The MitchMessage 

March 4, 2007

    

     The pace continues to pick up in the Capitol, as the leadership seems determined to adjourn by the end of June.  And we seem to be able to address issues that were totally blocked by the previous leadership of the House.  A great example of that occurred as the House was able to debate (and pass overwhelmingly) HB2163.  That bill requires cigarette manufacturers to sell only fire-safe (reduced ignition propensity) cigarettes in Oregon.  Canada, New York and six other states already limit sales to fire-safe cigarettes.   Last session a similar bill passed in the Senate, but was never heard in the House.  I introduced a similar bill during the last two sessions and wasn’t able to even get a hearing on it.  It turns out that some (but not all) of the tobacco lobbyists, when faced with a Democratic majority, decided to cooperate with the proponents, including the State Fire Marshall, and get a bill with which they could live.

     The big news during the past two weeks was the debate on HB2707, a bill to establish a rainy day fund in Oregon.  The bill, backed by the major business groups of the state, would eliminate the upcoming corporate kicker, take money from the biennium ending-fund balance, and create a rainy day fund not to exceed 10% of the prior biennium general fund revenue.  It also established the rules under which the fund could be tapped.  The debate raged, with a vote on both a minority report and a majority report out of the revenue committee.  The battle lines were drawn along party lines, even though there wasn’t a great deal of difference between the two reports.  But it did turn into a partisan battle and, because the bill took the corporate kicker away, 40 affirmative votes were required for passage.  The ultimate outcome was that the bill got the 31 Democratic votes and no Republican votes.  I was very sad after the vote, because it seemed there was so much opportunity for a real compromise.

     Two things happened the next day.  First radio and mail ads flooded the districts of five Democrats, including David Edwards and Chuck Riley in Hillsboro, announcing that they had voted for a $1 billion tax increase.  The Republican leadership denied having anything to do with the ads, although they acknowledged the ads were financed by the Republican House election committee.  But, more importantly, the House and Senate leadership of both parties sat down and began to negotiate a compromise on HB2707. 

By 5pm that day they jointly announced a deal including both the creation of a rainy day fund and the implementation of a corporate minimum income tax.  We’ll vote on those bills next week and I certainly hope this situation foreshadows how we can work together the rest of the session. 

     As I was preparing to write this message (yes I do prepare despite evidence to the contrary) I was struck by how many of the bills we pass in the House pass as a part of the consent calendar.  When a committee passes a bill, if it decides there is no need to debate the bill, it has the option of bringing it to the floor as a part of the consent calendar.  That means that unless a member asks for its removal from the consent calendar, it will be read into the record and voted on without debate.  For example, my committee passed out a bill that allows for a school district to transfer an employee’s sick-day account when hiring an employee of the State Department of Education into the district.  Since this bill only allowed a district to do that, but didn’t require it, there didn’t seem a need for debate.  Perhaps 30-40% of the bills on the House agenda are on the consent calendar.

     In past messages I’ve commented on the various ways an idea gets transformed into a bill.  HJR4 is an interesting case in point.  The Grant High School Constitution Team, which has won many district and state titles and recently finished second in the country, noticed an anomaly as they studied the Oregon Constitution.  They noticed that while 18 year old citizens could vote in Oregon, there was a special section of the constitution relating to voting on school measures.  That section requires voters on school measures to have six months residency in Oregon, to be 21 years of age, and to demonstrate the ability to read and write.  HJR4 will refer the repeal of this section to the Oregon voters in the November, 2008 general election.

     We passed another significant bill last week – HB2204.  This bill put interest limits (36% annually) on companies that provide title loans.  This expands the regulations we put on payday loans during the special session last year.  It also was a measure we were not even allowed to debate in prior sessions and these companies were charging interest rates above 300%.  I expect this bill will quickly pass the Senate and be signed by the Governor.

     Next week we should have an interesting debate on HB2170.  This bill would expand the authority of the Oregon Liquor Control Commission in two ways.  Currently, the OLCC can allow an establishment to have a temporary permit to sell beer and wine for 90 days while the Commission processes a regular permit application for the establishment.  HB2170 expands the Commission in two ways.  First it expands the time to 180 days.  And more distressingly, it also allows OLCC to grant temporary permits for the sale of hard liquor under those same conditions.  The bill passed out of committee with a five to two vote, with one D and one R voting no.  I’m joining with Representatives from the North and Northeast neighborhoods to fight the bill on the floor and I think we might have a chance to stop it in the House.  If not, the battle will continue in the Senate.

     The mass e-mails I’ve been receiving during the last two weeks continue around Measure 37, the Iraq War resolution, and hospital-acquired infections.  I think you all know my position on M37, since I’ve discussed it many times in this message.  It’s a mess and we need to do something about it, including supporting SB505, which will slow the process while we can figure out what to do.  I’m a co-sponsor of the resolution opposing sending more troops to Iraq.  And I’m the chief co-sponsor of the hospital-acquired infection bill.  I will pass some form of this bill out of my committee.

     Please keep the e-mail coming, but if you already know my position on a measure, you probably don’t need to join the flood when you get a request from Consumers’ Union, OSPRIG, 1000 Friends of Oregon, NARAL, BRO, or other organizations.

     And finally  --  a health report.  As of Friday I’m out of my braces and now back to wearing long pants.  I will need to use a walker for another month, but I’m feeling that I’m improving my physical functioning in many ways.   Keep sending those good wishes.

Mitch