The Liftoff: Portland teachers strike escalates
The Liftoff: Portland teachers strike escalates
PLUS: Kotek hires an Oregon outsider to run OHA; McLane attempts comeback; Measure 110 in the Wall Street Journal; BOLI wants Val Hoyle's personal phone; Portland's camping ban on hold; and more!
Welcome back to The Liftoff! Tuesday was Election Day in Oregon. And, while it was relatively quiet, there were a couple headlines you won’t want to miss! Plus we have all the things you need to know about Portland’s teacher strike.
As always: Thank you for reading, sharing and liking. We try to be as comprehensive as possible. Are there headlines we missed? Send us a note, we love mail!
1. Kotek’s new OHA Director, Mike McLane attempts a comeback, and more state politics news
Last week was “legislative days” in the Oregon legislature, or the few days a year that the legislature convenes in between legislative sessions. One of the biggest hearings was about possible changes to Measure 110, the ballot measure that decriminalized small amounts of drugs.
At a legislative panel on Monday “Oregon police officials from Portland to Hermiston spoke to Oregon lawmakers about the impact of drug addiction in their communities – and efforts to combat the wave of deadly fentanyl overdoses, open air drug use in public places and easy availability of fentanyl, which sells on streets for 80 cents to $1 a pill,” reports the Oregon Capital Chronicle.
Rep. Rob Nosse (D-Portland) penned an op-ed in The Portland Business Journal outlining his experiences in Portugal. He was part of a 24-member Oregon delegation that visited Portugal last week to learn about the county's 22-year-old drug decriminalization program.
From the op-ed: “I went with one of my legislative colleagues and a researcher who speaks Portuguese to talk to some users on the street and police officers. I learned that users do not fear police and that their country’s approach to drug use allows officers to focus on arresting drug dealers. I also took the opportunity to have one-on-ones with other people who were part of our delegation.”
The Oregonian has a comprehensive story about the trip, including quotes from Nosse, Sen. Kate Lieber, Sen. Floyd Prozanski, and Rep. Lily Morgan—all of whom attended.
A comeback story for former GOP State Rep Mike McLane? McLane served six years as House minority leader, and announced last week he is running in Senate District 30 (Central and Southeastern Oregon), which is being vacated by Sen. Lynn Findley (R-Vale). McLane, represented House District 55 from 2011 to 2019, but Gov. Kate Brown appointed him to the Crook County Circuit Court in 2019.
This could make for an interesting primary; following the news, Rep. Vikki Breese-Iverson told OPB: “Stay tuned. I am not afraid of primaries.”
Governor Kotek named Dr. Sejal Hathi, a former White House senior policy adviser and deputy commissioner for the New Jersey Department of Health, as the new head of the Oregon Health Authority. Hathi, 33, served in the Biden administration on the White House’s Domestic Policy Council. She comes to Oregon after just four months at the New Jersey Department of Health, reports The Oregonian.
According to OPB, Hathi has been involved in Democratic campaigns: “She’s also worked to elect Democrats. She was an advisor to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg during his 2020 Democratic presidential primary bid, and she’s supported Arena, an organization that trains Democratic candidates.”
More stories:
Former state rep. and longtime Public Utility Commissioner Ron Eachus has died. Read this great obituary in the Salem Reporter, where he’s described as an incorruptible consumer advocate.
Tania Wildbill will run as a Democrat for the state senate seat being vacated by Sen. Bill Hansell. Four Republicans have already filed to run in the red seat.
State Rep. Lily Morgan will resign her seat as she takes a new job as city manager for the city of Gold Hill. The Capitol Chronicle reports that she is recruiting candidates to replace her in the legislature.
Willamette Week reports that State Rep. Thuy Tran is considering a run for Congress, joining her colleague Rep. Maxine Dexter in the “thinking about it” category.
In related news, State Rep. Travis Nelson (D-Portland) told OPB he’s not running for Congress, according to reporter Dirk Vanderhart.
2. Portland teachers strike escalates (and more Portland area news)
Last week was week #2 for the Portland Public Schools (PPS) strike—and there was major whiplash with both sides trading barbs. Here are the four things to know from the week:
State mediator drama: Negotiations hit a snag Tuesday when PPS officials said the district and the Portland Association of Teachers could not talk for two days because the state mediator was not available. OPB reports that Governor Kotek’s office stepped in and by Tuesday night had “successfully worked to secure a mediator”.
Reviewing the numbers: The two sides also spent Wednesday-Friday with the state’s Chief Financial Officer Kate Nass and the Department of Education to review financial information. “In the end, they emerged with a number that was nearly identical to what the district had said it had available to spend this year from its largest source of funding: $563 million from the state school fund formula,” writes The Oregonian.
Protesters: Picketers on Wednesday and Thursday rallied outside individual school leaders’ homes and at one board member’s workplace. From OPB: “An estimated 30-50 people gathered outside the home of PPS Chief of Staff Jonathan Garcia and ‘threateningly taunted him by asking him if their presence made him feel uncomfortable,’” according to a letter written by a PPS attorney.
Health insurance: According to Willamette Week, the district will mail striking teachers a packet on Nov. 16 that instructs them how to enroll COBRA insurance plans starting December 1.
Willamette Week’s cover story asks: Is Multnomah County building enough new capacity to scale up its Preschool for All program? The program is expected to generate $152 million in tax revenue this year and was championed by Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson. It promised to create 12,000 new publicly funded preschool seats by 2030.
From WW: “In its official planning report in July 2020, the program said it would create 1,500 to 2,000 new publicly funded seats by the 2023-24 school year. Thanks in part to the pandemic, it’s financed only 1,200. More crucially, the county has in two years created only 507 entirely new preschool seats that didn’t exist before the tax.”
More Portland-area stories:
From The Oregonian: “99% of people Multnomah County placed in ‘supportive’ housing remain housed a year later, report says”
From the Portland Tribune: “Portland Metro Chamber honors Realtors, Brim-Edwards”
From The Oregonian: “A Washington County commissioner faced a ‘very serious’ allegation. Hiding his identity was just part of the county’s unusual response”
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4. Who we can expect to see in the 2024 Oregon election cycle
The 2024 campaign cycle is already heating up in Oregon, even with Election Day a year away! In this episode, Ben and Reagan discuss who’s running for what at the state and congressional level (with a bit on legislative races)—and how much money the candidates in each race have raised.
5. Senate Republicans sue (again), BOLI wants Val Hoyle’s personal phone, and more electeds in the news!
Oregon Republican Sens. Brian Boquist, Cedric Hayden, and Dennis Linthicum sued Democratic Senate President Rob Wagner and Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade in federal court Monday, in an attempt by Republicans who shut down the Legislature for six weeks to run for reelection, reports the Oregon Capital Chronicle.
The federal lawsuit joins a state lawsuit filed by Linthicum and four other senators to block a ruling from Secretary Griffin-Valade that disqualified them for reelection based on Measure 113.
The Oregonian reports that Rep. Val Hoyle has retained a public records attorney to review thousands of personal text messages from when she served as Oregon Labor Commissioner and determine which ones are public records. But BOLI says they want her personal cell phone so they can download it themselves, even if they have no legal recourse.
A spokesperson for the BOLI told The Oregonian: “If we were to receive the phone, we’d have the ability to download the records and begin the analysis of what is and isn’t public records law, but we don’t have a legal recourse to obtain those records.”
Meanwhile, Hoyle’s attorney says that BOLI is dragging its feet, saying: “BOLI has not been timely in their responses.”
6. Election Day! Results from across the state
Salem voters overwhelmingly (82%) rejected a payroll tax Tuesday that would have applied to all paid work conducted in the city. The proposed 0.814% tax on workers’ wages would have exempted only people who earn the minimum wage.
Eugene police closed the Lane Elections Office on Wednesday because of a piece of suspicious mail that possibly contained a dangerous chemical. The county said the next day that “ballot processing was not significantly affected as staff had stayed late on Election Day to process ballots.”
KLCC reports that Eugene Police referred the case to the FBI, who confirmed “that the agency’s Portland office is investigating a number of suspicious letters sent to Oregon election offices.”
How did school bonds and levies do? Here’s the summary from the Oregon School Boards Association: “On Tuesday’s ballot, school district bonds all included building replacements and nearly all the levies were about maintaining staffing. In unofficial results early Wednesday, voters appeared to approve continuing the levies while mostly saying no to the bonds.”
7. News Roundup: Measure 110 in the Wall Street Journal
Check out this piece in the Wall Street Journal on Measure 110: “Oregon Decriminalized Hard Drugs. It Isn’t Working”
KGW news anchor (and Oregon native) Brenda Braxton announced she’s leaving Portland’s KGW-TV after 34 years, according to The Oregonian
A 75-foot, 7,000-pound Douglas fir has arrived at Pioneer Square for the annual tree lighting ceremony, reports KATU-TV
A Multnomah County judge ruled Thursday that Portland must delay enforcing its daytime camping ban until a lawsuit challenging its constitutionality is settled. The ban was set to go into effect on Monday, reports The Oregonian.
From the Oregon Center for Public Policy: “Oregon’s Rich Have Never Been Richer”
Major Sports Alert: Your Oregon Ducks and Beavers are each ranked in the top 10 for college football. The Ducks rank 6th while the Beavers come in at 10th.
From Pamplin: “Frank Gable, wrongfully convicted of killing Michael Francke, preparing to sue”
Tips? Feedback? Ideas? Corrections? Email benjaminwbowman@gmail.com or kristinaedmunson@gmail.com.
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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 Gov. Kulongoski, media advance associate for VP Biden, and communications director for AG 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, and sits on Multnomah County’s Community Involvement Community. She speaks only for herself in The Liftoff.