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To contact me, please click here: Rep.RickLewis@oregonlegislature.gov

August 20, 2024 - Newsletter

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

I hope you all had a wonderful summer. We are on the cusp of the Labor Day weekend as summer begins to wind down and students prepare to return to their classrooms.

September 6^th at 12:00 am brings us to the second blackout period in which legislators are prohibited from using public resources to communicate with constituents prior to the general election.

This month’s newsletter highlights what I have been up to in the district and beyond. It also provides information about the September legislative days, the revenue forecast, and more.

As always, thank you for taking the time to read my updates. I look forward to connecting with you again after the November 5th election. Until then, have a safe and happy Labor Day as we enjoy these last days of summer.  Sincerely,

Rick Lewis
Oregon State Representative
House District 18
Oregon’s Christmas Tree District

In this Issue:

• IN THE CAPITOL
• September Economic and Revenue Forecast (August 28)
• Legislative Interim Committee & Task Force Days (September 23-25)
• IN THE DISTRICT
• Molalla Police Department Groundbreaking
• Silverton’s Homer Davenport Parade 2024
• Senator Ron Wyden Town Hall – Silverton High School
• AROUND THE STATE
• A Special First Look at Hope Plaza
• Oregon Military Dept. & Oregon National Guard Mobilization Ceremonies
• HB 4002 Implementation and visit to Clackamas County
• Wildfire Season Update
• Marion Polk Food Share Tour

View previous newsletters here.

IN THE CAPITOL

September Economic and Revenue Forecast (August 28)

Next week on August 28th, the House and Senate Interim Revenue Committees will meet to receive the September 2024 quarterly Economic and Revenue Forecast.

The Oregon Revenue Forecast opens the revenue forecasting process to public review. It is the basis for much of the budgeting in state government. Forecast reports are issued four times a year: March, June, September, and December. Click here to watch the forecast on OLIS here.

Additional information can be found on the Office of Economic Analysis webpage here.

Legislative Interim Committee & Task Force Days (September 23-25)

Tune in for September Legislative Interim Committee and Task Force days. This is the second of three scheduled Legislative Interim Committee days to take place before the 2025 session. During these days, committees hold informational hearings on topics that could lead to legislation in upcoming session, hear updates on implementations of past legislation, and her reports from state agencies. You can access the legislative calendar for important dates here. 

I continue to serve on the following Interim Committees:

• House Interim Committee On Emergency Management, General Government, and Veterans- Vice-Chair
• Joint Interim Committee On Ways and Means Subcommittee On Public Safety
• Joint Interim Committee On Ways and Means
• Joint Emergency Board Interim Subcommittee on Public Safety
• Joint Committee On Transportation Special Subcommittee On Transportation Planning (Inactive)
• House Interim Committee On Judiciary

Click on the links above to follow along and see what’s happening in my committees during September legislative days.

In addition to my legislative committee assignments, I also serve on the following:  

• Road User Fee Task Force
• Criminal Justice Commission
• Asset Forfeiture Oversight Advisory Committee
• Oregon Homeland Security Council
• CSG West Public Safety Committee
• Marion County Public Safety Coordinating Council
• North Willamette Research and Extension Center Advisory Council
• Chief Justice Criminal Justice Advisory Committee
• Task Force on Community Safety and Firearm Suicide Prevention (SB 1503 Task Force)
• Vietnam War Memorial Steering Committee
• Joint Transportation sub on Transportation Planning
• Oregon Legislative Veterans Caucus

Oregon’s next long legislative session convenes in January 2025 and Friday, September 27th is our first deadline to submit unlimited bill draft requests to Legislative Counsel for pre-session filing.

IN THE DISTRICT

Molalla Police Department Groundbreaking

On August 2^nd, I was honored to attend the City of Molalla’s Police Department groundbreaking ceremony. The new station will be Molalla’s first dedicated police facility and will also function as an emergency operations center to coordinate public safety crisis response activities. This project has been many years in the making and involved support from the community and partners alike. The new station is expected to open in late 2025. 

Silverton’s Homer Davenport Parade 2024

Homer Davenport Days in Silverton celebrated another great parade. The current mayor, three former mayors, and I gladly served as the parade poop-scoop crew.  

Above Photo L to R: Current mayor Jason Freilinger, former police chief, mayor, and State Representative Rick Lewis, former mayor Ken Hector, and former mayor Kyle Palmer.

Senator Ron Wyden Town Hall – Silverton High School

On August 7th, United States Senator Ron Wyden’s town hall in Silverton gave me an opportunity to discuss several pressing issues for Oregon with his staff, including the need for federal funding to match State funding to build the new Veterans home in Roseburg. This project has been on hold for more than 10 years and the State allocated $35 million toward the facility to allow the federal government to contribute the $65 million needed to complete the project. Oregon is in desperate need of this additional home to serve our veteran population.

Celebrating National Night Out in Monitor

Hats off to the Monitor community for organizing such a terrific and enjoyable National Night Out event on August 6th.  I thoroughly enjoyed the great conversation and good food.

AROUND THE STATE

A Special First Look at Hope Plaza

On August 16, the Center for Hope & Safety held an opening reception and tour for a special first look at their HOPE Plaza housing project. Although I was unable to be there, I want to highlight the valuable services they provide to our communities - offering a safe refuge and support to victims and survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, and human trafficking. Read more about the opening and their services in the Salem Reporter's coverage of the event here and on the Center for Hope and Safety's webpage here.

Oregon Military Dept. & Oregon National Guard Mobilization Ceremonies

I was honored to attend two mobilization ceremonies this month. On August 9^th, more than 250 members of the 2nd Battalion 218 Field Artillery unit of the Oregon National Guard based in Forest Grove mobilized for deployment overseas to the Middle East. 

On August 16^th, at the Salem Armory, the 41^st Infantry Brigade Combat Team mobilized for deployment to Kosovo. They return to the U.S European Command as part of a 28-country alliance to maintain a safe and secure environment across the region, while ensuring freedom of movement for all citizens.

I wish them a safe tour of duty and return to their loved ones. They have an important mission and more than a few have been on previous deployments. Their commitment and dedication to the cause of freedom deserves our gratitude. And the sacrifice of their families cannot be overstated.

HB 4002 Implementation and visit to Clackamas County

On August 15th, I joined the Chairs of the House and Senate Judiciary Committees, (Representative Jason Kropf and Senator Kate Lieber) on their visit to Clackamas County to learn about the County’s implementation of HB 4002. We started the day with a visit to the stabilization center in Milwaukie, followed by a meeting to check in with Clackamas County on their deflection program.

HB 4002 was passed in the 2024 short session recriminalizing small amounts of amounts of hard drugs beginning September 1^st. The measure rolls back key provisions of Ballot Measure 110 approved by Oregon voters in 2020. The new law expands funding for substance abuse treatment and makes possessing small amounts of hard drugs a misdemeanor.

I look forward to attending the Marion County Board of Commissioner’s Town Hall to learn about the initiatives they are undertaking in response to HB 4002 later this week.

Wildfire Season Update

Overview

• Fortunate weather is allowing for firefighting agencies to take a breath in the middle of what has been an extreme fire season.
• Eyes are on potential east winds for this time of year, particularly in September.
• This break is an opportunity to reset and prepare for the remainder of the fire season.
• Record setting year for acres burned and fuel conditions.
• OSFM Agency Operation Center is currently closed after a record length of being open.
• OSFM believes this is not a one off and we will likely see fire seasons with a large amount of acreage burning.
• OSFM is currently not on a fire and the fires have been turned over to local jurisdictions.
• Lightning strikes associated with the weather this last week have kept the fire maps pretty busy despite the increased moisture.
• Southeast Oregon is still in an elevated fire position, but the west side of the state has seen relief.
• Likely to have new, small fire starts each day throughout the week due to lightning.
• Rural Fire Protection Association has responded to a large number of fires this season, 121 as of last week, from small fires to providing support on very large fires.
• East winds tend to come in September and the problem is that they tend to be dry winds.
• There may be interest in looking at reimbursing RFPAs for costs of fighting fires.

Current Fires

Southwest Oregon

• Dixon Fire in is now in full mop up and expect to be done with the fire on Wednesday.
• Diamond Complex fires received good moisture over the weekend which slowed fires down, but hindered controlled burns.

Cascades

• Boulder Creek Wilderness area has received some moisture, but fires will likely stay on the landscape for a while.
• Lane One Fire now has a line around it and ODF has moved to the mop up phase hoping to turn control over to the locals by Friday.
• Fires in the South Cascade District has crossed over the fire lines which is one of the causes of concern.
• Chalk Fire is making progress, and they are lowering evacuations notices in the area.
• Ore Fire now has lines around it taking advantage of rain in the area.
• Pyramid Fire has not moved in a while and the Sandstone fire now has a line all the way around it.
• Whiskey Fire by Cascade Locks, rain helped secure parts of the fire that had crossed the lines. Westside continues to be problematic, particularly if East winds surface.

Eastern Oregon

• Larch, Battle mountain, Crazy Creek and others are all looking good and teams are preparing to hand those fires off to local authorities.
• Now that fires are coming offline, ODF has resources to attack new fires as they develop.
• Southeast Region has not received too much moisture compared to the rest of the state, so ODF will keep an eye on the area as lighting moves in.

Wildfire Resources

• 2024 Statewide Wildfire Monitoring Portfolio
• ODF Wildfire Map
• Population Impacts within Fire Evacuation Boundaries
• DEQ Aire Quality Map

Lastly, I want to take a moment to remember James Bailey Maxwell who lost his life fighting the Falls Fire on July 25th. 74-year-old Maxwell was flying a Bureau of Land Management contracted aircraft when it went down near the Falls Fire in the Malheur National Forest. He was an experienced pilot who had spent 54 years of his life flying and was loved by his family and community. My sincere condolences to his family, loved ones, and fellow firefighters.

Marion Polk Food Share Tour

On August 19^th, I toured the Marion Polk Food Share. Marion Polk Food Share’s mission is to bring people together to end hunger and its root causes. They distribute nutritious food for individuals and families to more than 100 local partners, including food pantries and meal sites, and deliver Meals on Wheels to homebound seniors and adults with disabilities. They also operate an urban farm and support a network of community gardens that connect people and their food, and mobilize community members to address systemic issues that lead to hunger. 

The organization relies heavily on their volunteer support, advocates, and donors and they are desperately in need of a new facility. As more and more people rely on them and local food banks like Silverton Area Community Aid (SACA), they have outgrown the space they have. I am 100% in support of assisting in fulfilling that need.

Watch a short video of the tour here on their Facebook page here and find more information about how you can get involved in supporting the Marion Polk Food Share here.  

Replies to this message are sent to an unmonitored mailbox.
To contact me, please click here: Rep.RickLewis@oregonlegislature.gov

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