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

Dear Friends and Neighbors, 

The 83rd legislative session closed our very busy session (sine die, Latin for "without a day") late on Friday, June 27th. In the last 157 days, the Legislature considered over 4,000 bills, and we delivered on key priorities for our district. The journey wasn’t always easy as the road was windy and there were speed bumps along the way. But in the end, I am proud of what my office and my colleagues in Salem have accomplished.

Reps Pham and Nosse celebrating the passage of HB 2010

Many of my legislative priorities were passed and funded this session and as a result, the lives of children, youth, and families across Oregon will be positively impacted. We worked to create pathways to good jobs, support working families, strengthen our public education system, expand access to mental and behavioral health care, and fund essential community projects that serve Washington County. 

From start to finish, my team and I have worked hard to stay focused and show up for the work I promised to champion for the people who sent me to Salem. As always, it is my honor to serve as your State Representative in our Legislature. I hope we will continue to hear from you during the interim now that session is behind us. 

Town Hall with Reps Pham, Chaichi, and Sen Campos at the Beaverton Public Library

RSVP Here

While this newsletter will go over some of my personal priority legislation, I hope you do stay connected and come to ask questions about legislation you are interested in by attending our upcoming Joint Town Hall with Rep. Chaichi and Sen. Campos on August 12th at the Beaverton City Library. 

Celebrating Huge Wins and Working to Serve all Oregonians

Despite the many long days in Salem, the Legislature took action to maintain critical core services for Oregonians. Here are some of the highlights: 

To make health care accessible and affordable, we worked to strengthen our healthcare system for those who need it the most by:

• Protecting and strengthening our healthcare system for 1.4 million or 1 in 3 Oregonians who rely on Medicaid or the Oregon Health Plan (HB 2010)
• Removing medical debt from credit reports (SB 605) 
• Lowering costs with first-in-the-nation policy preventing big pharma from withholding funds from federally qualified health centers and hospitals (HB 2385) 
• Protecting Oregonians from predatory billing practices (HB 3243) 
• Requiring health insurers to cover menopause treatment (HB 3064)
• Expanding access to mental health treatment for patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities (SB 729) 
• Making it possible for Oregonians living with physical or medical disabilities to repair their equipment (SB 550) 

To strengthen schools, we took care of our youth and passed: 

• $11.4 billion budget for schools so that educators, families and youth, have the tools they need for our kids to succeed in the classroom (SB 5516) 
• Enacted education accountability measures to ensure all of these dollars are actually reaching educators, students, and their families (SB 141) 
• Invested $70 million in stable ongoing summer learning programs across the state (HB 2007)
• Directed an investigation into chronic absenteeism so we can take a much-needed, research-based approach to implementing statewide policies to support students and families (HB 3199) 
• Invested in early literacy programs to set students up for a lifetime of academic success (HB 3040) 

To protect working families, we took care of the rising costs of living and passed legislation that:

• Protects families from utility rate hikes, especially during extreme heat or cold when Oregonians need it the most (HB 3179)
• Requires data centers to pay more for the large amount of electricity they use and prevent them from shifting those costs down to residential consumers (HB 3546)
• Supports low-income Oregonians to pay their utility and broadband bills (HB 3792, HB 3148) 
• Expands locations where family and childcare centers can be located (HB 3560) 
• Allows homeowners to evict squatters (HB 3522) 

To safeguard the rights of our immigrant, asylum seekers, and refugee neighbors, we took bold action to: 

• Grant asylum seekers the ability to receive in-state tuition (HB 2586) 
• Ensure no one is discriminated against based on their immigration status when looking for a home (SB 599) 
• Secure $10.5 million for the Universal Representation Fund which provides legal services to individuals on immigration matters
• Invest $750,000 for Pueblo Unido PDX to add language evaluations for interpreters of indigenous language spoken in present day Mexico, Central and South America. 

To improve community safety, we passed meaningful legislation to strengthen our courts and hold bad actors accountable by: 

• Investing $707 million budget to address the public defense crisis (HB 5031) 
• Reforming Oregon’s mental health laws to expand treatment and faster care for those unfit to stand trial (HB 2005) 
• Adding stronger penalties for those dealing fentanyl in our communities (SB 236) 
• Equipping patients to make informed decisions about the potential use of opioids (HB 3211) 
• Supporting students recovering from brain injuries (SB 470) 
• Updating the qualifications for statutes of limitation so that victims of child abuse or sexual assault can seek justice (HB 3582) 
• Banning sharing intimate images made by AI or other editing software and outlawed sending unsolicited lewd images (HB 2299, HB 2766) 

To lower housing costs, we cut through red tape and made housing more affordable and: 

• Made it easier for developers to increase housing supply which is the key to improving housing affordability for everyone (SB 974, HB 3144, HB 2138, HB 2258) 
• Established a Senior Housing Development Initiative worth $24 million for affordable housing for low-income seniors and people with disabilities (HB 3589) 
• Strengthened protections for renters to get their deposits back (HB 3521)
• Established a permanent statewide shelter program (HB 3644) 

To prepare for natural disasters, we moved to protect our communities by: 

• Funding wildfire prevention by taxing oral nicotine packages like ZYNS (HB 3940) 
•  Repealing wildfire hazard maps with bipartisan support (SB 83)
• Strengthening Oregon’s emergency planning by putting the State Resilience Officer in charge of helping the state prepare for emergency events like earthquakes, wildfires, and floods (HB 2581) 

Collectively, we have worked hard to deliver for Oregonians and move the needle on key issues. In all, I have held 5 town halls, delivered nearly 50 speeches in bills that are top priorities to the district and the state, connected with hundreds of people through emails, phone calls, and meetings. All of this work could not be possible without the countless number of advocates, residents, and Oregonians who showed up with me.

Celebrating My Personal Legislative Priorities

Representative Pham speaking on SB 699, So Every BODY Can Move

Many of my top priorities have passed or found other pathways for passage, here’s a quick overview. I know I have spent some time going through each of these priorities in greater detail in previous newsletters so here is a quick overview: 

• $7 million investment in mental health, behavioral health, and substance use disorder (SUD) treatment for School Based Health Centers. School-based health centers are a vital lifeline, especially in rural areas, offering treatment, prevention, and early intervention services where access is limited. (HB 5025) 
• $10 million expanded investment to expand residential behavioral health treatment for youth. This will increase the availability of stabilizing treatment beds and expand the capacity of residential programs statewide. (HB 5025)
• Expanded education and awareness for congenital cytomegalovirus and standardized screening protocols (HB 2685)  
• So Every BODY Can Move closes an insurance gap and require coverage of prosthetics and orthotic devices needed for staying active (SB 699)
• We closed the gap for dental lab transparency and strengthened consumer protections so that every dentist and their patient knows where materials are manufactured (HB 2594)
• Workers Fraud Protection Act creates penalties for individuals who fraudulently pose as union representatives (HB 3789)
• In honor of Dr. Brian Druker who has saved countless lives through his incredible cancer research, we passed The Dr. Druker Resolution (HCR 3) 

Securing Funding and Serving our Communities

In collaboration with the Washington County delegation, we secured dollars that will directly benefit our communities. 

$1.25 million investment for the Washington County Courthouse Replacement Project

Video courtesy of Fox12 Oregon

You may have seen news stories earlier this session talking about the dire need for a new courthouse in Washington County. The county’s request for state funding will match county funds and kickstart the process of identifying a new site, designing a facility and preparing for future construction. 

The new courthouse will be trauma informed, child-friendly, and have the adequate space and accessibility features so that all individuals can have access to the justice that they deserve. 

$3 million for City of Beaverton Meadowlark Senior Housing Project

Photo courtesy of Carleton Hart Architecture

The Meadowlark Senior Housing Project will be a six-story, 104 unit affordable housing development near the Beaverton Library and will include childcare services on the first floor. 68 units will be reserved to be affordable for households earning up to 30% area median income (AMI) while 36 will be reserved for households earning up to 60% AMI. 30 unites will be permanent supportive housing for formerly homeless seniors while a few will be reserved for seniors who need or wish to leave farmworker housing but cannot find affordable housing options. It’s smart housing projects like these that will build an inclusive and accessible community for all walks of life. 

$4 million for the Corvallis Osborn Aquatic Center - A Nod to My Hometown

Photo courtesy of City of Corvallis

As a proud son of Corvallis, I grew up in the Corvallis School District and know this project to rehabilitate this structure is very needed. Access to the indoor pools has been closed since October of 2024 after routine maintenance of light fixtures and a roof assessment revealed rust and corrosion on the steel beams that support the roof over the natatorium. Local leaders have been working with structural engineers to complete temporary shoring supports and allow for short-term indoor use, but it became obvious a substantial renovation was needed. 

I am very proud of the work we did this session to ensure we funded critical services which serve working families including education, healthcare, and youth services. The legislature worked together to thoughtfully stretch state dollars to serve all Oregonians. 

In And Around The District

Beaverton Joint Town Hall with Mayor Beaty 

Representative Pham speaks to constituents at the Elsie Stuhr Center. Photo courtesy of Rachel Hadiashar.

Mayor Lacey Beaty and I hosted a joint town hall at the Elsie Stuhr Center in early June. It was wonderful to gather with residents of Beaverton, meet with constituents, and hear their concerns. Thank you to Tualatin Hills Parks and Recreation District for making this event possible and thank you to all those in attendance.

OHSU - Conversation with Elected Officials  

I had the privilege of speaking to medical students at OHSU alongside Congresswoman Susan Bonamici about the intersection of Science and Policy. 

I was grateful to have the opportunity to speak with the next generation of healthcare and medical research professionals. Thank you to Jonah Stickney for emceeing the event and Dr. Sarah Cate Baker, for moderating a wonderful conversation. Thank you as well to OHSU and the Knight Cancer Institute for your hospitality and a warm welcome home to my alma mater! 

Thanks for Reading, Please Stay Connected!

While the 2025 Legislative session has come to a close and we are taking a break from Salem, the work doesn’t end here. I will continue to send out monthly newsletters, work on policy, attend tours and site visits, and host town halls and constituent coffees. It’ll be a busy summer! 

My office and I still stand ready to support you, please reach out and connect at any time. You can connect with my legislative work by following me on Facebook, Instagram, or email my office at Rep. HaiPham@oregonlegislature.gov. 

Thanks for reading, 

Representative Hai Pham
House District 36

Capitol Phone: 503-986-1436
Capitol Address: 900 Court St. NE, H-282, Salem, Oregon 97301
Email: Rep.HaiPham@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/phamh