• Hospital Discharge Challenges : Jimmy Jones and Elizabeth Burns presented recommendations from the Joint Task Force.  

• Alcohol Pricing and Addiction Services : Representative Tawna Sanchez provided updates on tackling alcohol-related addictions.  

• Universal Health Plan: Chair Helen Bellanca and Vice Chair Judy Richardson from the Governance Board reviewed progress.  

• Behavioral Health Workforce: Mick Kincaid shared updates on HB 2235 workforce initiatives.  

• Nurse Shortage: Jana Bitton discussed solutions for Oregon's nurse workforce challenges.  

House Interim Committee on Labor and Workplace Standards 

• Registered Apprenticeships : Josh Nasbe from the Bureau of Labor and Industries provided an update on apprenticeship programs in Oregon.  

• Future Ready Oregon: Leaders from the Higher Education Coordinating Commission and industry partners, including Microchip and Mercy Flights, shared progress on workforce initiatives.  

• Customer Service Strategies : David Gerstenfeld from the Oregon Employment Department discussed improvements in caseload management and service delivery.  

• Wage Boards: The Legislative Policy and Research Office presented an overview of wage boards and their potential impact.  

The upcoming session is a pivotal one, and I am proud to champion bills that reflect our shared values and priorities. Here are just a few of the key proposals I will be supporting (available on OLIS after January 13th):  

1. HB 2738 - Ban Leaded Gas at PIR

• Prohibits the use of leaded fuel at the Portland International Raceway (PIR) to address environmental and public health concerns. 

2. HB 2921 - Bottle Drop Siting

•  Enhances oversight and safeguards for community input on Bottle Drop locations in industrial zones, requiring applicant notifications to state legislators, empowering the OLCC to address compliance and livability standards, and enabling withdrawal of approval for centers that fail to meet public needs. 

3. HB 2957 - Fair Timelines for Workers

• Adjusts time limitations for violations enforced by the Bureau of Labor and Industries, ensuring fairer processes for workers. 

4. HB 2742 - Disability Return to Work Protections 

• Enhances workplace protections for persons with disabilities and enforcing equitable return-to-work policies. 

5. HB 2552/ SB 537 - Workplace Violence in Healthcare  

• Implements measures to reduce violence in healthcare settings, promoting safety for workers and patients.  

6. HB 2792 - Money Spent on Union Replacement Workers  

• Mandates hospitals to disclose expenses incurred for hiring replacement workers during labor disputes.  

7. HB 2793 - Money Spent on Measures to Prevent Unions  

• Requires hospitals to report spending on actions aimed at discouraging labor organizing.  

8. HB 2920 - EMMA Transparency  

• Enhances disclosure requirements for hospital financial information.  

9. HB 2798 - Hospital Executive Reporting  

• Establishes transparency in healthcare by requiring detailed reporting on hospital executive compensations.  

10. HB 2794 - Dangerous Medical Equipment  

• Strengthens regulations around the use of potentially dangerous medical equipment in healthcare facilities.  

11. HB 2918 - Hospital Days Cash on Hand  

• Requires hospitals to disclose financial liquidity metrics, including days cash on hand, for improved transparency.  

13. HB 2741 - Newborn Bloodspot Screening Program 

• Establishes a Newborn Bloodspot Screening Program to ensure all newborns are screened for medical conditions that can be treated early, and families are connected with resources. This includes newborns screened for Sickle Cell. 

14. HB 2940 - Sickle Cell Hospital Protocols  

• Establishes hospital protocols for treating hemoglobinopathies like sickle cell disease.  

15. HB 2787 - Reasonable Work Schedules 

• Introduces standards for compensating workers required to be on-call or on standby for shifts and requires predictable schedules. 

16. HB 2748 - Nurse Title Protections  

• Protects the integrity of nursing titles by safeguarding the title from being used with AI-powered agents or non-human entities.  

17. HB 2948 - Hannah’s Law  

• Ensures that only registered nurses are authorized to supervise, assign tasks to, or evaluate licensed nurses in school settings when it pertains to nursing practice.  

18. HB 2743 - Stripper Bill of Rights  

• Establishes workplace rights and protections for workers in adult entertainment establishments.  

19. HB 2786 - Earned Leave Pay  

• Ensures fair compensation for accrued leave upon employee termination.  

20. HB 2749 - Emergency Route Study Funding 

• Funding for the emergency access bridge across Columbia Boulevard, for enhanced public safety.  

21. HB 2744 - Pet Insurance Ban on Preexisting Conditions  

• Prohibits exclusions in pet insurance coverage based on preexisting conditions. 

In continuation of the work established in HB 4052 from 2022, my office has been working with the Oregon Advocacy Commissions Office (OACO) on policy proposals to address social determinants of health. I will be bringing an additional 15 bills on behalf of community members working with OACO. Here are a few of those bills: 

 HB 2990 - Language Access and Equity at the DMV 

• This bill is intended to ensure language access and equity in services provided at the DMV (Oregon Department of Transportation, Driver & Motor Vehicle Services), including equitable processes and pass-rates for non-English speaking individuals obtaining driver licenses in Oregon. 

 HB 2993 - Linguistically Culturally Specific Healthcare Services 

• Ensures that health care services and workforce are linguistically appropriate, requiring health care providers offer language support through qualified interpreters and written materials at accessible reading levels. This includes interpreter availability, including during pre-appointments. 

 HB 2995 - Reparation as a Solution to Racism 

• Sets up a task force to look at ways in which the state can give reparations for past acts of racism to African-American people who live in the state. Directs the task force to study and develop proposals for financial and nonfinancial reparations for Oregonians of African-American descent, develop appropriate methods for educating the public about the task force’s findings and recommend appropriate remedies based on the task force’s findings. 

 HB 3001 - Reentry Services for Black Justice Involved Oregonians 

• Provides resources for Black adults in custody. Appropriates moneys out of the General Fund to the Department of Corrections to provide housing and employment reentry services to Black adults in custody. 

 HB 3004 - Community Violence Prevention Programs 

• Provide funding to additional programs similar to the city of Gresham’s EMOPI (East Metro Outreach Prevention Intervention) program to reduce the impact of community violence that may include one or more of the following counties: Multnomah, Marion, Klamath, and/or Jackson County. 

 HB 3006 - Diversity in School Educators and Staff 

• Would create ways to increase diversity in the education workforce in the state. Related to increasing the representation of historically underrepresented communities in the education workforce in the state. Directs the Higher Education Coordinating Commission to award scholarships to administrator to relevant candidates. 

Once session starts and the bills are posted, I will include a more comprehensive list of all the bills I am sponsoring and links to all of them!