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To contact me, please click here: Sen.JaneenSollman@oregonlegislature.gov
Friends and Neighbors,
Legislative Updates
New Affordable Housing, Health, Safety, and Workforce Laws Go into Effect
June 6, 2024
SALEM, OR – Today, dozens of new laws passed during the 2024 legislative session with an effective date of “91 days after adjournment” went into effect. These new laws include significant efforts to help more Oregonians afford a home, prevent firearm suicides, modernize emergency medical services, grow the semiconductor workforce, reduce hunger and more.
“I’m very proud of the way the legislature came together and delivered real progress for the people of Oregon in 2024. The laws going into effect today take aim at some of the most difficult moments in Oregonians’ lives and make them easier,” said Senate Majority Leader Kate Lieber (D - Beaverton & SW Portland).
“The legislature’s job is to make Oregon a better place to live, work, and raise a family. The laws going into effect today will put more house keys in the hands of working families, ensure more Oregonians won’t go hungry, make our communities safer, and more. I am grateful for my colleagues who made this possible and look forward to accomplishing more together in 2025,” said House Majority Leader Ben Bowman (D - Tigard, Metzger, & S. Beaverton).
Highlights of the laws going into effect include:
Producing More Affordable Housing (Senate Bill 1537)
Introduced at the request of Governor Tina Kotek — this new law creates a new revolving loan fund to make interest-free loans to local governments to help finance production of affordable housing and moderate income housing projects. The fund is seeded with $75 million.
The law also grants qualifying cities a one-time expansion of their Urban Growth Boundaries. Cities under 25,000 people can expand by 50 acres, while cities over 25,000 people can expand by 100 acres. In the Metro area, the cap is 300 acres. Cities must display that they have done comprehensive planning and permitting before expansion and demonstrate need for both housing and land.
SB 1537 further establishes the Housing Accountability and Production Office to support local governments as they work to achieve their housing production goals.
Supporting First Time Homebuyers (Senate Bill 1527)
SB 1527 removes administrative barriers so that more Oregonians can access the First Time Home Buyer Savings Account Program, making it easier to take advantage of the personal income tax subtraction. This program allows low- and median-income Oregonians to use the money deposited into this account for costs associated with buying a home, such as down payments and other closing costs.
Preventing Firearm Suicides (Senate Bill 1503)
This new law creates the Community Safety and Firearm Suicide Prevention Task Force, a 17-member panel charged with developing recommendations for ways to reduce suicides by firearm and associated community safety risks. SB 1503 identifies several issues the task force will study, including:
- How to better support youth and rural Oregonians experiencing suicidal ideation
- Barriers to suicide prevention support
- Barriers to implementing best practices for community safety and suicide prevention
- How domestic violence is a risk factor for community safety threats and suicide
- Risks to first responders
Modernizing Oregon’s Emergency Medical Services (House Bill 4081)
This new law works to make sure Oregonians get the emergency medical care they need by:
- Establishing an EMS program to administer a statewide program and improve EMS standards.
- Creating a State EMS Director position to oversee this program.
- Forming an EMS Advisory Board to develop the program and provide advice and recommendations.
- Starting Regional Advisory Boards to develop plans to implement best practices, informed by local resources and capacity within hospital trauma regions.
Growing Oregon’s Semiconductor Workforce (House Bill 4154)
In a more recent report, the Semiconductor Workforce and Talent Assessment found that the semiconductor and related manufacturing industry employs nearly 31,000 workers, with an average annual wage that’s approximately two and a half times the average statewide wage. HB 4154 requires the Higher Education Coordinating Commission to create a statewide semiconductor industry consortium, establishes the Semiconductor Talent Sustaining Fund to build an education-industry pipeline, and promotes STEM in education.
Reducing Hunger, Ensuring Equal Access to Hot Food (Senate Bill 1585)
SB 1585 creates a task force to work to reduce hunger and ensure equal access to hot food for Oregonians who are elderly, experiencing homelessness, or have a disability and receive support from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) via federal programs like the Restaurant Meals Program (RMP). The RMP is a federal option program that states can sign up for to allow SNAP participants to buy meals from restaurants that choose to opt-in to the program. Nine other states already participate in the RMP.
Listen. Learn. Act.
Women in Government National Legislative Conference
This week I am in Seattle attending the Women In Government National Legislative Conference. On Day One, I enjoyed a pre-conference tour to Philips to discuss medical technology, while the other half of our group went to tour a healthcare supply chain warehouse. Women In Government help empower women legislators as they lead state policy on access to health care. Women find and utilize resources related to mental health, maternal and infant health, rare diseases, health disparities, innovative treatments and other topics. I look forward to sharing more about what I learn next week.
Out and About in Senate District 15
West Tuality Habitat for Humanity Home Dedication
It was such an honor to be part of the celebration of Robyn and the VanLoo family home dedication this past weekend. Thank you to West Tuality Habitat for Humanity for the amazing work in connecting families to their forever home.
Forest Grove High School Viking House
Last Saturday was the Open House for Forest Grove High School's 49th Viking House! What an amazing program for students to "build" skills. I met kids wanting to continue construction after high school and two that were going into the military. Bradley is enlisting as a First Class Marine, because of the college credit they have earned, including 12 credits from the Viking House class. I am a proud FGHS grad and so proud of these students!
Learn more about the Viking House Program here.
Hillsboro Pride Party
Happy Pride Month! Last Saturday was a beautiful day to kick off Pride Month at the Hillsboro Pride Party. We celebrated love, acceptance and community. I loved seeing friends, neighbors, supportive agencies, businesses and even dogs, coming together in celebration.
Senate District 15 - Small Business Spotlight
Wedge and Cured
Wedge and Cured is a local small business in Forest Grove, serving customers with the most delicious and beautiful charcuterie boards and grazing tables. Read more about them below and visit their website here.
Owning Wedge & Cured has been incredibly fulfilling. As the owner, I get to indulge in my love for artisanal cheeses and cured meats by creating captivating charcuterie boards. Crafting these boards is like an art form to me. I carefully select a diverse array of cheeses, from sharp cheddars to creamy bries, and pair them with expertly cured meats like velvety prosciutto and savory salami. The real beauty is in arranging these delights alongside fruits, nuts, and spreads, creating a visually stunning and mouthwatering feast. Seeing the joy on my customer’s faces as they gather around these charcuterie boards, savoring the flavors and textures, is what truly makes this venture so gratifying.
~Wedge and Cured
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Community Outreach
High School Graduations
It is high school graduation season- such an exciting time for graduating high school seniors and their families! When I was a Hillsboro School Board Member, this was a highlight of the year. Handing diplomas to students in their moment, as they cross the stage, was such an honored responsibility. See the graduation schedules for Senate District 15 area high schools below. Hillsboro School District graduations are also being streamed live online. Watch here.
Hillsboro School District Graduation Schedule:
- Tuesday, June 4, 6 p.m. – Hillsboro Online Academy (at Hare Field)
- Wednesday, June 5, 7 p.m. – Glencoe High School (at Hillsboro Stadium)
- Thursday, June 6, 7 p.m. – Hillsboro High School (at Hillsboro Stadium)
- Friday, June 7, 7 p.m. – Oak Street Campus (in the Hillhi Auditorium)
- Saturday, June 8, 10 a.m. – Liberty High School (at Hillsboro Stadium)
- Saturday, June 8, 2 p.m. – Century High School (at Hillsboro Stadium)
Forest Grove High School:
- Saturday, June 8, 10 a.m. - Forest Grove High School
Westview High School:
Wear Orange Weekend - June 7th-9th
Shared from WearOrange.org
On January 21, 2013, Hadiya Pendleton marched in President Obama’s second inaugural parade. One week later, Hadiya was shot and killed on a playground in Chicago. Soon after this tragedy, Hadiya’s friends commemorated her life by wearing orange, the color hunters wear in the woods to protect themselves and others. Wear Orange is now observed every June. Thousands of people wear the color orange to honor Hadiya and the more than 43,000 Americans are killed with guns and approximately 76,000 more are shot and wounded every year.
This year, we once again unite in our call to end gun violence as we come together for Wear Orange. We honor the communities shattered by gun violence alongside the more than 120 people who are shot and killed, and hundreds more who are wounded and traumatized, every day in our country.
We deserve more than to live in a country where firearms are the leading cause of death for children and teens in the United States. But as incidents of gun violence have grown, so too has the movement to stop it. By participating in Wear Orange online and in your community, we will organize, advocate, and rally for safer communities. Together we can build a future free from gun violence.
Learn more and find an event near you here.
Juneteenth The Reunion - Saturday, June 8th
 Shared from Washington County Chamber of Commerce
Saturday, June 8th, 12:00pm - 6:30pm, at Jerry Willey Plaza in Orenco (943 NE Orenco Station Loop, Hillsboro, OR 97124)
Join us for a vibrant celebration commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth, also known as Emancipation Day, Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, Black Independence Day, and Juneteenth Independence Day, is a federal holiday observed annually on June 19th.
This event is a Family Reunion where all are welcome to come together for an evening filled with community, food, music, speakers, and over 70 local diverse business vendors.
Visit here for more information.
Dance Your Boots Off for Meals on Wheels People
Additional Resources
Senate District 15 – Event Calendars
Federal Delegation Links
Education Links
Food and Housing Assistance
Be good to yourself and each other. ❤
Onward & Upward,
 Senate District 15 lies on Kalapuya land. The Atfalati were the northernmost band of the Kalapuya that lived along the Tualatin River in present day Washington County. Many of the Atfalati descendants are members of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon today. The Indigenous Peoples of this land experienced a painful history of colonial violence, sickness and removal from their land. The Atfalati are the foundation of Oregon's past and we must honor them well into our future.
Capitol Phone: 503-986-1715
Capitol Address: 900 Court St. NE, S-207, Salem, Oregon 97301
Email: Sen.JaneenSollman@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/sollman
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