The Liftoff: Legislative leaders cut a deal to save the session
PLUS: UFCW's eye-popping ballot measure proposals; Shemia Fagan's new job; Republican senators are back; Kotek wants to clean up Portland's trash; Ontario, OR makes the New York Times; and more!
Welcome back to The Liftoff! Happy Juneteenth (the newest federal and state holiday)—and happy official first week of summer! And to the all the dads out there—we hope you had a great Father’s Day weekend.
This issue of The Liftoff is jam-packed with all the details from Salem—and even some 2024 election stories. We hope you enjoy!
Again, thank you for reading, sharing, and subscribing. We always love when you drop us a line!
1. GOP Senators are back—with one week to go
Republicans returned to the Oregon Senate on Thursday, ending the longest walkout in history—which essentially stopped the Senate for six weeks. Democrats agreed to dial back proposals on guns, abortion, and transgender health care to get the Senate back to work.
There’s a lot to unpack with the longest walk out in Oregon history. So, here’s a rundown of how the Oregon media portrayed the Senate deal:
From The Oregonian: “In a major boon for Republicans, Democrats agreed to significant concessions, including key changes to controversial reproductive health care and gun control bills.”
From the Oregon Capital Chronicle: “The Senate on Thursday quickly and without debate passed two of the most contentious bills of the session – on abortion and firearms – on Thursday as the Republican-led walkout ended and work began.”
From OPB: “Senate President Rob Wagner refused to excuse absences racked up by 10 conservative lawmakers since the walkout began May 3. That means all 10 are expected to be blocked from running for reelection under a ballot measure passed by voters last November.”
From Portland Tribune: “The Senate now faces a backlog of 400 bills, including agency budgets, as Oregon’s 160-day session approaches a constitutional deadline of June 25.”
Are walkouts a permanent part of the state legislature? Oregon Democrats have a new proposal to change quorum laws. A bill introduced Wednesday by Reps. Khanh Pham (D-Portland) and David Gomberg (D-Otis) would ask voters to change the constitution once more, bringing Oregon in line with almost all other state legislatures, which only require a simple majority of lawmakers to conduct business, writes the Oregon Capital Chronicle. The proposal is not expected to pass this session.
One of the first pieces of business on Thursday was a vote in the Oregon Senate on a bill to ban a political campaign from accepting more than $100 in cash from any one source. The bill was in response to reporting the co-founders of cannabis company, La Mota, gave tens of thousands of dollars to Democratic candidates in stacks of cash. The bill passed by a resounding 22-0 vote, reports Willamette Week.
2. DMV’s massive data breach (and other state government news)
The biggest news from Salem was the massive ODOT hack, which could affect all Oregonians with a drivers license. The Oregonian has a helpful piece answering key questions about the breach.
From KGW: A data breach discovered Monday may have compromised Oregon Department of Transportation records, including personal information for about 3.5 million Oregonians. News of the hack was first reported by The Oregonian, followed by a news release from ODOT.
By Friday afternoon The Oregonian ran this headline: “Gov. Kotek’s staff knew Monday that hackers had accessed millions of driver’s license files. Oregonians didn’t find out until Thursday.”
More state government headlines:
The Oregon Government Ethics Commission opened ethics investigations into six Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission managers who set aside hard-to-find bourbon, reports The Oregonian. The managers are: Steve Marks (former executive director); Will Higlin (Marks’ deputy); Bill Schuette (budget manager); Chris Mayton (director of the distilled spirits program); Boba Subasic (chief information officer); and Kai Nakashima (director of the office of information services).
Former state rep Julie Parrish (R-West Linn) filed a complaint asking Oregon officials to investigate whether former Secretary of State Shemia Fagan violated state law by spending campaign dollars on vacations, airfare, meals and lodging for her kids or romantic partner, reports The Oregonian.
Here’s Willamette Week’s latest headline on the Shemia Fagan controversy: “Emerge Oregon Removes Former Board Member From Alumnae Network for Speaking to The Oregonian. Meanwhile, Shemia Fagan remains in the alumnae network.”
Gov. Kotek opens up in the national media about Oregon’s housing crisis. “Homelessness nearly lost her the election. Now she’s trying to fix it,” writes Vox News.
Hermiston Mayor Dr. Dave Drotzmann announced he is running to replace retiring Sen. Bill Hansell. Drotzmann has been endorsed by Rep. Greg Smith and Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer.
According to the Hermiston Herald, “Wallowa County Commissioner Todd Nash and former Morrow County Commissioner Jim Doherty also are running for the open position.” To learn more about Drotzmann, check out his episode on The Oregon Bridge podcast.
Raw Story reports that the Oregon Republican Party was defrauded out of over $800 in a “fraudulent check scam.”
3. The unsolved murder of an Oregon state agency leader
Michael Francke, then the head of the Oregon Department of Corrections, was murdered at work in 1989. The case is both fascinating and disturbing. We know that Francke uncovered corruption within the agency. We know that he was scheduled to testify before a key legislative committee the next morning. We know that Frank Gable, who was prosecuted and convicted of the murder, has been exonerated—and that Francke's family believed Gable was innocent all along.
But, three decades later, we still don't know who killed Michael Francke—or why they did it. In this episode, we talk to three guests who are experts on the case: Kevin Francke (Michael's brother), Phil Stanford (a journalist who covered the story for decades), and Lauren Bright Pacheco, the host of the "Murder in Oregon" podcast about the case. We cover the basics of the case and jump into the controversy, intrigue, characters, many unsolved mysteries. Importantly, we discuss why this case still matters today—and why we should all care about justice for Michael and the Francke family.
Finally, we talk about what should happen next. We highly recommend the "Murder in Oregon" podcast, a twelve-episode series that features interviews with Nigel Jaquiss, former Oregon State Treasurer Jim Hill, former State Rep. Chuck Sides, journalist Jim Redden, and many more. You can listen on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts.
4. Sponsored Message from Harrang Long P.C.: Harrang Long’s Government Ethics Practice
This message is from our sponsor, Harrang Long P.C.
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5. Big-ticket items to watch
Oregon’s persistent childhood literacy challenge
From the Capital Chronicle: “The Capital Chronicle determined that Oregon has spent more than $250 million in the past 25 years on reading. But that money has failed to help more than a generation of students. Over the last 25 years, nearly two in five fourth graders and one in five eighth graders have scored “below basic” on the National Assessment of Educational Progress…”
Health care workers set to strike
From the Capital Chronicle: “Portland could be on the brink of its first hospital strike in more than 20 years. About 1,800 Providence nurses — many of them based in Portland — plan to strike, and the health system is bringing in temporary staff starting next Monday.”
UFCW gears up for five eye-popping potential ballot measures
Here is an excerpt from the NW Labor Press: “IP 32 – the Legislative Transparency Act would end the right of lawmakers to meet and deliberate in party caucus meetings that aren’t open to the public, require that party caucus rules be made public, and prohibit the “selling” of public committee positions through political contributions.”
Read about the other four here.
The rent is too damn high!
Here’s an excerpt from a recent piece in the Oregonian about the gap between incomes and the cost of rent: “Oregon’s minimum wage is among the country’s highest, but according to a new report, a typical renter must earn more than twice that much to afford a modest apartment.”
6. Cleaning up Portland’s trash (and other metro area news)
Governor Kotek and Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson directed $2.5 million toward a program that gives people experiencing homelessness jobs cleaning up trash in Portland. Kotek made the announcement during the Portland Business Alliance’s annual meeting Thursday, reports The Oregonian.
The Portland Association of Teachers want a state mediator to broker a labor agreement with the school district. “The two sides remain far apart on a variety of issues, including pay, particularly for experienced educators at the top of the salary scale, class size caps, workload and the balance between prep time and class time, and safety issues,” reports Julia Silverman with The Oregonian.
Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt told Axios Portland that arrests of people violating Portland's new camping restrictions for unhoused people may not lead to jail time. Shameless plug: Listen to the recent episode of The Oregon Bridge podcast to hear more from DA Schmidt!
From Schmidt: "It's my experience with Multnomah County jurors that they would probably feel like that was a pretty big waste of their time, to spend a day away from work or other things to hear a case about a person who was homeless, who was sleeping on the street."
There are not enough paramedics to respond to 911 calls in Multnomah County. “In some cases, ambulances are arriving late because they’re reaching “Level Zero,” which essentially means no ambulances are available to take calls or respond immediately,” reports KOIN-TV.
7. News Roundup: Ontario makes the New York Times, the return of fire season, and more!
A Multnomah County jury decided that PacifiCorp owes more than $73 million for causing 2020 Oregon wildfires.
Governor Kotek deployed resources to fight two wildfires burning in Umatilla County, invoking the Emergency Conflagration Act for the first time this wildfire season.
Shemia Fagan’s new job: WW reports that Fagan is “once again an employee of Seattle-based HKM Employment Attorneys LLP, where she worked prior to becoming secretary of state in 2021”.
The Oregonian with a Sen. Wyden scoop: “Sen. Ron Wyden’s campaign was looped in on $500K donation from FTX executive to Oregon Democrats.”
From The New York Times: “Tax revenue has surged since cannabis stores opened in Ontario, Ore., fueling a push in neighboring Idaho to legalize sales and get in on the action.”
From the Oregonian: “Audit: Oregon Health Authority mishandled hundreds of thousands in federal mental health money”
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About the Authors
Ben Bowman is the state representative for Oregon House District 25 (Tigard, Metzger, and South Beaverton) and a member of the Tigard-Tualatin School Board. In his day job, he works as an administrator for a public school district. Previously, he worked as a legislative aide for former Reps. Margaret Doherty and Val Hoyle. He also co-hosts The Oregon Bridge podcast. In the newsletter and podcast, he speaks only for himself.
Alex Titus is a small business owner and consultant to businesses, nonprofits, and associations. Previously, he served as an Advisor in the Trump Administration and as a Policy Advisor to President Trump’s Super PAC. His writing has appeared in National Review, Fox News, The Hill, RealClearPolitics, and other publications.
Kristina Edmunson has been everything from press assistant for Governor Kulongoski, media advance associate for Vice President Biden, and communications director for Attorney General Rosenblum. Born and raised in Eugene, she has been involved in some of the biggest policy and legal decisions in Oregon over the last decade. Today, she runs her own communications practice. She speaks only for herself in her contributions to The Liftoff.