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January 22, 2009
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Vol 19, Issue 2
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Legislative
Report
 League of Women Voters of Oregon
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Priority
#1, Dealing with Oregon's Fiscal Crisis
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 Legislators and
state officials face their greatest challenge in decades as they learn
the true extent of jobs lost, home foreclosures and the impacts on
programs and services provided by state and local governments.
The revenue forecasts are grim. The next forecast is due February
20 and will include estimates for both 2007-09 and 2009-11. For
2009-11, the range of shortfalls runs from the current $1.4 billion to
up to $4 billion, which is almost one fourth of our General Fund.
The dilemma
for decision makers is how to protect education, human services, public
safety, natural resources, and transportation services with some sort
of priority order.
New and
significant this session: Bills
are required to have a fiscal impact statement before moving out of
committee. Bills may not even make it out of
committee if implementing the policies costs money.
The League
will be watching carefully and offering comments when appropriate as we
likewise work toward prioritizing the issues on our legislative agenda.
Kappy Eaton, Governance Coordinator
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Economic
Stimulus Bill
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A recent press release from the Office of the Senate and
the House Speaker announced that the economic revitalization bill
should be on the Governor's desk by the end of the first week in
February. Action is expected by the full Ways and Means Committee
by Friday, January 23 in order to qualify for the proposed February
sales of state-backed bonds. Read the full text of the stimulus bill news release.
Go to the Legislative Fiscal web site
to see documents related to the Oregon deferred maintenance and
economic stimulus package.
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Access to the Legislature
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 I am again serving
as Public Access Chair for the LWV this session. It is important
that legislators know the public and the League are watching and
listening. The good news so far: the Senate and House have agreed
to have at least a 48-hour public notice for hearings.
5 Minute Activist
You may also be asked to help lobby your legislator or
other legislators either from your home or by coming to Salem. I hope
you can set aside 5 minutes to help.
Attend the Legislature from
Home
Remember that you do not need to be in Salem to watch a
hearing or floor session. Link to About the Legislative Web Site for
more information. This is also one of the Quick Links provided
each issue.
Access Problems
If you have any problems with accessing a hearing,
contacting your legislator, or finding out about a bill or any part of
the legislative process, please let me hear from you (email: lwvor@lwvor.org).
If I do not know about the problems then I cannot work on a
solution.
Paula Krane, Public Access Coordinator
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Keeping an Eye on "Good Government" Issues
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Several bills have been drafted including:
- Same-day voter
registration;
- Shifting some of
the burden of election costs from counties to the state
- Instant runoff for
local elections
- Allowing early
counting of ballots.
Various ideas are being discussed in meetings of a
bipartisan Initiative Reform Coalition, of which the League is a
part.
Changes enacted by the 2007 Legislature:
- More oversight in
how petitions are passed and signed;
- Registration,
training, and payment rules for petition passers;
- Requiring 1,000
signatures before obtaining a ballot title.
New
proposals:
- Greater
enforcement during the signature gathering period;
- Increased clarity
for voters of the fiscal impacts on current and future programs;
- Consideration of
ways to prevent statutory material from being placed in the Oregon
Constitution;
- Implementation of
an indirect initiative. This would allow legislative
deliberation for all citizen initiatives after they have qualified
for the ballot.
 Ethics Reform
There will be further "tweaking" of the 2007
legislation. Changes are needed to fix the "huge net"
which caught local officials in reporting the economic interests of not
only themselves but their extended families. There will also be
discussions to clarify reporting requirements for receipt of gift,
food, and entertainment.
Kappy Eaton, Governance Coordinator
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