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 Oregon Trails
An Occasional Newsletter
from
The Association of Oregon Counties
Month, Year - Vol 1, Issue 1 |
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Deadline!
Bills Live, Bills Die
April 22, 2011 |
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Thursday's Deadline | |
Salem - Legislative rules dictate that any bill not passed out of a committee in the chamber of origin by Thursday of this week and sent to the respective floors, or one of the big three committees (Rules, Revenue or Ways and Means), would be dead for this session. That created a flurry of committee activity this week. One veteran lobbyist observed that committee agendas resembled rolls of toilet paper.
Some bills were kept alive by being sent to the Rules, Revenue or Ways and Means Committees (the big three) for additional hearings and possible work sessions. Some bills were referred back to the Senate President and House Co-Speakers who can now refer those bills to other committees.
The work of the legislative committees is far from over. Now they begin to hear the bills that passed out of the other chamber. But that won't happen until next week. The Capitol this Good Friday is a bit of a ghost town.
Governor Kitzhaber signed the K-12 budget bills Thursday. He did so, according to news reports, only after receiving assurances from legislative leadership that they would fund early childhood education and higher education to at least the levels he outlined in his recommended budget (source: The Oregonian).
In other action, the Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee passed the hotly debated bag bill. The House Energy, Environment and Water Committee passed out a bill calling for sweeping changes in the bottle law. A bill that requires more room for chickens is now on its way to the Senate floor. And the House will debate a bill that makes it harder for legislators to obtain state agency jobs until they've been out of the Legislature for at least a year.
It was a busy week. |
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Attorney General's Proposed Update of Public Records Law | |
The Senate General Government and Consumer Protection committee adopted a dash 8 amendment to SB 41 on Wednesday and sent the amended bill back to the Senate President to be re-routed to a different committee. The Attorney General introduced the original version at the beginning of the session and engendered substantial opposition from state agencies and local governments, who felt the imposition of short timelines for responding to public records requests as well as caps on the ability of public agencies to recoup costs would add considerable burdens.
A workgroup was convened to work on a suitable alternative, however the committee ultimately adopted another attempt by the Attorney General to impose timelines and cost caps on public agencies. The dash 8 amendment calls for a graduated response timeline that becomes longer based on the estimated number of hours it will take the agency to respond. In addition, cost recovery is limited to four times the minimum wage excluding work performed by certain professional staff.
In addition, the adopted version of the bill categorizes the more than four hundred different exemptions from disclosure into categories based on similarity of subject. The future of the bill is uncertain but will undoubtedly be required to make a visit to the Ways and Means Committee due to the fiscal impact on state and local governments.
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Memorial to Congress to Reauthorize Secure Rural Schools Act Sails Through House |
The House of Representatives agreed - 58 to 0 - to urge Congress to fulfill its obligation to counties, schools, and local communities and reauthorize the federal forest payments statute. House Joint Memorial 25 was carried by Rep. Jean Cowan (D-Newport), former Lincoln County Commissioner, who related her experience in D.C. with AOC advocating for a previous reauthorization. The floor comments also provided an opportunity for legislators to vent frustration at the federal government for lack of management of its lands in Oregon, with the consequent loss of economic activities and build-up of dangerously unhealthy environmental conditions in the forests.
Thank you to the House for their support! HJM 25 now goes to the Senate for action.
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EFU Goings On |
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Yamhill County Planning Director Mike Brandt and Commissioner Mary Stern
prepare to testify prior to this week's public hearing on SB 960 |
SB 960 contains the Farm Land Advisory Task Force recommendations. The bill was heard this week in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Yamhill County Commissioner and AOC 2nd VP Mary Stern testified in support of the Task Force recommendations. She was joined by Yamhill County Planning Director Mike Brandt.
At the hearing this week, the Oregon Wine Growers Association expressed differences of opinion regarding the appropriate activities at wineries. The Committee referred SB 960 back to the Senate President with the intention of the bill going to the Senate Rules Committee where work on the bill will continue.
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| Marine Reserves Moves on to Ways and Means | |
HB 2009, sponsored by the Legislative Coastal Caucus and supported by AOC, was moved by the House Energy, Environment and Water Committee on Tuesday to the Joint Ways and Means Committee. This move is necessary because of the new proposed Ocean Resources Fund and cost of administration by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW).
HB 2009 would implement the three new marine reserves at Cascade Head, Cape Perpetua and Cape Falcon, with important safeguards. It would require two-year baseline research before limits on fishing are imposed; studies after one, five, and 15 years; and adaptive management through the Ocean Policy Advisory Council to ensure the reserves are meeting their goals, including to avoid significant economic and social impacts. In addition, the bill would prohibit any new proposed marine reserves before evaluation of the existing five reserves after 10 years.
The bill also reflects wariness of outside funding sources. It provides that if ODFW accepts funding other than lottery or state general funds, it must first gain approval by Ways and Means and must operate consistent with the work plans.
HB 2009 is not without controversy. The House committee heard testimony from those opposing any reserves and those wanting stronger and more reserves.
The Governor's recommended budget designates $1.7 million to implement the marine reserve program, and the co-chairs' budget notes that it "continues funding for the current marine reserves program." HB 2009 will be referred to the Ways and Means Natural Resources Subcommittee, co-chaired by Rep. Jean Cowan (D-Newport) who is also the chair of the Coastal Caucus. |
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Joint Resolution Addressing Consolidation of Counties Fails to Advance in House Committee | |
HJR 6, sponsored by Rep. Mitch Greenlick (D-Portland), failed to garner enough support from the House General Government Committee to advance to the floor. An amendment to the joint resolution proposed to allow the Legislature to send to the voters a measure calling for the consolidation of two or more counties, including counties that have adopted a home rule charter.
While the Legislature already has the authority to adjust the boundaries of general law counties, it would take a constitutional change to allow for the merger or consolidation of home rule counties, of which there are currently nine in Oregon. AOC opposed the proposed amendment to the resolution, as it would have allowed for consolidation even if a majority of the voters in one of the affected counties voted in opposition, as long as an overall majority voted to support.
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Business Bills |
Tax credits for the long-term rural enterprise zone, electronic commerce, and New Markets were voted out of House and Senate policy committees and sent to the Joint Committee on Tax Credits. The Joint Tax Credit Committee is a new committee made up of both House and Senate members, similar to the Joint Ways and Means Committee. Its mission is to analyze each sunsetting tax credit and determine which tax credit should be voted on by the entire Legislature. Since the Ways and Means co-chairs did not factor in any new dollars for impacts of tax credits expiring during the next biennium, the tax credits will compete against other programs - and each other - for funding.
A variety of bills to create new tax credits for traded sector businesses and other purposes have died along with bills that would have required the Governor to prepare reports on business incentives.
SB 437 which extends to local governments the same confidentiality provisions that the state currently has when initially negotiating with businesses about locating or expanding was voted out of the Senate General Government, Consumer and Small Business Protection Committee with a do pass recommendation. This proposed legislation will help cities and counties who are actively involved in business recruitment and expansion efforts. It's important to note that non-proprietary information would still become public information prior to any final local government decisions related to tax abatements or incentive packages. |
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Parks and Wildlife |
The House Energy, Environment and Water Committee referred HJR 29, the bill to "fix" the Parks and Wildlife Ballot Measure 76, to the House Rules Committee. Legislators have been negotiating behind the scenes to craft a bill that would allow the Legislature to tap lottery money designated for Parks and Wildlife during times of severe economic downturns or budget crises by including a trigger, modeled after the Education Trust Fund.
The proposals stemmed from an agreement that several Democratic legislators reached with three environmental groups last summer. In addition to including a means to access these dollars earmarked for parks and wildlife, legislators are talking about adding a sunset and allowing more funds to be spent on state natural resource programs. Referring the bill to the House Rules Committee will keep the bill alive through the session as legislators continue to wrangle over the content and whether to even have another referral. |
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Commission on Children and Families | |
HB 3260, which relates to homeless and run-away youth, was adopted by the Human Services Committee with a do-pass recommendation to the House floor, with a subsequent referral to the Joint Ways and Means Committee. The bill moves the administration and funding of this program to the Department of Human Services.
HB 3570-5 is Rep. Brian Clem's (D-Salem) bill on the Commission on Children and Families. It was adopted by the Human Services Committee with a do-pass recommendation to the House floor, with a subsequent referral to the Joint Ways and Means Committee.
HB 3533 relates to the Juvenile Crime Prevention Advisory Committee (JCP). HB 3533 moves the administration of the JCP from the State Commission on Children and Families to the Criminal Justice Commission. The bill had a work session on April 18th in the Judicial Committee and was adopted with a do-pass recommendation to the House floor with a subsequent referral to the Joint Ways and Means Committee.
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Health System Transformation News |
The Special Joint Committee held a lengthy meeting Wednesday night to discuss in detail concerns over the newly introduced health transformation bill, HB 3650.
Counties seem to be well represented in the bill. There are a number of sections in which the county role in public and mental health are discussed. For example: Each coordinated care organization has a formal contractual relationship with the mental health and public health authorities in the counties where the members of the organization reside, which may include a role in governance and recognize the social value of partnerships between county health departments and other publicly supported programs and other health providers by requiring contracts between coordinated care organizations and counties for the following services, if offered by the county: followed by a list of mental health services.
There will be changes in the bill and AOC staff will continue to be active in the discussion. Some legislators would like to see a diminished role for the counties so it is important that we remain engaged in this important issue.
Please contact Mark Nystrom with any questions.
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"Wood-First" Bill Dies In House Agriculture Committee |
A bill that would have required public agencies to prioritize the use of structural wood products in the construction of new buildings or expansion of existing buildings utilizing state funding failed to advance in the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee Wednesday evening. In its original form, the bill called for public agencies to forward building plans to the Department of Administrative Services to be approved before proceeding with construction.
The proposed bill then went through several iterations before ultimately not garnering enough support to advance. Advocates from other trade associations in the construction industry spoke in opposition to the bill, along with several public agencies who, while certainly being supportive of the wood-products industry, found the bill to have the potential to delay projects and prevent the ability of a public agency to make their own decision on the appropriate use of structural components.
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RC&D Gone | |
As part of the 2011 Federal Budget passed last week by Congress and signed by President Obama on April 15th, funding for the Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) program through the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) was eliminated. Because there is no funding for 2011 and half of the fiscal year has passed with monies spent that now have to be paid back, Oregon's coordinators have immediately stopped working in their RC&D capacity as of April 15th.
At this point, coordinators will have the opportunity to remain employed with NRCS in other capacities. Oregon's RC&D's that have 501(c) 3 status will continue to exist and their programs will continue to move forward as they work to determine their role in this new environment. |
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Relief for Crumbling County Courthouses | |
It may seem unlikely in this financial environment that the state Legislature would be able to do anything to avoid the impending disasters that are waiting to happen in some of the county courthouses across Oregon.However, in a number of measures that are moving from the House Judiciary Committee to the Ways and Means Committee, legislators have managed to carve out some possible ways to help - without tapping the state general fund.
HB 2710 would restructure court filing fees and increase some of them. Some of the increase and a small percentage of other fees would be available to counties for mediation, conciliation, law libraries and possibly court facilities. The fees would be allocated among those functions in the discretion of the county governing bodies. HB 2712 would add a small amount to court fines to be used by counties for renovation or construction of court facilities.
Also, HB 3525 would allocate a small percentage of punitive damage awards in civil cases to a fund administered by the Chief Justice for use in construction or renovation of local court facilities.All of these sources have the same thing in common - they need courts in order to generate the funds - and the courts can't operate without the courthouses.
These bills still have a long way to go, but we express our appreciation to the House Judiciary Committee in general and Rep. Andy Olson (R-Albany) and Rep.Chris Garrett (D-Lake Oswego), who co-chaired a work group on fees and fines, in particular.We also thank Chief Justice Paul De Muniz and Rep. Dennis Richardson (R-Central Point) for their work in advancing these issues.
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On the Road Again | |
Like Willie Nelson, the co-co-chairs of the powerful Oregon Legislature's Ways and Means Committee are taking the committee on the road over the next three weeks to hear from taxpayers about their thoughts concerning the state budget. The full schedule includes stops in Bend, Medford, Newport and video conferencing hookups to Pendleton and Coos Bay. The public hearings offer you an opportunity to engage the budget writers with your concerns about the shared services counties provide and how they are funded. |
| A Big Thanks to Washington County | |
Washington County Sheriff Rob Gordon graciously hosted the County College class on Public Safety last weekend. The session was a huge success. A number of Washington County elected officials and department heads gave presentations on public safety topics and tours of various facilities. In addition, Supreme Court Justice Jack Landau provided a riveting history of the judiciary in Oregon - really!
 | | 2011 County College class tours Washington County Jail |
Thank you Sheriff Gordon and Washington County!
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NACo Volunteers Needed | |
Ready to showcase Oregon to the nation? The National Association of Counties Annual Conference will be held in Multnomah County starting July 15th. Volunteers are needed to help guide the estimated 3000 county visitors around Portland and Oregon. Please consider using some of your spare time to help make their visit to our state and region a memorable one.
Becoming a volunteer is easy. Just register. Volunteers will get training and a t-shirt among other things for their time. If you have questions, please contact Theresa Sullivan at Multnomah County. Her phone number is 503-988-3655.
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Memorial for Nikki Whitty Scheduled | |
The memorial service for Nikki will take place on Saturday, May 7, 1:00 pm at the Coquille Community Building, 115 N. Birch St., Coquille.
Donations in Nikki's name can be made to the following charities:
Veterans Stand Down, c/o Commissioner's Office, 250 N. Baxter, Coquille, OR 97423
Friends of the Coquille Library, 105 N. Birch, Coquille, OR 97423
Maslow Project, 760 S. 2nd Street, Coos Bay, OR 97420
We miss you Nikki.
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Our Contributors | |
Ah, another week, another edition of Oregon Trails. This week's contributors include Lindsay Lohan, Charlie Sheen, Mylie Cyrus, Jennifer Lopez, Clark Kent and Jerry Van Dyke along with our usual gang of fresh faced innocents known as AOC Policy Managers.
Laura Cleland
Association of Oregon Counties
503-585-8351
Eric Schmidt
Jerry Van Dyke's Assistant |
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