NEWS UPDATE FROM STATE REPRESENTATIVE DAVID GOMBERG: Pausing to Reflect on Our Shared Values

By Representative David Gomberg, House District 10

With all the things that disturb and divide us these days, I want to believe that Memorial Day is a time that brings us all together. This is a special day when we particularly remember those members of our uniformed services who have given their lives – that last full measure of devotion – for our nation, our security and safety, and our shared ideals.

In Depoe Bay, it is also a time to remember those mariners who have been lost striving to save others and protect our coastal communities. The Fleet of Flowers originated in 1936 to honor Ray Bower and Jack Chamber who lost their lives in an effort to save friends in peril on the sea. I attend the event each year to hear inspiring words, honor our veterans, and then watch the local fleet sail out onto the Bay to spread wreathes on the water.

The ceremony has grown to include those lost at sea and those who find beauty, solace, or adventure upon it. It also honors those who have chosen to have their ashes placed into the ocean.

Even if you don’t follow Oregon politics closely, you are certainly aware that the 2024 Primary Election was held last Tuesday.

Nominees were confirmed for a number of partisan contests that will be decided in November. We selected the Democratic and Republican candidates for President, Congress, three statewide offices, and the Oregon Legislature. We also voted for a variety of county positions.

Different counties have different rules. For example, Lincoln has non-partisan commissioners and if a candidate receives 50% or more in May, the race is over. This year that didn’t happen and two finalists from the five candidates will advance to November. In Benton County, Commissioners run by party so Democratic and Republican nominees were selected. This year there was no Republican candidate. A number of local money measures were also on the ballot.

Primary races certainly matter to the candidates. And they matter to communities as well as good people who offer themselves to serve in often thankless jobs are selected or rejected. Sometimes there are differences in policy. But more often decisions result from personalities, experience, and support.

While local congressional races were relatively quiet, two consequential nominations for Congress were decided in Portland and the large central Oregon district. In races for Secretary of State, Treasurer, and Attorney General, experienced legislators prevailed on both sides. Interestingly, two of the Republicans were Senators not allowed to run for reelection because of the walkouts. In legislative races statewide, two Republican incumbents lost their bid to return. Democratic incumbents in contested races won. Other races were decided although the House District 14 in Corvallis remains too close to call.

In a race that could determine which party controls the United States Congress, Republican U.S. Representative Lori Chavez-DeRemer, left, and Democratic legislator Janelle Bynum will be the November candidates in Oregon’s 5th Congressional District. In a presidential election year all but certain to divide Americans along national party lines, political experts say the results will depend on a small group in the middle: moderate voters.

I won’t go into detail on all of these races and instead have provided links if you want to read more. You can see results for each and every race here. The November election nationally is shaping up to be brutal and sadly divisive. With the exception of a consequential race for Congress in the 5 ^th District and a handful of House and Senate seats with the potential to change, I don’t anticipate major shifts in Oregon this fall. Certainly, we will see fresh new faces as roughly a quarter of the legislature changes each election. But I do not expect to see control of either Chamber change.

A big piece of news from this election was the reporting of low voter participation. Across the state, a smaller percentage of qualified voters made these important decisions. And under Oregon rules that only let party members vote for party nominees, many voters not registered in a major party chose to not return ballots at all.

In recent years, Oregon has worked hard to make voting easier and expand the number of people properly qualified to vote. We pioneered vote-by-mail 43 years ago. And now we allow ballots postmarked by election day to be counted even if they take a week to arrive. We pay for stamps on mailed ballots. And we have automatically registered any US Citizen with an Oregon driver’s license, high school students when they turn 18, and several other groups of people who may not have otherwise taken the affirmative step to register.

The result is that many more people in Oregon are qualified to vote. And with many non-traditional voters in the mix, it should not be surprising that the turnout percentage is declining.

But what does that really mean?

About 1.013 million voters returned ballots in Oregon this month. That’s out of 3.011 million qualified voters for a seemingly disappointing 33.6% rate of return.

Ten years ago, in 2014, turnout wasn’t much better – 35.9%. But that year, we had 2.113 million registered voters and 758 thousand returned their ballots. In other words, while the percentage was lower, a quarter million more voters sent ballots this year.

Looking at the General election in November 2022, 1.997 million votes were cast for a 67% response. That’s down from an 82% response in 2012 when 1.820 million ballots were returned. So again, the response was lower but more actual people were participating.

Mark Twain famously popularized the saying, “There are 3 kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.” These numbers may fascinate some of you and bore others to tears. If they do fascinate you, you can learn more here. For me, the message is that we have properly expanded the voting franchise to more people and more of them are engaging. For democracy, that’s a good thing. But we can and should do better.

This week, the Capitol will be bustling again for the first time since we adjourned from the Legislative Session on March 7th. The quarterly “Legislative Days” are a chance for appointments, networking, and committee meetings. Think of it as a three-day “mini-session” event for our part-time Legislature.

Interim committee meetings are important for legislators and the public to get updates on new laws created by recent legislation, reports from task forces, and a preview of what is likely coming in the 2025 session. Take a quick look at the agendas below, and you’ll see what I mean.

Seismic mitigation construction continues at the Capitol and much of the building is closed. The historic part of the Capitol is still under construction, but the Senate and House wings and committee rooms are open. Those limitations have interesting consequences.

For example, in addition to committee meetings, the full Senate will convene Friday morning to confirm Governor appointments to boards, commissions, and agency heads. Normally these meetings take place on the Senate floor, with an opportunity for observers to watch from the gallery. But the formal Senate chambers are not available. So the full Senate will gather in Hearing Room A. With space limited, observers will have to follow proceedings on the livestream or the recording.

On Wednesday morning, May 29, we’ll receive the June Revenue Forecast at a joint meeting of Senate Finance and Revenue and House Revenue. We receive these forecasts each quarter. You can find everything you want to know about revenue forecasts here.

The full Ways and Means (Budget) Committee or its subcommittees will NOT be meeting this time. Instead, all of the interim budget appropriations are going through the Emergency Board. It has three subcommittees (Public Safety, Human Services, and General Government), which will be making recommendations. I serve as one of the House vice-chairs of Ways and Means and am also one of twenty members of the Emergency Board.

I want to stress that your Capitol is open. Please don’t hesitate to make the trip and get up close and personal with your state government! The State Street entrance is accessible from 7:00 am-5:30 pm, or 30 minutes after the last committee meeting or floor session. Not able to make the trip? You can still watch the meetings from home on OLIS, the Oregon Legislative Information System. Please find links provided by OLIS below for further information.

If you are planning a visit to Salem, there are metered and electric vehicle charging spots near the Capitol. Stop by my office (H-480) to say “Hello” if you are at the Capitol. To ensure the safety of the public, employees, and Legislators, all visitors will encounter a security checkpoint with a walk-through metal detector upon entry. That is an unfortunate but necessary recent change. Please see the Building Use Policy, Rule #15 for prohibited items.

Legislative Days Details:

Approximately 12,000 Oregon taxpayers who used TurboTax to prepare their 2023 federal and state tax returns may be able to reduce their tax owed or increase their refund by amending their state return.

Intuit, the makers of TurboTax, said the software program might not have selected the best deduction option (standard vs itemized) for some taxpayers, resulting in a possible overpayment to the state.

Intuit has contacted the affected taxpayers and provided instructions for filing an amended return at no charge.

Taxpayers will need to complete the amended return in TurboTax, print it out, and then choose one of the three options below to file their return.

Mail their return to the Oregon Department of Revenue at P.O. Box 14700, Salem, OR, 97309-0930.
Bring their printed amended return to one of the Department of Revenue offices. (Drop boxes are available to accept documents after regular business hours in Salem, Bend, Eugene, Medford, and Portland.)
Enter the information from the printed return into Direct File Oregon to electronically file their amended return free of charge.

Directions for using Direct File Oregon to file an amended state return are available on the Department of Revenue website.

Some amended returns can take up to six months to process if they require manual review due to errors or missing information. Taxpayers should make sure they follow these important steps that will allow more timely processing of their amended return.

Make sure the printed return they file is complete, including the federal form and all schedules (like Schedule OR-A).
Make sure they have checked the “Amended Return” box on the first page.
Use their current address, if it is different from the address they used when filing their original return.
Provide their direct deposit information for their refund, otherwise the department will mail a paper check.
Sign their amended return.

Affected taxpayers have three years from the date their return was originally filed or from the due date of the return, whichever was later, to file an amended return.

Planning to travel on an airline? Check your ID. If you don’t have Real ID yet, you should consider adding it to your license or ID card at Oregon DMV.

That’s because, starting May 7, 2025, all travelers must have a Real ID-compliant driver’s license or ID card, or other approved identification, to pass through security checkpoints at airports. A standard Oregon card will not be acceptable by the Transportation Security Administration.

How do you know if you have Real ID?? Look for a star on your drivers license or ID. Learn more here.

Oregonians can travel by air after the deadline if they have a DMV-issued Real ID, a passport, or any of the documents listed here.

If you don’t have Real ID yet, I recommend visiting a DMV office soon to apply for one. You cannot change to Real ID online – you must apply in person and bring the federally required documents to qualify for Real ID.

Before you go to DMV, make sure you have all the documents you need for Real ID with our online questionnaire — click “Determine my Real ID documents” in the Real ID Help section.

A few senior members of the legislature are getting caught by changes in email addresses that occurred several years ago.

Friday, the State Data Center will be retiring all email addresses that use the @state.or.us address. That means if you try to write to my office using my old email at rep.davidgomberg@state.or.us after Friday, I will not receive that message.

Instead, be sure to update your contacts to ensure you’re sending your emails to rep.davidgomberg@oregonlegislature.gov.

Earlier this week I attended the Oregon Winegrowers Association Reception, following their annual business meeting. Wine bottles being added to the bottle bill was the hot topic at the event. It was great to hear thoughts from wineries, big and small, on how they feel about the issue.

I was the speaker at the Lincoln City Chamber this week and Lincoln County Democrats in Newport. I attended the dedication of the Taft Watchtower, Regatta Park Playground planning open house, and the Lincoln City Plaza Palooza.

As I said, I’ll be in Salem most of the coming week.

Next weekend Susie and I will be at the National Cancer Survivors Day events in Newport.

Next Monday I hope to tour Yachats Ridge in South Lincoln County. This open space is a potential new state park area. I’ll speak at the Small Business Management Class graduation at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. And I hope to be back in Gleneden Beach later for the Oregon Coast Visitors Association Business Social.

Lots going on and I hope you are active and engaged as well!