Pamplin Media Group February 2024 11
A guide to legislative session for Wilsonville
By KAELYN CASSIDY Pamplin Media Group
LIFE ’ S NEXT ADVENTURE
Anticipation is rising for the upcoming legislative short session , and constituents are eager to see how representatives address hot-button issues like tolling , affordable housing , education and more .
Here ’ s what Wilsonville residents need to know before the session starts :
What ’ s a ‘ short session ?’
During even-numbered years , the Oregon Legislature convenes for a 35-day short session , as opposed to the 160-day long session held in odd-numbered years .
This year , the legislative session will begin Feb . 5 and end March 10 .
Short sessions can be an opportunity to refine and “ clean up ” bills passed during the previous year ’ s long session , Rep . Courtney Neron , D-Wilsonville , said during a Jan . 20 town hall with constituents .
“ You may have heard that the walkout happened , which I believe makes the short session even more important , because some of those policies in the last few days were passed so quickly that there was not the proper vetting of the concepts that we would like to see over a longer , slower , months-long deliberation ,” Neron said .
Bills in the 2023 legislative session were held up for weeks due to a 6-week walkout by Republican senators — the longest in Oregon ’ s history . The boycott ended with 10 days left in the session and a backlog of bills .
“ Those were all compressed in the name of getting some good work through ,” Neron said . “ I believe this short session in 2024 is going to have an added importance of making sure we ’ re doing cleanup work along the way .”
Neron represents Wilsonville in the Oregon House of Representatives , and Sen . Aaron Woods , D-Wilsonville , is the city ’ s representative in the Oregon Senate .
Each representative will introduce two bills this session , though they may also sign onto other bills .
Woods will introduce a bill that would create a task force to look at expanding TriMet ’ s WES commuter line to Salem .
“ The objective there is to help reduce the traffic congestion that we ’ re seeing , and also , as jobs grow , it ’ ll help support the growth of jobs in our community ,” Woods said in an interview with the Wilsonville Spokesman .
The Legislature considered a similar bill last session , but it ultimately did not pass . This time , Woods said the bill has bipartisan and bicameral support .
“ This is not a new concept . This has been around for a while ,” Woods said . “ But we ’ ve got to really move on this , I believe .”
Woods will also introduce a bill regarding the influence of artificial intelligence on elections
2024 LEGISLATURE
that would require disclaimers on political ads made using AI tools . In the case of a violation , the bill proposes complaints be submitted to the secretary of state with the potential for a $ 10,000 fine as punishment .
“ We need to be able to trust our election system ,” Woods said . “ We need to be able to keep up with what ’ s going on now and protect our elections from all of these bad actors that we have out there that are causing problems .”
Neron also has two bills to introduce . The first would legalize the use of cameras on stop-sign arms of school buses to enforce laws against passing a stopped school bus .
“ In other states , ( buses ) can have a little camera , and they work with law enforcement to make sure that , if somebody passes by that unsafely , that there can be a repercussion , kind of like how speeding cameras work ,” Neron said during the town hall .
Neron ’ s second bill would criminalize making credible threats of mass harm .
“ We have a gap in our law where it is currently illegal to threaten a crime of mass harm if you are joking , but it is not illegal if you are serious ,” Neron said during the town hall . “ So closing the gap of credible threats of mass harm is something that I care a lot about .”
Previous iterations of the bill would make these threats a felony crime , which Neron pushed for in order to place firearm purchasing restrictions on the convicted individual . In order to gain broader support , this bill will downgrade the proposal to a misdemeanor , but would still impose restrictions on those convicted of the crime .
Neron and Woods both cited affordable housing and homelessness as priority items in the upcoming session .
“ Housing really , from my perspective , is the number one need that we have to ensure that everyone has a better life ,” Woods said .
Both representatives are also concerned about the potential impact of tolls on Charbonneau residents if a toll were to be placed on the Boone Bridge .
“ Charbonneau should not have to pay a toll every time they want to come to the grocery store ,” Neron said in an interview with the Wilsonville Spokesman .
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