Dear Friends and Neighbors,
Happy March 1st! It’s hard to believe February is over. This week closed out our fourth week of the 2024 short session. Next week is our fifth and final week. Much of my remaining work involves the budget appropriations process in the full Ways and Means Committee.
Yesterday was also the second chamber deadline, so those bills that did not move out of second chamber policy committee are also dead for the session. Bills in Rules and joint committees can still move. We are well on our way to wrapping things up next week. We anticipate multiple long floor sessions in both chambers to move bills and prepare to return to our districts for the interim.
Thank you all for your feedback, support, and encouragement during the session. As always, please don’t hesitate to reach out if I can be of any assistance. It is my honor to serve you.
Sincerely,
 Rick Lewis
State Representative
House District 18
Oregon’s Christmas Tree District
In this Issue:
View previous newsletters here.
Click on the following links to view the House Floor agendas to see what measures moved and listen to the floor debates and remonstrances that took place in the House chamber this week.
Lives are at stake and Oregonians have made it clear that they want Measure 110 repealed. I couldn’t agree more!
I came to this session laser-focused to address the health, safety, and wellbeing of Oregonians in response to Oregon’s drug and addiction crisis by introducing HB 4036. Though HB 4036 did not move forward, even after my attempt to force it for a floor vote on Tuesday, it served as a catalyst and road map for much of what is contained in HB 4002 that we passed on Thursday afternoon.
HB 4002 recriminalizes life altering, life changing, life ending drugs that destroy families and relationships, not to mention ruin the quality of life in our communities. It provides the pathway to treatment and recovery that HB 4036 would have.
The positive steps forward contained in HB 4002 include: increased funding for treatment options, tougher penalties for drug trafficking in parks or near shelters or treatment facilities, recriminalization of possession of deadly drugs that are killing Oregonians at nation-leading rates, expands the welfare hold for fentanyl from 48 to 72 hours, and institutes pre-booking diversion to direct people into treatment instead of jail.
The bill does not do all that needs to be done. It’s a start with a great deal of work still to come. We need to strengthen our laws to send a strong message to drug dealers that pray on our children and our vulnerable populations. We also need to create more robust policies that allow families a pathway to place drug addicted family members into treatment and empower them to get their loved ones into rehabilitation programs.
Many will be watching the progress and will be expecting quantifiable, tangible results in short order. Oregonians and legislators alike will expect the data to reflect that the funding is going to treatment and recovery and not to programs that fuel addiction with enabling services of the past policies. Accountability is compassion and this bill enacts a change that is needed to begin to heal the plague of drug and addiction in our state.
Measure 110 put us in a hole that we need to climb out of and there isn’t a lot of time to start making the changes that Oregonians expect to see. There were a number of proposed amendments that could have made this bill much better. I look forward to addressing these specific issues in the next session.
On Thursday morning, it was my honor to welcome homeschools from around the state who were visiting the Capitol to explore and learn how their government works.
The Oregon Christian Home Education Association Network, OCEANetwork, is a statewide network of homeschoolers, dedicated to supporting home educators, champion Homeschooler Freedoms, and protect parental rights. OCEANetwork has been in service since 1986 and has sponsored Apple Pie Day at the Capitol during the long legislative session for 28 years.
The House Committee on Judiciary met twice this week on Tuesday and Thursday for public hearings and work sessions on the following senate bills. The following bills were moved to the floor for a vote, with the exception of SB 1153, which was moved to the House Rules Committee.
SB 1553 A
Expands the crime of interfering with public transportation to include when a person, while in or on a public transit vehicle or public transit station, knowingly consumes a controlled substance that is not lawfully possessed by the person. Provides that a conviction for interfering with public transportation established by this measure shall be classified as a designated drug-related misdemeanor. The bill was moved to the House Rules Committe. I suspect it will remain there as the passage of HB 4002 will likely cover this issue.
SB 1574 A
This measure is an omnibus bill relating to public safety. Included topics are the crime of abuse of a corpse, humane special agents, the Commission on Statewide Law Enforcement Standards of Conduct and Discipline, the Parole Board and the Psychiatric Security Review Board, the crime of hit and run, driving while suspended records, and Interest on Lawyer Trust Accounts for the Oregon Public Defense Commission.
SB 1576 A
The measure is an omnibus bill relating to civil matters that has three components. First, it provides authority for the Attorney General to disclose materials obtained in investigations of consumer data privacy violations to hired consultants. Second, it provides confidentiality for court records of a minor's settlement agreement, when the agreement becomes part of the court's record pursuant to ORCP 27 I. Third, it temporarily allows all local governments to opt into immunity for trails or structures in public easements and rights of way; adds limited immunity for improved paths, trails, roads and other rights of way that are used to access land for recreational purposes; and adds walking, running and bicycling to the non-exclusive list of recreational purposes.
SB 1580 A
Provides that an employer commits a Class A misdemeanor crime if, with the intent to decrease the employer’s premium for coverage as required by Oregon's workers' compensation laws, knowingly submits a false payroll report to the Workers’ Compensation Board, the Workers’ Compensation Board chairperson, the Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services, the corporation or an insurer. Applies to employer conduct occurring on or after the effective date of the act.
SB 1587 A (Lewis Sponsor)
Provides that children’s advocacy centers and their employees or designated agents who are participating in good faith and have reasonable grounds for their participation in a child abuse assessment shall have immunity to certain civil liabilities regarding their participation in the assessment or participation in any judicial proceeding from the assessment. Maintains liability for damages resulting from an employee’s or designated agent’s gross negligence, reckless, wanton or intentional misconduct, abuse or neglect of the child who is the subject of the
abuse assessment, medical malpractice, or discrimination on the basis of a protected class. Requires the children’s advocacy center to be in good standing, or actively working towards accreditation, by a national organization that provides accreditation based on recognized standards. Defines designated agents. Declares that children's advocacy centers rely upon state funding and provide statutorily-mandated services.
On Thursday, the committee also held and an information meeting on the topic of civil commitment. Invited speakers shared very personal, painful - but powerful stories about their experiences when they sought help for loved ones who suffer with mental illness and the difficulties they faced in accessing services to help keep them safe. You can watch the testimony here.
View a replay of the meetings and access the meeting materials on OLIS here.
 
The House Committee On Emergency Management, General Government, and Veterans met on Thursday for a public hearing and work session on SB 1517 A. The measure authorizes the urban flood safety and water quality district to annually assess benefited lands within the managed floodplain for the total amount of revenues required to pay the costs for the succeeding year of district works that directly benefit the lands. The measure only relates to the 27 miles of levy in Multnomah County. The bill was moved to the House floor for a vote.
View a replay of the meetings and access the meeting materials on OLIS here.
This week the Public Safety Subcommittee met on Thursday for work sessions and approved the Department of Public Safety Standards and Training Grant - Assistance to Firefighters and passed HB 4122 A relating to fingerprint retention and SB 1541 relating to judicial positions to the Full Joint Ways and Means Committee.
View a replay of the meeting and access meeting materials on OLIS here.
The Joint Committee on Transportation, Special Subcommittee has completed its work for the session and did not meet this week.
View a replay of the previous meetings on OLIS here.
 On Wednesday and today, the Joint Committee on Ways and Means held work sessions on the following measures:
HB 4134 A Relating to housing
SB 1529 A Relating to housing
SB 1530 A Relating to state financial administration
SB 1537 A Relating to housing
HB 4001 A Relating to specialty courts
HB 5204 Relating to state financial administration
SB 1503 A Relating to public health
SB 1532 Relating to statewide education plans
SB 1533 Relating to elections
SB 1561 A Relating to the administration of moneys received from the
Monsanto settlement
SB 1585 A Relating to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits
SB 1595 A Relating to protections from debt collection
HB 4045 A Relating to adjustments in classifications under the Public Employees
Retirement System
HB 4081 A Relating to emergency medical services
HB 4132 A Relating to marine reserves
HB 4140 A Relating to victims
HB 4080 A Relating to offshore wind energy development
HB 4082 A Relating to funding for expanded learning opportunities
HB 4084 Relating to the education of foster children
HB 4129 A Relating to in-home service providers
HB 4136 A Relating to health care
HB 4151 A Relating to youth behavioral health
HB 4153 A Relating to artificial intelligence
SB 1522 A Relating to individuals with intellectual disabilities
View a replay of the meetings and access meeting materials on OLIS here.
Once again, have a terrific weekend! Until my next update, I leave you with a snapshot of this beautiful sunrise from House District 18 that I recently took on my way to the Capitol.
Capitol Phone: 503-986-1418
Capitol Address: 900 Court St. NE, H-385, Salem, Oregon 97301
Email: Rep.RickLewis@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/lewis
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