Social Policy
June 6-10, 2022 - Week 6
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Gun Safety
By Marge Easley
URGENT ACTION ALERT: Final Push for IP 17
The deadline for gathering signatures for IP 17, the gun safety initiative sponsored by Lift Every Voice Oregon and endorsed by the League, is fast approaching. All petition sheets must be returned to the campaign by July 6 in order to have them to the Secretary of State’s office by July 8. 112,020 valid signatures are required. According to OPB, “Oregon appears to be the only state in America with a gun safety initiative underway for the 2022 election.”
HOW TO SIGN and/or COLLECT SIGNATURES: Go to www.lifteveryvoiceoregon.com to download a single-signer petition sheet or to sign up to be a circulator. Once you sign up as a circulator, a complete packet will be mailed to you. If you need petition sheets only, text Joe Paterno at 503-312-3014 for a pick-up location in your area.
IP 17 is a common sense and effective gun safety measure that requires a permit-to-purchase a firearm. A permit-to-purchase, also known as “handgun licensing,” can be compared to the requirements to obtain and renew a driver’s license. It includes passing a background check along with classroom and live-fire training and is backed by strong data from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The initiative also bans the future sale of large capacity magazines, with the aim of reducing the high death toll from mass shootings. Nine other states have enacted similar laws.
Housing
By Debbie Aiona, Nancy Donovan, Penny York
Policymakers at the federal and state levels have responded to Oregon’s ongoing housing crisis, and resources allocated have dramatically increased and will continue to do so. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been distributed for emergency services to thousands of Oregon’s most vulnerable residents. These funds have allowed people to avoid homelessness, experience housing insecurity, purchase new homes, give support to wildfire survivors and Oregonians without housing.
Funds to Low-Income Housing Providers to Cover Unpaid Rent during the Pandemic
The Emergency Board allocated $5 million for the purpose of covering a portion of the debt incurred by regulated affordable housing providers due to unpaid rent between April 1, 2020 and April 30, 2022. Home Forward volunteered to administer the grant program to expedite deployment.
Mortgage Interest Deduction: Secretary of State Audit
The Secretary of State’s Audits Division presented an audit on the state’s Mortgage Interest Deduction (MID) program to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee in June. They determined that MID primarily benefits higher income taxpayers in a handful of urban counties. Because white people are more likely to own homes than people of color, they receive greater benefits from the tax policy. The audit recommends that the legislature identify a clear purpose in statute and identify a state agency responsible for evaluating whether the tax policy meets that purpose. The MID had a revenue impact of more than $1 billion for the 2021 – 23 biennium.
Manufactured Housing Policy Work Group
The housing policy work group, led by Representatives Pam Marsh and Bill Van Vliet will reconvene on July 14, and may consider ideas for further legislation. Penny York will attend this meeting.
Oregon Housing and Community Services draft Legislative Concept and Agency Request Budget/Policy Options Package
Oregon Housing and Community Services released its draft Legislative Concept and Agency Budget Request/Policy Options Package for housing investments in 2023 in a draft memo here. After releasing the memo, OHCS held three webinars from each division to provide overviews of their budgetary and statutory proposals, and to answer questions from partners. OHCS posted the slides and recordings on its website.
There are two main tools that state agencies can use: Legislative Concepts (LCs) to amend Oregon Statutes, and Policy Option Packages (POPs) that comprise investment requests above and beyond continuously appropriated resources at the current service level. OHCS submitted their LCs to the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) and is continuing this work. All POPs, or investment requests, are collectively known as the Agency Request Budget and will be submitted to DAS this summer. OHCS’ Draft Legislative Concepts and Draft Agency Request Budget/Policy Options are listed below.
OHCS’ Draft Legislative Concepts for 2023
The LCs tagged below as “placeholders” are those that OHCS may introduce, pending needs from developing POPs. LCs are also tagged as “under development” pending ongoing conversations with key partners and stakeholders.
Affordable Rental Housing: Private Activity Bonds for Affordable Housing (under development) and Mixed Income Housing Development Statute Correction.
Homeownership: Manufactured and Marina Communities Dispute Resolution (under development), Affordable Homeownership Development (placeholder) and Homeowner Protection Program (placeholder).
Priorities of Housing Stabilization: Repeal of Housing Choice Advisory Council, Individual Development Accounts (placeholder), and homelessness recommendations (placeholder).
Agencywide: OHCS Statutory Clean-up Bill, (under development) and Disaster Recovery and Resilience/ Housing Damage Relief Program (placeholder).
OHCS’ Draft Agency Request Budget/Policy Options Package
Affordable Rental Housing: Local Innovation Fast Track Rental Program, Permanent Supportive Housing Program, Affordable Housing Preservation Package, Co-Location (CARE), and Land Acquisition Program.
Homeownership: Homeowner Protection Program, Affordable Homeownership Development Program, Resources for Homeowners of Manufactured Housing, Foreclosure Counseling Resources and Down Payment Assistance with Flex Lending.
Housing Stabilization includes Individual Development Account Investment, Eviction Prevention Resources, Long Term Rental Assistance (Youth and Families), Shelter Investments, and Data Coordination (HMIS).
Agencywide: Language Access Resources, Training and Technical Assistance Support, and Grant management solutions.