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Personal information for nearly 3.5 million Oregonians could be vulnerable to a June 1st international “MOVEit” data breach. LWVOR supports increased cybersecurity awareness, by educating individual consumers and advocating in the state Legislature. Here’s what happened A cyber attack exploited vulnerable software Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) uses from a private vendor. ODOT uses “MOVEit” to securely transfer files and internal data. The vulnerability enabled hackers’ access to entire systems. Hundreds of government agencies and private companies that use this software have been affected by this global breach. According to ODOT, we should assume active Oregon driver's license drivers’ permit, and ID card information is part of this breach. ODOT imposed additional security measures to safeguard their systems when they learned of the MOVEit vulnerability. But defenses were breached for a significant amount of Oregon DMV data, from millions of Oregonians. While much of this information is available publicly, some of it is sensitive personal information. According to ODOT, we should assume active Oregon driver's license, driver’s permit, and ID card information is part of this breach. Protect yourself Make sure your personal information is not misused. Check your Credit Report(s). ODOT urges Oregonians to monitor their credit reports. Under federal law, you have the right to a free credit report every 12 months from each of the three consumer credit reporting companies. You have to ask for them at www.annualcreditreport.com or call: 1-877-322-8228. Check report entries. Recognize the transactions or accounts? See who got your credit history. If you see anything you don’t understand, call the phone number on the credit report or visit the Federal Trade Commission’s Recovering From Identity Theft. If necessary, ask each credit monitoring agency to freeze your credit files: Equifax: equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services or 1-800-685-1111 Experian: experian.com/help or 1-888-397-3742 TransUnion: transunion.com/credit-help or 1-888-909-8872 Start with Ask ODOT, for information, services or resolving ODOT issues. Email: AskODOT@odot.oregon.gov.

Date: February 7, 2023 To: All League Members From: Rebecca Gladstone, LWVOR President Alice Bartelt, Action Committee Chair Josie Koehne, LWVOR Forestry Climate Action Portfolio Contact Your Legislators to Support SB 530! ACTION: Contact your Legislators (2023 Find Your Legislators) and Senate Natural Resources Committee members: Sen Jeff Golden, Sen Fred Girod, Sen Floyd Prozanski, Sen David Brock Smith, and Sen Kathleen Taylor REQUEST: SUPPORT SB 530, Establish a state policy for Natural Climate Solutions. We are asking local League members throughout Oregon to advance this critical piece of climate legislation, to build support before the first public hearing. DEADLINE: ASAP, before February 15 A first hearing is expected as early as Feb 15. We need to build support to “give this bill legs!” Tell Legislators what matters to you. Background information on SB 530 can be found in Oregon Conservation Network's "Oregon’s Untapped Climate Solution" 1-pager. Tell Legislators that SB 530 will: Position the state to leverage federal funding and private investments in natural climate solutions on natural and working lands Create a source of state funding for voluntary actions to remove climate pollution from the atmosphere and store it in natural and working lands Fund and direct state agencies to provide incentives and technical support to forest owners, farmers, and ranchers to implement natural climate solutions on natural and working lands and Invest in a comprehensive Oregon natural and working lands inventory and study opportunities for workforce development and training.

Date: May 14, 2023 To: All League Members From: Rebecca Gladstone, LWVOR President, Peggy Lynch, Natural Resources Coordinator This is a key moment to stop HB 3382! Passing this bill would pose a serious threat to Oregon’s largest estuaries, ecologically vital habitat areas where careful land use review is especially important. Share your personal story about why these Ports and critical estuaries are important to you. Ask them NOT to pass HB 3382 even with the -3 amendment. DEADLINE: 5pm May 16 Public Hearing 5pm May 18 for testimony Sign up NOW to testify in person or remotely. Attend the public hearing if possible. Write and submit testimony to the Joint Committee on Transportation before 5pm May 18. CONTACT: Joint Transportation Committee and your State Senator and Representative. HB 3382 exempts major Oregon ports from land use and environmental regulations, including allowing extensive dredging and channel modification in estuaries without local jurisdiction, public input, or environmental review. The current -3 amendment as proposed sets a dangerous precedent, allowing certain interests to fast-track development and bypass input and Oregon’s land use laws that protect communities, ecosystems, and economies across the state. League testimony explains our opposition. LWVOR has strong positions supporting our land use planning program, coastal management, water quality and quantity and climate change. Oregonians expect our elected leaders to support processes that allow public participation and protect Oregon’s special places. This bill says local elected leaders and the public who engaged in Comprehensive Plans, specifically Estuary Management Plans, other planning and zoning requirements and related regulations adopted by a local government…no longer matter. We implore the committee to reject this concept and oppose the bill. Proposed -3 amendment changes allow selected parties to apply for a new Goal 16 exception and provides an extensive list of “purposes” that would automatically be allowed to gain that new Goal 16 exception. Estuaries are nurseries for a wide variety of fish and wildlife species, including our iconic salmon. Eel grass that would be destroyed is essential habitat for many species and functions to improve water quality to support ocean health. HB 3382 is also at odds with Oregon’s Climate Goals by removing critical protections for estuaries, which sequester carbon 10x more efficiently than forests and serve as key species nurseries. The bill as submitted poses an additional threat. Land use regulations as applied to coastal areas are part of Oregon’s integrated Coastal Management Program under the Coastal Zone Management Act. This bill would weaken that program, triggering NOAA review for compliance with the CZMA. The CZMA-approved program provides the state leverage and review when faced with federal projects (including, for example, dredging in a federal navigation channel), as well as funding through CZMA grant programs. The bill could eliminate this “federal consistency” under the CZMA, at least where these estuaries are concerned. Thank you for adding your voice to stop HB 3382.

Dear Members and friends, Here’s to the most beautiful May Day! I’m sending virtual May Day doorknob baskets to each of you! As our LWVOR Convention nears, I invite you to look forward with me. We are seeing transitions, new growth in the League, and promising new leaders as we face chilling challenges to step up and defend our values. The last few years have been, well, an example of the probably English expression that is both a blessing and a curse: “May you live in interesting times!” With thanks to our hard-working Board, our members, our committees, our lateral communications work groups, our donors, our staff, and to our colleagues, I urge you to take care of yourselves and each other. To pace yourselves for the work ahead, to include time to refresh. It has been an honor and a privilege to serve as President and to keep in touch with these 1st of the month newsletters. I am crossing my fingers to be elected as incoming LWVOR Action Chair and looking forward to hearing what you’ll each be doing! Thank you for being part of the League Team! Becky Gladstone, outgoing LWVOR President _________________________________________________ CONVENTION UPDATE It is truly time to REGISTER for the LWVOR Convention! Delegates, please register through your leadership (leaders will register their delegates as a group). Observers, we can still make room for you. One Action member, who will be coming and handing out bumper stickers, asked why she should attend. Here are some reasons: Speakers: Come to hear our keynote speaker Les Zaitz, a publisher of local Oregon newspapers, on “Free Press and the Survival of Democracy”. Feels *so very local* and newly urgent–last week, OPB reported “Rogue Valley station KTVL to lay off all news employees, staffer says.” Action! Talk to our Action volunteers about news from the Legislature. Bring your questions from reading our Legislative Reports and find out how you can help. Voter Service Reps: Meet and thank them! Vote411.org is live now and ballots are in the mail for our May 16 primary! All their work behind the scenes, collecting candidate contact info and reaching out to them, inviting them to share their campaign info with voters! Youth Outreach: Come to meet newly elected Youth Council leaders and members attending. They are extraordinary. They are *our future*! Bylaws changes: VOTE on a gradual transition to annual meetings and Nominating Committee changes. This will be a start to talk about our processes. Studies: VOTE on proposed studies. Workshops: A pre-Convention tutorial, Youth Engagement, a 1st Amendment Panel, and Climate Change, LWVUS activities. Caucus! Set up and offer one of your own, spur of the moment! RECOMMENDED READING Eugene author Lauren Kessler’s just won the Oregon Book of the Year for General Non-Fiction! "95% of the millions of American men and women who go to prison eventually get out. What happens to them?" From the book description: There's Arnoldo, who came of age inside a maximum security penitentiary, now free after nineteen years. Trevor and Catherine, who spent half of their young lives behind bars for terrible crimes committed when they were kids. Dave, inside the walls for 34 years, now about to re-enter an unrecognizable world. Vicki, a five-time loser who had cycled in and out of prison for more than a third of her life. They are simultaneously joyful and overwhelmed at the prospect of freedom. Anxious, confused, sometimes terrified, and often ill-prepared to face the challenges of the free world, all are intent on reclaiming and remaking their lives. What is the road they must travel from caged to free? How do they navigate their way home? A gripping and empathetic work of immersion reportage, Free reveals what awaits them and the hundreds of thousands of others who are released from prison every year: the first rush of freedom followed quickly by institutionalized obstacles and logistical roadblocks, grinding bureaucracies, lack of resources, societal stigmas and damning self-perceptions, the sometimes overwhelming psychological challenges. Veteran reporter Lauren Kessler, both clear-eyed and compassionate, follows six people whose diverse stories paint an intimate portrait of struggle, persistence, and resilience. The truth—the many truths—about life after lockup is more interesting, more nuanced, and both more troubling and more deeply triumphant than we know. Thank you for reading! To each of you, please accept my heartfelt gratitude for making this team work with your curiosity, dedication, dogged persistence, senses of humor, and civility. I am proud to be part of this organization and I hope you are too! Here’s to progress and sharing the joy with our new members! Becky Gladstone President, LWVOR

Hello Oregon League members and friends, **What does the state League DO for us??** 🡺 LWVOR State-Wide Convention! With only one month until the convention starts, we need you to commit to being there!! We will meet for the first statewide, in-person event we’ve held since our 100th Anniversary Centennial Celebration in Salem, March 7, 2020! 🡺 Be sure your leaders REGISTER your Delegation. Check with them to be a delegate! Read for more info on the May 19-21, 2023 LWVOR Convention, in Eugene, OR. Your State Board is SO excited to welcome you to Convention 2023! Join us in-person and meet members from our local Leagues, Advocates, Voter Service Reps, our new Youth Council and students members, scholars, and our speakers! _____________________________________________________ Here’s an Overview: LWVOR Convention Hotel Rooms Convention delegation/ observer registration Silent Auction Caucuses LWVUS All- Members’ (short) SURVEY: deadline April 22! Transformation news from LWV President, Dr. Turner (full letter) Recommended Reading from LWV Coos Voter Service (Inspiring!) LWVOR Convention LWVOR Convention Hotel Rooms: we have filled our initial room block and the hotel is expanding our initial discounted room allotment. Please make your hotel reservations ASAP so we can try to cover you with the discounted rate. Sooner is better! Details are on the LWVOR Convention page. Convention delegation/ observer registration: League leaders are registering their delegations. Please check with yours to be sure you’re included. Registered League observers are welcome. To avert any possible confusion, double check with your local leaders to be sure you do get registered and don’t get double-booked. We are looking forward to seeing you in-person! Silent Auction: Local Leagues, bring a Gift Basket to the LWVOR Convention, enter it in our traditional Silent Auction and take your top bid proceeds for your League! You’re Welcome! Caucuses: use these caucusing opportunities; reach out now and network in advance. Be sure your fellow strategists know You Want to Meet! One group (the local and state Fund Raisers?) are having breakfast together early Saturday morning. We know that our MLD, and Nominating Committee Groups are planning to get together.! For the rest of you, network in advance for the “lateral communication” we keep talking about! Strategize for 2024! LWVUS All- Members’ (short) SURVEY: LWVUS All- Members’ (short) SURVEY: deadline April 22! This survey of ALL members around the country is outreach to get your feedback on the TRANSFORMATION PLAN. From Dr. Deb Turner, President, LWVUS (full letter): Over the past few weeks, I have shared Transformation Journey updates and our current phase, Framing the Future. League voices are the foundation for this process, so we have assembled four core working groups and launched a League-wide membership experience survey. Thank you to the 7,000+ League members who have completed the survey! If you have not done so already, I encourage you to take our short survey and share it with your fellow League members. It is crucial that we hear from everyone in our League community, because all your voices are critical to our transformational success. The survey closes Saturday, April 22. If you have already completed the survey, you still have time to share it with your League members and in your internal League communications. This link is not personalized to you: you can share or forward the link directly to other members. For more information, please visit www.lwv.org/framingthefuture. As we celebrate National Volunteer Appreciation Week, I wanted to thank you for all that you do. I hope you take time this week to celebrate yourself! I am honored and proud to serve with you and power our democracy every day. –Dr. Turner, President, LWV (US) Recommended Reading As a special treat to yourself, read this inspiring report from our Coos County Voter Service Representative. Abigail, thank you! Hi, Leaguers, from rural Coos! In this area we have a very active political group called Citizens Restoring Liberty (CRL). Associated with a local evangelical church. CRL has promoted hyper-conservative issues for several years. They sent 14 to the January 6 demonstrations in Washington. It is not clear whether any participated in the subsequent attack on the Capitol. In 2022 they started running members as candidates for local office and supporting other candidates. One was elected by a razor-thin margin as one of our three County Commissioners. They have also repeatedly sued our County Clerk over election issues, and they populate the Coos County Republican Party board of directors. So I wanted to meet them! I approached the new Commissioner at a town hall and asked if he thought CRL would allow a League delegation to attend one of their meetings and give a presentation about the League and its programs. They eventually agreed and I went with Carol Ventgen, a past president and longtime Coos League member. The Commissioner, I might add, bucked the trend last year by posting campaign info on Vote411 and participating in our candidate forum, afterward giving us mostly positive feedback. So I felt he was at least open to the League and willing to listen. He gave us a very cordial welcome and the group followed his lead, applauding and praising us for “having the courage” to show up. Carol led with a brief League history and a discussion of our “two hats,” advocacy and voter service. We picked the most neutral studies we could as examples of the way the League deeply researches topics and then brings them to members for consensus before adopting a position or advocating. (They loved the Privacy and Cybersecurity study especially.) We talked about Voter Service, detailing steps we take to make our forums as evenhanded as possible. The Commissioner backed this up. We talked about our current election efforts to reach many different groups to solicit candidate questions for our three League School Board forums. For instance, I was invited by the Democratic Party to a meeting to ask for question suggestions, so I immediately wrote to the Republican Party to do the same. When I didn’t get a response, I based some questions on a right-wing candidates’ campaign flyer I found and sent those to the Republican Party. I still got no responses, but some party officers were in the room when I talked about it. We stressed that the public is invited to submit questions. We talked about how our Voter Service programs are free publicity for cash-strapped local candidates, and how these programs serve our mission of promoting a well-informed and engaged electorate. Then we went into how Vote411.org and the Voters’ Guides are assembled. One of the group’s lawsuits last year cited a “partisan voter guide” the County Clerk had put outside the Elections Office in the primary, naming the League’s Voters’ Guide. So we explained that Voters’ Guide text is the same as on Vote411.org, word-for-word what candidates supply to us, and the ONLY difference is that the Voters’ Guides have a shorter deadline, so if candidates don’t respond quickly, they get onto Vote411 but not into printed guides. We suggested that if candidates CRL is interested in don’t appear in these publications, it’s because those candidates chose not to post, not because we didn’t ask them—and if CRL members want to see more of their candidates represented on Vote411 and in our forums, they need to pressure them. And we told them how to get candidates contact info. Then we asked if anyone wanted to join and opened it up to questions. Many questions were friendly or simply asking for more details or clearing up misunderstandings. One member had done his research on the League and pointed out that it was Republican women who were behind its founding as the primary women’s suffrage movers. (We added a pitch for the new Votes for Women board game.) A local right-wing radio personality was quite aggressive, detailing many National League positions as tracking with Democratic Party positions and demanding to know why conservatives should trust us if that’s the case. We agreed that both the national League and, to an extent, the state League lean left, but pointed out that the League is a grassroots organization, and choices are made by people who turn up in the room. (One of the most aggressive members of the group immediately stood up and asked for a membership form.) We were able to communicate a bit more about our process for reaching positions and the meaning of “nonpartisan,” using the Bucks County op-ed currently on the National League’s website (we’ve also put it on our website). One thing they really disliked was our practice of screening forum audience questions. Carol did her best, pointing out that we try to combine similar questions to reduce repetition, we don’t allow slander or profanity, and we usually get far more questions than there is time to ask. But for a group that is into performative political direct action, that answer wasn’t entirely satisfying. The Commissioner spoke up again to say he thought the questions were fair and on important topics. (We mentioned that it didn’t do him any harm to participate in our programs, because he won.) They tried to trap us into hot-button issue political discussions, especially “biological woman” and trans people in women’s sports questions. Sticking to the League’s “brand,” we said the League hadn’t studied women’s sports so we had no opinion, but maybe they could get back to us on in 3-5 years. We talked about ethical neutrality requirements for League leaders and noted that one Coos League board member resigned last year because she didn’t want to give up her partisan activity. I don’t know if we changed any minds, but I do think we made it harder to demonize the League or to spread misinformation about us, and if we’re lucky it MIGHT get more candidates to participate in our programs. We received a thank-you note from the Commissioner. It is exciting to be in the middle of our expanded Voter Service for the 2023 Oregon primary election season with many local races! Our Action Committee is meeting weekly during this intense, long legislative session. We’ve reviewed 147 proposals so far this session to speak to issues. Our Convention is coming together and you will be getting more frequent updates as we get closer. Happy Volunteer Appreciation Week! Please accept my heartfelt thanks to all of you for contributing to our efforts to defend democracy! I truly hope to see you at Convention, Thank you! Becky Gladstone President, LWVOR

The Oregon State Legislature (The Joint Ways and Means Committee) will be holding a series of hearings statewide over the next several weeks. They are asking the public to tell them which state programs they consider important and should be funded this biennium with state funds. These town halls will allow Oregonians to provide input into the 2023-25 biennial state budget. All of these hearings will probably have standing-room-only crowds. They will have very strict time limits both for individual testimony (2/3 minutes) and total hearing time. If you want to testify make sure you get there early. This is Ways and Means; if you have programs you want to be funded be sure and tell them how they should be funded because unfortunately there is not enough money to go around for everything people want. If you have ideas for additional revenue then let our Legislators know these ideas also. We feel that it is important that these hearings away from the capital are monitored. We encourage local League members and friends to attend the hearing in your area and help by being the eyes and ears of the action team. The state League will not be testifying so all you need to do is listen and pick up any of the handouts (and send them to the state office). A short written report of what occurred would also be helpful. We encourage members to attend as individuals and express their opinions on any of the state funded programs that are important to you because it is your taxes they are spending. If you wish to testify please leave your League pin at home but if you are just helping us as monitors wear your League pin for everyone to see. They would like to see and hear from everyone. Friday, April 14th 5:00 PM Newport Newport Performing Arts Center 777 W. Olive St. NEWPORT Register Friday, April 21st 5:00 PM, Roseburg Umpqua Community College Jacoby Auditorium 1140 Umpqua College Rd. ROSEBURG Register Friday, April 28th 5:00 PM Ontario Four Rivers Cultural Center 676 SW 5th Ave. ONTARIO Register Wednesday, May 3rd 5:00 PM Salem at the capital This meeting is being held in person at the Capitol. To view a livestream of the meeting, go to: https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Committees/JWM/Overview Register

Date: March 13, 2023 To: All League Members From: Rebecca Gladstone, LWVOR President Alice Bartelt, Action Committee Chair Claudia Keith, Climate Emergency Coordinator Arlene Sherrett, Climate Emergency PortfolioContact Your Legislators to Support ACTION: Contact your Legislators (2023 Find Your Legislators) and Senate Energy and EnvironmentCommittee members: Sen Janeen Sollman, Sen Lynn Findley, Sen Jeff Golden, Sen Cedric Hayden and Sen Kate Lieber REQUEST: SUPPORT The Resilient Buildings Package (SB 868-1, 869-1, 870-1, 871-1) Oregon's legislature must take action in 2023 to give more Oregonians access to more resilient and safer homes and buildings. Align state policies for Energy Efficiency and Greenhouse Gas Reduction in the Residential and Commercial Buildings Sector. We are asking local League members throughout Oregon to advance this critical piece of climate legislation, to build support before the first public hearing. LISTENING SESSION: March 14, 2023, 1:00 PM HEARING: March 16, 2023, 1:00 PM TESTIMONY DEADLINE: ASAP, before hearing date, March 16, or up to 1pm March 18. Tell Legislators what matters to you. Background information on the Resilient Buildings Package can be found at: We Are Building Resilience Tell Legislators the Resilient Buildings Package will: Align energy efficiency programs with state climate goals and establish a one-stop-shop information source for energy efficiency technologies and incentives. (SB 868-1, Healthy Heating and Cooling for All) Align building codes with Oregon energy and emissions targets and establish a goal of 60% reduction in energy use in the construction of new buildings. (SB 869-1, Build Smart from the Start) Establish a standard for large commercial buildings to reduce their energy use and climate emissions over time. (SB 870-1, Building Performance Standard) Remove barriers to accelerate energy retrofits and upgrades in state buildings. (SB 871-1, Smart State Buildings) Address the 30% of greenhouse gas emissions in Oregon that come from the residential and commercial buildings sector.

Dear LWVOR Members and friends, March is a time of optimism for me, a time to look ahead, eyes open, to face making the seasons ahead productive. We have our work cut out for us and it can be rewarding. Please read and think about how you can help a little more with the longer days coming. Consider reaching out to lighten the load for another League member who can then build our leadership bench and help fill our concerning leadership gaps. Job sharing is a really good idea! Ask a friend to step up with you! More hands make light work and you’ll be glad you didn’t sit this one out. Thank you for being part of the team by reading and helping as you are able! Yours In League! Becky Gladstone LWVOR President Table of contents: CONVENTION, LWVOR in Eugene, May 19-21, 2023! Keynote: Les Zaitz! Nominating Committee - gaps LWVOR Study and Concurrences, March recommendation review Voter Service news, Spring primary Vote411 & OSME Youth Outreach, OSME wrap, moving forward! Action, legislative update Announcements, please send yours! Recommended reading LWVOR CONVENTION Keynote Speaker Les Zaitz Our Keynote Speaker for “Free Press and the Survival of Democracy” will be Les Zaitz, Editor of the Salem Reporter and The Malheur Enterprise. Thanks to the Marion-Polk League for this: Zaitz established an online subscription-based publication because he thinks requiring people to pay for journalism allows him to be aware of which stories attract readers and thus to know the community needs for news. The Salem Reporter covers city news, schools, politics, economy, community, and Oregon news so readers can look for articles that interest them and learn about local events before they happen. All articles are archived on the website. The Salem Reporter will closely follow candidates before the next School Board election to provide unbiased reports on their campaigns; Zaitz believes news story readers should not be able to tell journalists’ personal views. Zaitz said the staff also relies on readers to let them know if a candidate is lying or hiding information about themselves so the journalists can check it out. Convention Attendance Information The LWVOR room block is active, make your reservation today! There are two ways you can make reservations using the League’s discounted group rate: Call 844-888-4723. Use BOOKING CODE: 0519WV Use this booking link: League of Women Voters of Oregon – Guestrooms *** The cutoff date to book rooms at the discounted group rate is April 28th *** See the First Call to Convention in our February News. NOMINATING COMMITTEE We need a powerful, full slate of Officers and Directors to guide our well-organized Board and Committees. The President and First VP for Voter Service slots are still open. Some of our local Leaders would step up if they knew you could fill their shoes locally. This is about building our bench and we need you! Our Nominating Committee took initiative with a Task Force as the “lateral communication” that is now strengthening most of our state-wide work, from local League Leaders to Membership, as directed at LWVOR Council 2022. The Task Force, with LWVOR Membership guidance, is bringing together local League Nominating Committee members from across Oregon. Read more in The VOTER and contact the Task Force and LWVOR Nominating Committee through our staff: lwvor@lwvor.org. STUDIES, UPCOMING AND ONGOING! Thanks to Program/Study Chair Annie Goldner for organizing study and concurrence proposals for this year’s Convention. The LWVOR Board will review them for recommendation status at our March 10 Board meeting. Thank you also for re-invigorating our review of local League Program planning! Please see the full report in The VOTER and send questions to Chair Annie Goldner. VOTER SERVICE Thanks to our strong local League network and Chair Peggy Bengry, Voter Service will gather candidate and local ballot measure information for the May 16, 2023 primary election! We look forward to hearing who will step up to take Peggy’s place. YO! YOUTH OUTREACH LWVOR Youth Liaison We officially welcome Chris Walker to the Board. Read his bio and the ambitious service plans in The VOTER. You can reach Chris at youthcrew@lwvor.org. Youth Council Our Youth Outreach Committee is establishing this Council, with a first project to support OSME, the Oregon Student Mock Elections. Celine Ioffe will lead a diverse team of Youth Council members to build effective power in their communities to achieve their goals. Read full coverage in The VOTER. Reach out to start Oregon Student Mock Election (OSME) local versions for this 2023 Primary! To help develop an active presence in your local schools, reach out to: LWV of OREGON YOUTH OUTREACH | youthoutreach@lwvor.org OREGON STUDENT MOCK ELECTION (OSME) | mockelection@lwvor.org ACTION This is week 7 of 24 for our 2023 long legislative session. We have reviewed and approved almost 80 pieces of testimony submitted so far. Subscribe for the weekly briefs linking to full Legislative Reports! We like to feature our Action Coordinators at Convention and hope they can attend and report, despite being in the middle of the session, at least on a weekend. Facing legislative process deadlines, another thousand-odd bills dropped last week and we are busy sifting through them, advocating, and reporting. Day at the Legislature planning is stymied by Capitol access trimmed for construction, as reported last month, and for want of an organizer –is that you? Please contact our staff at lwvor@lwvor.org if you are interested in spearheading this exciting event, where you can learn about League positions, priority legislation, and the latest happenings at the legislature. The 2023 legislative session is well underway with over 2,000 bills filed. You can help! Worthy causes go unaddressed for lack of League volunteers. If you see a need and can offer your expertise, please contact our staff at lwvor@lwvor.org. SUPPORT OUR ADVOCACY The People Not Politicians campaign is back with Initiative Petition 14, which would create an independent commission to draw Oregon legislative districts. This effort is supported by a broad coalition including LWVOR, Common Cause, Forward Oregon, business groups, and many everyday Oregonians. This good governance effort needs our support! IP14 is a large endeavor and every volunteer will be needed to collect signatures and to database those signatures. Sign up to help here, and donate here. Download the signature petition. Contact Betsy Schultz for further information. ANNOUNCEMENTS Caring for Our Children March 22, 7:00pm Please register for the Zoom webinar here. Join us for a webinar on the state of child care in Oregon! The topics will include: Why affordable, quality child care is critical for Oregon; challenges and successes of childcare providers; and a report from the nascent Oregon Department of Early Learning and Childcare. Our moderator will be Terry Styner from the League of Women Voters. We are looking forward to an informative panel discussion from our knowledgeable speakers: Martha Brooks, Oregon State Director, Western Region States Regional Director, Fight Crime: Invest in Kids and ReadyNation, Council for a Strong America Julie Hurley, Co-Leader of the Child Care Coalition, Douglas County and Executive Director Early Learning, Douglas ESD and Heather Freilinger, Co-Leader of the Child Care Coalition, Douglas County | Program Coordinator Douglas ESD | Care Connections and Education Program David Mandell, Chief of Policy & Research, Early Learning Division, Oregon Department of Education State Legislator TBD RECOMMENDED READING In the interest of defending the fun side of being LWVOR President, I can admit that a friend, a League member and Legislator, recommended this volume. I read it this past weekend: Eva Sleeps, by Francesca Melandri. I loved the German and Italian dialect, the place names familiar to me from high school. My husband appreciated the political history of borders and control shifting through upheavals. No other recommendations for League reading landed on my desk this month! Lots of my screen time goes to reading bills, testimony, committee emails and so forth. We all need to balance our work and play. YOUR LEAGUE COMMS Stay informed on League happenings at the state and local levels! You can sign up and manage your LWVOR newsletter subscriptions directly. Don't miss our event updates, Action Alerts, newsletters, and other important information. Questions? Contact our staff at lwvor@lwvor.org. My best to all of you. Step up, it is your turn. Thank You for reading! Becky Gladstone President, LWVOR

By LWVOR Action Committee Member Trish Garner There are really two -- or more -- interrelated issues that are raised here. One, of course, is whether the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has the authority to allow the dispensing of Mifepristone by mail instead of requiring an in-person dispensing process. The other issue relates to court-shopping and the conservative leaning of the Fifth Circuit's judiciary, and, in particular, Federal District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk whose docket currently includes a case that presents this very issue. The Mifepristone / Misoprostol Abortion Regimen These medications are taken together. The regimen usually involves first taking Mifepristone (brand name Mifeprex) up to 10 or 13 weeks since the last menstrual period, and then two doses of Misoprostol. Multiple randomized controlled clinical trials have shown that this combination is effective with success rates ranging from 95-98% up to 9 weeks of gestation.[1] The FDA approved this regimen in 2000 as a safe and effective way to end early pregnancies. Mifepristone is also frequently used in the US, as shown in a 2020 Center for Disease Control Report which found that about 51% of abortions in the US were performed by taking Mifepristone at or before the 9th week of pregnancy.[2] Mifepristone's regulatory history is somewhat complicated.[3] When the FDA initially approved dispensing the medication in 2000, it required that it be dispensed only by qualified physicians and administered in hospital, clinic or medical office settings. In 2007 the FDA deemed these restrictions constituted a proper "Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy" (REMS), and in 2011 it approved the existing REMS with additional "Elements to Assure Safe Use" (ETASU). The ETASU requirements included a mandate that the drug be prescribed only by specially certified physicians, that it be dispensed only in hospitals, clinics or medical offices and that a patient needed to sign a special patient agreement form. In 2016 the FDA issued a report that resulted in the modification of some of its these restrictions, including that Mifepristone could be prescribed by certain nonphysicians as long as they met certain certification requirements and the medication could be dispensed in a clinic, medical office or hospital, which the patient could then swallow at home. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic led the Trump administration in March, 2020 to declare a national emergency and in response the FDA suspended enforcement of REMS in-person requirements for a number of medications and procedures -- but this action did not extend to the dispensing of Mifepristone.[4] Patients still had to travel to a health center to receive the pill in person. First Go-Round in a Federal Court In May, 2020 and on behalf of medical associations, physicians and reproductive justice advocates, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecology "ACOG" v FDA) seeking to suspend FDA's in-person pill pick-up requirement, noting that this was the only medication out of 20,000 FDA-approved drugs that patients were required to pick up in a clinical setting but free to self-administer at home.[5] They also asked that a preliminary injunction be issued to bar enforcement of FDA's in-person requirements. On July 13, 2020 US District Court Judge Theodore Chuang issued that preliminary injunction, but on August 16, 2020 the government, still under the auspices of the Trump administration filed a motion requesting that the injunction be placed on hold pending the conclusion of the litigation. On January 12, 2021 the US Supreme Court granted the FDA's request for a stay of Judge Chuang's preliminary injunction by issuing a rather controversial one-page, unsigned opinion.[6] Chief Justice Roberts concurred in the opinion, stating the question for the Supreme Court was not whether requirements for dispensing Mifepristone imposed an undue burden on a woman's right to an abortion as a general matter, but whether Judge Chuang made his own evaluation of the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic rather than according sufficient deference to the "politically accountable entities with the background, competence and expertise to assess public health," i.e. the FDA. On December 16, 2021 the FDA, now under the Biden administration, announced that it would permanently allow patients to receive Mifepristone by mail instead of requiring them to obtain the pills in person from specially certified providers.[7] Again, in making its decision the FDA could point to a 22-year history of Mifepristone’s safety and effectiveness. Should approval for prescribing Mifepristone be overruled by court action in the future, a re-approval process would likely take years. As we will see below, it is considered likely that shortly after February 24, 2023, US District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk will in fact overrule the mail-in dispensing of Mifepristone. We can also add in the time it takes for his decision to reach the US Supreme Court. Its reception there may also be problematic for those needing Mifepristone. Background of Federal District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk Judge Matthew Kaczmarek was first nominated by President Trump to sit in the Federal Court for the Northern District of Texas located Amarillo in 2017, but the nomination died at the end of the Congressional Session. President Trump resubmitted his name to the Senate on January 23 and his judgeship was approved on June 19, 2019. Only one Republican, Maine Senator Susan Collins, publicly opposed the nomination ahead of the 52 to 46 vote. He had received a "qualified" rating by the American Bar Association, which is a ranking below "well qualified."[8] Judge Kacsmaryk has long standing affiliations with the religious right. His photograph[9] communicates a great deal. Prior to his appointment to the federal bench he represented the Oregon bakery "Sweet Cakes by Melissa" that refused to provide a wedding cake for a same-sex couple. He served as a former deputy counsel at the First Liberty Institute, a conservative group that litigates religious liberty cases. On September 4, 2015, he wrote an amicus ("friend of the court") brief that opposed same-sex marriage and policies allowing transgender students to use restrooms that match their gender identity on the grounds that it contradicted the "Abrahamic" or "Catholic, Protestant, Evangelical, Jewish, Mormon, Muslim" principles defining marriage as the "sacred union of one man and one woman." In this article, he also criticized the "sexual revolution" and said it was "spearheaded by secular libertines."[10] According to Judge Kacsmark, transgender people have a "mental disorder" and gay people are "disordered." He was a member of the Fort Worth Chapter of the Federalist Society since 2012.[11] Judge Kacsmaryk's decisions run true to his political and religious orientations. He has been characterized as "a favorite judge for litigants opposing Biden administration policies." The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has also implicitly concurred with this approach. In September, 2022 the District Court adopted rules that any civil case filed in Amarillo would be assigned to Judge Kasmaryk. Before that, litigants had a 95% chance of getting Judge Kacsmaryk.[12] As we will see, the Supreme Court has not exactly distanced itself from Judge Kacsmaryk's approach either, particularly in light of its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. Background of Some Decisions by Judge Kacsmaryk Prior to the Mifepristone Cases In Deanda v. Becerra (Health and Human Services Secretary; December 2022) Judge Kacsmaryk awarded summary judge to the plaintiff, an avowed Christian who had claimed his statutory and parental rights under the US Constitution had been violated by a Title X program that provided grants to health providers to fund family planning and contraceptive care.[13] Legal commentary has taken issue with this decision on the basis the plaintiff lacked the standing[14] to sue. The plaintiff was a father who did not claim he had ever sought Title X funded care, did not allege his daughters had ever sought this care and didn’t even claim they intended to seek such care in the future. Judge Kacsmaryk also ruled that Title X federal regulations do not preempt Texas state law regarding parental notification and consent requirements, a decision which is a "clear misinterpretation of the law" and "ignores decades of established law."[15] There is also Neese v Becerra in which Judge Kacsmaryk (November, 2022) held that a federal law prohibiting certain forms of discrimination by health providers does not encompass protection against anti-LGBTQ discrimination. Legal commentary indicates that this opinion cannot be squared with the Supreme Court's decision in Bostock v. Clayton County (2020) which established that statutes prohibiting "sex" discrimination also ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity because "it is impossible to discriminate against a person for being homosexual or transgender without discriminating against that individual based on sex." It has been noted that Judge Kacsmaryk seems to "revel" in defying the law. An example of this attitude is seen in his Neese opinion which he opens with a quote from Justice Samuel Alito's dissenting opinion in Bostock. Needless to say, a dissent is by definition not the law.[16] Another interesting case (Biden v Texas) relates to Judge Kacsmaryk's decision regarding the Remain in Mexico program. The program had been initiated in 2018 under the Trump administration and required asylum seekers arriving at the US Southern border to stay in Mexico while they awaited a hearing on their asylum claim. President Biden sought to terminate the policy and on June 1, 2021 the Secretary of Homeland Security announced that it would end the program. Texas filed this lawsuit against President Biden and on August, 2021 Judge Kacsmaryk issued a permanent injunction requiring the government to reinstate the program.[17] His order gave the administration one week to do so. His ruling rested on his conclusion that he could only give the government two options regarding those seeking asylum: mandatory detention or return to a contiguous territory. Upon appeal to the Supreme Court, six Justices agreed that Judge Kacsmaryk had misread immigration law when he required the federal government to maintain the Trump-era program by his ignoring that fact that federal law explicitly gives the government more than two options in these situations, including the option for immigrants to parole into the United States “for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit.” The Supreme Court also commented that the judge had engaged in “unwarranted judicial interference in the conduct of foreign policy,” because his opinion effectively forced the United States government to bargain with Mexico in order to reinstate the Remain in Mexico policy.[18] What seemed to be a victory for the Biden administration, however, became a hollow one when the Supreme Court also returned the case back down to Judge Kacsmaryk to resolve other issues raised in the case and in doing so rejected the government's request to temporarily block the injunction issued by Judge Kacsmaryk. An Earlier Mifepristone Case filed in Maryland On May 17, 2020, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and others sued the FDA (ACOG v FDA) in the District of Maryland (federal court) seeking a declaratory judgment that the in-person requirements for the dispensing of Mifepristone during COVID-19 epidemic should be overruled.[19] The Complaint described the long history of Mifepristone’s safety and efficacy, and that of the more than 20,000 FDA approved drug products, the FDA subjected only 16 drugs to a REMS requirement that the patient obtain the medication in a hospital, clinic or medical office, two of which are Mifeprex and its generic Mifepristone. ACOG also noted the increased use and efficacy of telemedicine. The legal bases for ACOG's complaint were based on patients' rights to privacy and liberty as guaranteed by the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment (substantive due process) and the equal protection clause under the Fifth Amendment. ACOG also requested the issuance of a preliminary injunction to bar enforcement of signature and in-person dispensing requirements for Mifepristone while the lawsuit was pending. On July 13, 2020 US District Court Judge Theodore Chuang granted the ACOG's request, but on January 12, 2021, in a controversial format, i.e. a one-page, unsigned opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court stayed enforcement of Judge Chuang's issuance of the preliminary injunction pending appeal. Justice Roberts wrote a concurring opinion, stating that the question before the Court was not whether requirements for dispensing Mifepristone imposed an undue burden on a woman's right to an abortion as a general matter, but whether the District Court properly ordered the FDA to lift those requirements on the basis of Judge Chuang's own evaluation of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Mifepristone use. The case was then returned to Judge Chuang. On April 13, 2021 the FDA under the Biden administration temporarily halted the enforcement of Mifepristone's in-person requirement.[20] On December 16, 2021 the FDA permanently lifted the in-person requirement.[21] In June, 2022 The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade in the Dobbs v Jackson Women's Health Organization case. Judge Kacsmaryk and the Alliance for Hippocratic medicine vs FDA We now get to the case regarding Judge Kacsmaryk's decisions regarding the dispensing of Mifepristone. On November 18, 2022 the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) filed a lawsuit in Amarillo along with a request for the issuance of a preliminary injunction against the FDA asking that it reverse its lifting of the in-person requirement for dispensing Mifepristone (Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v FDA[22]). The Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine was incorporated only 3 months (August 5, 2022) in Texas, of course, before they filed this lawsuit. As an aside however, it is interesting to note that AHM's official mailing address is in Tennessee. The Alliance Defending Freedom is a Christian organization that played a central role in Dobbs.[23] The Alliance claimed that (1) the FDA abused its authority by using an accelerated process to approve the use of Mifepristone in 2000 which is reserved for new drugs which would benefit patients with serious or life-threatening illnesses, (2) FDA's approval of Mifepristone "puts a woman or girl's health at risk," and (3) its decision violates the Comstock Act (Title 18 US Code Section 1461,enacted in1873) which declares anything designed or intended to produce an abortion as nonmailable. The government countered on both substantive and procedural grounds. It stated that (1) pulling Mifepristone from the market would put more women's health at risk, and risk overcrowding and delays at clinics that provide surgical abortion, (2) contrary to Mifepristone being approved under an accelerated path as claimed by the plaintiffs, its approval was based on extensive scientific evidence, and (3) the Comstock Act [see below] does not prohibit the delivery of Mifepristone. It also characterized the lawsuit as "extraordinary and unprecedented," noting that it "could not find any previous example of a court second-guessing an FDA decision to approve a drug."[24] It also added that a decision in favor of ADF would “upend the status quo and the reliance interests of patients and doctors who depend on Mifepristone, as well as businesses involved with Mifepristone distribution.” The Comstock Act of 1873 which was cited by the plaintiffs as a basis for their cause of action currently declares that "'[e]very article or thing designed, adapted, or intended for producing abortion,' as well as '[e]very article, instrument, substance, drug, medicine, or thing which is advertised or described in a manner calculated to lead another to use or apply it for producing abortion,' to be 'nonmailable matter' that the United States Postal Service (“USPS”) may not lawfully deliver." That might seem to apply to the mail order distribution of Mifeprestone. However according to settled law, the Comstock Act has a much longer and more complicated history and in fact prohibits delivery of abortion medications only when the sender intends to violate the law. This argument was detailed in a US Attorney General Opinion (December 23, 2022) issued in response to a request from the US Post Office. As stated there, in order to be unlawful under the Act and based upon "a longstanding judicial construction of the Comstock Act, which Congress ratified and USPS itself accepted," the mailing must be accompanied with an intent on the part of the recipient that the drugs will be used unlawfully.[25] The FDA also argued that the 6-year federal statute of limitations barred the lawsuit and the plaintiffs lacked the standing to sue. As to the former, FDA's approval of Mifepristone was in 2000 and the lawsuit was filed in 2022. Also, Congress had enacted the Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act of 2007 that deemed any medication which was approved before the effective date of the Act was in compliance with relevant federal legal requirements.[26] On the standing issue, the government pointed out that none of the individual nor the organizational physician member plaintiffs' had established standing or an "injury-in-fact." The complaining physicians were not themselves regulated by the FDA and did not purport to prescribe Mifepristone. Instead, they contended they "will" be injured because "other" physicians will prescribe it and the Mifepristone will cause adverse events, thereby forcing patients to seek care from other physicians, subjecting them to potential exposure to liability and insurance costs, and "potentially causing the patients to suffer grief, distress and guilt.[27] Not buying these arguments, the government countered, "Here, Plaintiffs do not even attempt to allege facts supporting the chain of causation. They do not corroborate any of the pecuniary harms that they purport to fear, nor any of the intangible concerns that they raise." The reason that analysis of these substantive and procedural (standing, statute of limitations) issues is so critical is that in order for the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine plaintiffs to prevail on their motion for a preliminary injunction, they must demonstrate a likelihood of success on the merits which includes passing procedural hurdles. The government appears to have established that the plaintiffs this have not met this standard. Before concluding this analysis of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v FDA, it is interesting to note that in January, 2023, Danco Laboratories filed a motion to intervene in the case, claiming that forcing FDA to withdraw a longstanding approval would "seismically disrupt" the agency's governing authority as to whether drugs are safe and effective and would cause Danco "direct and immediate harm by shuttering its business." Because of Danco's entry into the case, briefing on a preliminary injunction is scheduled to end this February 24th. A decision from Judge Kacsmaryk is anticipated to follow shortly after this date. The problem we face here is that given Judge Kacsmaryk's past history, there is more than enough reason to fear that, regardless of the above-cited law, he will grant the plaintiffs' motion for a preliminary injunction. Because this is a federal case, the impact would be felt nationwide. An appeal of that decision would go to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals which is a conservative court, with 12 of its 16 active judges appointed by Republicans. And then to the post-Dobbs Supreme Court. Senator Wyden and Court-washing It is into this maelstrom that on February 16, 2023 Senator Wyden made his claim of improper "court-washing."[28] Anticipating Judge Kacsmaryk's decision to grant the preliminary injunction, Senator Wyden said "Enough" to the "rigged game." In a historically significant move the Senator also pleaded that the FDA ignore Judge Kacsmaryk's anticipated ruling, just as President Lincoln ignored the "historically egregious" Dred Scott v Sandford ruling which held that black people could never be citizens of the United States. The Senator noted that the use of Mifepristone has fewer complications than Tylenol and that "a wealth" of evidence had demonstrated its safety and effectiveness, adding "Legal logic be damned, the plaintiffs know that Judge Kacsmaryk won't let pesky obstacles like standing or precedent to get in the way of the agenda they share." Wyden also pointed out that on 41 occasions the Trump administration had asked the US Supreme Court to put a hold on adverse lower court rulings for the duration of the government's appeal and in 28 of those cases, the Supreme Court, "aiding these polarization efforts," granted the stay. In comparison, the Biden administration has sought emergency relief from the Supreme Court 9 separate times. The Supreme Court has granted it on only two occasions. And "incredibly," the Court has granted emergency relief against the Biden administration four times, something that did not happen during the "lawless" days of the Trump administration. Oregon State Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum has entered the fray by officially writing to Walgreens and CVS expressing appreciation for the recent announcement of their intention to start offering Mifepristone in their retail pharmacies.[29] Attorney General Rosenblum joined the Attorneys General from Washington and California, and 20 additional states in her plea; 20 Republican Attorneys General warned CVS and Walgreens that they could be violating the Comstock Act if they send the pills by mail.[30] Attorney General Rosenblum vigorously disagreed with the claim of the Republican Attorneys General that abortion pills are "far riskier than surgical abortions" and providing this medicine increases "coerced abortions." To the contrary, she states that providing abortion medications offer more private and flexible options for these personal and confidential choices. Conclusion As stated above, the web that is woven here is tangled indeed. Not only are the implications for women and families with the withdrawal of Mifepristone significant, but Judge Kaczmarak's legal prevarications and legalistic teasing threaten the fabric of a democracy based on the rule of law. [1] https://www.ipas.org/clinical-update/english/recommendations-for-abortion-before-13-weeks-gestation/medical-abortion/mifepristone-and-misoprostol-recommended-regimen/ [2] https://www.cnbc.com/2022/11/23/abortion-pill-most-common-way-to-end-pregnancy-cdc-says.html; and Guttmacher Institute, Medication Abortion Now Accounts for More than Half of all US Abortions, https://www.guttmacher.org/article/2022/02/medication-abortion-now-accounts-more-half-all-us-abortions, updated 12-1-22 [3] https://www.supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/20/20A34/151289/20200826115344506_20A- FDA v. ACOG Appendix FINAL a.pdf [4] https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/advocacy/prevention/women/LT-WH-Mifepristone-030121.pdf [5] American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists v. US Food and Drug Administration, https://www.aclu.org/cases/american-college-obstetricians-and-gynecologists-v-us-food-and-drug-administration [6] https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/20pdf/20a34_3f14.pdf [7] https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/16/health/abortion-pills-fda.html [8] https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2019/06/19/in-middle-of-pride-month-senate-confirms-texas-judge-who-defended-bakery-that-turned-away-gay-couple/ [9] https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2022/12/17/23512766/supreme-court-matthew-kacsmaryk-judge-trump-abortion-immigration-birth-control [10] https://www.thepublicdiscourse.com/2015/09/15612/ [11] https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/Kacsmaryk SJQ.pdf [12] https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/meet-the-texas-judge-who-is-a-favorite-of-conservatives-in-hot-button-lawsuits-including-abortion-pill-litigation [13] https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district courts/texas/txndce/2:2020cv00092/330752/63/. The standard for granting summary judgment is that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. The decision is made on briefs, not after a trial. [14] Standing to sue is basically whether a plaintiff has or will sustain direct injury or harm and that this harm is redressable. State laws differ but in federal court a plaintiff has to demonstrate: (1) an "injury in fact," meaning that the injury is of a legally protected interest which is (a) concrete and particularized and (b) actual or imminent; (2) there must be a causal connection between the injury and the conduct brought before the court; and (3) it must be likely, rather than speculative, that a favorable decision by the court will redress the injury. https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/standing. [15] https://www.everybodytexas.org/january-11-2023-statement-on-deanda-v-becerra [16] See footnote 7 above. [17] https://www.scotusblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/21A21.pdf [18] See footnote 8; https://www.vox.com/2022/6/30/23189965/supreme-court-biden-texas-remain-in-mexico-john-roberts [19] https://www.aclu.org/cases/american-college-obstetricians-and-gynecologists-v-us-food-and-drug-administration; https://www.acog.org/-/media/project/acog/acogorg/files/advocacy/acog-v-fda-complaint-mifepristone-covid19.pdf?la=en&hash=2C5C6C65F3E6C8A693ACD649C7C12129 [20] https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/13/health/covid-abortion-pills-mailed.html [21] https://www.fda.gov/drugs/postmarket-drug-safety-information-patients-and-providers/questions-and-answers-mifepristone-medical-termination-pregnancy-through-ten-weeks-gestation - :~:text=On December 16, 2021, the,in-person dispensing requirement”) [22] https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/23505124-alliance-for-hippocratic-medicine-sos-document [23] https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/24/abortion-pill-fda-challenged-in-lawsuit-seeking-to-pull-mifepristone-from-us.html [24] https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/10/abortion-pill-judge-extends-deadline-in-lawsuit-seeking-to-pull-medication-from-us.html; https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txnd.370067/gov.uscourts.txnd.370067.28.0.pdf [25] https://www.justice.gov/olc/opinion/file/1560596/download. [26] https://www.vox.com/politics/2023/2/17/23603182/supreme-court-abortion-mifepristone-ron-wyden-senate-fda-matthew-kascmaryk [27] https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txnd.370067/gov.uscourts.txnd.370067.28.0.pdf [28] https://www.facebook.com/senatorronwyden/videos/879092286541141 - video; https://www.wyden.senate.gov/news/press-releases/wyden-delivers-floor-speech-calling-on-president-biden-and-the-fda-to-keep-mifepristone-on-the-market-regardless-of-outcome-in-texas-case - the text of Senator Wyden's speech; https://www.vox.com/politics/2023/2/17/23603182/supreme-court-abortion-mifepristone-ron-wyden-senate-fda-matthew-kascmaryk - commentary. [29] https://www.doj.state.or.us/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Multistate-Pharmacy-Letter-2023-02-16.pdf [30] https://www.opb.org/article/2023/02/16/attorneys-general-support-letter-abortion-pills-by-mail/

As an organization deeply concerned about the large number of Oregonians facing homelessness and housing instability, the League of Women Voters of Oregon commends Governor Tina Kotek for her focus on increasing the production of all types of housing. We are pleased she plans to appoint such broad representation to the advisory council, and in particular people with experience in permanent supportive and affordable housing. Those are the units that will be the most challenging to produce and where we have the greatest need. From Governer Kotek's press release: The Governor is looking to appoint housing developers with expertise in permanent supportive, affordable, and market rate housing, representatives of rural and coastal communities, communities of color, local government representatives, and experts in land use, fair housing, permitting, workforce development, and construction. Oregonians interested in applying for the Council are encouraged to submit an application, found here. Applications are due February 15, 2023. Appointees will begin work on the Council in early March. Read Governor Kotek's full press release. You can follow LWVOR's weekly Housing summaries in the Legislative Report (found under Social Policy).

Dear LWVOR Members and friends, February is a busy month for us! Action is “in” the Legislature (see building photos!). Voter Service will run Vote411 for the 2023 primary! Youth Outreach is preparing for an odd-year Student Mock Election. This newsletter has a link to reserve rooms at The Graduate in Eugene for LWVOR Convention, May 19-21, 2023. Please try to join us. We have missed so many opportunities to see each other, now at the third anniversary of COVID. Attending virtually is an equity issue so we are working on hybrid attendance, too. There are trade-offs either way, we understand and will do our best. Thank you for being part of the team by reading and helping as you are able! Yours In League! Becky Gladstone LWVOR President This month... First Call to CONVENTION, LWVOR in Eugene, May 19-21, 2023! LWVOR Studies’ status Voter Service news, Spring primary Vote411 & OSME Youth Outreach, OSME wrap, moving forward! Action, see the Capitol ACCESS, see the photos for yourself! Your League Comms, how to keep in touch with the state League Civics ED from Donna Cohen Recommended reading FIRST CALL TO CONVENTION 2023 CONVENTION Is the biennial State Meeting of the League of Women Voters of Oregon, which is held on alternate years to the State Council. First Call is issued so that local Leagues can begin to plan and discuss matters that will be presented at the convention. TIME & PLACE The 2023 State Convention will be held Friday through Sunday, May 19-21, 2023 in Eugene, OR at The Graduate Hotel. HOSTS League of Women Voters of Lane County PURPOSE The convention shall consider changes to the Bylaws; shall consider and authorize for action a program; shall elect the president, first vice-president, secretary, three directors (two-year terms), and a chair and two members of the nominating committee; shall adopt a budget for the ensuing year; and shall transact such other business as may be presented. DELEGATES The convention shall consist of the Board of Directors of the LWVOR and delegates chosen by members through the local Leagues. Each local League shall be entitled to two delegates for the first 40 members or fewer. If possible, one delegate should be the President. An additional delegate is allowed for every 20 additional members or major fraction (10 or more) thereof belonging to the local League as of January 31, 2023. Each approved State Unit of members-at-large (MALs) shall be entitled to one delegate. For those MAL’s not in an approved unit, MAL representation at convention shall be one delegate for every 20 MALs or major fraction (10 or more) thereof. If there are fewer than 10 MALs, the interest of the MALs shall be represented by the LWVOR Membership Chair. OBSERVERS Any member of the LWVOR (in a local League, a State Unit, or as a general MAL) may attend as an observer. Observers may not vote, but may, upon recognition of the Chair, have the privilege of the floor. All League members are urged to exercise this privilege, and members are encouraged to register as observers. BASIC COSTS Registration fees will be announced in the next update. Hotel reservations can be made online or by phone: Call 844-888-4723. Use BOOKING CODE: 0519WV. Use this booking link: League of Women Voters of Oregon – Guestrooms Studies, Upcoming and Ongoing! Focus now on submitting materials to allow adequate time for board consideration this month. Send study and concurrence proposals to Study Chair Annie Goldner by March 1 so the board has time to read them before our March 10 board meeting. We have been reaching out since August to promote your campaigning for study (or concurrence) proposals, to build support among local Leagues for passage at convention in May. Send to Studies Chair Annie Goldner, a.goldner@lwvor.org. The Election Methods study update is in final review. We are pleased to announce board adoption: Biocides and Pesticides position (study). Child Care re-study, updating much needed since 1988, no position change. Voter Service Thanks to our strong local League network, thanks to Chair Peggy Bengry, Voter Service Reps have committed to gathering candidate and local ballot measure information for the May 16, 2023 primary election! The LWVOR Board has voted to sponsor state-wide access to Vote411.org, covering the $6,000 annual subscription fee for this calendar year, expanding our usual even-year coverage. Youth Outreach The Youth Outreach (YO!) committee is expanding opportunities for the Oregon Student Mock Election (OSME) local versions for this 2023 Primary! The committee is establishing a local League liaison network. To help develop an active presence in your local schools, contact Diana DeMaria, youthoutreach@lwvor.org. Action The Legislative session is underway in the third week and Action is galloping with hail and farewell for a number of volunteer transitions. Basically, we can always use more help! Thanks to Chair Alice Bartelt organizing! Please read the LR (Legislative Report) and consider helping out. We are meeting weekly as a committee, processing and presenting testimony, collaborations, and preparation for a Day at the Legislature. If you can help, please contact our staff, lwvor@lwvor.org. This powerful and energetic group of issue advocates needs support from organizers who can help with committee logistics. Many issues need coverage. We continue to welcome volunteers who want to learn our process to observe and learn to cover additional specific topics. Subscribe for the really useful weekly email Legislative Report summaries and see the comprehensive reports online. Your League Comms! Stay informed on League happenings at the state and local levels! You can sign up and manage your LWVOR newsletter subscriptions directly. Don't miss our event updates, Action Alerts, newsletters, and other important information. Questions? Contact our staff at lwvor@lwvor.org. Capitol Access Curious about Capitol building access and seismic work? Senator Dick Anderson’s staff featured Capitol construction maps in their newsletter. It inspired me to take these photos recently! This is House-side access, only for exit by the public. Underground staff and member parking is closed so these street parking spaces are reserved for them. Let’s appreciate the construction sentiment, “Get Us There Safe”! This is Oregon and we really care about our trees! This public art was displayed sitting on temporary cushioned mats. Announcements Civics for Adults Update, January 29, 2023 ** Portland League member Donna Cohen shares her Civics Education information and has served on our Election Methods Update committee. Upcoming Citizen Activism 101—Making Change Happen Sunday, Feb 5, 2:30-4pm. PST. Hillsboro Public Library [OR]. Virtual Register: WCCLS website if WCCLS patron or TBA § Historical perspective § Examples of successful advocacy § Types of advocacy § Who makes the rules? § Tools / strategies for change § Engaging with government / lobbying for influence § Tracking legislation in the Oregon Legislature and having your say on bills! Legislature has just begun! Beyond Voting: Elections and Campaign Finance Wednesday, Feb 15, 3pm. EST! Stoughton Public Library [MASS]. Virtual Register: One week in advance; check website § Right to vote? § Voter suppression § Election 2024 issues § Redistricting / gerrymandering § Electoral College § Alternative voting systems § Campaign financing issues and tracking Boston Globe about my workshop! Local groups want to put civics education back on the front burner ** If you've been confused about CRT, read this article, summing up how divorced from reality it is. School Ends Dr. Seuss Reading When Students Recognize Its Racism Lesson ** See League testimony supporting SB 579 in the Oregon Legislature now, to allow those who are incarcerated to vote. It is easy to submit written testimony [aka your opinion] or to sign up for in-person or virtual testimony now. [We have one of the best systems in the country for doing so!]. Just go to the link and look around: information, sign up, follow the bill via email alerts, etc. It's a hotly contested topic. Check out what people have submitted as testimony. ** National Archives Resources from Martin Luther King Day, January 16, 2023 Donna L Cohen, MLIS, MEd Portland, Oregon Civics for Adults – and Others Facebook: Civics For Adults Workshops: To Enhance Civic Knowledge and Inspire Political Engagement Ask your local library or community group to sponsor a workshop! See Flyer “My philosophy is very simple. When you see something that is not fair, not right, not just – stand up, say something, speak up!” Rep. John Lewis Recommended Reading My husband and I had just visited and seen the 9th, 10, 14th, and 15th US House votes, trying to elect the House Speaker, now Kevin McCarthy. The drama was intense! Thanks to 4th CD Rep Val Hoyle for the photo of us up in the gallery. By 2am on Saturday, January 8th when all of the House Congressional members were finally sworn in, it was very crowded! Congratulations to all, we’re counting on you! Nancy Pelosi: A study in power From the WaPo review: Pelosi was part of the first generation of women to take office by winning on their own merit. By the time she was pushing 80, she’d be supporting, and sometimes clashing with, another generation of politically ambitious women who didn’t want to play the old games or follow the old rules. Page delves into the issues of gender and sexism with depth and nuance, illustrating how social norms for women, and Pelosi’s alternate embrace and then defiance of them, shaped her rise — and how she learned early on not to talk about sexism as an impediment, lest she be branded a whiner and excuse-maker. But that doesn’t mean she didn’t notice or resent it. “There had never been another politician at her level who wore Armani suits and four-inch Manolos,” Page writes. “In a slight she never forgot, Time magazine didn’t put her on its cover through her entire first tenure as Speaker, despite the history she HAD made. Two weeks after the 2010 midterms gave back the House majority to Republicans, the magazine’s cover featured a flattering photo of John Boehner and the headline ‘Mr. Speaker.’ ” Thank You for reading! Becky Gladstone President, LWVOR

Date: December 6th, 2022 To: All League Members From: Rebecca Gladstone, LWVOR President Alice Bartelt, Action Committee Chair Claudia Keith, Social Policy: Immigration & Refugee Portfolio Call on Congress to Protect Dreamers in Lame Duck Session The League of Women Voters of Oregon strongly supports legislation that would permanently protect recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Individuals who benefit from DACA live in every state around the country and contribute to their communities. For decades, they have lived in fear of deportation while hearing promises of reform. People who are protected by DACA deserve to have peace of mind regarding where they call home. House and Senate leadership have stated that protecting the Dreamers is a high priority for the remaining time of the 117th Congress. A true democracy includes fair and equitable immigration policies with a path to citizenship. With just a few short working weeks left this year, please call on your members of Congress to take immediate action to protect the Dreamers for once and for all. To take action: Copy and paste the following text into an email or letter. Then you will use this link to look up your legislator contact information. Simply type your name into the search bar under "How to Contact Your Member" to bring up their contact information. --- Subject: Protect Dreamers Dear [Recipient's Title and Name]: As a member of the League of Women Voters of Oregon, I was pleased to hear from Senate and House leadership this week that protecting Dreamers is a high priority in the remaining time of the 117th Congress. I urgently request Congress to pass legislation to protect Dreamers from future attempts to dismantle the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and give these individuals the desperately needed security to plan productive futures in the United States. There should be no delay in taking action to protect the Dreamers. For far too long, these individuals who are part of the fabric of America have not been fully recognized. There should be no doubt that these individuals are worthy of protection from deportation and a path toward permanent status and citizenship. People who are protected by DACA, their families, and their communities deserve the peace of mind to build their lives and futures, which so many of us born in this country take for granted. I strong urge you to protect Dreamers in the remaining time of the 117th Congress. Sincerely, [Your Name]

Dear LWVOR Members and friends, Happy New Year! I hope you enjoyed ringing in the new year and are resolving to welcome a productive, healthier 2023! I love year-end retrospectives but find myself firmly looking forward to the work ahead in this newsletter! Thank you all for our accomplishments! We are gearing up for the important primary, the legislative session, and our Convention 2023! The new year brings a board transition with new energy and fresh perspectives – that could be you and I hope you’re planning to come to Eugene to celebrate! Yours In League! Becky Gladstone LWVOR President THIS MONTH… LWVOR Convention 2023 Voter Service, Local Elections, & Youth Turnout LWVOR Studies' Status YO! Youth Outreach Action Recommended Reading LWVOR CONVENTION 2023 Thanks to our hosts, LWV Lane County, we will meet in Eugene, Tracktown USA, May 19-21, at The Graduate, featuring Pendleton and Oregon décor, with UO Duck and Nike sports influence, a spectacular 3 way Vista conference space, serving a local, seasonal menu. Take a hotel photo tour! On site AV will enable remote connections, important for DEI, diversity, equity and inclusion. We recommend in-person attendance and hope many will join us for our first state event since March 7, 2020. WORKSHOPS: Our December leaders’ call discussed ideas: 501.c.3 transitions, membership growth, and developing interest groups. This is the perfect time to meet colleagues who share your efforts, your fellow Voter Service Reps, Treasurers, Leadership Teams, Comms people- the web, social media, and newsletter editors, well, all of us, actually. Let us know if you expect a large group attending in-person because we’ll have a couple of meeting spaces just for caucuses. We will vote on a board slate from the nominating committee, a bylaws committee proposal for annual meeting changes, and proposed studies. I want us to catch up with each other and celebrate our accomplishments, having risen so well to these many recent challenges! I hope you plan to attend! VOTER SERVICE Our YO! Youth Outreach committee is pushing for Oregon youth voter turnout for this 2023 primary, calling on us all to highlight our local races this spring. “All politics is local” is increasingly pressing as attention continues to increase nationally for local races like school boards. See this month’s YO! Youth Outreach and recommended reading. We are evaluating our 2023 Vote411.org subscription, whether to pay for statewide software access, depending on how many of our Leagues will cover their local measures and candidates. STUDIES, UPCOMING AND ONGOING! Both current studies are wrapping up with no recommended advocacy position changes, both providing timely, relevant new information. CHILD CARE is in final layout (yes, during December holidays!) for Board approval. Here’s a peek: "Usually, the term childcare brings to mind a picture of little kids playing in a room with a teacher reading from a picture book. This is very different from the reality of childcare today and what is needed to ensure the future of childcare." ELECTION METHODS is close behind for Board approval, so timely with growing consideration and adoption of RCV, Ranked Choice Voting, which we recommend. Note that Multnomah County Measure 26-232 passed this fall, asking if local voters want to decide races with RCV, now joining voters in 50 other US cities. Take a minute to watch this one-minute Ranked Choice Voting explanation, then share it! We expect three study proposals at the 2023 Convention. For information, contact Annie Goldner, a.goldner@lwvor.org. YOUTH OUTREACH Our YO! Youth Outreach committee will host another Student Mock Election for the spring 2023 election in Portland. Ask how you can promote one for your students this spring. We met with UO professors Dan Tichenor and Alison Gash, authors of this month’s recommended reading. Professor Tichenor shared this: Gen Z might finally turn young voters into a political power: “Alison and I just wrote a piece for the Washington Post on the formidable power of Gen Z when it connects its passion for key issues and movement activism with voting. We also discuss earlier examples of youth insurgency, a little history of the 26th amendment, and the checkered story of youth voting in the past.” The Voting AGE: 18 or 16? An LWV Boston-Cambridge consensus study group reached out to us about Oregon Rep Blumenauer’s HJ Res 23 (2021): Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States extending the right to vote to citizens sixteen years of age or older. We will share the status of this discussion in Oregon. LWVOR SJR 25 testimony (2021), addressed moving the voting age from 18 to 16. League youth voting positions focus on establishing responsible long-term voting habits. From our LWVUS senior staff, “We do not have a firm position for or against a specific age. Many leagues have advocated for 17-year-old voters participating in primaries, certainly, as well as things like preregistration starting at 16, likely using the League’s Right to Vote position. Citing LWV Empowering the Voters of Tomorrow, 2018: The League of Women Voters believes we all have a role to play in inspiring and empowering young Americans to register and vote. For us, that often means reaching out to potential new voters while they are still in high school. We have a special responsibility to reach out to those most often left behind: with no college experience, living in neighborhoods predominately of color, or where voter registration drives are rarely held.” The Classroom Law Project, promoting courtroom process learning, has an interesting resources page Current Event: Lowering the Voting Age. LWV Colorado wrote, asking about cross-league borrowing from our 2022 Civics ED Curriculum, not yet updated for the 2023 cycle. Youth Outreach will have a new webpage soon. To learn more, contact Diana DeMaria, youthoutreach@lwvor.org ACTION When the Oregon 6-month legislative session starts January 17th, we will switch from monthly to weekly Legislative Reports. Subscribe for weekly email briefs linked to our extensive ongoing League volunteer reports. Hot topics abound across all League “portfolios”. Legislators are emphasizing housing and public defender shortages. Sen Prozanski, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair, described Oregon’s public defender crisis, needing attorneys for 80 in custody and another 600 not in custody, also in need. Our local Leagues are developing and reinforcing working relationships with newly elected officials, comparing legislative priorities. Our LWVOR “action priorities” are actually rosters for issues that we have volunteers to cover. Most of us can use help and numerous issues go unaddressed for lack of observers. This powerful and energetic group needs help. We continue to welcome volunteers to learn our process to observe. If you can help, please contact our staff who can direct you, lwvor@lwvor.org. RECOMMENDED READING This month’s recommendation is from the UO professors who met with our youth Outreach committee, all invested in understanding and motivating better youth yoting turnout. They see strong activism commitment and are curious about why that isn’t better connected to voting. We’re looking forward to developing a collaboration, considering that the League has been tasked by the Oregon Dept of Education to help our students learn how to vote in Oregon. Democracy’s Child, Young People and the Politics of Control, Leverage, and Agency Oxford University Press Fundamentally recasts understandings of democratic politics by centering youth in US law, policy, and governance Spotlights youth-led movements that are transforming democratic societies, from climate change and racial justice to Queer and immigrant rights Shows how today's most prominent movements reflect a long history of youth leadership and mobilization, such as the Children's Crusades of the civil rights and labor movements Uncovers patterns and processes of systemic advantage and exclusion on the basis of race, gender/gender identity, sexuality, immigration status, religion, class, and ability Alison L. Gash, UO Political Science: U.S. Courts, Public Policy, Gender, Race, Sexuality, Civil Rights, Constitutional Law Daniel J. Tichenor, Philip H. Knight Chair of Political Science, Wayne Morse Center Director for the Public Affairs Speaker Series and the Wayne Morse Scholars program, UO Law. Thank you for reading and for making a difference, for Making Democracy Work! Here’s to a Very Happy New Year for all of us! Becky Gladstone President, LWVOR Thank you for reading this newsletter! You can Manage Your LWVOR Subscriptions yourself for this monthly President’s Newsletter, the Legislative Reports, and the quarterly VOTER.

IN THIS ISSUE... PRESIDENT’S COLUMN CONVENTION 2023 OREGON STUDENT MOCK ELECTION COP 27 IN MEMORIAM VOLUNTEERS NEEDED PRESIDENT’S COLUMN By Becky Gladstone, LWVOR President Happy Holidays! I hope most of us will find things to celebrate this month! I am thankful for the breadth of our intense League work! We’ve informed and engaged many voters this fall! We ran an invigorating Student Mock Election. Our 2023 Legislative session preparation was never paused. I am confident that our work across the country, with state leaders in touch comparing election news daily, made a big difference! I am so grateful to our LWVUN delegation at COP27 in Egypt in November. With this December 2022 edition of The VOTER, we thank outgoing Editor Terry Styner for her excellent organizing management this past year. We will need a new Editor, volunteers welcome, for our spring 2023 edition, in time for LWVOR Convention 2023 news. When I started as President almost 4 years ago, improving communication was the top “direction to the board.” Our leadership structure is knitting and weaving a more compelling description than the “lateral communication” I have been calling for over the years. We are strengthening our networks with local League leaders, Treasurers, Voter Service, Nominating Committees, Youth Outreach, Development, Membership, and others. We are helping each other, considering job sharing, and discussing leadership teams. We have made great strides, and with new LWVOR board members.’ energy. I am excited by the new members of the LWVOR Board and am looking forward to seeing transitions at the 2023 LWVOR Convention! I hope many of you can attend in person in Eugene because we truly have much to celebrate! We already have two state study proposals in the discussion, and you should hear from their advocates soon, rallying your support and participation. We expect a bylaws discussion to consider aspects of change needed for a transition to annual meeting adoption of studies, for example. We can only vaguely predict public health concerns and gas prices but hope these may be ebbing as barriers. I hope we can look forward to a Happy New Year! My best to all of you, with thanks for your work! Yours in League, Becky Gladstone UPCOMING EVENTS TIME TO THINK ABOUT LWVOR CONVENTION 2023 BY ROBIN TOKMAKIAN The League’s convention is planned for May 2023 in Eugene. (specific date is May 19-21). It will be an in-person meeting to help facilitate and energize our membership. (Becky Gladstone here- we’re looking at virtual options). We look forward to hearing from Oregon leaders and networking with League members from around the state. Local Leagues should start program planning activities soon. The deadline for submitting potential studies, updates, or other program ideas is February 6, 2023, for consideration at the LWVOR Board meeting. Present your program ideas to your local league, and communicate with others around the state to support your ideas. Your LWVOR Board looks forward to hearing what local leagues are interested in to address policies at the state level. RECENT ACCOMPLISHMENTS OREGON STUDENT MOCK ELECTION BY BECKY GLADSTONE Results are in! Students across Oregon participated in OSME, the 2022 Oregon Student Mock Election, for a realistic voting experience endorsed by Governor Kate Brown and Secretary of State Shemia Fagan. The League of Women Voters of Oregon created a mock ballot, with Secretary of State review, mirroring the General Election ballot with three contests for all Oregon students: US Senator, Oregon Governor, and Measure 114 (gun safety). We honored educator requests for mock ballots with some local races. Multnomah County students voted on Measure 26-232 (ranked-choice voting), Clackamas County students voted on County Clerk, and Deschutes County students voted on Measure 9-148 (nonpartisan county commissioner elections) and Measure 9-155 (a Bend-La Pine School District bond measure). Several regions voted on US Congressional Districts 5 and 6. Every public school district and private/charter/homeschool educators across the state were invited to register for ballots, instructions, and a lesson plan. Over 5500 students were registered from an impressive 18 different communities all around Oregon: Astoria, Bend, Boring, Camas Valley, Crane, Days Creek, Hood River, Irrigon, Klamath Falls, Lake Oswego, Medford, North Bend, Portland, Salem, Sandy, Springfield, Tigard, Troutdale, West Linn, and Wilsonville. Statewide Student Mock Ballot Results: • Ron Wyden won US Senator with 53%. • Tina Kotek won Oregon Governor with 54%. • Measure 114 (gun safety) passed with 73% voting yes. Local Student Mock Ballot Results: • US Congressional District 5, Jamie McLeod-Skinner won with 73%. • The new US Congressional District 6, Andrea Salinas, won with 59%. • Multnomah County Measure 26-232 (ranked-choice voting) passed by 75%. • Clackamas County Clerk Clackamas students elected Catherine McMullen by 59%. • Deschutes students passed Measure 9-148 (nonpartisan county commissioners) by 88%. • Deschutes Measure 9-155 (the school bond) also passed by 86%. The award-winning LWVOR OSME student voting experience is supported by YEAR-ROUND access to our free Civics Education curriculum and materials. TOP LWVOR PRIORITIES COP27 - DAILY REPORTS FROM THE LEAGUE By Robin Tokmakian The annual UN Climate Conference, COP27, is underway in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, and 15 League representatives are attending this year (in-person and virtually) as observers for the League of Women Voters of the U.S. 11/7: Day 1 of COP27 REPORT SUBMITTED BY ROBIN TOKMAKIAN, LWVUS UN OBSERVER FOR CLIMATE COP27 has begun. This first report will be short. Monday’s events were mostly introductory negotiation sessions and the world leader’s summit. President Biden has not arrived yet, but former Vice President Al Gore was in full voice. Sharm-el-Sheik is, well, different. It is a purpose-built resort, and that is what it feels like. Some logistical things have gone smoothly - for example, security lines are not super long like in Glasgow (COP26), but eating places inside the UN space are few and far between. We are all hoping that things will improve as the side events begin tomorrow, and it will become even more crowded. Several LWV delegates have had the pleasure of swimming in the Red Sea, and we’ve tried the local seafood. In the negotiation space - The women and gender constituency, along with an NGO human rights working group, are making their voices heard, but whether action by member states will occur, who knows? I heard on a bus ride that progress has been made in the area of “loss and damage” in the form of an added agenda item being approved to push for specific ‘loss and damage” funding. It is the beginning but will take a while to get any funding in place. Loss and damage funding is money to address things like the floods in Pakistan. It is different from adaptation funding. I had a conversation on the walk and shuttle ride to COP with a former assistant to the UN’s secretary general. He and a group he is with are pushing to change how climate ambition gets achieved. He thinks we should have it like the Olympics and award prizes for who does the best in various areas. Not sure how that would work, but interesting idea. All for now. Robin Tokmakian & the rest of the LWVUS team 11/16: Day 9 of COP27 REPORT SUBMITTED BY ROBIN TOKMAKIAN, LWVUS UN OBSERVER FOR CLIMATE From my virtual view - a couple of things to note: • UN organizations are siloed and don’t speak enough to each other - but it’s better than it was. For example, UN Biodiversity talks only recently included climate discussions. • Women and Gender: 80% of the NDCs (Nationally Determined Contributions) mention gender and/or women, but it will still take 286 years to reach gender equality at the rate we are going. This is from a UNWomen report (don’t have a reference to report, yet). • On Carbon Dioxide Removals using the ocean - there have been several efforts over the years since 2009 to produce governing principles for ethical research in this area - for example, the Oxford Principles for Geo-engineering and Principles for research into climate engineering techniques. On the more COP-focused front, I joined my Indigenous sisters to stand against violence toward women and Indigenous peoples as a result of colonialism and extractive industry. We still do not have any concrete or substantive loss and damage finance from the negotiations. This is increasingly a hot topic, and it looks doubtful to me now. In the negotiations today, loss and damage finance was fiercely contested with some passionate and begging speeches by national representatives, yet the G20 and G7 have sought to protect their pockets, offering morsels for empathy that neither are financially sufficient nor would be controlled by the people in need of the funds. Here is one quote from Satyendra Prasad, Fiji’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to United Nations: “The world is barreling down the highway to climate hell, as the United Nations Secretary-General warned us. It isn’t Fiji’s foot on the gas pedal nor that of any Least Developed Country or Small Island Developing State. We are passengers – more like hostages trapped in a vehicle that is being recklessly steered by high emitters.” IN MEMORIAM Merilyn B. Reeves died peacefully in her sleep on October 7, 2022, with her daughter Julie by her side. She was born June 22, 1931, in her parent’s home in Idaho. In 1954, Merilyn earned her Bachelor of Science degree from Utah State Agricultural College in Logan. In 1962, as a mother of three small children, Merilyn earned her master’s degree in Science in Education from the Northern State Teachers College in South Dakota. Merilyn married Milt Reeves on June 28, 1952. For the next 30 years, they lived in Idaho, Utah, Texas, South Dakota, Minnesota, and Maryland and spent three summers in Saskatchewan, Canada, on a duck banding assignment. Merilyn created her own vocation as a tireless environmental advocate and visionary leader. As a member of the League of Women Voters (LWV) for 62 years, she advocated for clean water, safe drinking water, clean air, and other natural resources issues when she lived in Bloomington, Minnesota, and Laurel, Maryland. She served as Vice President of the LWVUS and lobbied the Legislature for 7 years on bills to strengthen pollution control. She was a leader in the needed management and protection of the Chesapeake Bay and served on several bi-state and Bay committees. In 1983, Maryland Governor Harry Hughes recognized Merilyn’s accomplishments by awarding her the title Admiral of the Chesapeake Bay. On March 7, 2020, on the very cusp of the COVID-19 pandemic, the family and many others gathered in Salem, Oregon, at the Century Celebration in honor of the 100th Anniversary of the League of Women Voters and Ratification of the 19th Amendment of the United States Constitution, where Merilyn was presented with the Carrie Chapman Catt Award. She enjoyed meeting LWV colleagues and gave her final public speech. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED ‘TIS THE SEASON! BY JACKIE CLARY What do the LWVOR and all local Leagues in the state have in common this time of year (aside from holiday gatherings and fundraising efforts)? Well, nominating committees around the state are beginning, in earnest, the process of finding candidates for the board and off-board positions for the following League year. Thus “Tis the season for making lists and checking them twice.” League members traditionally are busy, involved community members. But, if you ask any member of a League Board, they will say that they have added Board participation to all their other important commitments because they believe in our principles and have been able to find a meaningful niche to support the League while tapping into their own interests and skills. Could you challenge yourself to do the same? When approached by your local or state nominating committee, take a moment to think about it. Could you become part of the solution and satisfy your own sense of wanting to make a difference by saying, “Yes?” Or, at least say you’ll help find someone else? Each of us, as a member of the League of Women Voters, is an important part of any LWV nominating committee! At your next League gathering, be aware of candidate possibilities. Who asks the most comprehensive, interesting, thoughtful questions? Who has a good (appropriate, of course) sense of humor? Who stands out in a positive way? By the way, you can suggest yourself as a candidate just by contacting someone on your local committee (or the state committee using the email address below). Here’s to an incredible slate of candidates for 2023! Thanks to you all for your dedication to LWV and all that you do to support our state and local Leagues. From your LWVOR Nominating committee: Libby Medley, Diana Bodtker, Doreen Binder, Freddi Weishahn, Jackie Clary Please contact us through the LWVOR office: lwvor@lwvor.org or call 503-581-5722. We would be delighted to hear from you! Connect with us A printable version of this newsletter can be found on our website here. League of Women Voters of Oregon | 1330 12th St. SE, Suite 200, Salem, OR 97302

Date: December 6th, 2022 To: All League Members From: Rebecca Gladstone, LWVOR President Alice Bartelt, Action Committee Chair Claudia Keith, Social Policy: Immigration & Refugee Portfolio Call on Congress to Protect Dreamers in Lame Duck Session The League of Women Voters of Oregon strongly supports legislation that would permanently protect recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Individuals who benefit from DACA live in every state around the country and contribute to their communities. For decades, they have lived in fear of deportation while hearing promises of reform. People who are protected by DACA deserve to have peace of mind regarding where they call home. House and Senate leadership have stated that protecting the Dreamers is a high priority for the remaining time of the 117th Congress. A true democracy includes fair and equitable immigration policies with a path to citizenship. With just a few short working weeks left this year, please call on your members of Congress to take immediate action to protect the Dreamers for once and for all. To take action: Copy and paste the following text into an email or letter. Then you will use this link to look up your legislator contact information. Simply type your name into the search bar under "How to Contact Your Member" to bring up their contact information. --- Subject: Protect Dreamers Dear [Recipient's Title and Name]: As a member of the League of Women Voters of Oregon, I was pleased to hear from Senate and House leadership this week that protecting Dreamers is a high priority in the remaining time of the 117th Congress. I urgently request Congress to pass legislation to protect Dreamers from future attempts to dismantle the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and give these individuals the desperately needed security to plan productive futures in the United States. There should be no delay in taking action to protect the Dreamers. For far too long, these individuals who are part of the fabric of America have not been fully recognized. There should be no doubt that these individuals are worthy of protection from deportation and a path toward permanent status and citizenship. People who are protected by DACA, their families, and their communities deserve the peace of mind to build their lives and futures, which so many of us born in this country take for granted. I strong urge you to protect Dreamers in the remaining time of the 117th Congress. Sincerely, [Your Name]

Dear LWVOR Members and friends, We may aspire to a December of rest and rejuvenation from the busy elections, fall activities, and calm preparation for the 2023 legislative session. This would be like watching a Duck (or a Beaver 😊) serenely crossing a pond, not seeing the effort beneath the surface. We are busy in every committee, in every networking group, still looking for a better name for “lateral communication”! Given that, I want to encourage us all to take the time we need to replenish this month, to enjoy ourselves, our families and our friends. Many will be busy with League work, basically non-stop, and thank you for that. I’m probably addressing you most of all. Honestly, this is a large group! Please take care. You are making important differences in so many ways, Thank You! A big Thank You to outgoing VOTER Editor Terry Styner for her leadership this past year in setting an annual schedule, soliciting articles, and keeping us on track. Our quarterly edition of The VOTER is coming out shortly, with in-depth news on the 2023 LWVOR Convention, May 19-21, the Oregon Student Mock Election results, COP27 in Egypt, an In Memoriam for Merilyn Reeves, and a volunteer discussion from our new Nominating Committee Task Force. The board is looking for a volunteer to take the reins for this now well-organized process! We have a schedule, writers, a production team, and proofreaders. please let us know if you’re interested in this quarterly position, ask at: lwvor@lwvor.org. Have a lovely December, sharing virtual holiday cookies! Yours In League! Becky Gladstone LWVOR President THIS MONTH… Voter Service election analytics being reviewed LWVOR Studies’ status Youth Outreach, OSME wrap, moving forward LWV, Climate Change and the UN Action Recommended reading VOTER SERVICE The Vote411.org usage analytics are just in from LWVUS, so watch for more on that in the new year. Hats’ Off to our strong Voter Service network, with comprehensive coverage serving all of Oregon with Oregon candidate and ballot measure information, all the way down the ballots!* See our November newsletter for a full round of thanks to Voter Service Chair Peggy Bengry and her full network of subcommittees and local League VS Reps, for events, Vote411 data collection and management, the full portfolio of Voters’ Guides, including ballot measure analysis, and more! *About that down ballot Vote 411 coverage. We do not cover PCP (Precinct Committee Person) candidates. They run for political party positions and that part of our ballots is closed to party member votes only. Our coverage might arguably serve as an advantage to individual parties, not equally serving our minor parties and non-affiliated voters, who don’t have access. Watch for more on this in our upcoming state study proposals. STUDIES, UPCOMING AND ONGOING! In case you missed it, Annie Goldner is adeptly shepherding our study process. Now is the time to be reaching out to local Leagues to build support for strong study proposals to the LWVOR Board, due the week before our February board meeting. We have two proposals building steam, both for Governance, one to look at elected official recall processes and the other looking at the open primary process alluded to earlier, above. Our completed Biocides and Pesticides study awaits a member agreement committee to craft a position based on our member feedback already collated. Our Child Care and Election Methods study updates are both on final production steps, both informative and neither making position changes. For news on our studies, contact Annie Goldner, a.goldner@lwvor.org. YOUTH OUTREACH Congratulations to our team for successful LWVOR 2022 Oregon Student Mock Elections! As part of our invigorated youth outreach program, our Civics Education curriculum supporting the Mock Election is now ongoing year-round, currently looking at the May 2023 Multnomah Special Election and establishing strong relationships across Oregon with our schools. The committee is establishing a local League network of liaisons. To learn more, contact Diana DeMaria, youthoutreach@lwvor.org. See Diana’s full report in our November newsletter! LWV, CLIMATE CHANGE, AND THE U.N.! Our deepest gratitude this year to our Climate workers, persisting in the face of worsening global conditions. We ran daily LWVOR Newsroom reports from Robin Tokmakian, LWVOR 1st VP and LWVUS UN Observer for Climate at COP27. She reported heavy global industrial resistance to accepting the immediately necessary remediation actions. Read the latest UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports including LWVUS participation with Observer Status (IPCC roster). Thanks to Claudia Keith for ongoing Climate Immigration and Emergency status action, both in Oregon and nationally. Please contact us at lwvor@lwvor.org for more information and to help. ACTION Our action committee is ramping up for the 2023 session with December “legislative days” next week. Legislative packets have gone out to local Leagues for post-election outreach to Legislators with suggested interview guidelines and questions. We want to develop and reinforce working relationships. We hope the 2023 Session “Priorities” will help connect those working on specific issues. This powerful and energetic group of issue advocates needs support from organizers who can help with committee logistics. We continue to welcome volunteers who want to learn our process to observe and learn to cover additional specific topics. Subscribe for the really useful email Legislative Report summaries and see the comprehensive reports online. If you can help, please contact our staff, lwvor@lwvor.org. RECOMMENDED READING Very hot off the press, releasing on December 1st! A Question of Respect, from the Powell’s site, “ a political resource that depicts a compelling case for how the nation reached this moment and, more importantly, where it needs to go and what it might take. Though Ed is a Republican and Celinda is a Democrat, they have reached across the great divide to make the case that the only way for America to claw its way out of this mess is through mutual respect. They posit that respect is the foundation upon which we can again trust one another as Americans." Note, I could not have been more thrilled to hear this month’s author, Celinda Lake, President of Lake Research Partners, as keynote speaker at the 2016 LWV Convention! Thank You for reading! My warmest wishes to all of you this December! With 14 major international holidays this month, I hope we can all celebrate and have some fun! Here’s to managing COVID, taking stock of this year, and regaining our energy to vigorously address the 2023 tasks at hand! Happy New Year, almost! Becky Gladstone President, LWVOR Thank you for reading this newsletter! You can Manage Your LWVOR Subscriptions yourself for this monthly President’s Newsletter, the Legislative Reports, and the quarterly VOTER.

Photo by Marcus Siske on Unsplash. The annual UN Climate Conference, COP27, has concluded in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. Fifteen League representatives attended this year (in-person and virtually) as observers for the League of Women Voters of the U.S. The team reported daily for the duration of the conference. See the reports below. 11/28: Final COP27 Summary Report submitted by Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate The rule book for the Paris Agreement was completed at COP26. There were a few leftover items that needed cleaning up at COP27, but, for the most part, COP27 was for planning to implement the Paris Agreement. But real-world events overshadowed much of COP27 - such as the ongoing droughts in Africa and the floods in Pakistan. The US, with the Biden administration, and Brazil with the newly elected Lulu de Silva, Russian and its invasion of Ukraine, and China still shutting itself off, created a new dynamic amongst the global powerhouses. The EU and USA found a way to support creating a financial structure to help less developed countries address their losses due to extreme climate events. The member states requested that the supporting agency make a new attempt at defining what counts as a carbon credit under the Paris rules, so as not to impact human rights and environmental justice issues and the carbon market can be put into place. In other areas, countries decided to “identify opportunities and gaps to reduce emissions” so that more ambitious emission reductions would occur. And there was progress made on a “Global Goal on Adaptation”. The “Sharm El-Sheikh Implementation Plan” retained the Glasgow call to phase out coal and “inefficient fossil fuel subsidies” and to call for reforming multilateral development banks. Outside of the negotiations, the LWVUS delegation of observers took a broad view of various events. We heard from people on the ground affecting change and powerful political people from Biden and Kerry, to Al Gore, the UN’s Secretary General, a UN Human Rights Special Rapporteur, and a UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women. We participated in actions to convince delegates to be more ambitious and respect the rights of us all and we meet activists from around the world — passionate to address and solve the climate problem in many ways. Here’s a sampling of what some of the LWVUS observers came away with: Food & Agriculture One observer focused on food. The Food Systems Pavilion provided much “food for thought”. Two facts were repeated multiple times. “1) 30% of climate issues are caused by agriculture, especially industrialized agriculture and therefore mitigation strategies must receive the proper attention;” and 2) “Since only 3% of climate change adaptation monies are directed toward food production and storage solutions, much more is needed to prevent mass hunger throughout many parts of the world.” “Governments, such as the United States and Israel, are currently funding research projects and indeed both have a soft call out for new initiatives. Research labs are busy growing crops by controlling all inputs, from seed to harvest, to create a “better tomato” so to speak. Producers, such as Unilever, Oatly, and Impossible Burger are taking very different approaches---Unilever is working with governments to increase the nutritional value of its products and better storage of its inputs with the goal of food security in these nations. Oatly is designing its production and distribution systems to be net zero from the start. And Impossible Burger is working towards net negative emissions by creating demand for alternatives to animal-based proteins. Other entities are working directly with farmers by changing farming practices to improve soil health, guaranteeing against losses for the first few years of these changes and stabilizing farmers’ year-round income by planting trees to earn carbon credits which can then be sold. Solutions will require substantial investments by all parties to affect change. However, innovation and fresh ideas abound in this arena as well. Plans are being discussed to replace food subsidies and target those monies towards adaptation. But even with adequate funds, key challenges include how to capture the true cost of food by factoring in impacts to health and the environment and how to scale up successful solutions yet at the same time recognizing that, in many cases, locally-led planning and execution is a must. Presentations at the LLA Pavilion (Locally Led Adaptation) reinforced the latter as a necessity. We are in the early days of recognizing the role of food in the climate equation. Both as a contributor to and potential casualty of the climate crisis. As I discovered, this aspect is not without areas of disagreement as to who should do what, when, where and how. As with all problems of great importance, strong opinions abound. For example, the ICCA (International Coalition on Climate and Agriculture) finds fault with the new USA AIM (Agricultural Innovations Mission) agritech program, where the focus is on biotechnology, nanotechnology, robotics and AI, claiming false solutions. ICCA’s focus is on ecological farming, not perpetuating industrial agriculture. And Impossible Burger squaring off against Oatley in a discussion claiming that net negative emissions, not net zero, should be the goal. But strong debate and discussions will lead to a much more food-secure world. “ Surveying delegates from various countries One of our delegates took a very personal approach to the conference. Here are his notes: “I decided to focus on personal interactions with people with whom I would almost never have contact. I began surveying countries with three questions: 1) what did they want Americans to know about their country and climate change; 2) what was their view of “loss and damages”; and 3) what did they think were the odds of keeping global warming to 1.5C by 2030? I spoke to folks from 21 countries and several NGO’s. The closest they came to an agreement was that in general folks felt it was unlikely that we can keep global warming below 1.5C by 2030. In the interest of time, I will summarize my impressions with some generalizations. In general, African countries, and some Pacific Island countries, consider themselves on the front line of climate change. Their reasons were quite compelling, from food shortages and deaths to civil unrest. They desperately need loss and damage money to help adapt to climate change. Middle eastern countries (oil producers) generally focused on their virtue as future producers of hydrogen. They did not anticipate using their sovereign wealth funds to assist other countries. They were vague about loss and damages. (The Kuwaiti that I spoke with did point out that their country would be uninhabitable by 2035 and that sand storms reduced the viability of solar panels.) The developed countries talked about their mitigation efforts and technological talents and were ambivalent about loss and damages The odd two out were China and India both of whom are huge emitters. Their emissions are growing. They spoke about all that they were doing to develop alternative energy with vague promises about carbon neutrality in the far distant future The country that gave me the most personal angst was Qatar. I asked them if it was true that Qatar was the largest carbon emitter in the world per capita. The person said it was insignificant. If carbon emissions are a cup, their emissions are a drop. The reason for my angst was that their logic is largely my logic when I travel to COP or drive a gas-powered car, clearly, I am part of the problem. I am convinced that the single biggest thing the U.S. can do (and it will not solve the problem) is to put a rising fee on greenhouse gas emissions, rebate the proceeds monthly to everyone and implement a border carbon adjustment. This is not an original idea, but it requires political will that has not yet been demonstrated by the U.S.” Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate 11/17: Day 10 of COP27 Report submitted by Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate Getting to the end. Some items: 1. The Emissions Report from the UN Environmental Program; addresses the gap between how much emissions have been reduced or are addressed in current plans and how far we have to go. 2. Side event: HRW, TI, GAIA: Climate Justice, Civic Space and Public Participation One takeaway: Some countries have suggested that a Conflict of Interest form is needed. Maybe by COP28 or ban corporations (happens in WHO) Continued to listen to negotiations on a cover decision. There is a split in the delegations - many (including the US) want to reinforce the Glasgow Climate Pact and state a goal of reaching emissions peak by 2025. Also, including a phase out of coal and new fossil fuel incentives. Lots of push back on this last point. US would also like a statement relating to oceans and biodiversity. There is a concern that parties are going backwards, rather than forward. Barbados made an interesting comment - originally the UNFCCC treaty was all about reducing greenhouse gas emissions (mitigation), then it morphed to include adaptation, now it has had to include discussions on “loss and damage”. If we had only taken care of the mitigation part early, we would have reduced the cost of addressing climate change and would not be addressing the latter two. Barbados always puts things very succinctly. Someone asked me about what positives have come out so far from COP27. Here’s what I can say so far: 1) US and China are again negotiating on climate. 2) The Santiago Network implementation was agreed to (The network is for “Catalysing technical assistance of relevant organizations, bodies, networks and experts, for the implementation of relevant approaches for averting, minimize and addressing loss and damage at the local, national and regional level, in developing countries that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change.”) 3). Lots of interesting and exciting ideas from an engaged global civil society. 4) The US delegation is saying a lot of the right things on gender, indigenous rights, and human rights. I have some other notes to share, but will require some summarizing … maybe early next week. Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate 11/16: Day 9 of COP27 Report submitted by Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate From my virtual view - a couple of things to note: UN organizations are siloed and don’t speak enough to each other - but it’s better than it was. For example, UN Biodiversity talks only recently included climate discussions. Women and Gender: 80% of the NDCs (Nationally determined Contributions) mention gender and/or women, but it will still take 286 years to reach gender equality at the rate we are going. This is from a UNWomen report (don’t have a reference to report, yet). On Carbon Dioxide Removals using the ocean - there have several efforts over the years since 2009 to produce governing principles for ethical research in this area - for example, the Oxford Principles for Geo-engineering, and Principles for research into climate engineering techniques. Susana’s take, on the ground: My introduction to the League happened as a result of my interest in education, and one of my main interests in climate work (apart from the science/research/expedition skis I do) is in educating. This morning started with me attending a discussion on the role of informal (ie, not in school), locally-grounded climate teaching. We spoke about the role of culture and language, and my sociolinguistic background was wriggling with excitement. This also supports a program I have been trying to get off the ground, so I left the session with ideas, enthusiasm and a cast of global advisors! On the academic front, my goal today was to attend two pavilion events led by a specialist in Antarctic and Greenlandic ice sheet destabilisation. I work with this man, but we had never met in person! As an Arctic researcher, one of my key interests is how the climate crisis in the Arctic is both a harbinger and a catalyst of global disaster. These two sessions focused on the dynamics of committed sea level rise and the shortcomings of ice models, which fail to show the rapid degree of ice loss seen in observations. For the record, Greenland has been averaging a loss of 14 million litres of water per second, so tally that up! Sea level rise from the poles is concentrated in the tropics, and we're seeing now resulting disasters, especially in the low-lying and small island developing states. On the more COP-focused front, I joined my Indigenous sisters to stand against violence toward women and Indigenous peoples as a result of colonialism and extractive industry. We still do not have any concrete or substantive loss and damage finance from the negotiations. This is increasingly a hot topic, and it looks doubtful to me now. In the negotiations today, loss and damage finance was fiercely contested with some passionate and begging speeches by national representatives, yet the G20 and G7 have sought to protect their pockets, offering morsels for empathy that neither are financially sufficient nor would be controlled by the people in need of the funds. Here is one quote from Satyendra Prasad, Fiji's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to United Nations: "The world is barreling down the highway to climate hell, as the United Nations Secretary General warned us. It isn’t Fiji’s foot on the gas pedal nor that of any Least Developed Country or Small Island Developing State. We are passengers – more like hostages trapped in a vehicle that is being recklessly steered by high emitters." Imagine listening to these pleas all day!! It's heartbreaking for me. As a fighter for climate justice, I just want to rattle people into sense! My other growing fear, especially with the UAE hosting COP28 next year and the 70 oil magnets comprising a core cohort of its constituency here, is that the Paris Accords may be dropped. 1.5 degrees has never been an arbitrary target!! It's a legit tipping point, a point at which disasters escalate exponentially. I am terrified the petro lobbyists here are getting the upper hand. So with that, I guess it's lucky I'm still running 18h days--fewer hours in bed to panic at night. Guess we need to add ‘international climate negotiators’ as a target audience for education… ____ Robin Tokmakian LWVUS UN Observer for Climate 11/15: Day 8 of COP27 Report submitted by Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate The negotiations are now on a fast track to the end of the week and the parties are trying to address all the items which were left over from last week. Let’s see if the high-level ministers can get the job done on Article 6’s problem with removals, loss and damage funding, and addressing human rights issues. You never know who is riding the shuttle buses. On one ride last week, I met one of the commissioners from the California Public Utility Commission, Commissioner John Reynolds. On another ride, Kimberly met a woman from Minnesota, who we ended up having dinner with. She ended up joining her local league in the Twin Cities because of Kimberly’s conversations with her (Kimberly is from Cincinnati). In one side event on finance, the panelists spoke about the difficulty of women getting access to funding for local projects — For example, funding may be provided to improve major roads in an area, but the local roads, to get food or other items locally distributed do not get funded. The same thing applies to climate programs - funding is available for large projects that may or may not reach local people, but not for small local projects that may be significant on the small scale. Here are Susana’s comments: Sunday was supposed to be a rest day, but I was at the first of the two-day World Climate Summit to which I had been invited to further negotiate climate finance and Loss and Damages (ed. note - this is not the official UN negotiations]. In the evening, I attended UNDP's Frankie the Dino's birthday party on the beach--really good fun, and possibly my first dino-themed birthday party since the mid-1990s! You can check out Frankie's #DontChooseExtinction campaign here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9eFABJqGTM. Even though it made for another 16h day, it was great to be able to converse with a small group of fellow activists and researchers in a more casual environment over a (ha, some) piece(s) of cake. However, not having rest on Sunday meant Monday hit me like a lead hammer. Given Monday was gender (and water) day, I had been invited to be on several panels and interviews about gender equity, advancing women in research, and the voices of women during COP proceedings and negotiations. After several of these, I was properly toast and again had an evening invitation with a preview of one of my climate films, so I didn't make it to any panels today. Today, the UN Women Executive Director, Sima Bahous, cited that we're not on track to meet gender equality by 2030. In fact, not by 2050 or even 2100! Bahous cites a date 300 years into the future!! Partially as a result of the lack of meaningful action on themes of loss and damage, climate implementation (this is the "Implementation COP") and the compounding effects on gender, we have some spillover events for tomorrow that will continue these threads. There are only four more days of COP, and I am definitely starting to feel the pressure! We have yet to have the emergence, or even partial emergence, of key conference plans (again, notably surrounding themes of loss and damage, and implementation), which hints at some seriously late nights in meeting rooms this week. Germany, on behalf of global partners, launched a Global Shield Against Climate Risks today as a mechanism of funneling money into particularly vulnerable areas, but the financing pledged by the G7 is a "drop in the bucket," according to Rachel Simon, the policy coordinator for Climate Action Network Europe. Wealthy countries know what is needed and they can very well afford it, but it isn't their priority. Instead, the climate crisis is a threat multiplier, particularly for climate vulnerable countries, women, and other marginalized territories and groups. Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate Change 11/12: Day 6 of COP27 Report submitted by Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate End of the first week, and work of the negotiators is partly done, but they haven’t finished the job. The closing plenaries of the two subsidiary bodies say too many agenda items incomplete including not having a draft text for funding “loss and damage” and not resolving the questions of whether or not to reopen the Article 6 (carbon market) text about what constitutes a “removal” or credit. Let’s see if the ministerial level negotiations can get it done. Civil society held a big demonstration inside the UN space. The space includes streets that could accommodate the loud and powerful voices of activists. Unlike in previous years, demonstrations were not allowed outside the UN space. I’ve left Egypt and will now follow virtually…. Below are a copy of other reflections from LWV delegates inside and outside the UN space. From one of LWVUS’ young delegates —- a junior in high school, Sumedha: “I was particularly interested in the Africa Climate Week Side Events and the Presidency events relating to Africa, like “Africa: From Needs to Access” and the official launch of “A Climate Resilient Africa Initiative.” Studies presented at the conference noted that Africa requires $190 billion of investment a year, with two-thirds of this going to clean energy, in order to meet its climate and energy goals. As it stands, according to the Sustainable Development Goal 7 tracking report, Africa is unlikely to meet the SDG7 targets. In order to address and work towards diminishing economic and sociopolitical inequities within Africa, universal access to electricity is essential — a study done by the Bank’s New Deal on Energy for Africa also exposed a financing gap that stands between $17 billion and $25 billion, with the continent’s large economies like Egypt, Nigeria and South Africa accounting for around 33 percent of this deficit. I was also able to check out the SBI-SBSTA special event on the gender-related aspects of IPCC AR6 (WGII and WGIII) and look at some of the related documents (“Implementation of gender-responsive climate policies, plans, strategies and action as reported by Parties in regular reports and communications under the UNFCCC”). There was recognition of how women across the globe are more vulnerable to climate-related risks (economic consequences, further domestic and educational inequity) and yet are imperative to the climate solution (as agricultural workers, household managers, and frontline leaders). Presenter Minhal Pinak noted that there exist gendered differences in energy and consumption choices — women use less energy (even in more developed countries). She also noted that (particularly in less developed countries without reliable access to education, medical assistance, and social protection), environmental degradation leads to asymmetrical health consequences that primarily harm women. “AIPP: Indigenous Peoples' Assessment: Our contributions to the National Climate Plans and Policies” was another standout. The meeting mostly focused on exploring the question of whether and how Asian governments are recognizing the rights, roles and contributions of Indigenous Peoples. The Chairman presented a study focusing on Thailand that focused on a long-term climate master plan (up to 2050). Some of the key findings they noted were that Indigenous communities have already been suffering from climate change (decrease in water sources and natural food sources), but Indigenous people have knowledge of the natural landscape and how to accommodate such changes. However, equitable climate change mitigation is essential to sustainability in Asia — increasing forest cover, in particular, is vital for Indigenous communities and for the continent of Asia.” And from Susana Hancock, LWVUS climate observer: “Today was another one for soul rejuvenation, which provided a bit of breathing space for me. Late morning, I joined the Global Climate March within the UN-controlled Blue Zone. With Egypt’s laws prohibiting free speech, nearly all forms of protest have been isolated to an off-site zone. We, however, received official permission to have this event on-site. It was empowering to march, rally, and cheer with several hundred other Blue Zone participants. The march ended with speeches, mostly from African activists questioning the legacy of colonialism in the current COP dialogue. I also had the opportunity to meet with Dr Vandana Shiva, whom I met as a kid when I first learned about the role of agriculture in addressing the climate crisis. After my last session, I made my way to the Green Zone, the section of the COP run locally. It was full of a different kind of life, art, music, and a lot of creativity. Very few Blue Zone delegates even go to the Green Zone and probably fewer global leaders. I wish more delegates would go, it is a showcase of how the climate crisis affects more local communities. “ Robin Tokmakian - LWVUS UN Observer for Climate 11/11: Day 5 of COP27 Report submitted by Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate Started the day in the Women and Gender Constituency meeting. After updates on various states of the negotiations, we had a surprise visit from the sister of the prisoned UK/Egyptian, Alaa Abdel-Fattah. He is on a hunger/water strike. She informed us that the Egyptian government said that his attorneys could see him, but in the end, they weren’t allowed in. I hope that while President Biden was in Egypt, he had strong words about the situation with the Egyptian President. Talking about security —men in suits EVERYWHERE, on the street, in the UN, in your hotel. That is on top of men with AK47s (only a few I’ve seen), regular police, traffic police, and private security in hotels (more than one and on the road to hotels.Leaving Egypt yesterday, at the airport — two airport-like security checks, and multiple passport checks, including right before getting on the plane, where the policeman wanted to see the Visa stamp on our passports. When I went through one security check, the man with a “bomb squad” label on his shirt checked my bag to see what a small metal thing was. … It was my favorite collapsable pen. But seeing it, opening it up to where the cartridge was — was not good enough for him. He put it through the scanning in a big bin all by itself! Maybe he thought it was a James Bond camera or something! Very strange. Three US Senators spoke at the US Pavillion, Cardin(MD), Whitehouse(RI), and Markey(MA). They spoke about all the work done in the Senate, the problems with cloture, and the difficulty of getting things done with the powerful fossil fuel lobby. All things we know about. Emphasized that there are still things the Exec. Dept. could do in the area of the regulation. Markey thinks we need a World Climate Organization like the World Meteorological Org that handles the coordination of weather operations. Whitehouse spoke about efforts to crush democracy around the world and also about independent PACS. All things we know can harm civil society interaction with getting things done. Last, with the human rights working caucus, we had a visit with the Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in the area of Climate, Ian Fry. He was a former negotiator for Tuvalu and was surprised now that he is in the side event space that there is a vast disconnect between civil society and the negotiators. The negotiators are not showing up to side events to hear from civil society. It is much different from what happens at the biodiversity COPs where there is more sharing between civil society and the parties. Susana Hancock, LWVUS climate observer: I needed some personal care today after a few recent tough days. So I slept in (til 8am) and had a good meal. I also gained energy from some protests on loss and damage funding. The afternoon was capped off with a speech by President Biden. Overall, he spoke with passion and conviction, and he said the ‘right’ things. However, I have heard these words before. This COP is said to be the Implementation COP—the time for promises is over, and I find myself disenchanted by anyone offering further pledges when not backed by action. Unfortunately, while I know the US recently passed its largest-ever climate act with the IRA, the fact is we have a dire track record, and even if completely upheld, the IRA only covers a fraction of our commitments to the Paris Agreement. As a country, we have only actually paid up 5% of the financing we’re promised in the green transition, and I need time to digest Biden’s words, time to see that his Administration is for implementation. — Signing off - Robin Tokmakian LWVUS UN Observer for Climate 11/10: Day 4 of COP27 Report submitted by Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate It was, unofficially, human rights day at COP27. Many people wore white, the color of imprisoned people in Egypt. Several silent protests were held - but unsure if member states were moved. One highlight of the day was a group of US NGOs being able to meet with the official US delegation, that is, the negotiators. They were fairly frank in their views (but off the record) and we can take hope that the outcomes will be positive, but there is still a ways to go. On the negotiation front - things are moving along. The parties have essentially agreed to start the process to create a fund for addressing loss and damage caused by climate events. It will probably take several years to complete. This is a major accomplishment because it was not even on the agenda for this COP and was added at the beginning of the negotiation process. And progress is being made to implement the rules for Article 6, the carbon market. The parties have expressed concern over the language concerning “removals”. That is what counts as removing carbon from the atmosphere. Civil society is very concerned that the proposed language is harmful to many communities and is too broad. It appears that the US also sees this as a problem. One consequence of the implementation rules that will be put in place, is that many voluntary/non-Paris Agreement markets will follow these same rules. We don’t want bad rules, such as what happened with the Kyoto agreement. Susana Hancock, LWVUS climate observer, has this to add about what she’s been up to: Today was a toughie for me. To have been an activist since elementary school and a frontline scientist, I want to believe we host these events for progress in tackling the existential threat of the climate crisis. Yet, 636 lobbyists are here from the petroleum industry—70 are part of the UAE delegation, which is particularly scary given the UAE is hosting COP28. There is so much greenwashing in their material—each of their displays highlights how fossil fuels are necessary to our future with some fictitious net-zero pledge. Around midday, I was invited to address this on a broadcast, which had several million live views. I spoke about speaking to power, both as a young activist and also as a scientist in the fastest-warming region in the world and the global disasters triggered by this region’s rapid change. I wrapped up my evening with an IPCC colleague from Kyiv. I had the chance to learn about Ukrainian polar research projects and then had the opportunity to hear how the war has changed the research landscape. Luckily, I also ran into an amazing friend from school—unexpectedly, and it was incredibly reinvigorating. We do this work for a reason. It is worth it. Check out my social media for more—each evening I am sharing a short wrap-up in a video taken from a different part of COP. www.twitter.com/susanahancock_ and www.instagram.com/susanahancock_ Signing off -- Robin Tokmakian LWVUS UN Observer for Climate 11/9: Day 3 of COP27 Report submitted by Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate Today was an odd mix of things. Tried to listen to some of the negotiations. On the carbon market implementation, there was disagreement between parties on whether or not there should be a “coordination and working group”. Once again parties disagreed with the developed countries (US, Canada, EU for example) not wanting extra bureaucracy and the developing countries (for example the Africa Group). One positive note - Brazil has changed its tune this year with the recent outcome of their election. Because of the transition process in Brazil, it seemed to happen overnight — with much more progressive statements coming from the Brazil delegation. Not surprisingly, the Brazilian NGOs are overjoyed. In the US Center, Kerry announced an “Energy transition accelerator” - basically a voluntary carbon market with the Bezos Foundation and the Rockefeller Foundation behind it. Some of the concern I heard was that it might trample on human rights, and allow double counting — all the problems found in the Kyoto Protocol. Here’s a look at COP from LWV observer Susana Hancock: One of my highlights(?) today was partaking in the Earth Information briefing at the large plenary hall. The World Meteorological Organization, Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission-UNESCO and other scientific expert teams presented to the UN to give an update on our planetary status, and in particular, our so-called carbon budget. However, in a significant oversight, nowhere was permafrost thaw mentioned as a greenhouse gas source. Permafrost holds 4x the carbon that has been emitted by modern humans!! Its thaw accounts for as much as 40% of our remaining carbon budget and the UN leaders continue to act as if it doesn’t exist. As a polar specialist, this is a topic I was able to raise, and I was backed by research institutions around the world afterward. Accounting for permafrost completely destroys our global calculations and drastically cuts any permissible emissions. Still waiting for answers…. Robin Tokmakian LWVUS UN Observer for Climate 11/8: Day 2 of COP27 Report submitted by Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate COP27 is underway in earnest. The US opened their pavilion with John Kerry talking about - what else - the Inflation Reduction Act. The highlight, though, was not the bigwigs, but Janene Yazzie of the NDN Collective, an enrolled Navajo. What a dynamo! She spoke from the heart about how the indigenous peoples of the world have taken care of the land and it is their soul to do so. She spoke of how hard it is to repair damages done by big corporations and big governments. Human Rights are front and center at COP27. Both from the climate perspective and from the perspective of political prisoners held in Egypt. There is a working group for Human Rights to advocate and push delegates not to trample on them as the Paris agreement moves toward full implementation. One aspect is that in creating the rules for the market mechanisms, there is a fear that anyone and everyone will be able to claim carbon credits, even if human rights are trampled upon. For example, if a geoengineering scheme, such as fertilizing the ocean to take up carbon, is allowed and is not verified not to impact the rights we have as humans, then fishing as a basic food source may be harmed. There are many more examples. I also listened to several sessions on the IPCC. One on how climate scenarios are determined and the outcomes, in terms of mitigation. A new article to appear in Science in the next few days talks about the economic growth is much better for developing countries under scenarios that reach net-zero. The other IPCC session was on how gender issues have been addressed in the three reports along with the 1.5°C report. No surprise, women are affected by climate change in ways that men don’t face, much having to do with cooking and growing food. But one of the IPCC reports has evidence that overall, women’s carbon footprint is much smaller than men’s. This is not only in how we use energy or the traditional jobs associated with each gender but that women make better sustainable choices when it comes to energy use. Interesting, I say. One big or little positive, depending on how you view it — Scotland pledged money to a “loss and damage” fund. The logistics still are difficult. It is a miracle each day that I can get off a crowded bus at the right stop as the drivers don’t seem to want to stop anywhere along the way. And food is still not to be found easily. Here is a brief report from our delegate from Maine, Susana Hancock: I had a 15h day, and I am properly spent—needed my first cup of caff midday! I started at 7am with breakfast meetings on climate finance, before the small invite-only First Movers Summit on implementation of policy. I then took a bit of time to check out the NY Times Climate Hub to which I had been invited (attending it otherwise a costs more than I am paying in accommodation!!) and met neat people developing climate education practices, which ties into some of my specific League interests. Afterward, I returned to talk about loss and damage financing in high-level panels and had the opportunity to speak with the present and past COP presidents and Egyptian leaders. Lastly, I spent some time planning for one of my upcoming panels and linking up with some of my IPCC colleagues and drafting responses to several world leaders on integrity, action and the gross lack of action to which I am accustomed. Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate 11/7: Day 1 of COP27 Report submitted by Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate COP27 has begun. This first report will be short. Monday’s events were mostly introductory negotiation sessions and the world leader’s summit. President Biden has not arrived yet, but former Vice President Al Gore was in full voice. Former Vice President Al Gore speaks at COP27. Sharm-el-Sheik is, well, different. It is a purpose-built resort and that is what it feels like. Some logistical things have gone smoothly - for example, security lines are not super long like in Glasgow (COP26), but eating places inside the UN space are few and far between. We are all hoping that things will improve as the side events begin tomorrow and it will become even more crowded. Several LWV delegates have had the pleasure of swimming in the Red Sea and we’ve tried the local seafood. In the negotiation space - The women and gender constituency along with an NGO human rights working group are making their voices heard, but whether action by member states will occur, who knows? I heard on a bus ride that progress has been made in the area of “loss and damage” in the form of an added agenda item being approved to push for specific ‘loss and damage” funding. It is a beginning but will take a while to get any funding in place. Loss and damage funding is money to address things like the floods in Pakistan. It is different from adaptation funding. I had a conversation on the walk and shuttle ride to COP with a former assistant to the UN’s secretary general. He and a group he is with are pushing to change how climate ambition gets achieved. He thinks we should have it like the Olympics and award prices for who does the best in various areas. Not sure how that would work, but interesting idea. All for now. Robin Tokmakian & the rest of the LWVUS team

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 11/02/2022 CONTACT Rebecca Gladstone, President 503.581.5722 www.lwvor.org lwvor@lwvor.org Results are in! Students across Oregon participated in OSME, the 2022 Oregon Student Mock Election for a realistic voting experience endorsed by Governor Kate Brown and Secretary of State Shemia Fagan. The League of Women Voters of Oregon created a mock ballot, with SoS review, mirroring the General Election ballot with three contests for all Oregon students: US Senator, Oregon Governor, and Measure 114 (gun safety). We honored educator requests for mock ballots with some local races. Multnomah County students voted on Measure 26-232 (ranked-choice voting), Clackamas County students voted on County Clerk, and Deschutes County students voted on Measure 9-148 (nonpartisan county commissioner elections) and Measure 9-155 (a Bend-La Pine School District bond measure). Several regions voted on US Congressional Districts 5 and 6. Every public school district and private/charter/homeschool educators across the state were invited to register for ballots, instructions, and a lesson plan. Over 5500 students were registered from an impressive 18 different communities, all around Oregon: Astoria, Bend, Boring, Camas Valley, Crane, Days Creek, Hood River, Irrigon, Klamath Falls, Lake Oswego, Medford, North Bend, Portland, Salem, Sandy, Springfield, Tigard, Troutdale, West Linn, and Wilsonville. Oregon Statewide Student Mock Ballot results: Ron Wyden won US Senator with 53%. Tina Kotek won Oregon Governor with 54%. Measure 114 (gun safety) passed with 73% voting yes. Local Student Mock Ballot results: US Congressional District 5, Jamie McLeod-Skinner won with 73%. The new US Congressional District 6, Andrea Salinas won with 59%. Multnomah County Measure 26-232 (ranked-choice voting) passed by 75%. Clackamas County Clerk Clackamas students elected Catherine McMullen by 59%. Deschutes students passed Measure 9-148 (nonpartisan county commissioners) by 88%. Deschutes Measure 9-155 (the school bond) also passed by 86%. The award-winning LWVOR OSME student voting experience is supported by YEAR-ROUND access to our free Civics Education curriculum and materials. ###

Date: 11/1/2022 To: All League Members From: Rebecca Gladstone, LWVOR President Alice Bartelt, Action Committee Chair Marge Easley, Gun Safety Portfolio Chair ACTION ALERT: Measure 114 needs your help! The latest polling shows that Measure 114 is too close to call, and the League has been asked by the Vote Yes on 114 campaign to spread the word to our members, friends, and families that the League, along with scores of other organizations, have strongly endorsed the measure. Measure 114 requires a permit-to-purchase a firearm and bans the future sale of large capacity magazines, with certain exceptions. Nine other states have enacted similar laws and have seen a reduction in firearm homicides and suicides. Amidst a barrage of campaign rhetoric about the rise in crime in our state, it is important to note that gun violence is not just a Portland problem. A recent firearm injury report issued by the Gun Violence Prevention Center at Oregon Health and Science University points out that gun violence is a public health crisis affecting both urban and rural areas across Oregon. It found that “firearm injury emergency department visits increased from 459 in 2019 to 873 in 2021, a 90.2% increase. For people living in Oregon, as in the U.S. more broadly, the devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic was magnified by the worsening impact of the firearm injury crisis.” No single law can stop all gun violence, but Measure 114 is a proven way to save lives in our communities. VOTE YES ON MEASURE 114!

Dear LWVOR Members and friends, Welcome to November, in the election home stretch for one more week! Please spread the word to help to GOTV! Get Out The VOTE! After the election, please thank all of our election workers, volunteers, and candidates who ran for office! Kudos to our Voter Service! We all care about the election outcome. Our Action Committee is getting ready for 2023, aware that legislative committees will look different with many incumbents choosing not to return. Let’s share Thanksgiving gratitude and pace ourselves, balancing virtual and in-person outreach. My best to all of you, with gratitude for your efforts! Yours In League! Becky Gladstone LWVOR President ONE WEEK BEFORE ELECTION DAY... THIS MONTH… Voter Services This Last Election Week: GOTV, Vote411.org & LWVOR Election Resources LWVOR on our Elections New Youth Outreach at LWVOR Oregon Student Mock Elections LWV UN Observer status: Congratulations! & COP 27, Nov 13-14, in Egypt Recommended Reading Membership Forms! Thank you to creative staff energy and quick turn around! VOTER SERVICE For this final election 2022 week, share League Election Resources, for comprehensive online voting information, events and videos! Remember, Vote411.org, represents candidate and measures in all Oregon counties, about 10 times more information than in our print guides. We appreciate all members’ work, especially Spectacular Elections’ efforts! Local Leagues! I see google alerts *every day* for League work around Oregon! Voter Service Chair Peggy Bengry and her Team, the Local League Reps The Voters’ Guide production team: Vote411 data collectors, ballot measure researchers, editors, and Speakers’ Bureau! LWVOR Staff for candidate Vote411 support and fielding public questions Our long-time friends at the Oregon State Library, Talking Book and Braille Library, for sharing with their registered clients LWVOR ON OUR ELECTIONS The Secretary of State Press Office has called on the League, as a “Trusted Voice," to add our strength for this election: Voter Registration (Deadline Oct 18th) GOTV (Get Out The VOTE!) Ask your local League how you can help! Election Integrity (Boost understanding, share our Oregon VBM Best Practices page!) INFORM VOTERS! We have the most secure elections in history. Oregon has a solid track record of verified voting with high voter turnout using our secure and popular Vote-by-Mail ballots. Find voting info you need at Vote411.org, on our Elections Resources page, and use the SoS Dropbox Locator to deliver your ballot! See Oregon Vote-by-Mail Best Practices, explaining VBM in Oregon, with County Elections offices video guided tours, and links to procedures’ manuals and FAQs. $300 PR GRANTS! Have you heard or seen League election PR locally? LWVOR has continued the $300 PR local League press visibility grants, began when COVID lockdowns cut our in-person outreach. Now with virtual hybrid events saving commuting time and cost, and workplace culture changing, we want to hear how these are working around Oregon. Please let us know! ELECTION ADVOCACY LWVOR Action is anticipating 2023 legislation, to improve statute in ways we didn’t foresee last spring, to protect voters, drop boxes, and elections offices from deluges of public records requests. Share your experiences? How are events going? Etc.? YOUTH OUTREACH LWV Convention 2022 delegates Diana DeMaria, Mimi Alkire, Chris Cobey and Becky Gladstone have revitalized the OSME as a vigorous youth outreach first step. This year’s focus is on future improvements and expansion toward developing year-round relationships with our local schools. This from Diana to the board: Thank you for the honor of serving as Off-Board Youth Outreach Chair for LWVOR and all Oregon Leagues and Units. If you would like to be on the LWVOR Youth Outreach committee, you are very welcome! Email dianademaria4@outlook.com, more after the election. Youth Outreach is not likely to be a traditional committee, in terms of scheduled meetings. Committee members will need a cell phone and a Google account. Conversations will proceed via a cell phone and WhatsApp group, collaboration via Google Docs. Email will only be used for long or text substance and photos. Although we welcome skillsets, there is no workload expectation. Joining this committee for information only is completely acceptable. I learn something every single day, and just yesterday sent my first press release! Sharing knowledge and building connections is the primary committee goal. For instance, Y-Essay contests (Y= Yes, Youth & Why?) ran in October in LWV Deschutes County of Clackamas County, with very generous awards. See the LWVOR Oregon Student Mock Election page. The Youth Outreach Committee is beginning with these goals as an initial wishlist: Encourage LWVOR Child Care Study to expand focus on 20-30 something parents, our best new membership source, so affected by childcare costs and the vast burden of childcare falling on women during the pandemic to detriment of long-term career decisions. Under the League Resources Tab, create a Youth Outreach Resource with online toolkits, timelines around school calendars up to and including young adult families with young children, a work in progress, suggestions are welcome. Work with LWVOR Staff to improve communication and resources for all Oregon Leagues and Units - the present Google Group format and member-only sign-in Who's Who resource which may not get updated quickly due to slow or absent local league submission on the LWVOR site and neither is user-friendly for finding historical info resources and does not foster inclusive teamwork for comprehensive contact information and collaboration The LWVOR staff is exceptional, and Abigail (Abby), Rae and Sarah can perhaps assist in supporting ideas to present to LWVOR Board for approval Mentoring youth-led leadership to become youth-led League partners. See https://www.mainestudentsvote.org/ Oregon Youth Organizations and Clubs relationship-building guidance for state and local leagues in communities Perhaps Youth Outreach Workshops via Zoom for specific skills and successful strategy sharing OSME - Oregon Student Mock Elections The LWVOR 2022 Oregon Student Mock Election results are in! Hearty Congratulations and thank you to Oregon teachers and students who participated from all around Oregon! Thank you to Governor Kate Brown, Secretary of State Shemia Fagan, President of the Oregon Association of County Clerks, Tim Scott, for endorsements. Thanks to the Oregon Dept. of Education Social Science Specialist, Amit Kobrowski, for outreach support, continuing a decades long Mock Election working relationship. LWV, CLIMATE CHANGE, AND THE U.N.! The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, elevated LWVUS to Observer Status! Congratulations to LWVUS, with direct personal thanks to LWVOR First VP, Robin Tokmakian! The IPCC roster has added LWVUS to their NGO (non-governmental organizations) roster. LWVOR is proud to have Robin working at the international level! We look forward to COP27 news in Egypt, November 13-14, the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. This from Robin Tokmakian, LWVUS UN Observer for Climate: Yea!! LWVUS now has observer status at IPCC. RECOMMENDED READING Guess what! Our Recommended Reading this month is our Voters’ Guide and Resources, with links throughout this newsletter. Treat yourself and look at our Civics ED Curriculum for the Oregon Student Mock Election MEMBERSHIP FORMS Here’s to the pumpkin pie of this newsletter, a little extra! Thank you to our Washington CO Unit for asking for Membership brochures! And Thank you to Staff, who put together a timely handout that was emailed as a PDF and printed locally for their event! It highlighted news that is already outdated but was up-to-the-minute for the purpose! Let’s talk about this! Thank you! I am so very grateful for so many of us contributing to Making Democracy Work! Your League work is making big differences. Just look at what we are accomplishing together! Don’t minimize the value of being informed and thinking carefully about ballot choices. Becky Gladstone President, LWVOR Thank you for reading this newsletter! You can Manage Your LWVOR Subscriptions yourself for this monthly President’s Newsletter, the Legislative Reports, and the quarterly VOTER.