| Oregon legislature adjourns: Who won and who lost? - KATU.com - Portland, Oregon - Local & Regional
Found: Tue Jun 30 10:39:14 2009 PDT
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June 30, 2009
- Portland, Oregon
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Story Published: Jun 30, 2009 at 10:28 AM PDT
Story Updated: Jun 30, 2009 at 10:28 AM PDT
By Associated Press
Some of the major bills approved by the 2009 Oregon Legislature:
JOBS - With Oregon's unemployment rate second highest in the nation, Democratic legislative leaders used state bonds and raised taxes to put thousands of people to work on public works projects. The biggest single program was Gov. Ted Kulongoski's $300 million-a-year transportation package, which will be paid for in part by a 6-cent-a-gallon gasoline tax increase. Also passed was a $175 million stimulus package that at last count had created or saved 3,200 jobs.
TAXES - Using their "supermajority status," the Democrats raised taxes for corporations, high income-earners, hospitals and health insurers - some of it to plug budget holes and prevent cuts to schools, public safety and human services programs. Anti-tax activists and some business groups vowed to mount a petition drive aimed at forcing a statewide vote on the income tax hikes.
CELL PHONES - Oregon will join other West Coast states that ban use of hand-held cell phones while operating a motor vehicle - with a maximum $90 fine. The new law does not apply to drivers using a cell phone equipped with a handsfree device.
HEALTH CARE - Lawmakers approved a move to extend state health coverage to 80,000 uninsured children and 35,000 low-income adults. The expansion will be financed by the increased taxes on the medical industry. Lawmakers also created a health agency called the Oregon Health Authority to oversee state efforts to rein in health care costs.
GREEN OREGON - Kulongoski had mixed success in his efforts to "green up" Oregon. His "cap and trade" plan to limit greenhouse gases got nowhere, undercut by a poor economy and national efforts to create a carbon trading system. He won approval of a bill for a new low-carbon fuel standard for cars and trucks. Lawmakers also approved measures to promote residential solar power and home energy efficiency.
ENVIRONMENTAL DISPUTES - Lawmakers approved bills to phase out most field burning by grass seed farmers, set up two "fishing free" marine reserves off the Oregon coast, ban large-scale destination resorts in the Metolius River Basin in Central Oregon and create a surcharge on PacifiCorp customers to remove four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River.
SCHOOLS - A temporary moratorium on growth of statewide online schools that have drawn about 4,000 students statewide was passed. Legislators endorsed a bill to strengthen the law against bullying in the public schools. It requires school districts to establish clear policies on bullying and designate a "point person" to handle complaints.
CRIME - Lawmakers split on party lines in deciding to suspend most provisions of a voter-approved measure requiring longer sentences for repeat property and drug offenders. Democrats called it necessary to prevent cuts to the Oregon State Police and other public safety programs. Lawmakers toughened penalties for crimes against pregnant women, requiring a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole for murder against a pregnant woman.
MENU LABELING - Chain restaurants will be required to display calorie counts for hamburgers, French fries and the rest of their offerings under a bill aimed at combatting a national obesity epidemic. It applies to Oregon restaurants with 15 or more outlets in the nation, effective in January 2011.
ANIMAL WELFARE - Lawmakers decided to crack down on puppy mills by setting a limit of 50 breeding dogs at production facilities. The Legislature approved a ban on large exotic pets in hopes of phasing out potentially dangerous exotic animals kept as pets, including primates, large exotic cats, bears and crocodiles.
Some of the issues left in the dust as the 2009 Legislature adjourned:
* Proposed beer and cigarette tax increases, which would have been in addition to the $733 million income tax package lawmakers passed to balance the next two-year budget.
* A further expansion of Oregon's pioneering bottle deposit law, which was expanded two years ago to include water bottles.
* A measure to allow some students who are not legal citizens to pay lower in-state tuition at Oregon's public universities.
* A proposed ban on smoking in cars when children are present.
* The continuing unresolved dispute about whether employers must accommodate medical marijuana patients who show up for work with the drug still in their systems.
* A bill to exempt teachers from a state law limiting the sale of soda pop and unhealthy snack foods in schools.
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