Happy Belated Statehood Day! I write you after a particularly festive Thursday at the state capitol. Gov. Kulongoski and Thomas Lauderdale of Pink Martini led Oregon's birthday celebration from the Rotunda, just a small preview of the sesquicentennial celebration on Valentine's Day next year when our state turns 150.

Today, the supplemental session reaches its halfway point. The majority of bills that will pass have made it through their chamber of origin and are heading to committees on the other side of the Capitol. We are right on target to be done with our work by the end of the month.

Perhaps the biggest news of the session so far was last Friday's release of an updated revenue forecast. Oregon's budget, set in odd-numbered years, is based on the State Economist's prediction about state revenue over the course of the two year biennium. As you might expect given the national economic slow-down, Oregon's February Revenue Forecast indicated that the state will have $177 million less to spend than we anticipated when we adopted the 2007-2009 budget eight months ago.

The good news is that the Legislature was cautious last year, adopting a budget that called for spending less than all of the revenue that was projected at the time. In fact, we set aside 1% of general fund revenue in case we experienced any unanticipated developments mid-biennium. This means our state budget is insulated from this immediate storm and, at present, we do not anticipate cutting state programs and services. We will continue to take this prudent approach as we determine how to spend any remaining resources during this February supplemental session and beyond.

The bad news is that many good ideas for new spending, such as the Farms to Schools Program and a critical affordable housing plan face an uphill battle for funding. I will be balancing the importance of these programs with the need to leave ourselves some cushion in case the revenue outlook continues to deteriorate over the course of this year.

In my past newsletter I filled you in on my committee bills this session. Here is a quick update:

The House Committee on Energy and the Environment passed all three of our bills out of committee; the picture at right is of my fellow committee co-chair, Rep. Chuck Burley of Bend, and me hearing testimony during our daily Energy and Environment meetings. The technical fix to the mercury amalgam separator bill from last session and a bill calling for energy efficiency standards in state buildings have passed unanimously from the House to the Senate. The other bill, related to greenhouse gas reporting, was sent to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means for consideration as it has budgetary impacts. This bill became the target of an intense lobbying effort, one that we worked hard to overcome last session when we passed both the Renewable Energy Standard and the Climate Change Integration Act. This time around, given how little time we have to help undecided legislators understand the issue, we may not be able to overcome that effort. The Oregonian ran a great piece on the bill and the unwarranted controversy it has created; click here to take a look.

The House Committee on Health Care has also passed its two bills out of committee. One of these bills, a referral to the people which would amend the Oregon Constitution to make health care a right, passed the House yesterday. I spoke in favor of the HOPE amendment; you can read my floor speech here. The other health care bill, which combines an effort to include more eligible children in the Oregon Health Plan with a pilot program in deliver care improvement, has also been sent to Ways and Means for their consideration. It has a $1 million price tag attached.

In addition to passing the HOPE referral yesterday, the House also passed the Governor's new driver's license requirements into law. This is the first bill to pass both chambers of the supplemental session. It was also one of the most controversial bills we will see this month. Thousands of people came to the Capitol for rallies and public hearings to voice their opposition to the provision of this law that requires proof of legal presence in order to obtain a drivers' license. I voted no on this difficult bill and I spoke on the floor to explain my opposition. Please click here to read my floor speech.

Over the next two weeks or less, we will continue our work in the Capitol. Starting today, my committees will begin to hear Senate bills and move those through the process. The Ways and Means committee will carefully analyze the bills with fiscal impact and determine what will be funded and what will have to wait for the 2009 budgeting process. As always, I urge you to be in touch and I will continue to do the same.

Yours sincerely,

State Representative Ben Cannon
1125 SE Madison, Suite 100B
Portland, OR 97214
rep.bencannon@state.or.us
http://www.repbencannon.com
(503) 236-3351