My interview on KPTV, self-service gas, and more!
Oregon State Legislature sent this bulletin at 03/27/2023 04:45 PM PDT
Hello Friends,
This week’s newsletter is about a busy week in the legislature. We discussed several controversial bills last week regarding reproductive health, gun safety, and more.
Constituent Coffee
Thank you to the folks who came out to chat during my constituent coffee on Saturday at Well & Good in Tigard. We spoke about a broad range of issues, including the impact of social media use on children, the kicker, early literacy, education funding, housing production, and more. While not everyone agreed on every issue, I genuinely appreciated the respectful dialogue and thoughtful questions that folks brought to the conversation.
My next Town Hall will be on April 22nd with Representative Neron and Senator Woods from 11:00am-12:00pm at the Oregon Institute of Technology Wilsonville Campus. Make sure to save the date and time, and we will be providing you with more information as the event gets closer!
Pictured with a constituent at my Constituent Coffee on Saturday at Well & Good Coffee in Tigard, with my Chief of Staff Will Anderson.
Ways and Means Roadshow (Make Your Voice Heard!)
On April 8th, the Ways and Means Committee (the state’s budget writing committee) is holding a community listening session near our district. They want to hear from folks about what they believe the state should invest in. Many folks have written to ask how they can support getting funding for safety improvements on Hall Boulevard--this is one great way to do it.
The event will be Saturday, April 8 from 10:00am - 12:00pm at Portland Community College in the PAC Auditorium, Sylvania Campus (12000 SW 49th Ave, Portland, OR 97219). You can register to testify at this link:
https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Committees/JWM/2023-04-08-10-00/Agenda
Historically, these listening sessions are packed with people, and there is no guarantee you will get to speak. Because of this, we highly suggest that you submit your written testimony in addition to attending. You can click this link to submit written testimony.
KPTV Interview
I spoke with Fox 12 Oregon about my bill to strengthen Oregon’s cybersecurity and address data privacy concerns. The bill prohibits certain applications (like TikTok) from being downloaded on state-owned devices, and empowers the Chief Information Officer to respond to evolving cybersecurity needs by maintaining a list of prohibited applications. You can watch my interview here.
A Big Week at the Legislature
Now that we have reached the 10th week of this legislative session, we have begun to consider many important packages of legislation. Inevitably you will be hearing about these high profile bills on the news, so I wanted to take the time to provide you with some context.
Reproductive Rights and Gender Affirming Care - HB 2002
After the Dobbs decision last June which overturned over 50 years of federal precedent, it is important that Oregon reaffirm its commitment to reproductive healthcare. Just days after the decision was handed down, the legislature convened a workgroup to research ways to bolster and protect access to reproductive and gender affirming care. This bill is a product of that work. HB 2002 ensures protections for anyone seeking or providing reproductive or medically necessary gender affirming care. The bill also requires insurance companies in Oregon to cover reproductive care and medically necessary gender affirming care to their policy holders.
Gun Safety Package - HB 2005, HB 2006, HB 2007
HB 2005 addresses the current issues with the proliferation of ghost guns and 3D printed guns. These firearms do not have identification codes and are totally untraceable, making them attractive to criminals. With the passage of HB 2006 would prohibit people of the ages 21 and below from possessing a firearm with a few notable exceptions. 18-year-olds would still be able to buy certain kinds of rifles and shotguns commonly used for hunting. HB 2007 would allow school districts, state buildings, and airports to pass restrictions on concealed carry in public spaces. If you’d like to learn more about these bills, OPB wrote a great article on the subject.
Death with Dignity Residential Requirement - HB 2279
The state of Oregon was recently sued for being out of compliance with the U.S. Constitution over the residency requirement in the Death with Dignity Act because it was considered an unlawful regulation on interstate commerce. HB 2279 brings Oregon back into compliance with the Constitution by removing the residency requirement. Those who seek to utilize Oregon’s Death with Dignity law are still required to meet strict requirements and undergo extensive processes to ensure they are of a stable mind when making the choice to utilize the act. The bill is not about the merits of Oregon’s Death with Dignity law, but instead a technical fix to the law. It passed off the house floor with bipartisan support.
Self-Service Gas - HB 2426 A
Finally, a bill to allow self-service gas at some pumps has passed the House and is on its way to the Senate. This bill would allow half the lanes in a given gas station in certain counties to be self-service, and the other half to be staffed. If passed, HB 2426 A would treat gas stations just like grocery stores. You will be able to check out with an attendant, or with self-checkout. Oregonians tend to have very strong feelings about self-serve gasoline–fortunately, this bill is a compromise that passed with a strong bipartisan majority.
Legislation I’m Working On
You’ve just heard a lot about what is happening this legislative session. Here are some of the bills that I have been working on! Our intern Luna Pelaez put together this graphic detailing a sampling of the legislation I’ve been involved with thus far. Not all of these bills will pass (some are already dead!), but I like the graphic because it demonstrates the range of issues my office has been working on–and because Luna did a great job designing it.
Thanks for reading,
