As we speed toward spring, I thought it would be good to give you a rundown of long session in Salem. I will keep these comments to the pillars we discussed for our communities to be successful in Senate District 5- Housing, childcare, health care, and education. 

Housing

As I hope you are aware, I have been the Vice Chair of Housing and Development Committee trying to tackle our housing crisis for the past 5 years now. Over this time, the Legislature has passed many bills, discussed numerous ideas and spent over $2.6 billion dollars in housing. I say this, because the problem has not been solved. Building permits are lower now than they were when the Governor declared an emergency over two years ago. I often wonder how that can be. 

I don’t have the specific answer in my pocket, but I do know the answers lie in three things: land, regulations and infrastructure. These three areas are vital to solving the housing crisis in Oregon, I would even dare to say, nothing else matters but these three areas to help with housing. Land has become a political hot potato in Salem and the Legislature invested hundreds of millions so far in infrastructure. We now land on regulations. 

I have two bills that will streamline the land use approval process inside the UGB of cities (974) and then a “shot clock” bill (6) that will require building permits are approved or denied in 45 days or less. These two bills can speed up the home building process dramatically. We are having hearings and lots of discussion on these two bills in the Legislature. 

Childcare

Childcare has been a huge part of my passion in Salem. We must have more affordable options and childcare facilities so our work force can work. Young parents are the backbone of a growing community, we need them badly up and down the coast and rural Oregon.

I have a bill to site childcare in affordable housing projects (439) that has been stalled in committee because of union bosses not wanting to give in on prevailing wage requirements. Mind you, we have an agreement to not do prevailing wage on affordable housing projects now, but if you add just one childcare facility there the whole project must go to prevailing wage. This can increase costs for the project by 50% or more and ultimately moves the project to unattainable. It is disappointing to see unions blocking this legislation to carve out childcare facilities to site on affordable housing projects. I hope they reconsider.

We will have further reports on education and health care as bills in those committees heat up and move to the floor. I am watching those committees every week to make sure we are continuing to invest in our children, seniors and communities up and down District 5. 

As always, please reach out if you have any questions or thoughts on bills happening in Salem. 

Dick 

I attended a pancake breakfast at Mo’s in Lincoln City. This breakfast was a fundraiser to raise money for a project that the students at Saint James Santiago School. This was my server!

I attended the Kick-off the Coos Bay Comeback for the world premiere of the Coos Bay Story. The Pacific Coast International Port Project is poised to put Coos Bay back on the map for shipping on a global scale.

Here I am with Matt Friesen the Director of External Affairs for the Port of Coos Bay.

To watch the Coos Bay story on YouTube, click HERE.

To learn more about the PCIP project https://pcipproject.com/

I had the pleasure of meeting with youth constituents from the district who joined Southwest School based health advocacy group when they came to the Capitol.

Representative Gomberg and I met with the Surfside Village Cooperative to celebrate the purchase of their Resident Owned Community.

Thank you to Graece Gabriel for taking this picture!

Representative Gomberg and I had our first Legislative Town Hall in person at Oregon Coast Community College. We were joined by many constituents in person as well as those who joined in via zoom. Thank you to everyone for a great turn out!

If you missed the first town hall don’t worry! We are putting these on monthly either in person or virtually.

I had the honor of joining Depoe Bay in their grand re-opening of the Depoe Bay Harbor, following a nearly $5 million renovation including new piers.

From Left to Right: Representative Dave Gomberg, Mayor Kathy Short, Senator Dick Anderson, and Depoe Bay Commissioners Liz Martin and Jack O’Brien.

Photo Credit thanks to Rick Beasley.

Read the Lincoln County Leader article on this event here.

I presented Senate Bill 1086 in the Senate Labor & Business Committee, a key measure to address the statewide workforce shortage of building inspectors.

You can watch my testimony here.

SB 433-Permits the owner of a self-service storage facility to advertise a notice of sale of personal property that is subject to a lien twice on a public website that regularly advertises personal property for auction or sale.

SB 438- Allows the owner of property outside an urban growth boundary to site an additional dwelling on the property for occupancy by a relative of the owner.

SB 566-For the part of the state located in the Pacific Time Zone, abolishes the annual change in time from standard to daylight savings time and maintains standard time for all 12 months of the calendar year, if California and Washington make the same change within the next 10 years.

SB 567- Directs the Department of Early Learning and Care to establish and implement a childcare provider incentive program.

SB 838– Exempts the State Park and Recreation Department from the Public Contracting Code in conducting purchases from local businesses.

SB 974- Reduces to 45 days the time under which a city or county must decide a land use application for single-family dwellings.

SB 1086-Requires the Director of the Department of Consumer and Business Services to establish an apprenticeship program for building inspectors.

Yachats News: Oregon Senate Adds Plastic Utensils Some Packaging and Hotel Toiletries to Expand Bag Ban

KATU: Oregon Lawmakers Consider Bill to Boost Child Care Provider Support

Southwestern Oregon Workforce Investment Board (SOWIB) is pleased to announce investment in the future of skilled trades with a $100,000 donation tied to the launch of a diesel mechanic technology program at Southwestern Oregon Community College (SWOCC). This donation is the first step toward the college constructing a shop building for the new hands-on training designed to prepare students for in-demand careers in the diesel repair industry.

If you live in Coos Bay, and even if you don’t, there’s a chance you have heard of Ron Kutch. He has been a resident of the area for over forty years and deeply loves the area. “It’s home,” is a phrase that was mentioned more than once in the time spent with Ron for this interview.

Ron has lived in Coos Bay since 1985, when he was moving into the area the big industries such as timber and the port were on the way out. In the 1980’s the timber industry left the area taking thousands of jobs with it- most of which never came back.  The Port of Coos Bay was seeing around 350 ships through the port yearly. Today that number is closer to 50. Another issue that faced the area was the reduction in the harvest level of federal and state timber. From 1993 to 2017, in Coos and Douglas Counties, there was a 73 percent drop in the harvest of timber.

Ron has seen all the issues that have plagued the Bay Area over the last forty years. While many left the area Ron and his family didn’t- because it is home. Ron and his wife were foster parents for twenty years, and once the children left the house, he became more involved in other aspects of the community. He currently is the Chair of the Legislative Action Committee for the Bay Area Chamber of Commerce and has served on just about every board of directors in the area.

Two of the big issues that face Coos Bay are housing and industry. The industries can’t come in unless people have somewhere to live. The Pacific Intermodal Port, or PCIP might be the solution to part of this issue. The 2.3-billion-dollar project hopes to bring in an estimated 6,000 jobs. The jobs that this project will bring in will be good paying jobs for residents and a boost to the local economy. However, there is another hurdle that Ron believes is important to address as well, “You can bring the industries in, but people still need a place to live- Housing is essential.”

Ron believes that one of the ways to get anything done is to work together. He is an active participant in weekly state Chamber of Commerce calls and bi-weekly Coos Bay Chamber calls that meets with the Representatives and Senators in the District. He networks at the Bay Area Chamber meetings and sends out information to their 500 members. He encourages everyone to follow along in the legislative process by picking a bill and following it through session.

I’ll leave you with this quote from Ron to show you how passionate he is about the place he calls home, “I moved around a lot growing up. At 26, I was ready to put down roots in a small town. I would not have picked Coos Bay, but this is the place God had for us.  Over the past 40 years, it has become home. I deeply love the area. Of course, there is the natural beauty and the small-town feel, but what I really love is the spirit of the folks who are trying to rebuild the community. Some are relative newcomers, some whose family has been here for 100 years or more. We were dealt a great hand years ago, but then someone came along and stacked the deck against us. Some of us are working our tails off to right that wrong. We are trying to regain the prosperity brought about by hard-working people. It will not be the same. Big Timber is gone, and it will not be coming back – at least not like it was. But we have such opportunity here – especially with the Port. We have all the pieces in place to “Git ‘R Done”. We just need a big push AND the help of our State and Federal representatives to get over the hump.”

If you are in the area, be sure to say hello to Ron and sit down with him so he can share his story of what he loves about his home with you as well.

You can learn more about the Pacific Coast Intermodal Port (PCIP) Here

If you would like to nominate someone for the district spotlight, please email my Office Manager Sam at [email protected].

The connection between people and their government is bolstered when the public has substantial opportunity to let their concerns be heard by their elected officials. Below are a few ways that YOU can join in on the legislative process.

• OLIS- Oregon Legislative Information System– This is where you can find extensive details about every bill as well as follow them through the legislative process. This is also where you can view committee hearings online.
• Legislative Session Participation Guide– This is a wonderful resource with everything you will need to know about how to participate in the Legislative Session. Links to find your legislatures, how to follow bills and watch meetings, how to testify and visiting the Capitol.

Capitol Phone: 503-986-1705
Capitol Address: 900 Court St NE, S-303, Salem, OR, 97301
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/anderson

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To contact me, please click here: [email protected]