By Representative David Gomberg, House District 10
6/26/2023
Dear Neighbors and Friends,
Late Sunday afternoon, June 25th the last day constitutionally allowed, your Oregon legislature brought the final gavels down and adjourned.
You can read good overviews of the session in the Capitol Chronicle, OPB, and the Oregonian. I want to spend this report talking about the results specific to you and our rural/coastal district.
There were a few lighthearted moments during delays on Sunday as the session inched toward adjournment.
There came a point in late May when I began to wonder whether we would be celebrating one of our most successful sessions, or mourning our least successful session. Everything we were working on was caught up in the Senate walkout. The answers came during the final days and hours. Here are a few examples.
During our first week, Governor Kotek announced a housing emergency and asked the legislature for financial support. The emergency focused on Oregon’s largest population centers. The following day, I published a letter asking the Governor to extend consideration of the emergency to 26 rural counties, including Lincoln and Benton, left out of the original declaration. The Governor agreed. I later co-carried HB 2001 and House Bill 5019 on the House floor which had come through my committee where we added $27 million for rural housing and homelessness. I appeared on KATU’s “Your Voice Your Vote”. “I’m a rural and coastal legislator,” I said. “It’s important to me that our efforts reach all parts of the state. Homelessness is not an urban problem. It is an Oregon problem.”
Governor Kotek signs the first housing package.
Job creation was another major focus early this year. But less noticed was a deal that could transform the economy on the Central Coast that finally passed the Senate Saturday.
My office sponsored and then took the lead throughout the session to amend and improve House Bill 3382, a measure that could ultimately allow the Port of Coos Bay to request permission to expand their navigation channel and pursue a $2 billion plan for a major shipping terminal that could create thousands of new, clean jobs in a part of Oregon where unemployment currently hovers around 8%. Permits and multiple public hearings would be required along with mitigation of any environmental effects. The measure originally generated strong opposition and evolved through eleven sets of amendments. In the end, I believe it was a balanced and workable bill that protects our coastal environment and also provides opportunities in a part of Oregon that has suffered economically. Listen to the extended debate here.
I also coordinated a bi-partisan effort to address economic development and revitalization across rural Oregon. Working with a small group of Democrats and Republicans, we introduced a total of eight bills that supported family farms, fisherman, small business, county fairs, outdoor recreation, rural housing construction, and maritime trades. This was another big deal! It will change local economies, create good jobs, and improve livelihoods and lives. Seven of those eight bills were consolidated into one large rural bill with a $67 million price tag as HB 3410 which passed in the Senate on Friday. The remaining bill was included within the end of session budget reconciliation bill.
The package includes:
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$9 million to help small farms become compliant with the State Meat Inspection Program. (Originally HB 2907)
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$10 million for grants and loans related to the development of housing in rural areas and small cities. (Originally HB 3138)
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$5.5 million to support the outdoor recreation economy and maritime workforce. (Originally HB 2910 and HB 3139 )
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$6.5 million for grant programs related to county fairgrounds and the outdoor gear industry, as well as funding for small business development centers. (Originally HB 2910 , HB 2911 and HB 2908)
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$1.2 million to the Oregon Coast Visitors Association to encourage the sale of Oregon seafood in Oregon restaurants. (Originally HB 2909)
You can listen to my floor carry here.
Once again, we were successful – more successful than most districts – bringing home funding for local infrastructure, water, and ports. Small towns simply don’t have the resources or tax ability to fund large projects. I went to work for our district early and the results were finally approved in the Senate Sunday afternoon.
- $1.5 million to complete restoration of Docks and Pilings in Depoe Bay.
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$1.9 million to replace Philomath Frolic and Rodeo (Skirvin Park) stands destroyed by fire.
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$2.2 million for Industrial Sewer Connections in Waldport.
- $1.5 million in Water, Prefilter and Automated Controls Infrastructure for the City of Monroe.
- $3.8 million for Newport Wastewater Treatment and Conveyance System Improvements.
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$8.1 million in bonding authority for Oregon Coast Community College, Center for Trades Education.
We did well. Very well. But notably, there were disappointments. We failed to secure funding for water infrastructure in Siletz, a new public safety building in Toledo, the Performing Arts Center in Newport, and the Samaritan Treatment & Recovery Services facility.
Conferring with Speaker Dan Rayfield.
HB 3211 was a small bill with big consequences for the Central Coast. The earthen Big Creek Dams in Newport are the city’s only water source but at 70 years old, are now rated as the most seismically vulnerable in the state. We have successfully secured the money necessary to begin replacement, but one state statute stands in the way which basically prevents reservoirs from being moved. The “fix” passed the House unanimously on March 16 but was delayed by the Senate walkout until last Wednesday.
House Bill 2914 would address the scourge of abandoned and derelict vessels left to leak and rot in our state waterways. Those vessels are difficult and expensive to remove, and sadly, the cost of doing so is taken from the money administered by the State Land Board which would otherwise go to schools. My bill created a dedicated program for removing abandoned boats and a new fund to cover the cost. It was delayed in the Senate until Friday but passed unanimously. My only regret is that the bill could not cover recreational vehicles abandoned on our roads and highways. Watch the discussion here.
Many of you are interested in animal issues. I can tell you our four-legged friends had a good session. Earlier we named the shelter rescue dog or cat the official Oregon State Pet. We passed my bipartisan bill that bans retail stores from selling puppy-mill dogs and cats — a move to curtail irresponsible breeding operations. And we took steps to block the availability of cosmetics that have been developed using animal testing. Driven by horror stories of cruel deaths at the primate research center operated by Oregon Health and Science University, the Legislature also passed my bill requiring OHSU to be more transparent about animals in its possession. Please listen to my floor speech here. These last three measures passed the House in March but were held in the Senate until last Wednesday.
If you are following the situation at the Primate Center, here is the latest news.
Rep. David Gomberg shows a reporter heavily redacted documents he received from the Oregon National Primate Research Center in his office in the Oregon State Capitol in Salem.
This session we were also focused on improving our emergency management system to better respond to wildfires and other natural disasters, encouraging wildfire preparation and education, and strengthening support for Oregonians who have been affected.
I was pleased to co-sponsor House Bill 2522, which directs the State Fire Marshal to conduct a full overview of our rural fire protection-related laws to modernize and streamline our processes and programs. HB 2522 passed the Senate on Wednesday.
I also introduced House Bill 2902, which directs the Department of Education to develop guidance materials for schools to better prepare their students for natural disasters. I was proud to see the bill pass unanimously in the House and then the Senate on Friday.
If you are reading carefully, you will see nearly everything advanced in the last few days. More than 300 bills were heard in the Senate during the session’s final week. Until negotiations brought senators back to work, these bills and our entire state budget were in jeopardy. Clearly the Senate boycott was a problem.
There have been seven walkouts in the past five years. There have been walkouts in response to taxes for schools, COVID regulations, redistricting, climate, and this year, guns, abortion, and whether an average eighth grader can read and understand legislation. Republicans have walked out on Democrats and Democrats earlier walked out on Republicans. This is a procedural question, not a partisan one.
I have said publicly that I understand the motives behind the walkout. Each of us has values or issues that we are prepared to use any and every tool available to protect. But the larger question is whether any tools should be available that allow a minority of legislators to grind the entire legislative process to a stop.
Oregon voters sent a clear message when an overwhelming majority passed Measure 113 in 2022 to dissuade lawmakers from staging walkouts over divisive legislation. But that measure didn’t work and the walkouts persisted. As one of my final efforts this session, Representative Khanh Pham and I introduced a bill to address the problem more directly.
Under the Oregon Constitution, the House and the Senate must have a two-thirds majority of members present to meet quorum requirements. Quorum is the minimum number of members needed to conduct business. If the House or Senate do not meet quorum requirements, the Legislature is unable to vote on any legislation. By changing this requirement to a simple majority, it will ensure that a small number of politicians aren’t able to stop all bills by refusing to show up.
The idea is not radical. Oregon currently is unusual when it comes to the quorum numbers. Among the 50 states, only four– Oregon, Indiana, Tennessee and Texas – mandate two-thirds. Is it coincidental that all four have experienced troubled legislative sessions this year?
Reps. Khanh Pham, D-Portland, and David Gomberg, D-Otis, take questions during a press conference on June 6, 2023. (Julia Shumway/Oregon Capital Chronicle)
More than 40 legislators signed on to House Joint Resolution 30 that would ask voters to approve that a simple majority of lawmakers be present to conduct business. Introduced late in session, the bill was never expected to advance. But it’s a conversation that benefits from getting started now, rather than waiting six months from now or a year and a half from now for future legislative sessions.
Oregon voters have made clear that walkouts are not the answer. This bill will be critical to starting the conversation and finding a workable long-term solution.
As the session wound down Sunday late afternoon, I was asked to provide closing comments. You can watch my remarks here.
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The session is now history and I’m back home, weary but well.
You can expect to see me out and about this week. I am scheduled to speak with the Lincoln City Chamber of Commerce Tuesday, Rotary and the Lincoln County Democrats on Wednesday, and the Yaquina Bay Economic Foundation Thursday. Friday I’ll be at the opening of the Lincoln County Fair.
Next Monday I’ll help dedicate the Louis Southworth Park in Waldport.
There are parades, rodeos, town halls, and ribbon cuttings on the horizon. I’ll look forward to seeing you soon!
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email: Rep.DavidGomberg@oregonlegislature.gov
phone: 503-986-1410
address: 900 Court St NE, H-480, Salem, OR, 97301
website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/gomberg
