June Monthly Meeting
Oregon Redistricting: All You Need to Know
Attend A4D’s June monthly meeting for a presentation entitled “A Thousand Districts: 2021 Oregon Redistricting” given by Chris Cobey and Norman Turrill from Portland’s League of Women Voters. They will give us a brief history of legislative and congressional redistricting in Oregon as well describe redistricting standards and where we are in the current process, including what to expect going forward. They will also give us concrete actions for engagement, ranging from monitoring the process and interacting with state legislators to drawing and submitting our own proposed district maps. Use this link to register for our Tuesday meeting on June 22 from 5:00-6:30pm. Zoom log-in details will follow. Chris Cobey is a retired lawyer, a former twice-elected member of City Council, and the Voter Service chair for the League of Women Voters. Norman Turrill is a past president of the League of Women Voters and current president of the League’s Oregon Advocacy Fund. He worked as a computer software engineer and was a Peace Corps teacher in Somalia.
Mark Your Calendar A4D is Gathering—In-Person and Outdoors!
Plans are afoot for a celebration! Save the date July 27 on your calendars to come together, at long last, with fellow A4D activists and enthusiasts. More details will be coming soon.
Legislative Action Team Update
Now is the time to make a final push on the following bills A4D supports. Immigration HB-3265A, the Sanctuary Promise Act; HB-3220, the Universal Legal Representation bill; and HB-2819, Leave No Worker Behind, which expands the application of the earned income tax credit statute. Go here to find sample language supporting these bills. To get the latest information about these bills, join an advocacy night, Monday, June 14, at 6:00pm, sponsored by the Interfaith Movement for Immigrant Justice by registering here. Campaign Finance Reform News on campaign finance reform bills has been mostly disappointing. The contribution limit bill we supported, HB-3343, has not had any movement since its initial and only public hearing on March 30. The only positive news is that, thanks to the efforts of COIN and others, we blocked a very bad contribution limit bill, HB-2680/1, from moving forward. It has now been rewritten as HB-2680/12 and deals with public financing and the establishment of a six-to-one match of small donor contributions. Unfortunately, it has some major problems as currently written and the Legislative Action Team is not comfortable supporting it in its present form. A third bill, SB-870, which deals with the disclosure of campaign money, was recently introduced, It appears to be a good bill, but seems unlikely to pass this session. In the end, the fact that voters overwhelmingly demanded campaign finance reform when they approved the change in the Oregon Constitution is being ignored. Let’s tell our legislators that we will not be satisfied until meaningful campaign finance reform is enacted. Election Reform HB-3291 continues to move forward with another work session scheduled for June 15. The bill contains provisions from many election reform bills A4D supported. Let your legislators know that you want HB-3291 passed. Climate/Energy/Environment Still stuck in the Ways and Means Committee are HB-2842, Healthy Homes; HB-2021, the Clean Energy bill to reduce emissions; HB-2488, Equity in Land Use Rules; and SB-582A, Recycling Modernization. SJM-5, which supports the Federal Carbon Fee and Dividend Act, remains stuck in the Rules Committee. Housing HB-2004/7, which supplies funding for HB-2006, the Emergency Homeless Sites bill that has already passed, is moving towards a vote this week. To check the status of all bills that the Legislative Action Team is tracking, gohere.
Testify at the Portland Charter Commission June 28
When Julia Meier, project manager of the Portland Charter Review Commission, spoke at our monthly meeting this past March, she stressed the importance of community input in the process of reviewing Portland’s charter, which is currently underway. It is vital, she pointed out, that all voices are heard. So here’s your chance to make a difference in the final recommendations. Testify at the Commission's next public meeting on June 28 from 6:00 to 8:00pm. Simply sign up online to offer public comment at this link. Be a part of shaping Portland’s future!
Write Postcards to Florida
Florida’s Republican Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed into law several heavy-handed voter-suppression tactics, which means we need to keep the pressure on. So A4D’s postcard writers will now focus on Florida. If you’d like to join the effort to bring the GOP’s grip on Florida to an end, please reach out to Susan Nunnery at spnunnery@gmail.com. Let her know how many sets of ten addresses and a suggested script for your postcard writing that you’d like to receive. Support Vote By Mail in the sunshine state.
COIN Social Media Sunday Drop-In Sessions
COIN social media drop-in sessions with host Ariel Knox continue every Sunday at 2:00pm. Upcoming sessions will take place June 20 and 27. Use this Zoom link to attend.