TO: Mayor and City Council
THROUGH:
FROM: Legislative Committee
SUBJECT:
title
Priorities for 2023 Oregon Legislative Session.
Ward(s): All Wards
Councilor(s): All Councilors
Neighborhood(s): All Neighborhoods
Result Area(s): Good Governance; Natural Environment Stewardship; Safe Community; Safe, Reliable and Efficient Infrastructure; Strong and Diverse Economy; Welcoming and Livable Community.
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SUMMARY:
summary
The 2023 Oregon Legislative Session is set to begin January 17, 2023. Before session begins, the Legislative Committee of the City Council considers priorities to pursue during the session and policy statements to guide Salem’s response to draft legislation. Bills proposed for consideration during the session are expected to be released in January 2023. When the subject of proposed legislation is outside the scope of the policy statements, the City Council’s Legislative Committee reviews bills identified as critical by City staff and recommends to City Council the position the City should take on critical bills.
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ISSUE:
Shall City Council approve the City of Salem’s priorities and policy statements for the anticipated legislation resulting from the 2023 Oregon Legislative Session.
RECOMMENDATION:
recommendation
Approve the City of Salem’s priorities and policy statements for the anticipated legislation resulting from the 2023 Oregon Legislative Session.
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FACTS AND FINDINGS:
The Legislative Committee met on September 23, 2022 to consider priorities for the coming session and policy statements (Attachment 1) to guide Salem’s response to proposed legislation. The Legislative Committee is Mayor Bennett and Councilors Gonzalez, Hoy, and Phillips. Councilor Stapleton serves as the alternate.
The Legislative Committee is recommending three funding priorities for the session:
• Funds for River Road Slide Mitigation ($20 million, one-time)
• Funds for Peace Plaza public square ($2 million, one-time)
• Funds to sustain sheltering program ($9 million annually) and Navigation Center ($2.1 million annually); and
• Funds for a sobering center ($1 million for two years operations).
The Committee also recommends the City pursue opportunities to an affordable housing fix that was the subject of Senate Bill 1557 in the 2022 Session related to Orchard Park apartments, a photo radar fix that would include Salem as a City able to use the technology similar to Senate Bill 560 from the 2019 Session, and support an effort to capture cost of future recreational vehicle demolition at point of sale or point of licensing - similar in scope to Senate Bill 4066 from the 2021 Session.
In response to a recent Court ruling requiring the release of pre-trial mental health patients from Oregon State Hospital, pending a status hearing, the Committee recommends that Salem make it a priority to develop or participate in support of legislation to ensure patients are returned to their jurisdiction of origin pending a status hearing, rather than being released into Salem.
BACKGROUND:
As positions are developed for individual bills, the Legislative Committee will recommend the City Council adopt positions in opposition or support. Before any official representing the City of Salem can attempt to influence legislation on an issue, the City Council must adopt a position related to that matter. To continue a coordinated and unified response during the upcoming session, and in accordance with Council Policy No. G-1, the Mayor and Councilor are asked to communicate the nature of their legislative contacts to staff via an email to Courtney Knox Busch (cbusch@cityofsalem.net <mailto:cbusch@cityofsalem.net>). Staff will forward the communication to the City’s lobbyist, the Legislative Committee, and City Council as appropriate.
Courtney Knox Busch
Strategic Initiatives Manager
Attachments:
1. 2023 Legislative Policy Statements