The Liftoff: The first attack ad of the 2024 election
PLUS: Who's thinking about running for Portland mayor; legislator briefly hospitalized; woman testifies on alleged threats made by legislator; "do-or-die" day for the legislature; and more!
Welcome back to The Liftoff!
The cherry blossoms are blooming, the atmospheric river is flowing, spring is in the air, and as always we appreciate you reading and sharing The Liftoff.
We have a special segment this week for our paid subscribers! We break down which bills died, and which ones lived, after the first major deadline in the Oregon legislature. So, if you’ve been on the fence about upgrading your subscription, now is the time! And, we have more subscriber-only content planned in the weeks to come.
1. The Legislature’s biggest deadline
Tuesday, April 4th was one of the most important days in the Oregon legislature. Known as “first chamber deadline”, it’s the final deadline for when a bill must have had a work session in the chamber it was introduced (house or senate) in order to survive.
Gary Warner of the Oregon Capital Bureau called Tuesday the “do-or-die” day for bills in the Oregon legislature. That definitely rang true as committees worked until the bitter end to meet Tuesday’s midnight deadline.
We have a special section for our subscribers that looks at which bills lived, and which bills died, at the deadline. Click to read the full section.
In other state government news:
Rep. Kevin Mannix was briefly hospitalized last week.
Gov. Tina Kotek is soliciting applications to fill a vacancy on the Oregon Supreme Court with the ascension of Judge Adrienne Nelson to the federal bench.
According to the Columbia County Spotlight, the woman accusing Rep. Brian Stout of sexual misconduct testified that he told her: “By the way, if you ever tell anyone about this, we will walk to Multnomah Falls and I will push you over the cliff.”
Under the radar: Medicaid redetermination has begun—and it could impact hundreds of thousands of Oregonians. Read more from Lynne Terry at the Capital Chronicle.
2. Homelessness and crime dominate the headlines—again
Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson and Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler announced Kaiser Permanente executive Dan Field as the new leader of the joint Portland-Mulnomah County homeless services office.
Oregon experienced one of the nation’s largest increases in homelessness between 2020 and 2022, federal data indicates.
From The Oregonian: The number of people experiencing homelessness in Oregon grew nearly 23% during the two-year span, increasing by 3,304 people to about 18,000, according to a federally mandated physical count of homeless individuals.
Portland’s “famed restaurant industry is struggling with crime, vandalism and a widespread sense of disconnect with city leaders”, writes The Portland Business Journal. Some alarming survey statistics cited in the article:
In a survey of restaurant owners, hiring software maker Poached found that 97% of the more than 100 respondents don’t think the city is headed in the right direction to have a thriving food industry.
Eighty-three percent said their businesses had been broken into, and 90% of that group said they had break-ins in the past year.
Meanwhile, in Clackamas County: seven mayors in Clackamas County signed a letter to County Chair Tootie Smith urging her to reverse her position refusing Project Turnkey money.
3. Three big Portland stories
From WW: None of the five current Portland City Commissioners, including Mayor Ted Wheeler, would rule out running for mayor in 2024, after Portland’s form of government undergoes a massive shift.
People for Portland put up a billboard attacking Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt, saying “Portland is a Schmidt Show!”—an early signal that Schmidt’s reelection will be heavily contested. WW called it “the earliest negative campaign billboard in recent memory.” Schmidt’s office called it “misinformation.”
Legendary Portland artist Henk Pander has died. Among other notable works, Pander painted the official gubernatorial portraits of Tom McCall and John Kitzhaber.
4. Celebrating 100 episodes of The Oregon Bridge podcast!
On our 100th episode, we first and foremost want to say thank you. Thank you for listening, thank you for subscribing, and thank you for sharing this podcast with friends and colleagues. We recently surpassed 60,000 listens (!)—far greater than we expected for our niche podcast. To our listeners, guests, and sponsors: thank you for supporting us.
On this episode, we reveal the top five most watched episodes on YouTube and the top five most listened to episodes on podcast platforms. Ben shares some of his favorite episodes—and discusses the trade-offs of interviewing elected officials. Finally, we cover what you can expect from the future of the pod, and opportunities to be engaged.
5. Sponsored Message from Harrang Long P.C.: Harrang Long’s Appellate Practice
This message is from our sponsor, Harrang Long P.C.
Few law firms in Oregon match the experience and expertise of Harrang Long P.C.’s appellate practice group. Three of our lawyers have been named in The Best Lawyers in America© for appellate law, and one of our lawyers has been named in The Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch© for appellate law, demonstrating the breadth and depth of our team. Our group includes two former Solicitors General for the State of Oregon, who were responsible for all of the state’s appeals, including appeals to the United States Supreme Court. Those lawyers, William F. Gary and James E. Mountain, Jr., also are members of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers.
Collectively, our team has handled thousands of appeals before state and federal courts, including civil appeals resulting in precedent-setting decisions on business, constitutional, and public policy issues. We represent clients in appeals from trial court decisions and administrative orders, as well as initiative ballot title challenges. To learn more about Harrang Long’s Appellate Practice Group, click here.
6. The Oregon Way: tolling, literacy rates, and police in schools
Oregon Way contributors Jeff Gudman, Gary Conkling, and Andrew Hickey have three very different pieces for you this week. Gudman gives his thoughts on the interstate tolling plan; Conkling has suggestions on Oregon’s low student literacy rates; and Hickey argues against school resource officers. Have thoughts? Let the others know in the comments!
7. With semiconductor package approved, will Oregon get federal CHIPS Act dollars?
In a who’s who of Oregon politics, elected leaders came out Wednesday to meet with U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, who was at Portland Community College’s Hillsboro campus to promote efforts to invest in Oregon’s semiconductor industry. Senator Wyden, Governor Kotek, and Congresswoman Bonamici all joined the visit.
The backdrop of the Secretary’s visit was the debate in Salem over proposals to grow Oregon’s semiconductor and microchip industry. The Oregon House voted on SB 4 on Thursday, approving “Oregon’s $200 million-plus bid for a share of the billions available in federal incentive to boost domestic semiconductor manufacturing,” writes The Portland Tribune.
Once the bill is signed by the Governor, the U.S. Department of Commerce will decide which states get federal money as part of the CHIPS and Science Act that President Biden signed last year.
This week, OPB talked to some of the families that would be impacted by this growth in Hillsboro. As expected, their thoughts are mixed.
According to The Oregonian’s Mike Rogoway, Secretary Raimondo said that Oregon has positioned itself at the front of the line for new research funding from the $52 billion CHIPS Act that Congress approved last summer.
From The Capital Chronicle: “about 15% of the nation’s semiconductor workforce lives in Oregon, though the state is only about 1.3% of the nation’s population.”
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger also attended. Ahead of the visit, he told The Oregonian, that Oregon will remain the heart of the company’s research spending and the company hopes to use federal CHIPS Act funding to build a major lithography research center in the state.
8. Homelessness in Multnomah County by the numbers
Thanks to our friends at ECONorthwest for this week’s graphic and analysis:
Multnomah County's homeless populations—overall and unsheltered—are disproportionately large. The county is home to 0.25% of the general U.S. population, 0.9% of the nation's overall homeless population, and 1.3% of the nation's unsheltered homeless population.
An under-built, high-priced market for housing explains the elevated incidence of overall homelessness. Combine high housing costs with a limited inventory of emergency shelter beds, and the county ends up with one of the highest rates of unsheltered homelessness in the country.
9. News Roundup: BottleDrop milestone, Merkley heads to Asia, and Kristof speaks to OSU
Oregon’s bottle bill cleared a huge milestone, with more than 2 billion containers recycled last year—the highest redemption rate in the country, according to OPB. Stay tuned for more on the bottle bill next week…
U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley is leading a congressional delegation to Southeast Asia in a trip focused on helping nations “protect and enhance their sovereignty and security in the face of increased aggression by the People's Republic of China.”
Story to watch: “Idaho Bans Out-of-State Abortions for Minors Without Parent’s Consent”. What will this mean for border states like Oregon?
Former gubernatorial candidate Nicholas Kristof will give the Tom McCall Lecture at Oregon State University on April 24, reports Willamette Week.
Governor Kotek will end the pandemic-era practice of reimbursing employees who work remotely, including those who live out-of-state to travel to Oregon.
The State of Oregon’s new payroll system continues to cause problems for employees, writes The Oregon Capital Chronicle. Employees have complained of paycheck delays, issues with direct deposit, and more.
“Kids over guns”: Hundreds of Portland students left class on Wednesday to protest gun violence in a march downtown, writes OPB.
From Willamette Week: “The co-owner of the second-largest dispensary chain in Oregon, Rosa Cazares of La Mota, was removed Wednesday from the board of the political training academy Emerge Oregon.” The decision comes after WW’s cover story last week.
Thank you for reading!
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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 Joe Biden, and communications director for Attorney General Rosenblum. Born and raised in Eugene, she has been involved in some of the biggest and most controversial policy and legal decisions in Oregon over the last decade. She speaks only for herself in her contributions to The Liftoff.