Naturalization Ceremony is Tradition
LWVUS Convention volunteer opportunities
The 30-month Water Study approved at the 2007 convention has begun in earnest. Basically, this is a two-pronged study of quantity and quality of water in Oregon. There are 11 members and two co-chairs, Marnie Lonsdale and Robin Wisdom. Maryann Raney has been producing minutes of the meetings. While also gathering data from other sources, the group is now updating LWVOR’s 1985 study called “Water Currents of Oregon,” an excellent report. In the process the group will be looking for gaps in data and League positions. We are still researching ways to address the water quality issue.
In November and early December study members asked local Leagues these questions: 1) Has your League participated in any water related studies in the past? 2) Are you currently engaged in a water study or beginning a water study? If so, what is the scope and timeline,? 3) Do you have any particular water issues in your area? and 4) What can you share regarding your studies (printed materials or internet links)?
The Committee has been alternating its meeting sites between the Lane League office and the Salem office. Meetings are two hours long, and conference calls for those unable to drive far distances will be available. Interested parties are encouraged to be connected via email. Send Robin Wisdom your email address through the state League office (lwvor@lwvor.org) to be included in what’s flowing in. Or if you crave the full Monty, join us now on the ground floor for a dive into Oregon’s water issues!
For more information go to http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/2004/circ1268. How about individual users? According to the 2005-2006 Demand Consumption Information from the Portland Water Bureau, the per capita consumption in Portland was 116 gallons (15.5 cf) of water per day. This is about four round trash cans full or a very full bath tub or 23 five gallon buckets of water per person. Imagine having to carry 23 buckets of water from the well or stream for each member of your family.
Congratulations, League members, on the success of Measure 49, which clarified Measure 37 to allow some home sites for long time property owners while providing protection for our farms, forests and some groundwater areas. We were pleased to see the measure pass in 22 of Oregon’s counties. It is that broad-based recognition of this balanced legislation that will help in future land use conversations.
What’s next? The measure takes effect December 6. If you have a pending Measure 37 claim or an approved claim, you will receive a letter from the Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) with your options under Measure 49 sometime AFTER December 6. See www.oregon.gov/LCD/measure49.shtml for more information.
If you have already started work to perfect a claim under Measure 37 (or are a neighbor or community member) AND you believe you are “vested” under common law, that determination may need to be adjudicated by local government, the state (where laws related to state law are at issue) and/or the courts. There are 6 factors that courts have considered when determining “vesting,” including the percentage of money already spent compared to the total cost of the development and whether or not you acted in good faith in spending that money. Some have said that the public was provided notice about the possible change in state law when Measure 49 was referred to the voters on June 15. So work done after June 15 may come into question by the courts. As usual, consulting your local government and/or your own attorney is the best advice if “vesting” is an issue.
League members will want to check with their local governments to learn how Measure 49 will affect Measure 37 claims in their area. If issues arise in your area, please let me know.
Richard Whitman, a lawyer with the Department of Justice who helped write Measure 49 (under the direction of the Legislature), was appointed as Director of the Dept. of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD). His term is to begin in January. Mr. Whitman will not only be responsible for implementing Measure 49, but will work with local governments on land use issues around the state. The League was pleased to read that he believes, as do we, that our statewide land use planning program needs to reconnect with Oregonians so people understand why we have a statewide program and that it has meaning in their lives. He will work with the Big Look Task Force if it continues after the February 2008 Special Session.
Health care is another issue that currently demands our attention. The defeat of Measure 50 in Oregon and the heated rhetoric about universal health care at the national level make League health care positions more important than ever. Unfortunately, in recent years LWVOR has not had a strong enough voice on state health care issues, because we lacked volunteers with the knowledge and interest to tackle them. Please read Karen Nibler’s article in this issue of the Voter and help us make this a priority issue going forward.
My duties as state president have taken me in some interesting directions recently, all of which have been related to civics education projects. I am serving on the Department of Education’s Essential Skills Task Force that is preparing a set of skills to replace the CIM and CAM as graduation requirements. I was assigned to the committee on civic/community engagement and global literacy, which is right up the League’s alley! On November 7, I had a fun day as a speaker at the Classroom Law Project’s Youth Summit, which featured immigration as the main topic of discussion for middle and high school students from across the state. Most recently, I was asked to be a judge for Constitution Day at my daughter’s old school, where I joined legislators and attorneys in grilling middle-schoolers about their knowledge of the Constitution and of the rights and responsibilities of citizens.
Looming on the horizon, of course, is the 2008 election and all the preparation that entails for the League. One exciting development is that we are in the midst of negotiating a partnership with Fisher Communications (owner of KATU in Portland, KVAL in Eugene, KCBY in Coos Bay, and KPIC in Roseburg) for televised debates with statewide and national appeal. In addition we have many other voter education projects in the wings that I will leave to Janet Calvert to fill you in on at another time. Please continue to keep us informed about your local League activities – I’m in awe of the many creative ways to keep your membership active and engaged.
The upcoming legislative session that begins on February 4 is formally called an "emergency legislative session," because that is the authority in the Oregon Constitution that the Legislature has used to call itself back into session. But there is no emergency, certainly not like the five emergency sessions held during the state's fiscal crisis a few years ago. Senate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem, wants us to call it a "supplemental session." Most others are calling it a "special session." Regardless of what it is called, the session is a test drive of annual sessions of the Legislature, scheduled at the urging of both the Public Commission of the Oregon Legislature and the League. Most agree that if this test is successful, a constitutional amendment will be referred to the voters to make the idea permanent, and Oregon will join 44 other states with annual sessions.
In addition to referring a constitutional amendment on annual sessions, what will the special session do? This is the question that has every lobbying organization in the state working overtime during the months leading to the session. The Housing Alliance would like to see more money allocated for low-income housing. Our Oregon would like to see some bills passed that would counter the initiative petition proposals of Kevin Mannix, especially those adding property crimes to Measure 11 offenses that would increase the need for more prisons and decrease the money available for education, health care and other important state services. The League has no formal agenda but will be looking for opportunities to implement our positions, such as the one advocating annual sessions. All agree that the session can make budget adjustments, fix drafting errors and unintended problems, and make important policy decisions that would otherwise have to wait another year. Because the interim Ways and Means committee is currently meeting (without subcommittees), the Emergency Board is not expected to meet until after February.
We applaud the legislative leaders who are keen on making the session productive to convince the voters that annual sessions are a good idea. The leadership has agreed to limit the number of bills to 50 for each chamber. The Senate will allow each senator to propose one bill with the other 20 reserved for Senate committees. The House will require that all bills be proposed through committees. To reduce the partisanship, House bills will not include the names of sponsors, and one criterion for bill selection is bipartisan support. The Governor and others will not be allowed to separately submit bills. All ideas for bills must have been submitted to legislative bill-drafters by Nov. 15, but won’t be available to the public until 2008. However, committee bills have generally already been discussed in public meetings. Interim committees are expected meet in January to begin hearings on the bills.
Construction in the Capitol wings will slow everything down. There are only three hearing rooms for each chamber, only half the normal number. Legislators’ offices and Legislative Fiscal and Legislative Revenue offices have been moved several blocks away. Legislative support staffs have moved into smaller spaces in the main Capitol building. The Secretary of State's staff has also had to move, but not the Secretary of State himself.
Among the policy issues that may be considered are those that caused party-line splits during the 2007 session and that have been reworked with bi-partisan support. Among the leading contenders are: curbing abuses in home-mortgage lending, hiring more state troopers to assure "24/7" coverage on major highways, addressing undocumented immigration through stiffer driver's license requirements, and enabling farmers to draw more irrigation water from the Columbia River. Among budget proposals are: adjust human services spending (particularly Oregon Project Independence, which serves frail seniors and people with disabilities in their homes), bail out the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, aid a stalled construction project at Oregon Institute of Technology in Klamath Falls, and possibly restore money for the "Big Look" committee to reach out to Oregonians regarding our statewide land use system, including any changes to the program. Legislators left $180 million unspent when they wrote the 2007-09 budget, the September Forecast added $400,000, there will be another forecast in November, and there will be a new economic forecast available during the session allowing for budget adjustments. Legislative leaders hope to set aside at least $149 million for the new Oregon Rainy Day Fund. Dollars to implement Measure 49 will be budgeted, including money for an Ombudsman. There will also likely be pressure to follow-up on Healthy Kids in light of the failure of Measure 50.
Your Action Team is working overtime this year to promote League positions, but we cannot cover everything. If you see any issue that you would like to help observe or advocate on, then please let us know! We particularly need volunteers who may know about healthcare and education funding issues.
The recently appointed members of the Oregon Health Fund Board (OHFB) are charging ahead with planning for the implementation of SB 329. Barney Speight, Director, and Jeanene Smith, Administrator, of the Office for Oregon Health Policy and Research are exploring options for the development of a new health care system in Oregon. They reported back to the Senate Health Care Reform Committee at an October 16 hearing, and they may be bringing recommended changes to the February 2008 session.
The Oregon Health Fund Board, consisting of seven appointed members, has been meeting in October and November in Portland, Wilsonville and Salem. The board’s five committees are Benefits, Delivery System, Finance, Enrollment and Eligibility, and Federal Laws. The Benefits Committee has met twice in Wilsonville, and the Enrollment and Eligibility Committee has already met four times. The other three committees have not yet been scheduled. Agendas, minutes and materials for these meetings can be found on the Oregon Health Fund Board website at http://healthfundboard.oregon.gov.
The Oregon Health Plan, initiated in 1989, set up Oregon as an innovative leader in health care. Currently Massachusetts and Minnesota have state health plans, and California is in the process of developing one. The OHFB is an important development for Oregon and other states considering statewide health systems. Unfortunately, the League has not been able to monitor the OHFB committees because volunteers have not yet stepped forward. Since most of the meetings have been in Wilsonville at Clackamas Community College, the Action Committee is hoping for a volunteer from a nearby League. If you would like to lend a hand or need more information, please contact me through the LWV office at lwvor@lwvor.org.
The Action Committee decided to remain neutral on Measure 50 because of conflicting positions. The League is a strong proponent of health care for children, yet we were unable to support the fact that the tobacco tax to fund the program would require a constitutional amendment. The television ads opposed to this measure were funded by the tobacco industry. The voters responded to the effort to tax only cigarette and tobacco users for the health care of children.
LWVOR is in favor of universal health care, and Healthy Kids was a defined step in that direction. Many voters are in favor of this step, so this issue is due to return to the state legislative agenda. The State Children’s Health Insurance Program, SCHIP, at the federal level, has also had a rocky road through the congressional and presidential approval process. The resistance to the expansion of the SCHIP assistance to states is based on the perception that it is a step toward universal health care. Oregon has not been utilizing the full capacity of the existing federal health care program for children since only half of eligible children are currently enrolled in the state and federally supported program.
The immigration study epitomizes one of the things that the LWV does best. It examines a complex issue – immigration – from the perspective of national policies. Many Leagues have had multiple programs on this study and invited community members from government officials to educators to recent immigrants to attend their meetings and enrich their discussions. By now each local League should have received the link to connect to the online consensus form that LWVUS has requested we complete for the immigration study. If you do not have it or have problems with the format, please contact me through the state League office (lwvor@lwvor.org). Please remember that the form is for local League use only. Members cannot send in it individually. Aware of the many complaints that local Leagues had over the poor distribution of this study to members, the state League sent a letter to LWVUS expressing our concerns about the electronic-only dissemination. While we are aware that this is an age of transition from paper to electronic text, some paper copies of the text would have been welcomed by many of our local Leagues, especially by those members who have limited or dial up computer access.
This study has informed us about immigration concerns, provoked conversations, and now needs some conclusions. Please complete the consensus form by February 1. And again, if you have problems with the format, please contact the office or me.
One local League has been involved with the immigration process for more than 40 years. Lane County members have participated in naturalization ceremonies for new citizens since at least the 1960’s - no one now recalls when or how it became a Voter Service tradition.
Barb Bryan, the coordinator, says that there have been five events this year, with 164 new citizens sworn in. League members hand out voter registration forms, “Your League - Your Community,” “They Represent You,” and “Voting in Oregon” in English and Spanish. The League’s role has evolved over the years. Once, members provided refreshments as well as publications. At the most recent ceremony, however, Bryan reports that Judge Ann Aiken asked that the League representative give the new citizens their registration forms as she presented each with the Certificate of Citizenship. One of the forms was completed and returned even before the ceremonies had been completed!
Corvallis League member Liz Frenkel was surprised with a special honor at the LWVOR Fall Workshop on October 6. Guest Speaker Dave Leland of the Department of Human Services (DHS) Drinking Water Program and Gail Shibley, DHS Environmental Health Director presented Liz with a framed certificate of recognition on behalf of DHS for her advocacy work on water issues during many sessions of the Oregon Legislature.
LWVOR President Marge Easley also gave Liz generous words of praise for her eleven years of dedicated service as the LWVOR Natural Resources Coordinator. Although Liz has recently retired from this position, she remains a very active member of the state action committee and the LWVOR water study committee.
During the past ten years, the League of Women Voters of Oregon Voters’ Guide has evolved from a single publication to one that has seven versions including Easy-To-Read, large print, and Spanish. In addition, three local Leagues produce a local version. Over 376,000 were printed and distributed for the 2006 general election. At the same time the cost of producing the guide has greatly increased, creating pressure on the LWVOR Development Committee and on many local Leagues to raise significant funds to pay for the printing and distribution of Leagues’ signature voter education effort.
To address the growing complexity and cost of producing the Voters' Guide, the LWVOR Board of Trustees contracted with Cogan Owens Cogan, a strategic planning firm in Portland, to conduct an evaluation of the Voters’ Guide and voter education. The study will include a review of the 2006 Voters’ Guide in terms of written and graphic content, distribution network, media coverage, fundraising strategy, possible perception of bias vis a vis League advocacy positions and review of League’s web page. Currently the local League presidents and voter service chairs are responding to a survey and later two focus groups, one in an urban area, and one in a rural area will probe opinions on the value of the Voters’ Guide in educating voters.
Recommendations from the study will include creative marketing that could include changes in the format and presentation of the Voters’ Guide, distribution of League studies, key messages to promote usage and funding of the Voters' Guide and League studies, improved web presence, appropriate use of volunteers and paid staff and other strategies to enable the LWVOR Education Fund to improve its voter education efforts.
The final report is scheduled for March 2008, and we anticipate it will help us sharpen our voter education efforts in addressing the changing voter demographics and how voters will want to receive information. However, it is unlikely that the production, distribution and funding of the LWVOR 2008 Voters' Guide will significantly change.
Elaine Cogan, who is directing the study, is a former president of the Portland League and a long time member and supporter. The study is funded by a generous grant from the Carol and Velma Saling Foundation.
The Clackamas County League worked in conjunction with the North Clackamas County Chamber of Commerce to present a November workshop for prospective candidates for elected office.
The keynote speaker was Craig Roberts, Clackamas County Sheriff, who addressed building trust with the voters. He was followed by a review of campaign finance law by John Lindback, Oregon Elections Divisions Director and filing requirements presented by John Kaufmann, Multnomah County Elections Director. Campaign organization and management, fundraising basics, getting noticed by the voters, and building trust and the ethics of politics, also were covered.
A special thank you to Sue Trotter and Farol Kahle for representing the League in this project.
I have received newsletters and/or minutes from six local Leagues since the October board meeting. Immigration and Measure 49 have been the dominant subjects. Here are some highlights I want to share:
Ashland League invited an attorney with the Catholic Charities of Southern Oregon's Immigration Legal Services, former President of the Human Rights Coalition of Jackson County, as its speaker on immigration. On Measure 49, Voter Service sponsored a debate between a state representative and a county commissioner in support, and a state representative and a Grants Pass attorney in opposition. Along with AAUW, Ashland League has cosponsored recent Town Hall Meetings, arranged by the Committee for County Solutions. Meetings were held in Ashland, Eagle Point, Rogue River, Ruch and Medford, giving 300-400 county residents an opportunity for input. The closing of the libraries was a primary concern. A study has been suggested to look at county budgets and related issues.
Clackamas County League. In addition to assigning each member at unit meetings to read one of the immigration briefing papers, Clackamas League has been active in sponsoring a ballot measure forum on local Lake Oswego measures. It supported the measure to increase the number of Clackamas County Commissioners from three to five (which passed on November 6). A Winter Party is planned for December 8, featuring a speaker on Child and Family services, plus a raffle and silent auction.
Curry County League hosted a public meeting on Measures 49 and 50, with Kappy Eaton presenting both sides of the measures. The local Homeless Youth Study committee is following up on the opportunity to apply to the Children and Families Commission for state funds to provide services to their local youth.
League members are following closely the work of the Curry County Committee for Citizen Involvement (CCCCI), especially on water management, land use and transportation plans. The President and Vice President will be meeting with Brookings City Manager about the League's involvement in water conservation efforts in 2008.
Members are looking forward to their holiday party at the Port Orford Senior Center in December, where they will hold a silent auction to benefit the Oasis Shelter Home.
Deschutes County: A brief report indicates that they invited Senator Ben Westlund as the speaker on both Measure 49 and Measure 50. He also spoke to their League about the state of health care in Oregon.
Lane County League sponsored a special meeting on "Mexican Immigration: Local and National Policy Implications" with Lynn Stephen as speaker. She is UO Distinguished Professor of Anthropology and author of Transborder Lives: Indigenous Oaxacans in Mexico, California and Oregon. The following is from a touching tribute in the Argus newsletter about long-time member Connie Brown who passed away in September at age 90: "There she was...Connie Brown, a vibrant portrait of the woman voter, setting up her old wooden ironing board outside the Cottage Grove Post Office with a help-yourself display of voter registration cards, voter guides and petitions, and sitting for an hour simply asking, "Are you a voter, dear" and engaging just about everyone in town." ... As a League member she worked on national security, sustainable agriculture and the Oregon farm worker studies. She was constant in her pursuit of peace... She inspired Oregon's first International Women's Day celebration, and rushed to own the first hybrid car in Oregon, taking the license number "80 MPG" to plant yet another seed for a healthy world." What an inspiration such a life is!
Marion-Polk County League held a gala 60-year anniversary celebration on November 3. Special recognition was given to four founding members, as well as some 25 who have been members for 20 years. The program featured the powerful movie Iron Jawed Angels depicting the struggles of suffragists to secure the vote for women. Voter Service presented information on Measures 49 and 50 at Unit meetings, and Action sponsored a public forum in support of Measure 49. A panel presentation about immigration is scheduled for early December. The Foreign Policy group has arranged for Minzi Su to speak on China, including a look at the environment, public investment, gender issues, education, and the current leadership.
Portland League has scheduled another immigration panel, this time with four speakers - an attorney with an Immigration Counseling Service, Oregon Farm Bureau's National Affairs and Grassroots Specialist, the head of Oregonians for Immigration Reform, and the Assistant Director of PSU's Office of International Affairs. Portland's September meeting focused on "The Future of Urban Renewal," realizing that the city has reached a crossroads in terms of its use of urban renewal as a redevelopment tool. The League was represented on a policy panel at the urban renewal advisory group meeting in September. The topic for the November Action Committee meeting is "Paying for Parks as Our City Grows: System Development Charges." Included in the November newsletter is a salad recipe recently received from the Ukrainian women visitors, sent to share with their new American friends, called "Herring under the Fur Coat."
Rose and Dick Lewis were honored at the Salem Peace Lecture on October 10 for their efforts to reduce discrimination and build a peaceful society. Rose currently serves as Local League Liaison Coordinator on the LWVOR Board. Earlier League members so honored were Dorothy Patch Garlinghouse and Polly Hare. The Salem Peace Lecture Series originated in 1990 through the cooperative efforts of Salem Peace Plaza, Inc., the Salem Chapter of the United Nations Association, Physicians for Social Responsibility, the Willamette University Educational Programs Committee and the Willamette University Office of the Chaplain.
Corvallis will be the location of Council 2008 where we will convene at the Salbasgeon Suites and Conference Center on Saturday and Sunday May 17-18. The hotel is located in the heart of the Corvallis business district and five minutes from Oregon State University, home of the Beavers, at 1730 NW 9th Street.
Council and Convention meet in alternate years. Council is smaller than Convention with two delegates from each local League (usually the president and one other) plus the LWVOR Board and (sometimes) one delegate representing members-at-large. Council is one day shorter than Convention. Delegates take care of interim business including adopting a budget. Generally they do not change the program adopted at Convention the previous year. While only delegates have voting privileges, observers will find Council full of interesting activities and workshops. Local Leagues are encouraged to send as many observers as possible to Council. The Corvallis LWV is the host League for Council 2008.
Registration will begin on Saturday, May 17 at 9 a.m. Following the optional parliamentary procedure workshop at 11 a.m. and the noon luncheon, the Opening of Council will begin at 1:30 p.m. Council activities will continue all of Saturday and for half a day on Sunday. For those Leaguers coming from afar and spending two nights at the Salbasgeon Suites, a Friday night dine-around is planned to experience the culinary delights of Corvallis. The Salbasgeon guest suites are very comfortable with many amenities, including high speed internet access and a personal internet browser available in every suite. Other amenities include a hot complimentary breakfast, indoor pool, sauna, spa and fitness center. Room costs for a king or double queen are $89 plus 10% tax per night. If the sofa sleeper is used as a bed, the charge is an extra $10 plus tax. A League block of rooms has been reserved for May 16 and 17. The Group code is LWV. Individuals must call in their own reservations no later than April 17, 2008 to 1-800-965-8806. Plan NOW to attend.
Excitement is growing and the buzz is getting louder: National Convention will be in Portland next June! Our theme is “Reaching New Heights Together.” With your help, we will. Carol Cushman, Portland League president, and Debbie Kaye, Portland League member, are co-chairs of the Personnel Committee. We are your volunteer coordinators. With this article, we are formally requesting that you consider how you want to be engaged with National Convention June 13-17, 2008 held at the Hilton Hotel in downtown Portland. While this may appear to be a long way off, preparations for a 1000-person convention require a lot of planning well in advance. A number of committees are in place, managing various aspects of the Convention such as Hospitality, Registration, Credentials, Dine Around, and Tours. The Floor Committee ensures smooth running business sessions during the Convention. Link here to our volunteer registration form (printer-friendly version and downloadable version for emailing). Download and fill out on your computer, then attach to an email and return to me, or you may print it out and return it to me by US Mail. My contact information is on the form. If you have questions, please contact Carol Cushman or me.
We suggest conferring with your local League members for carpooling. The Portland League and other local Leagues hope to be able to offer some B & B rooms in our homes for volunteers coming from distant locations.
Thank you in advance for embracing this opportunity to serve and support our League of Women Voters. National Convention is a great event; we want everyone, volunteers and attendees from around the United States, to have an excellent experience. With your help, the League will, indeed, Reach New Heights.
December 7 -- LWVOR/Education Fund Board meeting (conference call)
December 19 -January 1 -- LWVOR office closed for winter holidays
January 11 -- LWVOR/Education Fund Board meeting (conference call)
January 17 -- First call to Council
January 21 -- LWVOR office closed for Presidents’ Day holiday
February 1 -- LWVUS immigration consensus forms due
February 4 -- Legislative Special Session starts
February 14 -- Happy 88th birthday to LWVUS and LWVOR!
February 15 -- LWVOR/Education Fund Board meeting (conference call)
February 29 -- End of Special Session (or earlier)
Link here to the full calendar
Officers |
Marge Easley, President |
Norman Turrill, 1st VP/Action |
Jean Milgram, 2nd VP/Development |
Kate Culbertson, Secretary |
Al Wilson, Treasurer |
Directors |
Deanie Anderson |
Off Board Chairs |
Libby Medley, Budget |
Paula Krane, Nom. Committee Chair |
| Sue Boyd, Voter Editor |
LWVOR Staff |
Rebecca Smith, Executive Administrator |
Kathy Greysmith, Office Assistant |
Send address changes to: |
LWVOR |
1330 12th St. SE, Suite 200 |
Salem, OR 97302 |
E-mail: lwvor@lwvor.org |
URL: www.lwvor.org |
Voter |
is published four times a year by the League of Women Voters of Oregon. Members subscribe through their annual dues. Any person, 18 or older, may join. Voter is also available on the LWVOR website at www.lwvor.org. |
LWVOR MissionThe League of Women Voters ® of Oregon is a grassroots, nonpartisan political organization which encourages informed and active participation in government in order to build better communities statewide. The state League’s purposes are to influence public policy through education and advocacy and to provide support for League members and the League organization. |