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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
On Monday, the Oregon Legislature held a successful one-day special session to support renters and landlords as the eviction crisis continues along with the pandemic, and to provide critical funding to other emergency-impacted areas all across the state. It’s been a while since I sent a newsletter, so this one will cover the legislation and funding that passed during the special session, upcoming events and volunteer opportunities.
 Housing Protections
Senate Bill 891 extends safe harbor protections to prevent evictions of Oregonians who have rental assistance on the way. Senate Bill 5561 includes a $215 million package to provide additional rental assistance, speed up the process of applications, and ensure landlords are fully paid. Oregon Housing and Community Services committed to pay out this new state money by June 30, 2022, and the remaining federal dollars in the queue by March 31, 2022. We will be closely monitoring this process to ensure they keep this commitment.
Drought Relief
In response to the impact the recent heat dome, wildfire smoke and record drought have had on farming communities, Senate Bill 5561 includes a $100 million drought relief package to support farmers and irrigators across the state. Senate Bill 892 establishes a forgivable loan program to provide financial assistance for Oregon farmers and ranchers who lost gross income in 2021 due to a qualifying natural disaster. Oregon Capital Chronicle has more details here.
Illegal Cannabis Enforcement
Senate Bill 5561 approves $25 million to prevent illegal cannabis operations and address the humanitarian crisis impacting workers at these sites. Senate Bill 893 expands the scope of the Illegal Marijuana Market Enforcement Grant program at the Criminal Justice Commission to include funding for community-based organizations to address the needs of the exploited workers at these illegal sites.
Afghan Refugee Support
Senate Bill 5561 includes $18 million to help Afghan refugees arriving in Oregon find housing, education, language and job training, and legal assistance.
Affordable Housing and Homeless Support
Senate Bill 5561 approved $1 million to each of the following cities: Albany, Ashland, Beaverton, Bend, Corvallis, Eugene, Grants Pass, Gresham, Hillsboro, Medford, Portland, Redmond, Salem, and Springfield. The $14 million total will address housing insecurity, lack of affordable housing, or homelessness over the next few months. The City of Portland will use its $1 million to work with local partners to establish RV parking sites.
Oregon Mass Timber Modular Housing Prototype
Senate Bill 5561 includes $5 million for the Port of Portland to help fund the Oregon Mass Timber Modular Housing Prototype project, which will develop a prototype of modular housing units made from mass timber AND assess the economic, environmental, and efficiency of creating these housing units to address the housing crisis in Oregon.
Gun Violence Prevention
Senate Bill 5561 invests $2 million to assist the City of Gresham and local community partners in creating and implementing the East Metro Outreach, Prevention, and Intervention (OPI) program. The program will address rising youth violence and improve public safety outcomes in East Multnomah County by building community and investing in mentoring and culturally responsive youth programming.
Join me, Representative Pham and Senator Dembrow for our Joint Town Hall Thursday, January 20 from 5:30 – 7:00 PM. We encourage you to share questions or any additional accommodations using the registration link. Please register in advance for this meeting here:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYqdOyvrTgtE9SsiNuaFv7jVJxaEBQXFO9a
We hope to see you there! Please contact my office with any questions you might have, or if you need assistance registering at: Rep.Barbarasmithwarner@oregonlegislature.gov
Give back this holiday season through serving, volunteering or donating to those in need. Below you will find just a few of the of the organizations that could use your help:
Abiding Place Food Pantry is a program of Abiding Place Church. They serve the community twice a month by providing one bag of non-perishable food per family. They also have food and household/personal care items to choose from.
AP Food Pantry’s last distribution event of the year will be held tomorrow Saturday, December 18 from 10-11AM in the back-parking lot at 4536 NE 116th Ave.
If you are interested in donating in-kind or volunteering please fill out the form here.
Human Solutions works directly within our communities to counter poverty by offering people the tools to meet their needs. This organization builds opportunities for participants to re-enter the workforce, access low-income housing, and obtain emergency shelter care.
Here are some socially distant ways to contribute through Human Solutions:
Love to bake and looking to spread some holiday cheer? Cook and deliver a dish to contribute to one of Humans Solutions drop-off shelter potlucks. You can find their upcoming drop-off events below:
Dessert Drop-Off Potluck at Gresham Women’s Shelter
When: Sunday, December 19, 2PM—3PM
Where: 162nd & E Burnside Street
Details: To find more information and RSVP for this event click here.
Dessert Potluck at Lilac Meadows
When: Wednesday December 22, 2PM—3PM
Where: Southeast Powell Boulevard & Southeast 82nd Avenue, SE Powell Blvd & SE 82nd Ave, Portland, OR
Details: To find more information and RSVP for this event click here.
Christmas Day Drop-Off Potluck Dinners
When: Saturday December 25, 4:30PM—5:30PM
Where: Gresham Women’s Shelter, Lilac Meadows, and Chestnut Tree Inn
Details: To find more information and RSVP for this event click here.
New Year’s Eve Community Potluck Dinner at Chestnut Inn Shelter
When: Friday, December 31, 4:30PM—5:30PM
Where: Near Mall 205
Details: To find more information and RSVP for this event click here.
New Year’s Day Potluck Brunch at Lilac Meadows Family Shelter
When: Saturday, January 1, 2022, 9:30AM—10:30AM
Where: Southeast Powell Boulevard & Southeast 82nd Avenue, SE Powell Blvd & SE 82nd Ave, Portland, OR 97206
Details: To find more information and RSVP for this event click here.
New Year’s Day Community Drop-Off Potluck at Gresham Women’s Shelter
When: Saturday, January 1, 2022, 4:30PM—5:30PM
Where: 162nd & E Burnside
Details: To find more information and RSVP for this event click here.
Portland Toy & Joy Makers is a local toy drive founded by the Portland Fire & Rescue in 1914. This drive helps local families in need around Christmas time. They are completely run by volunteers and rely on donations of toys and cash for supplemental toy purchases.
Donate toys by Tuesday, December 21st at the following locations:
- Any Portland fire station.
- To find the nearest station near you click here.
- Portland Toy & Joy Makers office in NE Portland
- Please call ahead to arrange for pickup or to drop off; 503-823-0922
Cash donations can be dropped off at any fire station or mailed to their office in NE Portland. You can also make a direct online donation here (via PayPal).
Other ways to donate:
- Make an indirect donation by shopping on Amazon Smile and designating "Toy and Joymakers Program Portland Bureau of Fire" as your supported charity.
- For miscellaneous kinds of donations (such as office supplies, vehicles, stocks, real estate, etc.), please write to our executive staff at toynjoymakers@gmail.com.
The Children’s Book Bank mission is to advance child literacy, encourage family bonding, and ignite curiosity through the power of books. The Children’s Book Bank narrows the book gap by providing the community with a place for families to donate the books their children have outgrown, moving thousands and thousands of children’s books into the hands of kids that need them.
Come lend a hand and bring books back to life! Every gently-used donated book is inspected and cleaned by volunteers. Tasks include wiping covers, taping torn pages, erasing scribbles, covering inscriptions, and reinforcing worn spines.
Below are some dates that still have volunteer spots available. If you would like to waitlist yourself for dates that have already been filled, or sign up for upcoming events click here.
Wednesday, January 5, 2022 From 1PM—3PM
Tuesday, January 11, 2022 From 3PM—5PM
Wednesday, January 12, 2022 From 4PM—6PM
IMPORTANT NOTE:
These organizations may require in-person volunteers to show proof of vaccination. I urge you to read the organization's volunteer requirements before signing up.
As always, please let me know if you need any assistance. My office will work to connect you with resources and get your questions answered as quickly as possible. It's an honor to serve you, and I wish you and your families peace, joy and happy holidays.
Sincerely,
 Representative Barbara Smith Warner
House District 45
email: Rep.BarbaraSmithWarner@oregonlegislature.gov I phone: 503-986-1445
address: 900 Court St NE, H-487, Salem, OR 97301
website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/smithwarner
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