News from Senator Diane Rosenbaum

2013 Committee Assignments

In addition to my duties as Senate Majority Leader, I will serve as chair of the Senate Committee on Rules, and as a member of the Senate Committee on Finance and Revenue as well as the Joint Committee on Tax Credits. I will continue to serve on the Oregon Hunger Task Force and the Oregon Workforce Investment Board.

Staff Announcements

This session, I’m glad to welcome a veteran staff member back to my office! Megan Osborne will serve as my legislative assistant in the 2013 Legislative Session. Megan served as my legislative aide from 2008 to 2011, and returns to the post after earning a Master's Degree in Public Policy from Oregon State University. Brian Worley, who most recently served as my legislative assistant, has been named Research Director in Senate Majority Office.

The 2013 Senate Majority Office Staff!

Legislative Priorities

On February 5th my colleagues and I introduced our Legislative Agenda for 2013, which prioritizes many of the concerns I’ve heard from residents of Southeast Portland and Milwaukie.

Specifically, Senate Democrats’ 2013 Legislative Agenda will focus on three key areas:

• Investing in excellent public education and career training to prepare our children for the future;
• Supporting local small businesses and putting Oregonians back to work by stimulating the Oregon economy and increasing access to capital; and,
•  Protecting vital services for hardworking families to ensure their basic needs are met while they work towards independent stability. 
   

 Our objectives are achievable and they’re the priorities of Oregonians who have voiced loud and clear that we must invest in education and job creation. As we embark on this 77^th Legislative Session, I want to stress that while the challenges we face are not simple ones, together I know we can find smart ways to reinvest in education to reduce class sizes, protect our most vulnerable, and get Oregonians back into stable living wage jobs.

 Among my personal priorities this session are bills that will improve women’s health, protect families from foreclosure, extend the earned income tax credit for hard-working families, and expand a career and technical education grant program to prepare students for the jobs of the future.

Early detection of breast and cervical cancer: Senate Bill 362 will provide funding for the Oregon Breast and Cervical Cancer Program (BCCP) to increase the number of low-income women who have access to screening for breast and cervical cancer. Last week this bill was passed by the Senate Health Care Committee with a unanimous vote to the Ways and Means Committee. In the hearing we heard public testimony from two women who were screened and treated for breast cancer through the Oregon BCCP. Both confirmed that without this program, they might not be here today.

Expand the Earned Income Tax Credit: Senate Bill 507 will renew and expand Oregon’s Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). The EITC provides a much needed boost for working families who often struggle supporting themselves paycheck to paycheck. In 2010 over 250,000 hard-working families across Oregon were eligible for this program. This proposal is currently in the Senate Finance and Revenue Committee awaiting a public hearing.

 On February 14th The Oregon Hunger Task Force and Community Action Partnership of Oregon hosted a legislative lobby day in which the EITC was featured as a legislative priority. I was honored to have the opportunity to speak to this group about the EITC and other important priorities for 2013.