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To contact me, please click here: Sen.JaneenSollman@oregonlegislature.gov
Friends and Neighbors,
Upcoming Events
Forest Grove Cornelius Chamber of Commerce - Leaders Luncheon: Monday, Aug 24th
Legislative Lookback
Reducing Plastic Waste
During my nine and a half years as a legislator, reducing plastics in our environment has been a consistent focus of mine. As a Metro Master Recycler, I know we cannot recycle our way out of the plastic waste crisis. Microplastics are everywhere- in our waterways, ingested by the fish and animals we eat, and in the very air we breathe. They've even been found in breastmilk. Yet we recycle only about 9% of all the plastic we produce.
We must shift our focus toward reduction and reuse, and move away from single-use plastics. I've been proud to chief sponsor several bills that do just that, and to lend my support to many others, including the Straws Upon Request Only bill in 2019, the Recycling Modernization Act in 2021, and the Right to Repair bills in 2024 and 2025. In 2023, I led a workgroup during the interim to explore environmentally friendly alternatives to polystyrene food containers, which helped inform our ban on polystyrene foam in takeout containers that same year.
Throughout this work, I've been inspired by the students who have fought alongside me. In 2019, when I worked to pass the plastic bag ban, students from Hillsboro's Youth Advisory Committee, who had just passed their own ordinance banning single-use plastic bags in Hillsboro, came with me to Salem to lobby for the bill. And when we banned polystyrene foam in 2023, our office put together a slideshow of letters from K-8 students across Oregon who supported it. These students know the world they're inheriting, and they're not waiting for permission to fight for it. As long as they keep showing up, so will I.
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Single Use Plastic Bag Ban: HB 2509 in 2019 and SB 551 in 2025. Prohibits restaurants and retailers from providing single-use checkout bags to consumers. The 2019 version of the bill still allowed for the thicker plastic bags to be used at checkout. In 2025, we came back to ban plastic bags at checkout completely. This goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2027.
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Polystyrene Ban: SB 543 in 2023. Prohibits food vendor from using polystyrene foam container in sales of prepared food.
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Reusable Containers: SB 545 in 2023. Directs Oregon Health Authority to adopt rules allowing restaurants to allow consumers to fill consumer-owned container with food.
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Toxic Free Cosmetics: SB 546 in 2023. Requires Oregon Health Authority to adopt and maintain list of designated high priority chemicals of concern used in cosmetic products and to periodically review and revise list.
Rise Above Plastic Pollution Day Remonstrance, March 2023
Quatama Elementary Student Letters to Senator Sollman-Slide Show, Feb 2023
 Bill ideas from students at Quatama Elementary
In The News
Genentech plans $750 million expansion in Hillsboro, OPB, Lauren Dake, August 20, 2026.
The biotechnology company Genentech is pouring $750 million into a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Hillsboro that is expected to create 450 new jobs in manufacturing and construction.
Out and About in Senate District 15
Summer Fun at the Hillsboro Hops
Earlier this month I enjoyed a fun night at the Hillsboro Hops with colleagues and friends. Make sure you see a game before the season ends! Ticket information can be found here.
Community Outreach
Hillsboro Schools Foundation - Back to School Supply Drive
Choose to Reuse in Washington County
Shared from Waste-Free Advocates
 Join us this fall, as we canvass in Beaverton and Downtown Hillsboro!
WFA is partnering with Metro’s Choose to Reuse campaign. We're organizing groups of volunteers to do in-person outreach to restaurants and spread the news that they can now accept customer-owned reusable containers.
Sign up for the virtual training on Sept 10th from 6:30-7:30. The training is a requirement to attend an In-Person Canvassing Event. If you already attended the March training, you don't need to attend again.
There are two canvassing options - you can choose to volunteer for either or both! We'll meet in Downtown Hillsboro on Thurs, Sept 17th from 1:30-5pm and in Beaverton on Sunday, Sept 20th from 1:30- 5pm. Snacks will be available. The virtual training will be given in English, but bi-lingual skills are a plus for this volunteer opportunity - though not required.
Both the training and in-person canvassing count as Master Recycler volunteer hours.
We're looking for 5-10 volunteers for both canvassing events, and could really use your help!
Sign Up Here
Library Card Sign-up Month
Shared from Washington County Cooperative Library Services
 September is Library Card Sign-up Month! We are hosting a giveaway to honor the occasion. Enter for a chance to win a special edition mini tote that you can use to share your library love wherever you are in Washington County and beyond! Learn more here.
Additional Resources
Senate District 15 – Event Calendars
Federal Delegation Links
Education Links
Food and Housing Assistance
Immigration Resources
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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