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BY COREY BUCHANAN
A few days after announcing her reelection campaign for House District 26 , Rep . Courtney Neron , D-Wilsonville , provided a rundown of what she and her colleagues accomplished during the brisk 2022 legislative session at a virtual town hall Saturday , March 12 . The town hall was facilitated by the Wilsonville government .
Neron highlighted the work the Legislature did to address homelessness , support schools , bolster the workforce and improve health care during the session that lasted a little over one month .
As Neron noted , the Legislature allocated $ 400 million to address homelessness and housing , $ 300 million to recruit and retain educators , $ 300 million on behavioral and medical health , $ 200 million to increase broadband access and $ 100 million for the child care industry , among other investments .
“ Oregonians had urgent needs that needed to be addressed and we were
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NERON
able to do so ,” Neron said . The largest investment would provide hundreds of millions of dollars for the development of affordable housing and homelessness services . Neron was also the chief sponsor of a bill , which did not pass , to provide incentives so that affordable housing doesn ’ t eventually become market-rate housing — thus leading to displacement . She said she would continue to work on this policy issue in preparation for the next session .
“ What we need to do is not only build affordable housing , but we need to preserve the affordable housing we do have ,” she said .
Neron noted that the entire state of Oregon is considered to have a dearth of child care options available and that approved legislation will provide money to stabilize both child care establishments
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and workers .
“ It makes being a child care provider more sustainable as a small business and profession ,” she said .
In terms of the legislation she proposed , the Wilsonville resident ’ s bill mandating that school board members must submit statements of economic interest passed , while her bill to expand the authority of the Oregon Government Ethics Commission to investigate and impose penalties for violations
of public meeting law did not .
“ Both of my bills focused
on government transparency and accountability ,” she said , later adding : “ I think it ’ s especially important we ensure the integrity and transparency and build that public trust .”
Neron also noted that she helped solidify $ 1.9 million in funding for the development of a projected $ 33 million affordable
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housing project at the Wilsonville Transit Center and $ 2 million to fund Clean Water Services for the use of recycled water in King City ’ s Community Park .
During the question and answer portion of the town hall , Neron was asked about the pay she and other legislators receive . Recently , three legislators including Rachel Prusak , D-West Linn , said they could not afford to run for reelection due to financial considerations . Legislators are paid $ 33,000 a year and get $ 152 each day they work in Salem . Neron , a former high school language teacher , said that there are many workers who don ’ t receive pay that is commensurate with the responsibilities they have . She added that low pay for legislators may mean that mostly retired and well-off individuals can afford to serve their communities .
“ Making sure we ’ re removing barriers to participation so we have a system that supports diverse viewpoints is very important to me ,” Neron said .
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