Bill would extend ban on offshore drilling
Feb 19 2010 Beth Casper
A bill that extends Oregon's moratorium on offshore drilling for 10 more years passed the Oregon Senate on Thursday with a vote of 22-8.
House Bill 3613, sponsored by Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, protects Oregon's Coast for three miles from shore from the threat of offshore oil and gas exploration for the next 10 years. (Read more)
Oregon lawmakers extend moratorium on offshore drilling
February 19, 2010 | By Kim Murphy - Los Angeles Times
A 10-year moratorium on offshore oil and gas development along the Oregon coast won final passage in the Legislature on Thursday, though lawmakers stopped short of adopting a permanent ban.
There are few known oil resources offshore and no big push for exploration, but environmental, fishing and tourism groups pressed to extend the ban, fearful that the federal government could move to open waters farther offshore to drilling.
The state Senate's 22-8 approval endorsed a version of the bill passed in the House last week. (Read more)
Supporters cheer Oregon House vote to ban off-shore drilling for 10 Years
Michelle Cole, The Oregonian
February 08, 2010
Oregon's coastal waters -- at least the 3-mile-wide strip that the state controls -- would remain off-limits to oil and gas drilling for the next decade under a bill that passed the House on Monday.
"Oregonians are not willing to risk our offshore resources for a few days of energy," argued Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland.
Supporters, including the Oregon League of Conservation Voters and the state's crab, salmon and trawl commissions, said a moratorium will signal to the federal government that Oregon's coast should be off-limits for drilling. (Read more)
By: Chris Lehman
February 4, 2010
Oregon lawmakers are considering a ban on a chemical called BPA in certain products. Studies of Bisphenol A say it increases the risk of cancer, heart disease and diabetes, among other health problems.
The Oregon legislation targets products made for children, such as baby bottles and formula containers.
Backers of the bill such as Democratic Representative Ben Cannon say children are especially vulnerable to BPA. Ben Cannon: "This bill is based on a simple premise: That parents have enough to worry about already. They should be able to trust the sippy cup." (Read more)
Kulongoski Signs Climate Legislation at Business School
The Daily Emerald
July 30th, 2009
The governor signed seven environmental bills and addressed his administration's successes in climate change initiatives this morning in the atrium of Lillis Hall. The legislation included a bill aimed to develop a low-carbon fuel standard by 2015 (HB 2186), which, after its signing, sparked applause and high-fives among the crowd.
Rep. Ben Cannon, who played a large role in passing the measures, followed Kulongoski. After jokingly mentioning the stresses of passing a bill, Cannon thanked the attending legislators who worked with him and the governor on these bills, calling their work an "extraordinary collaboration."
Four contributing legislators stood behind the governor as he signed each bill, and the men congratulated one another afterward. Wednesday's event sparked the formation of research groups dedicated to conserving energy and reducing climate change in Oregon, which are projected to produce results within the next five years. "A transition to clean energy in our economy is a transition towards prosperity," Cannon said. (Read more)
Ben Cannon and Floyd Prozanski Op-Ed on Beer Tax
The Oregonian
June 12th, 2009
As the Legislature wrestles with final decisions about how to balance the upcoming two-year budget, we suggest rekindling the conversation about updating Oregon's antiquated beer tax. Since it's not indexed to inflation, the state's beer tax has been stuck at less than a penny per glass since 1977. Put another way, large breweries like Budweiser and Coors, who have been selling beer in Oregon since 1977, have seen their state excise tax burden remain unchanged while inflation has pushed all other prices up by 252 percent. And their lobbyists would like to see it stay that way...
Sure, no one likes to pay more for their beer. But we've spoken with countless beer drinkers who are more than willing to pay a few extra cents to help fund treatment and public safety. Oregonians recognize that substance abuse, left untreated, will cost us more in the future.
Perhaps that's why polls consistently show that the overwhelming majority of Oregonians -- across the state and across partisan lines -- would support a moderate beer tax increase, particularly if they are assured that the revenue is dedicated to addiction-related work. (Read More)
House Debates Health Insurance Mandates
The Oregonian
April 30th, 2009
SALEM -- House Democrats and Republicans again debated the wisdom and expense of health care insurance mandates on Thursday. This time the mandate is contained in House Bill 2589, which would require insurers to pay for hearing aids for children under age 18.
Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, said children diagnosed with hearing problems "should get the help they need right away. And not when their parents can scrape together the money for treatment."
An estimated 1,290 children in Oregon have hearing needs that are not met. Covering the cost of hearing aids is less expensive, Cannon said, than paying for speech therapy and other needs hearing impaired children might develop in the future. (Read More)
Online Voter Registration Moves Towards Reality
The Oregonian
March 20th, 2009
Oregonians may be able to register to vote from their home computers in time for the 2010 election, under a bill passed by the state House Friday.
People pay bills online, order movies online and check bank accounts online, said Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland. So, he asked, why shouldn't they register to vote online?
Before the vote, Secretary of State Kate Brown distributed a letter to House members saying the system would be "every bit as secure as the current system."
The bill passed 45-9, and now moves to the Senate. (Read more)
Labor Radio: Ben Cannon on the Budget
KBOO Community Radio
March 19th, 2009
Kevin Card speaks with Oregon State Legislator Ben Cannon on the budget crisis (Listen here)
Oregon Could Join Washington In Offering Online Voter Registration
Oregon Public Broadcasting News
January 28, 2009
Registering to vote in Oregon could soon be as easy as a few clicks of the mouse.
State lawmakers are considering a bill that would make Oregon one of a handful of states to allow online voter registration. Democratic Representative Ben Cannon of Portland is sponsoring a bill that would allow Oregonians to register online starting in 2011.
Rep. Ben Cannon: "What we're envisioning here is a one-click process for voter registration, so, lowering that barrier to participation." Since you can't sign an online registration form, elections officials would use the signature on your driver's license to authenticate your ballot on Election Day. (Read more)
State Lawmakers Back at Work
KOIN Local 6 News
January 12, 2009
Lawmakers return for the feburary session. (Watch Here)
Tax-Guzzlers
Willamette Week
Corey Pein
June 25, 2008
The Portland metro area now has more hybrids per capita?about 1 for every 340 households?than any other city in the country, according to market researchers.
Which prompts the question: If demand is already high and climbing as fast as the price of gasoline, why does the state keep giving away money to people buying hybrids? Like many states, Oregon has long offered generous tax credits - on top of existing federal tax credits - to buyers of new hybrids.
Businesses claim up to 35 percent of a hybrid's cost as a state tax credit. Individuals can claim state income tax deductions of up to $1,500 for one of 14 hybrid models, including the GMC Yukon hybrid SUV (standard retail price: $51,000, 21 mpg in the city) and the Lexus LS 600h ($105,000, and 20 mpg in the city).
..."Our tax incentives ought to be based not on whether a car is a hybrid, but whether a car is fuel-efficient," says state Rep. Ben Cannon, a Democrat from Southeast Portland. (Read more)
House debates nature of rights
The Oregonian
Bill Graves
February 14, 2008
Do Oregonians have a fundamental right to effective, affordable health care?
That question threw the Oregon House into a lofty and philosophical debate for more than an hour Wednesday before it voted 31-29 along strict party lines in favor of referring it to the November ballot.
"This experience has come closest to resembling what I imagined a Legislature to be in my young and idealistic days," said Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland. He weighed in by saying rights are grounded in allowing "us to deliberate over and choose a good life for ourselves." Health care would qualify as one such right, he said. (Read more)
Oregon House approves license restrictions
Salem Statesman Journal
Thelma Guerrero-Huston
February 14, 2008
The Oregon House on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved a bill that prevents illegal immigrants from obtaining an Oregon driver's license.
The state Senate passed the same legislation -- Senate Bill 1080 -- earlier this week.
Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, spoke against the legislation, saying it would not help fight fraud.
"Immigrants don't come to this country to get a driver's license, and they will not leave because they are ineligible for one," Cannon said. "Undocumented workers will continue to drive, but they will not be tested to ensure they know the rules of the road."
(Read more)
Legislature keyed on conservation
The West Linn Tidings
State Rep. Scott Bruun
July 19, 2007
At the 1908 National Governor's Conference in Washington D.C., Theodore Roosevelt - my favorite president - said to the assembled state executives that the issue of conservation "is the chief material question that confronts us, second only - and second always - to the great fundamental questions of morality."
Well said, of course.
And while Oregon's 2007 Legislature largely avoided issues of morality, we did have the courage to tackle meaningful environmental and conservation reform.
...Rep. Ben Cannon and I also introduced legislation for a carbon cap-and-trade program. (Read more)
Legislature takes steps forward, back
Statesman Journal
Bryan Johnston
July 8, 2007
Legislative sessions are best thought of as episodes in an ongoing conversation. These comments leave to others the question of which bills passed and which failed and instead focus on some promising developments for the future and some troubling ones.
First, the leadership in the building was impressive. Both chambers controlled the process. Sen. Peter Courtney's mature hand was firmly on the steering wheel, while Speaker Jeff Merkley and Rep. Dave Hunt held their razor-thin majority together, with a few misadventures.
Leadership praise also has to go to Gov. Ted Kulongoski and his staff. This, his third session, was his best. A governor can play many roles during session, and resource, catalyst and cheerleader are among the most effective. Kulongoski played all three well.
A second promising development is this session's first-term legislators. Tina Kotek, Ron Maurer, Brian Clem, Tobias Read, Ben Cannon, Sara Gelser and Chris Edwards are but a handful of names from the most impressive freshman class in my memory. These are stellar people who have bright futures and who brighten ours. (Read more)
Big last-minute tax break: Will pollution-control tax credit live on in new form?
The Oregonian
Betsy Hammond
June 21, 2007
A last-minute plan to revive the state's pollution-control tax credit -- a largely discredited tax break that was expected to expire this year -- made it out of the House Revenue Committee Thursday.
The plan, while far from certain to pass this session, is popular with business groups and with some lawmakers in each party. It was sent to the Ways and Means Committee where it may die -- or from which it could emerge as a last-minute surprise.
The stakes are huge: It would award businesses up to $13 million a year to comply with or go beyond Oregon anti-pollution laws. That would make it the largest single tax credit passed by the 2007 Legislature.
Backers including House Minority Leader Dave Hunt, D-Gladstone, and House Revenue Committee member Tom Butler, R-Ontario, said it would help Oregon draw and retain businesses by helping them meet the higher costs of operating in a clean Oregon-specific manner.
But environmental advocates, including House Energy and Environment Chair Jackie Dingfelder, D-Portland, and committee member Ben Cannon, D-Portland, said the bill is too last-minute and goes too far. They urged that it be put off until next session so it can be tightened up. (Read more)
New lawmaker earns praise as he learns job
The Oregonian
Edward Hershey
June 21, 2007
Ask Rep. Ben Cannon about his favorite vote during his first session in the Oregon House, and he'll tell you about cougars. Specifically, how he helped pass a law to allow the state to deputize residents to hunt them.
Conservationists and humane societies hated the measure. And cougars aren't exactly prowling Mount Tabor Park in Cannon's urban district. But, he says, Portlanders must address concerns elsewhere in the state if they want a friendly ear for their own issues.
It's among lessons the ambitious Democrat -- a 30-year-old teacher, former Rhodes scholar and brand-new father -- learned in his first six months in Salem.
Constituents, he says, gesturing toward the door of his Capitol office as the session winds down, want to know why the Legislature doesn't work. "Why has Oregon failed to live up to its progressive heritage? What stands in the way? Part of the answer involves electing more progressive legislators, but it also involves thinking about the needs of people in places other than ours."
Veteran public interest lobbyist John Mullin of the Oregon Law Center puts Cannon at the top of the Legislature's impressive freshman class.
"To be so young and in his first session and show that kind of leadership is really terrific," Mullin says. "And he does not speak just to hear himself talk but to make a point -- and it is always on point." (Read more) \
For immigrants, no papers, high tuition close college doors
The Oregonian
Nikole Hannah-Jones
June 21, 2007
Each year, about 65,000 high school graduates nationally and up to 1,000 in Oregon are undocumented. For most, educational doors then slam shut. Several Oregon public universities won't admit applicants in the country illegally. Others will, but substantial barriers remain.
"They didn't choose to come here," says Agnes Hoffman, Portland State University associate vice provost, "and now suddenly, through no fault of their own, we are barring them from pursuing their education. We are barring them from improving their lives."
Ben Cannon, a House Democrat who introduced the Oregon tuition-equity bill, says the government has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars educating these children. (The Supreme Court has guaranteed students K-12 education.) Cannon says it is to the state's benefit to allow them to become part of the college-educated class that will pay more in taxes and be less likely to rely on government services or get in trouble with the law.
Ten states, including Washington, Utah and California, have passed tuition-equity bills that allow undocumented students who graduate from state high schools to pay in-state tuition. Several others have tuition bills pending. Since Washington passed its bill on the first try in 2003, 851 undocumented students have taken advantage of it. (Read more)
Senate to vote on cigarette-tax measure's future
Statesman Journal
Peter Wong
June 13, 2007
Now it's the Senate'sturn to consider whether voters should decide on a cigarette-tax increase of 84 cents per pack.
It was strike three Tuesday for the House, which once again could not agree to send an increase to voters. The tax would pay for health insurance coverage to most of 120,000 children without it, grants to community and rural health clinics, and tobacco-use reduction programs.
The Senate has pending before it two measures, one of which would send the issue to voters via a constitutional amendment. Constitutional changes require only simple majorities in both chambers to qualify for the ballot, so the majority Democrats would not need Republican votes to pass them.
One Democrat, Ben Cannon of Portland, was awaiting the birth of a child and was absent from Tuesday's vote. (Read more)
Baby Cannon arrives!
The Oregonian
June 13, 2007
A baby girl was born at 8:45 a.m. today to Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, and his wife, Liz.
The new parents named her Evelyn.
The newest Cannon, born nine days past her due date, is apparently a healthy kid. (Read more)
Cigarette tax fails third time in House
The Register-Guard
David Steves
June 13, 2007
SALEM - The Oregon House Tuesday fell short for a third time in its pursuit of an elusive supermajority for a plan that would raise cigarette taxes to expand children's health care.
House Speaker Jeff Merkley said after the defeat that he and other Democratic leaders had entered the day expecting enough Republican support to pass the measure, House Bill 2967.
The House brought the bill up for reconsideration despite the absence of Rep. Ben Cannon, a Portland Democrat whose wife was in labor with the couple's first child. That meant six Republicans would have had to support the bill, up from four a day earlier when Cannon was present. But the Democrat's absence didn't seem to matter, as Republicans provided just enough support to again bring the final tally to 35 votes for the bill. (Read more)
Kids health plan tobacco tax still one vote short of success
The Oregonian
Don Colburn and Michelle Cole
June 13, 2007
SALEM -- For the second time in two days, a plan to expand coverage for Oregon's uninsured children by raising the state tobacco tax went down to a one-vote defeat Tuesday in the House.
Once again, the losing side -- Democratic lawmakers and Gov. Ted Kulongoski -- vowed that they would find a way to bring their proposed "Healthy Kids Plan" to voters in November.
But the bill failed again Tuesday, as Democrats picked up three more Republican votes but lost two others. And Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, who had voted for the bill Monday, was absent to be with his wife, who was in labor.
Meeting with reporters after the vote, House Speaker Jeff Merkley, D-Portland, said he had the required 36 votes pledged when he went on the floor, even without Cannon there. But Merkley said he received a note during the debate that one of the "yes" votes had become a "no." He wouldn't say who it was. (Read more)
Tobacco tax and "Healthy Kids" narrowly defeated again
The Oregonian
June 12, 2007
Once again, a plan to expand coverage for Oregon's uninsured children by raising the state tobacco tax went down to narrow defeat Tuesday in the House. Once again, anti-tax House Republicans maintained enough solidarity to keep Democrats from passing one of their highest legislative priorities. Once again, the floor debate devolved into partisan bickering with a surprising parliamentary twist.
Once again, the losing side -- Democratic lawmakers and Gov. Ted Kulongoski -- vowed that they would still find a way to bring their proposed Healthy Kids Plan to voters in November. (Read more)
Tuesday in Salem: Will House vote again on Healthy Kids?
The Oregonian
June 12, 2007
The full Senate is scheduled to debate House Bill 2872, which prohibits anyone under age 18 from using a cell phone while driving.
There's still a question of what the House will tackle. Lawmakers could reconsider a bill referring the Healthy Kids insurance proposal/cigarette tax to the ballot. But whether that happens will depend upon the vote count. Will enough Republicans come over to support the bill? And will Democrats need Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, on the floor? Cannon left early Monday...As of Tuesday morning, he and his wife, Liz, were still at the hospital awaiting delivery of the couple's first child. (Read more)
Healthy Kids funding falls one vote short
The Oregonian
Betsy Hammond
June 12, 2007
SALEM -- A plan to ask voters to raise the cigarette tax to fund health care for 100,000 Oregon children fell one vote short in the House on Monday.
But backers say their drive to extend health care to more children by raising cigarette taxes to $2.02 cents a pack remains alive.
Rep. Dennis Richardson of Central Point, the Republican House whip, agreed that Democrats have a shot at rounding up enough votes for their plan -- provided they agree to some important, less costly Republican priorities in return.
"I think Healthy Kids in all likelihood will see the light of day before this session is over," he said.
Under House rules, the re-vote on the bill would need to occur this morning.
But members of both parties likely will waive those rules because Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, was on the verge of becoming a father Monday. He left the House at midday Monday to go to Portland to be with his wife, Liz, who was in labor with their first child. They would delay the re-vote until the new papa could attend. (Read more)
Oregon explores its energy future
Statesman Journal
Beth Casper
June 6, 2007
It's cool to rally around climate change these days, but taking real actions to cut greenhouse gases is not nearly as easy.
In a session packed with environmental legislation -- expanding the bottle bill, implementing an electronics waste recycling program and encouraging renewable energy -- something as broad as climate change needed to wait, legislators and environment advocates said.
"We need to do more work ... reaching out to both members of the Legislature, as well as industry and agriculture and forestry, to get everyone on the same page in terms of how to be part of the solution," said Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland. "In general, industry understands that it can be and needs to be part of the answer. We can work hard in 2009 with real consensus around cap-and-trade and performance plant standards."
The cap-and-trade bill would have established an emissions cap for all significant carbon emitters and allowed emitters to trade "credits" for carbon reductions.
The other: A power plant performance standard would have forbid utilities from investing long term in a new power plant that pollutes more than a combined-cycle natural gas plant, which currently is the cleanest fossil fuel plant.
That's not to say that climate change was ignored in Oregon's legislative session.
Cannon is a sponsor of the climate change integration act, House Bill 3543, which would set targets for reducing greenhouse gases to 10 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 and 75 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. It also would create a global warming commission and a research institute.
"I am concerned that we need to do more than set targets," Cannon said. "But (House Bill 3543) creates a framework for developing political will." (Read more)
Oregon emission goals are an echo of 1989 effort
Statesman Journal
Beth Casper
June 6, 2007
When legislators this session considered setting targets for reducing Oregon's greenhouse gas emissions, they were retracing history.
In 1989, Oregon adopted a strategy to reduce "the emission of gases that contribute to global warming."
The strategy said emissions should be reduced at least 20 percent below 1988 levels by 2005 by "giving priority to the use of conservation, renewable resources and alternative fuels."
Those targets were never met. Today, Oregon is well above 1990 emission levels.
Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland,is sponsoring the climate change integration act, House Bill 3543, that sets targets for reducing greenhouse gas pollution to 10 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 and 75 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. It also creates a global warming commission and a research institute.
Cannon said the 2007 bill won't make the same mistakes the 1989 one did. This time, the bill makes permanent a formal global warming commission and a research institute. The bill would appropriate $250,000 for the institute. (Read more)
Bills geared to push young toward voting
The Oregonian
Ryan Kost
June 6, 2007
Jefferson Smith sees a lot of democracy going on these days as founding chair of the Oregon Bus Project, a group that strives to get young people voting.
He sees it when he flips the TV channel to shows such as "American Idol" or "So You Think You Can Dance," with viewers feverishly voting for their favorites. If only that drive were as present at the polls, he said.
In a move that seems to echo Smith's concerns, the Oregon Legislature gave final approval Tuesday to two bills aimed at getting more of the state's youths to cast ballots.
House Bill 2910, championed in part by Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, expands current statutes that allow 17-year-olds who would turn 18 by the time of an election to register 60 days before polls open. Under the legislation, those limits would be scrapped, and any 17-year-old could register.
"Students who are 17 are typically still in high school so you have a captive audience you can tap in a voter registration drive," Cannon said. (Read more)
Oregon's driver's manual may add "green" tips
Statesman Journal/Associated Press
June 3, 2007
The Oregon driver's manual may be going a bit beyond the basics of signaling and parallel parking soon.
The 113-page manual is filled with tips for driving safely and now has tips for going "green." A bill to make fuel-efficient driving techniques part of the Oregon driver's test cleared the Legislature on Friday, and Gov. Ted Kulongoski said through a spokesman that he will sign it into law.
House Bill 2704 adds 11 words to the Oregon driver's license law: "The test may include a question regarding fuel efficient driving techniques."
The tips include: not exceeding the speed limit, not accelerating too rapidly, not idling for more than a minute, using cruise control if you have it and keeping the vehicle well-maintained.
The legislation's chief sponsor is Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, the youngest member of the Legislature and owner of two Saturns. Cannon says he got the idea while brainstorming with longtime Democratic activist and former legislator R.P. "Joe" Smith. Both are on the board of the Oregon Bus Project, a nonprofit advocacy group. (Read more) (See also)
A wasteland for curiosity and creativity
The Oregonian
Steve Duin
May 24, 2007
Before I invite the youngest -- and best educated -- member of the Oregon Legislature to the podium, let me flesh out the life Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, brings to the party.
He charged through West Linn High School with a 3.96 GPA, then got a full merit scholarship to Washington University in St. Louis. Cannon never sweated that lone B in Honors English, said Ward Lewis, the teacher who stuck it to him, because he cared more about the allure of what he didn't know than the refuge of what he did.
After graduating from Washington in 1998, Cannon nailed a Coro Fellowship in Public Affairs and, in monthlong projects over the course of a year, interned at Boeing; worked for the St. Louis Public Schools, the plumbers and pipefitters union, a news-talk radio station, and the bi-state transit agency; ran a city council campaign; and wrote a book.
Still concerned about his intellectual maturity, Cannon then spent three years at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, earning a second B.A. in philosophy, politics and economics, an M.A. in comparative and international education and, lest I forget, a doctorate in pub darts.
That is the experience Cannon brought to the Oregon House when he was elected in 2006 after a campaign in which he didn't accept a penny from corporations or political action committees.
And this is the experience he has found there: a body compromised by the complexity of the issues, its reliance on the lobby, and the promises and no-tax pledges members made to get elected. (Read more)
Cannon Speaks on SB838 Renewable Energy Standard
The Office of Representative Cannon
May 23, 2007
Right now, a mile off the coast of Reedsport, the waves are swelling. At this very moment, near Pendleton, the wind is blowing. In the Klamath region, not far beneath the earth's surface, 220-degree water is bubbling. And in Ontario, Baker, Burns, and Bend, the sun is shining.
Oregon's natural resources contain enough energy capacity to meet every current and future power need imaginable.
And yet, at this moment, our state imports energy - including from coal-fired power plants in Wyoming, Utah, and Montana. And, over the next several years, Oregon utilities will be making critical decisions about where to invest millions of additional dollars to keep up with the state's energy needs.
The renewable energy standard represents a golden opportunity to increase the likelihood that those dollars are spent here: developing Oregon's natural resources, developing Oregon businesses, creating Oregon jobs. This bill is about taking control of our energy destiny, putting local entrepreneurs and workers in charge - not energy traders in LA and Houston.
And this is only the third-best reason to support SB 838. (Read more)
Targeting the young
The Oregonian
Edward Walsh
May 23, 2007
Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, at 30 the youngest member of the Legislature, is making a career out of causes for the young.
Cannon's latest foray came Wednesday in an amendment to House Bill 2910 that would transform a measure that now deals with political committees into a vehicle to expand voter registration of young people. The amendment, presented to the Senate Rules Committee, would allow 17-year-olds to register to vote regardless of whether they would turn 18 and be eligible to vote at the next election. (Read more)
In legislature, freshmen rebels with a cause
The Oregonian
Michelle Cole
May 21, 2007
There was a time when first-year legislators kept quiet and learned from the old-timers. Not the 10 Democrats and two Republicans in this year's House freshman class. They didn't win competitive elections or take time away from their families and businesses to come to Salem and shut up.
In fact, some Capitol insiders say the 2007 freshmen might be the most promising class in more than 30 years. They're highly educated: Eight hold graduate degrees. One has a doctorate, another is a Rhodes Scholar. Politically, they span the spectrum from small-town conservative to Portland leftie. And they bring considerable civic and professional experience to the job.
Quick studies, the freshmen have learned a few lessons about politics - such as focusing on the office they hold rather than getting too chatty about future ambitions.
"My ambition is to be elected to the House and serve my constituents," says Rep. Ben Cannon, a Democrat from Portland, who at age 30 is the youngest member of the House. (Read more)
Newcomers to watch
Ben Cannon, 30, D-Portland
Public life: Elementary school teacher and board member of the Oregon Bus Project
Private life: Married, wife is expecting a baby in June
The buzz: A Rhodes Scholar who doesn't talk much in committee or on the floor. But he can find the words when he needs them - such as the two-page letter to a committee chairman explaining his vote against a fluoride bill. (Read more)
Faithful back energy bill
Catholic Sentinel
Ed Langlois
May 16, 2007
A group of faith leaders, including some Catholics, are backing legislation that would require that a quarter of the state's electricity come from renewable sources by 2025.
Senate Bill 838 passed 20-10 in the Senate in April and is now working its way through House committees. It would heighten the profile of power from wind, the sun, waves and even manure and other biomass.
Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, said that wind, geothermal, wave and biomass in Oregon have the potential to create three times the state's current energy use. (Read more)
Oregon lawmakers advance electronic waste recycling bill
KGW/Associated Press
Aaron Clark
May 15, 2007
Oregonians will be able to clear their basements and closets of obsolete televisions, personal computers, laptops and monitors at recycling centers funded by high-tech manufacturers under a bill approved unanimously by the Oregon House on Tuesday.
The measure would require electronics manufacturers to open recycling sites or to help pay for collective sites where eligible electronic devices could be returned free of charge.
The measure was endorsed by Hewlett Packard, which has had an extensive recycling program for its products for nearly 20 years, but gained the support of other industry heavyweights after lawmakers said they intended to enact electronic waste recycling program this session.
"It gave a lot of incentive for industry to sit down at that table and make it work," said Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland. (Read more) (See also)
Senate OKs adding water containers to bottle bill
Statesman Journal
Beth Casper
May 12, 2007
Despite a new proposal introduced this week by the Northwest Grocery Association, original legislation to add water containers to the bottle bill is moving forward.
Senate Bill 707A passed the House Committee on Energy and the Environment on Friday. It now moves to the House floor, sponsored by Rep. Vicki Berger, R-Salem. It already has passed the Senate.
The bill adds all containers that hold water and flavored water, keeps the deposit at 5 cents and creates a task force to study any further expansion.
Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, who voted for the water bottle expansion, said that the bill will mean the recycling of a significant portion of currently trashed water bottles.
"We are throwing away 14,000 water bottles every hour, 24 hours a day, seven days a week," he said. "This will help that." (Read more)
Bottle Bill expansion advances to House floor
The Oregonian
Dave Hogan
May 11, 2007
SALEM - A vote by the House is up next for the proposed expansion of Oregon's Bottle Bill after a committee forwarded the legislation today. The proposal would add bottled water and bottles of flavored water to the containers covered by the landmark law.
Oregonians purchased about 186 million water bottles in 2005, and while a third of them were recycled, more than 125 million wound up in the trash. That's about 14,000 water bottles getting tossed every hour, estimated Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland. "This will reduce that significantly," he said. (Read more)
House Approves 'Fuel Efficient' Driving Questions
The Oregonian
Edward Walsh
May 10, 2007
Prospective Oregon drivers may soon have to know something about "fuel efficient" driving.
By a 39-10 vote, the House on Thursday approved House Bill 2704 to authorize the Department of Motor Vehicles to include questions about fuel efficient driving techniques in the written test to qualify for a state drivers license.
Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, said the state should encourage drivers to adopt practices that conserve fuel as part of its energy and environmental policies. (Read more)
Key sustainability bill nears passage
Portland Business Journal
April 30, 2007
The centerpiece of Gov. Ted Kulongoski's renewable energy efforts -- a bill that would require utilities to get 25 percent of their power from renewable resources by 2025 - passed a House committee Monday.
The 4-3 vote by the House Committee on Energy and the Environment means the proposal only needs to pass the full House before receiving the governor's signature.
Oregon would be the 24th state to have such a law, but it would be one of the most aggressive. Some utilities and ratepayers say the bill will lead to increased power costs.
A variety of groups supported the bill in testimony, saying it would create a market for renewable power.
The bill will be carried on the House floor by Reps. Jackie Dingfelder and Ben Cannon, both Portland Democrats. (Read more)
Oregonians urge state to take lead climate change issues
The Oregonian/Associated Press
Aaron Clark
April 27, 2007
SALEM, Ore. (AP) - Pressure is mounting on Oregon lawmakers to take a lead on climate change issues as they consider bills to establish greenhouse gas emission reduction goals and statewide limits for pollution by electricity providers.
While businessmen told the House Committee on Energy and the Environment Friday that the state should adopt the bills to secure a place in the emerging clean energy industry, low carbon economy, winemakers and ski resort representatives said they were already feeling the effects of a warmer planet.
"Early movers in this situation frequently benefit the most," said Don Furman, a senior vice president at PPM Energy, the second largest wind energy producer in the U.S. "There are hundreds of billions of capital being amassed and prepared to be invested to provide solutions to climate change ? this is a massive opportunity for Oregon."
But Pat Dudley, a winemaker from Bethel Heights Vineyard, urged approval for a different reason.
"In the last ten decades the wines have been changing their character, we are seeing a shift in the growing season. They are higher sugars, higher alcohols, less finesse," said Dudley.
Heidi Logosz, a spokeswoman for Mt. Hood Meadows ski resort said two years ago the resort closed three times during the winter season for lack of snow.
"Ski resorts are poised to feel the impact of global warming acutely," said Logosz. "We are, undeniably, the poster child."
The bills would set goals to begin reducing the growth of greenhouse gas emissions generated by the state by 2010; a 10 percent reduction below 1990 levels by 2020 and a 75 percent reduction by 2050. (Read more)
Yom HaShoah: Portland honors those who perished
Jewish Review
Paul Haist
April 23, 2007
Oregon Attorney General Hardy Meyers and Special Agent In Charge of the Portland FBI office Robert Jordan were among more than 40 people who read the names of Holocaust victims at Pioneer Courthouse Square April 15, in observance of Yom HaShoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day.
Readers this year included several well-known figures, besides Meyers and Jordan. Among them were Chancellor Mary Jo Tully of Archdiocese of Portland; Assistant Chief Lynnae Berg of the Portland Police Bureau; Salma Ahmad, president, of the Islamic Society of Greater Portland; State Senators Richard Devlin and Ginny Burdick; State Representatives Brad Witt, Suzanne Bonamici, Tobias Read and Ben Cannon; Multnomah County Chair Ted Wheeler; as well as several rabbis and pastors, students, and private individuals. (Read more)
Cannon speaks on SB2
The Office of Representative Ben Cannon
April 17, 2007
Officially, Section 29 of SB 2 prohibits discrimination against a student on the basis of his or her sexual orientation. If this passes, a school will violate the law if it denies access to a class, program, or sport for the sole reason that a student is gay. Teachers will be prohibited from discriminatory treatment on the basis of sexual orientation.
But the passage of SB 2 will have a more profound effect than merely prohibiting official acts of discrimination. In fact, SB 2 will help make schools more tolerant, accepting, safe environments for all students.
SB 2 can not, in and of itself, change the way that kids act toward each other. Words like "gay" and "queer," thrown as insults across a crowded hallway or whispered behind a classmate's back, will continue to sting.
But SB 2 sends a powerful message to principals, teachers, and students that Oregon does not tolerate discrimination in our schools. By passing this bill, we stand symbolically with the principal who wants to address this type of bullying but is concerned about the community's reaction. We stand symbolically with the teacher who adopts a zero-tolerance policy on hateful speech in the classroom. And we stand with the courageous student who calls out a peer for his hallway insult. (Read more)
Health panel OKs field burning ban
The Register-Guard
Diane Dietz
April 14, 2007
Field burning does hurt the health of Willamette Valley residents, or so said the House Health Care Committee as it advanced a bill Friday to abolish the practice in Oregon.
With sponsor Rep. Paul Holvey, D-Eugene, looking on, the committee OK'd House Bill 3000 with a "do-pass" recommendation on a 5-3 party-line vote.
Portland-area Democrats Mitch Greenlick, Suzanne Bonamici, Ben Cannon and Tina Kotek said they were convinced by the doctors, nurses and research that supporters presented last week that field smoke is damaging to breathe. (Read more)
Cannon speaks at equal rights rally
The Office of Representative Cannon
April 12, 2007
I've been thinking a lot this week about what we're doing with SB 2 and HB 2007.
I've been thinking about the civil rights and women's rights pioneers on whose shoulders we stand today: Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks, MLK, Malcolm X, Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Margaret Sanger, Betty Friedan.
And I've been thinking about the child that my wife and I are expecting to be born in just a few weeks - and these have been very hopeful thoughts.
For I've imagined my child growing up in a state where he or she will not be the victim of discrimination on the basis of gender or sexual identity.
And I've allowed myself to picture the day, fifteen years or so from today, that my child will come to me in wonderment that Americans ever permitted lawful discrimination against gays and lesbians, just as I once went to my parents in wonderment that Americans ever permitted lawful discrimination on the basis of race.
And as my child reads about the people who marched and rallied and lobbied their legislators to end this discrimination, I have pictured him or her asking me, as I once asked my father, "Dad, where were you during those times?" (Read more)
Open up Oregon's elections
The Oregonian
Editorial Board
April 9, 2007
Lawmakers should support a proposal to open primary elections to all voters, including independents.
Does anyone in Salem recall the very first "fundamental reform" recommended by a public commission that spent all last year studying Oregon's broken Legislature?
It was open primaries.
The commission's No. 1 recommendation now sits squarely before the Legislature in the form of Senate Bill 630, which would refer a measure to voters to create an open primary system. And lot of lawmakers who were all for the commission, from Senate President Peter Courtney on down, now seem reluctant to support one of its key reforms.
In fact, the problems with Oregon's existing partisan primaries are plain to see. Oregon locks out of its primary elections the fastest growing segment of voters, those who are not affiliated with either the Democratic or Republican parties. Last year more than 450,000 of Oregon's 2 million registered voters were not permitted to have any say in the winnowing of candidates leading to the general election.
Senate Bill 630 would establish a primary election system in which all candidates, regardless of party affiliation, would run in the same primary election, which would be open to all voters. The top two finishers in each race, regardless of their political affiliation, would advance to the general election. (Read more)
House committee hears testimony on field burning's impact on health
Albany Democrat-Herald
Ian Rollins
April 6, 2007
SALEM - A lung doctor in Eugene says his practice takes scores of calls from patients when field burning is going on. But a Harrisburg-area grass seed farmer says he's never suffered any effects from burning, even though he has asthma himself.
The two were among nine people to speak on a proposed ban on field burning at a legislative hearing Friday afternoon. The House Health Care Committee conducted the hearing to gather health-related information on field burning, but the committee did not take action on the proposal (House Bill 3000) by the end of the day.
Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, asked...about other sources of fine particulate matter, but...there haven't been any studies done that weren't specific to field burning. (Read more)
Oregon committee debates merits of student press freedom bill
Student Press Law Center
Erica Hudock
April 5, 2007
OREGON - An Oregon state House of Representatives committee heard testimony on a proposed student press freedom bill March 29, which has now become the only bill in the nation that would offer protection to both high school and college students under one statute.
The student press freedom bill, HB 3279, was introduced by Rep. Larry Galizio (D-Tigard) on March 13 and would protect both high school and college students from censorship by school officials. The bill, modeled after a similar bill that was introduced by Washington state Rep. Dave Upthegrove (D-Des Moines), was intended to "strengthen and clarify" any existing expression laws in the state, Galizio said.
Rep. Ben Cannon (D-Portland) is an American history and civics teacher, and was editor in chief of his college newspaper. During that time, he said he and his staff worked with his school to develop a policy to gain more journalistic independence, which led the staff to become independent of the school and its funding.
"It was a real lesson in the rights that student journalists actually have," Cannon said. "That free market place of ideas does so much or our country and has historically. It can ensure that the diversity of views are heard." (Read more)
Carlos' next step
Willamette Week
Beth Slovic
April 4, 2007
Carlos, the Franklin High School student who was the subject of a November cover story about college admissions and undocumented immigration, has been admitted to two private colleges despite his status as an illegal immigrant.
Whitman College in Walla Walla, Wash., and the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Wash., have both accepted Carlos, whose real name was changed in the story to protect his identity (see "Illegal Scholar", WW, Nov. 15, 2006).
The murkiness around undocumented immigrants' admission to college and their tuition could be cleared up under bills before Congress and the Oregon Legislature.
In Congress, there's the latest incarnation of the federal DREAM Act, which would allow undocumented high-school graduates to pay in-state tuition at their state colleges and universities. Rep. David Wu (D-Ore.) is Oregon's only co-sponsor of that measure.
And in the Oregon Legislature, Rep. Ben Cannon, a Democrat whose district includes Franklin High, introduced HB 2705 in February. Cannon's bill would require that Oregon universities charge illegal immigrants who meet certain restrictions in-state tuition.
The bill has yet to receive a hearing, however. "Many people consider it a difficult climate to promote pro-immigrant legislation," Cannon says.
Carlos understands that climate intuitively. But he rejects any argument that he should be prevented from attending college in the U.S.
"It happens to be that, yeah, I'm an immigrant," Carlos says. "And I'm trying to do something normal, something that should be easy." (Read more) (See also) (See also)
We're from the government and here to make you laugh
Statesman Journal
Henry Miller
April 1, 2007
In honor of April Fools' Day today, each member of the state Senate and House, along with Gov. Ted Kulongoski, was invited to submit their favorite joke, one-liner, short anecdote or other humorous item about our beloved Beaver State.
While conservatives tended to taunt liberals, those in blue-state districts had more of a propensity to poke fun at themselves.
"My inner-Portland House district is so liberal that the Plaid Pantry has an organics section," quipped Rep. Ben Cannon, a Democrat.
"If I get funnier before March 26, I'll pass it along," he added.
(There was no second e-mail, by the way.) (Read more)
Reset clock: in Salem, it's 1984
The Oregonian
David Sarasohn
March 25, 2007
When the Oregon Legislature considers our election laws, the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh is running against Gary Hart.
Last week, the House elections committee thought deeply, in its most Jeffersonian way, about two issues facing next year's vote. Either discussion might have been interrupted by the sudden appearance of Walter Mondale.
With the possible exception of lawn signs, nothing in Oregon politics digs in as deeply as a bad idea. This is why, to guard against the danger of new voters getting interested at the end of a political campaign, Oregon still cuts off voter registration 20 days before an election.
Or, in the case of many potential young voters, before they realize there's going to be an election.
In 1984, the Rajneeshee religious community in central Oregon bused in large numbers of street people in what was supposed to be an attempt to take over Wasco County. The effort collapsed before the election, and the commune itself soon afterward. But in 1986 Oregon voters passed the 20-day cutoff -- thus forever protecting the state from religious communes busing in new voters to take over Wasco County, unless they do it before Columbus Day.
Soon afterward, the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh was deported and then died, but the Legislature still stands firm against him. It's hard to think that the bhagwan has been inconvenienced -- wherever he is now, he's not talking -- but over the last 20 years, lots of Oregonians have.
In Wisconsin, which last year had election day registration and a hot governor's race, 358,000 voters registered on Election Day. In Oregon, nobody did. (Read more)
Young state lawmakers focus on business issues
Portland Business Journal
Andy Giegerich
March 23, 2007
Youth is being served in Salem. Five newly elected House members, all under the age of 35, will use a business-heavy platform to promote their intriguing caucus.
The Five Under 35 caucus, all Democrats - Reps. Ben Cannon of Portland, Brian Clem of Salem, Chris Edwards of West Eugene, Sara Gelser of Corvallis and Tobias Read of Beaverton - will advocate for economic measures as much as it will back traditional young-voter hot button issues...
For now, the caucus wants to allow voter registration to occus as late as election day. Cannon, 30, said states with same-day registration log voter turnout that's 14 percent higher than in other states...
"Younger people are more likely to move frequently and may not be able to pay attention to an election until it's close to the election day," said Cannon, who represents Southeast Portland. "With our vote-by-mail system, this would sustain our staatus as the safest system in the country while giving us the highest turnout."
The five freshmen lawmakers met on the 2006 campaign trail and immediately clicked.
Some ran for different reasons than the others. Cannon emerged as a candidate from his work with the Oregon Bus Project, which implores young people to become involved with politics...
"We're mindful of the fact that we've made some connections with each other that could last for years to come." said Cannon.
The group could also make decisions that affect businesses for generations, said Jefferson Smith, the Oregon Bus Project's co-founder... "Oregon's future, particularly its living wage and family wage and high-wage job picture, will be determined in large part by how we address the knowledge economy." Smith said. "If we do that, the overall picture of Oregon business is much brighter." (Read more)
Lawmakers push bill to recycle computers
The Oregonian/Associated Press
Aaron Clark
March 23, 2007
SALEM, Ore. (AP) - Recycling obsolete electronics isn't as simple as separating soda cans, beer bottles and newspapers into color coded boxes for a curbside pickup. Those awkward monitors and televisions that can be as heavy as anvils are crammed with dozens of toxic metals, such as mercury, lead or cadmium.
But recycling used electronics, or e-waste, is just as environmentally important, say advocates of a new electronic waste recycling bill being considered in the Legislature. The proposal would require computer and television manufacturers to pay into a state-contracted program to recycle used goods that would be free for consumers, or set up their own program.
"There is increasing demand among Oregon consumers for a convenient, accessible, free way to recycle the electronics that are stacking up in their garages and basements," Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, said Friday at a House committee hearing on the measure.
Oregonians chucked 32,500 tons of computers, televisions, and other obsolete electronics in 2005, but most of that went straight into landfills or dumps where those toxic chemicals could eventually leach into the water table.
Oregon's bill would cover televisions with screens larger than four inches, desktop computers, laptops and monitors. (Read more) (See also)
Gelser, 'Five Under 35' aim to get youth involved
Corvallis Gazette-Times
March 22, 2007
At 33, state Rep. Sara Gelser knows that this legislative session will be the last time she can be a member of the newly formed "Five Under 35" caucus, but she hopes her work with the group will inspire other young people to be more interested in politics.
Gelser and four of her colleagues from the House introduced their "Five Under 35" caucus on Monday and highlighted legislation they've sponsored that they said will help create an agenda for young Oregonians.
Other members of the caucus - all Democrats - are Reps. Ben Cannon of Portland, Brian Clem of Salem, Chris Edwards of Eugene and Tobias Read of Beaverton.
She said a priority for the caucus is getting other young people to participate in the political process. She backed a proposal to allow voters to register - and vote - on Election Day. Gelser said that youth voter turnout rates average 14 percent higher in states that have such same-day registration. (Read more)
Same-day voter registration
Blue Oregon
Representative Ben Cannon
March 20, 2007
Tomorrow, the Legislature will hold hearings on House Joint Resolution 43, a Constitutional referral to pave the way toward same-day registration in Oregon. Ever since 1986, Oregon's Constitution has stipulated a 20-day voter registration cutoff - meaning that someone who gets around to registering only a week or two before the election will find that he or she is too late.
Oregon's early registration cutoff has serious consequences for the openness, fairness, and accessibility of our elections system. Young people are particularly impacted, since they are more likely to be first-time registrants, they move more frequently, and they are perhaps less likely to be paying attention months before Election Day. In 2004, Oregon's 18-24 year-olds were 28% less likely to vote than those aged 25 and up (49% versus 77%), constituting the largest gap between young voter turnout and general voter turnout in the country. (Read more)
Young lawmakers propose laws that affect young adults
The Oregonian
Michelle Cole
March 20, 2007
SALEM - Five Democratic House members, all younger than 35, unveiled their "Agenda for Young Oregonians" on Monday. It includes:
House Joint Resolution 43, which would allow people to register to vote up through Election Day. "Young people will benefit in particular," said Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, who at age 30 is the youngest member of the 2007 Legislature. Young people move a lot and are the majority of first-time voters, Cannon said. (Read more) (See also)
Five lawmakers under 35 unveil legislative agenda
Representatives Ben Cannon, Brian Clem, Chris Edwards, Sara Gelser, and Tobias Read
March 19, 2007
SALEM - The five Oregon state representatives under 35 years of age unveiled a legislative agenda for young Oregonians today.
Voting-age adults under 35 represent 30% of Oregon's population. The "Five under 35" believe their fellow young Oregonians are looking to the legislature for leadership on issues that affect their generation.
State Representatives Ben Cannon (D-Portland), Brian Clem (D-Salem), Chris Edwards (D-Eugene), Sara Gelser (D-Corvallis) and Tobias Read (D-Beaverton) say their agenda will serve the interests of young Oregonians by:
Making government more accessible
"Students and young adults change residences more frequently than older, more established Oregonians and many pay less attention to elections until late in the campaign cycle," said Cannon. "Oregon's early registration cutoff means that many young people learn too late that they are not registered to vote and are consequently disenfranchised from our democracy." (Read more)
But how do we know our ballots are counted?
Blue Oregon
Betsy Salter
March 18, 2007
Most Oregonians assume because we use paper ballots that our elections are accurate. The reality is that our paper ballots are counted on optical scanners and aggregated on computers, both of which use proprietary software owned by for-profit private out-of-state corporations. We have NO idea whether these electronic machines have been counting our votes accurately.
Fortunately, Representative Mitch Greenlick recognizes this weakness in Oregon's otherwise stellar election system. In response, Mr. Greenlick has introduced House Bill 3270, requiring mandatory handcounts of a scientifically drawn random sample of ballots to verify machine tallied election results in Oregon. Co-sponsors of HB 3270 include Representatives Phil Barnhart, Peter Buckley, Ben Cannon, Brian Clem, Paul Holvey, Jeff Merkley, and Chuck Riley. (Read more)
Let voters be voters
The Oregonian
Editorial Board
March 18, 2007
Oregon is stuck with a premature deadline that disenfranchises thousands of otherwise legal voters.
The main vulnerability of the state's election system is gone, too. Oregon has a sophisticated centralized voter registration system that links all 36 counties. With a few keystrokes, county clerks throughout Oregon can verify voter eligibility and ensure voters are not registered in more than one county.
Meanwhile, there is abundant evidence that Election Day registration would significantly increase voter turnout in Oregon. The six states allowing same-day registration average nearly 75 percent turnout, compared with 60 percent for other states. The states that regularly record the nation's highest turnout - Minnesota and Wisconsin - allow Election Day registration.
With its mail-ballot elections, Oregon's turnout is consistently good. But it could be much better with same-day registration. Every election, in every county in this state, voters are turned away because they miss the 20-day registration deadline.
This shouldn't be a partisan issue - no elected official, of any political persuasion, ought to favor a law that does nothing but suppress voter turnout.
As we have noted before, it is much easier to buy a handgun in this state than it is to vote. Oregon has an instant-check system that will let you walk out of the store with a gun in a few minutes. But if you want to vote in an election, Oregon requires a 20-day waiting period. (Read more)
House Democrats celebrate expanded fairness in women's health care
House Majority Office
March 15, 2007
Salem - House Democrats today celebrated a long-fought, hard-won effort today to increase fairness in women's health care by expanding access for Oregon women to prescription birth control and to guarantee victims of rape or incest access to emergency contraception. House Bill 2700, dubbed the "Access to Birth Control" bill, passed the Oregon House on a bipartisan vote.
"The same insurance companies who deny coverage for this essential part of women's health care, are providing prescription drug coverage for cosmetic prescriptions," said State Representative Ben Cannon (D-Portland), speaking in support of the bill before the vote. "It is time for Oregon to correct this inequity." (Read more)
Cannon testifies on renewable energy standards
The Office of Representative Ben Cannon
March 13, 2007
"Let's look back a little at Oregon's history. There was a time when the primary reason for the existence of Oregon's cities was to do the shipping, the financing, the trading, and manufacturing for Oregon's natural resource economy. A majority of Oregonians living in cities had a connection to land through their employment and, even if they didn't work for a company directly involved in those activities, they knew that their livelihood was affected to a great degree by what happened in rural Oregon. They had a stake in rural Oregon.
"Unfortunately, this is no longer the case. Many of the ties that once bound this state have been severed. Oregon's urban economy is more connected to swings in Silicon Valley and Wall Street than to Mill City and Reedsport. The "Oregon partnership" has been frayed.
"The energy industry alone cannot take the place of timber, fishing, and other natural resource-based industries that we have lost. Oregon will and should have a more diversified economy than it once did. But we have, with this bill, the opportunity to restore some of the economic ties that once bound the state, and with them the cultural, social, and political ties that follow. Nothing could be more critical to meeting squarely the extraordinary challenges that face our increasingly complex and vast society - challenges that include not only global warming but making sure people are healthy, food reaches our tables, and new technologies are used appropriately and ethically. Please support SB 373." - Rep. Ben Cannon (Read more)
Oregon house passes biofuels legislation
Tigard Times
March 8, 2007
"The Renew Oregon Plan is a win/win - bridging the urban/rural gap by creating jobs and economic benefits for both rural and urban Oregonians while strengthening Oregon's commitment to the environment." - Jackie Dingfelder, chair of the House Committee on Energy and the Environment (Read more)
Biofuels legislation passes house
Bend Weekly
Erica Hudock
March 2, 2007
A biofuels legislation package championed by House Democrats was approved in the Oregon House Thursday with broad bi-partisan support. The House Democrats' "Renew Oregon Plan" aims to jumpstart the biofuels industry in Oregon, create new agricultural and manufacturing jobs, decrease Oregon's dependence on imported fuel and combat global warming.
"Today's vote puts our state one step closer to becoming a national leader on both the economic and environmental benefits of alternative fuel sources," said Representative Ben Cannon (D-Portland), Energy and the Environment Committee Vice-Chair. "I'm proud that the plan approved today is one that reflects a collective consensus among members of Oregon's agricultural and business community, advocates for working families and experts on energy and economic development." (Read more)
Oregon legislator prepares free press bill modeled after Washington state bill
Student Press Law Center
March 2, 2007
An Oregon legislator has created a West Coast trend by drafting a student press freedom bill for high school and college student media that resembles a current bill moving through the Washington state legislature. Rep. Larry Galizio (D-Tigard) submitted the bill, HB 3279, on Feb. 26 to the Chief Clerk's Office after being inspired by the Washington state bill introduced in January by Rep. Dave Upthegrove (D-Des Moines). He said the bill would increase the protection of the student press that already exists in the state laws.
Co-sponsors for the bill are Reps. Jeff Barker (D-Aloha), Deborah Boone (D-Cannon Beach), Peter Buckley (D-Ashland), Ben Cannon (D-Portland), Dave Hunt (D-Gladstone), Mary Nolan (D-Portland), Diane Rosenbaum (D-Portland), Chip Shields (D-Portland), Carolyn Tomei (D-Milwaukie) and Brad Witt (D-Clatskanie). (Read more)
Open primary legislation introduced
Hillsboro Argus/The Oregonian
February 20, 2007
Oregon senators Ben Westlund (D-Tumalo), Ryan Deckert (D-Beaverton) and Avel Gordly (I-Multnomah) are collaborating with former Secretaries of State Phil Kiesling (D) and Norma Paulus (R) to promote legislation that would institute open primary elections...The legislation also has the support of Sen. Alan Bates (D-Ashland), Sen. Frank Morse (R-Albany), Rep. Mitch Greenlick (D-Portland) and Rep. Ben Cannon (D-Portland). (Read more)
House cracks down on underage drinking
The Oregonian
Edward Walsh
February 15, 2007
The Oregon House passed two bills on Thursday aimed at cracking down on underage drinking in the state...Noting that he is one of the youngest members of the Legislature, Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, said he opposed the bill because he was concerned about the potential hardship it would cause to young adults who need to drive to school or work. (Read more)
More testing ahead for older drivers?
The Oregonian
Dave Hogan
February 9, 2007
Drivers aged 75 or older would have to renew their driver licenses every four years and pass eyesight and driving tests in order to keep their driving privileges, according to legislation introduced this week...The bill was introduced by Representatives Vicki Berger, R-Salem, and Sal Esquivel, R-Medford. Two Democrats, Reps. Jeff Barker of Aloha and Ben Cannon of Portland have signed on as supporters of the legislation. (Read more)
House committee approves biofuels 'Renew Oregon Plan'
House Democratic Majority Office
February 5, 2007
A biofuels legislation package championed by House Democrats was approved today by the House Committee on Energy and the Environment. The House Democrats' "Renew Oregon Plan" aims to jumpstart the biofuels industry in Oregon, create new agricultural and manufacturing jobs, decrease Oregon's dependence on imported fuel and combat global warming. The legislation now moves to the House Revenue Committee for further review before heading to the House floor for a full vote.
"Today's step forward on the Renew Oregon Plan puts our state one step closer to becoming a national leader on both the economic and environmental benefits of alternative fuel sources," said Representative Ben Cannon (D-Portland), Committee Vice-Chair. (Read more)
Alum elected Oregon state representative
Student Life
January 29, 2007
Consider being nice to the kid next to you in your political science class, because he or she might just become your next state representative. Just ask Ben Cannon, who graduated from Washington University in 1999 to become Oregon's youngest state legislator this month. (Read more)
The youngest legislature
KATU News
January 18, 2007
The Oregon State Legislature could be younger than ever with five incoming lawmakers all under the age of 35, tipping the scales toward youth. Watch the clip.
Legislature opens for business, with Democrats in charge
KGW/Associated Press
Julia Silverman
January 8, 2007
The 2007 Oregon Legislature opened for business on Monday, led by both old and new faces in the House of Representatives, newly under Democratic control.
State Rep. Bob Jenson, R-Pendleton, the longest-serving member of the chamber, called the session to order, while newly minted Rep. Ben Cannon, D-Portland, one of the youngest of the new members, read the roll call. (Read more)
