program is available to people who need to quarantine or isolate because of COVID-19 exposure or are experiencing symptoms and need to get a medical diagnosis. The program is for people who do not qualify for COVID-19-related paid sick leave or access to COVID-19-related paid time off.
- Additional qualifications include confirmations that the applicant is:
- Working in a business or at a job site in Oregon at the time of application;
- Expected to earn less than $60,000 individually or $120,000 jointly in 2020;
- Not able to work (including telework) because of the need to quarantine or isolate;
- Not seeking or using benefits from similar COVID-19 quarantine relief programs, unemployment insurance, or workers’ compensation in Oregon or another state;
- Not seeking or using other forms of employer-provided paid for the same time period;
- Not laid off or furloughed at the time of application; and
- Has notified their employer of the need to quarantine or isolate.
- Qualified workers will receive a $120 per-day payment for up to 10 working days ($1,200 total), for the time they need to quarantine or isolate. Because the available funds are limited, the program is available only to quarantine periods that were in place on or after Sept. 16. Applicants can claim only one quarantine period.
- Similar to the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), self-employed Oregonians do not qualify for benefits.
- For more information or to apply, go to oregon.gov/covidpaidleave, or call 833-685-0850 (toll-free) or 503-947-0130 between 7:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. The website also has an eligibility quiz (available in English, Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese, and Simplified Chinese) to help people who are not sure if they qualify.
- The online application is available in English, Spanish, and Russian. Those who do not have access to the internet can call 833-685-0850 (toll-free) or 503-947-0130. Those who need help in another language can call 503-947-0131, with additional information available at dcbspage.org/FFE7U
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Washington County Small Business Grants: The Washington County Board of Commissioners is providing another round of grants to small businesses. They are partnering with Micro Enterprise Services of Oregon (MESO) to distribute the grants.
- Eligible businesses must:
- Be physically located in Washington County
- Have been impacted by COVID-19 by:
- Were closed by the “Stay Home. Save Lives.” Executive Order; OR
- Lost 10% or more revenue as a result of the COVID-19 regulations
- Have been in operation since March 23, 2020
- Have 25 full-time equivalent employees or fewer over the last year
- Be a for-profit business
- Be compliant with all federal, state and local regulations and taxes as of December 31, 2019
- Be registered with the state or be exempt from registration requirements
- Eligible businesses MUST NOT:
- Be a passive real estate holding company or other entity holding a passive investment in a small business with no operational ties to the business
- Be an adult-orient business (meaning a business that emphasizes sexually oriented products or services, for example a strip club or adult bookstore)
- Get a majority of income from gambling activities
- Have more than $5 million in gross revenue in 2019
- Be a franchise that is not individually owned
- All eligible businesses are encouraged to apply. Previous grant recipients are eligible to apply to this round. Business owners operating more than one business will be eligible for one grant for a single business.
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Apply here
- If you need help with filling out the application, reach out to any of the Business Resource Centers.
- After applying, please watch for an e-mail from MESO after you submit the application.
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Oregon Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV): The DMV has been hard at work to improve their customer service, reduce wait times, and process more requests. To access DMV services, conduct business online, or schedule an in-person appointment use this website. THe DMV has made important improvements in these areas:
- Drive Tests
- Last week, we released drive test appointments at select field offices around the state (John Day, Burns, Ontario, Baker, La Grande, Enterprise, Pendleton, Milton-Freewater, Hermiston, Hood River, The Dalles, Gresham, Gladstone, Woodburn, Salem, Corvallis). These appointments began yesterday, November 2nd.
- By November 16 all DMV offices across the state will resume drive testing.
- Additionally, 3rd party drive testing businesses continue to expand their number of examiners.
- Field Offices
- Weekly customer visits to field offices surpassed 25,000 for the second week in a row, up from ~19,000 at the beginning of October.
- 42 field offices are offering walk-up services for those without an appointment.
- Call Centers
- As of October 23rd, average call center wait times have remained steady at just under 1 hour.
- All Call Center initiatives remain on track, with the first group of phone agents hired in mid-October; once these folks get up and running, hold times will hopefully decline even further.
- Negotiations between DMV and IBM are complete, and a contract has been executed for the deployment of artificial intelligence technology to assist with easy-to-answer customer calls. This initiative remains on track, with a go-live date of January 1st.
- Vehicle Transactions
- Title production continues to trend upward.
- 9 additional title transaction specialists have been hired and will begin training next week.
- 8 temporary employees have been hired to assist title transaction specialists.
- Knowledge Tests have increased after the installation of additional physical barriers in field offices, now reaching just under 7,000/week, well above the 2019 average of ~5,600.
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Department of Human Services: The Aging and People with Disabilities Division (APD) has made some important updates to their visitation guidance and testing plans for long term care facilities.
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Visitation - APD updated its long-term care visitation policy to allow for limited indoor visitation, under strict controls, at nursing, assisted living, residential care facilities starting on Nov. 2, 2020. The visitation policy for adult foster homes is still under development.
- The limited indoor visitation policy is a small step forward in promoting quality of life balanced with the risks it introduces. APD will be monitoring the effects of this policy change closely. If there is evidence that these policies are having an overall detrimental effect on the safety of long-term care residents and staff, APD will revisit this policy decision.
- This policy change is the result of extensive consultation and collaboration among many different stakeholders including the following considerations:
- Availability of COVID-19 testing and turnaround times for test results;
- Availability of personal protective equipment;
- Long-term care facilities’ overall track record in preventing and controlling outbreaks;
- Oregon’s low ranking for per-capita COVID-19 infections and its many prevention-oriented policies;
- The ongoing hardship and detrimental impacts on well-being caused by no onsite, indoor visitation option for long-term care residents, their families and friends.
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Long-term care facility testing plan – APD and Oregon Health Authority moved into Phase Two of the Governor’s Long-Term Care Facility Testing Plan requiring routine testing for staff and associated staff. The new requirements start on Nov. 1, 2020. More details about Phase Two are available on the plan’s webpage; updates are summarized on this fact sheet. Additional information available includes:
School Updates:
Local Updates:
Hillsboro School District (HSD) is still reviewing the newly updated opening metrics and evaluating what it will mean for the district; but in a recent post they provided some updates about their path to reopening:
- “First, to clear up any confusion about Q2: all students will begin quarter 2 in Comprehensive Distance Learning (CDL). There are a very small number of students who will begin accessing limited in-person instruction opportunities in Q2 to support a language or learning need, and staff have already communicated with those families.
- Starting Nov. 9 at the high school level, we are allowing a modified reopening of the outdoor spaces on our campuses for limited activities by athletic and activity groups. This reopening will meet all required and recommended criteria that have been set forth by ODE, OHA, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and Governor Brown’s orders. In addition, HSD will take all precautions and safety measures and endeavor to go above and beyond to ensure our students’ wellbeing. Students who would like to participate are encouraged to sign up on their school’s Family ID site (CHS, GHS, HHS, LHS) to indicate their interest, so that coaches and advisors can connect with them to share additional information. Please note that our campuses will remain closed to the public, including playing fields and playgrounds, until further notice.
- Our goal, of course, is to get students back into our buildings for in-person learning as soon as it is safe to do so. We anticipate there being a more attainable path to that return in these new metrics and guidelines, especially for our youngest learners and students who are at-risk under the current model. Learn more on the 2020-21 School Year page of our website.”
The Hillsboro School District will meet on Monday 11/9 at 5:15 for a work session to discuss the Oregon Department of Education revised school metrics.
Forest Grove School District (FGSD): Similar to Hillsboro, FGSD is still working through how the new metrics will affect the district. They have reconvened their committee that is reviewing and updating the transition to Hybrid education plan. The committee and district staff will review the information and will communicate with parents, staff and the community in the coming days on how this will affect the transition plan. Learn more from Superintendent Parker’s Friday message. The transition planning will take multiple factors into account such as:
- Sanitation requirements,
- When to hire essential personnel (bus drivers, sanitation workers, etc.)
- Building and classroom safety.
- Coordination with our county public health authorities to better understand their capacity to keep our community safe given the new metrics.
School Reopening Metrics:
In case you missed my Friday update, here is some information on the new metrics for school reopening that were released by the Oregon Department of Education on Friday.
- Resources:
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Enforcement: If you believe a school is not in compliance with the safety requirements you can file a named or anonymous complaint with Oregon OSHA at 1-833-604-0884 or online here.
- Key changes to the metrics include:
- A clear set of reachable targets for communities to strive for, with a North Star of returning Oregon students to in-person instruction.
- Acknowledgement that Oregon’s Ready Schools, Safe Learners guidance’s strong public health protocols in structured settings like schools, can greatly reduce the risk of transmission of COVID-19.
- Additional time for schools to transition between in-person and distance learning models.
- Increased access to in-person instruction at the elementary level.
- A two Week “Look Back” at the Metrics Data rather than one week at a time over a three week period.
- Removes State Positivity Rate in favor of county positivity rates.
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Case Data
- Confirmed Cases: 9,268,818 (up 86,190 from yesterday)
- Deaths: 230,893 (up 510 from yesterday)
- Cases in the last 7 days: 588,208
- These national numbers come from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. You can view their national and state by state data here.
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Oregon Status Report: Oregon now has 46,460 total cases (confirmed and presumptive) of COVID-19.
- Today we have 495 new confirmed and presumptive cases, and 9 new deaths.
- Monday: 557 cases, 1 deaths
- Sunday: 524 cases, 2 deaths
- Saturday: 555 cases, 14 deaths
- A total of 701 Oregonians have died from COVID-19.
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Washington County still has one of the highest case counts at 6,356 confirmed cases, including 57 new cases today. You can review on-going updates from OHA by clicking on the table below.
- The Oregon Health Authority recently provided a Public Health Indicators Dashboard to enable communities across Oregon to monitor COVID-19 in the state.The dashboard, which will be updated weekly on Thursdays, provides a transparent report that presents complex epidemiological data in an interactive, easy-to-understand way on a state and county level.
Table showing Oregon case, testing and demographic data, link to more information
FEMA Update: Still Time to Apply for FEMA Disaster Assistance
Oregon residents affected by wildfires and straight-line winds in Clackamas, Douglas, Jackson, Klamath, Lane, Lincoln, Linn, and Marion counties still have time to apply with FEMA for individual disaster assistance. The deadline to apply is Nov. 16, 2020.
Homeowners and renters are encouraged to contact their insurance company and file a claim for the disaster-caused damage. However, survivors do not need to wait for their insurance settlement to apply.
Disaster assistance through FEMA may help eligible survivors with financial assistance that include rent, home repair, home replacement and other disaster-related needs such as childcare, medical and dental expenses.
Those who have uninsured or underinsured losses can apply with FEMA in one of three ways: online at disasterassistance.gov, via the FEMA app, or call 800-621-3362 (TTY: 800-462-7585).
Wildfire Recovery Resources:
OEM has put together this list of contacts to help speed up the process of replacing these documents:
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Green cards: Phone (800)-375-5283; Website: www.uscis.gov
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Medicare cards: Phone: (800)-772-1213; (TTY) (800)-325-0778 Website: www.medicare.gov
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Military records Phone: 866-272-6272 Website: www.archives.gov/contact/
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Passport Phone: 877-487-2778; (TTY) 888-874-7793 Website: travel.state.gov
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Social Security card Phone: 800-772-1213; (TTY) 800-325-0778 Website: www.ssa.gov
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U.S. Savings Bonds Phone: 844-284-2676 Website: www.treasurydirect.gov
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U.S. tax returns Phone: 800-829-1040 Website: www.irs.gov
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Birth, death, marriage, domestic partnership, divorce certificates Phone: 888-896-4988 Website: www.oregon.gov/oha/PH/Birthdeathcertificates
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Driver’s license, auto titles and registration, ID cards Phone: 503-945-5000 Website: www.oregon.gov/odot
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SNAP (Oregon Trail Card) Website: www.oregon.gov/DHS/Assistance/Food-Benefits
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State taxes (Oregon Dept. of Revenue) Phone: 503-378-4988 or 800-356-4222 TTY: All relay calls are accepted. Website: www.oregon.gov/dor
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Real estate and property - Contact your county government.
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Credit cards - Contact your credit card company directly.
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Credit reports from Equifax, Experian, TransUnion Phone: 877-322-8228 Website: www.annualcreditreport.com
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Insurance documents - Check with your insurance agent.
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Medical records - Call your doctor or your medical insurance company; medical and prescription records are tracked electronically.
The Governor’s office has put together a Wildfire Resources page that you can access from the Governor’s home page. It has links to many of the most important updates about the status of fires and resources for evacuees. This website will be updated regularly.
Legal Resources: Oregon State Bar’s Lawyer Referral Program, Oregon lawyers, through the Oregon State Bar, are partnering with FEMA and the American Red Cross to provide legal assistance on FEMA claims, contract claims, insurance claims, landlord-tenant matters and more.
The Department of Forestry’s Wildfire Response and Recovery Overview has ongoing updates about firefighting efforts, damage reports, and more.
FEMA Updates: FEMA has provided several different Fact Sheets and resources for accessing benefits, determining eligibility and avoiding scams.
Employers and Employees
Education Links
Local Government
Utilities Assistance
Food and Housing Assistance
Yours truly,
 Representative Susan McLain
House District 29
email: Rep.SusanMcLain@oregonlegislature.gov I phone: 503-986-1429
address: 900 Court St NE, H-376, Salem, OR 97301
website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/mclain
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