4A | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 16, 2022 | Bills Continued from Page 1A “Wildlife trade and trafficking are fuel- ing the rise in diseases that spread from animals to people, and they’re key driv- ers of the extinction crisis.” Similar legislation was considered but not approved during the 2021 legis- lative session, after COVID-19 was iden- tified in mink at an Oregon mink farm. The current bill does not apply to mink farms. Environmental justice: Oregon’s Environmental Justice Task Force, es- tablished in 2007, is made up of volun- teers from around the state House Bill 4077 replaces the task force with a new Environmental Justice Council, with dedicated staff and fund- ing. The bill directs the council to develop a mapping tool to assess environmental, health and socioeconomic disparities. The tool will layer data such as air pollu- tion emissions, ozone levels and toxic hazards with information such as lin- guistic isolation and income levels. “We owe the next generation a healthier, more sustainable and resil- ient Oregon,” said Joel Iboa Executive Director or Oregon Just Transition Alli- ance. APPEAL TRIBUNE Illegal water use: Illegal cannabis operations are using surface and ground water without water rights, depleting supplies for legal agricultural, recre- ational and other uses. The problem is especially severe in Southern Oregon, according to the Oregon Water Re- sources Department. House Bill 4061 prohibits water haul- ing to unregistered or unlicensed can- nabis grow sites, prohibits providing false information to law enforcement or OWRD, and requires certain water sup- pliers to maintain sales records for at least 12 months, and provide the records to law enforcement or the state on re- quest. Product stewardship for mattress- es: Oregon will be the fourth state with a mattress stewardship program, with the passage of Senate Bill 1576. The program will provide free collec- tion and recycling of used mattresses throughout the state. The bill requires the Department of Environmental Quality to certify a stew- ardship organization to run the pro- gram, which will be financed by a fee on mattress sales. Reach Task Force: As proposed, Senate Bill 1518 would have allowed cit- ies to choose to implement a building code that requires more energy efficien- cy standards, to help meet the state’s greenhouse gas reduction goals. An amendment weakened the bill, instead creating a 27-member Task Force on Resilient Efficient Buildings to identify and evaluate policies relating to building codes and building decarboni- zation. The task force will recommend legis- lation to be considered during the 2023 Legislative session. Advocates say they’re confident more progress will be made next year. “Widespread action is needed to make our existing and new homes and buildings ready for a clean energy future and for the climate crisis,” said Meredith Connolly, Oregon Director of Climate Solutions. “Oregon has fallen behind in innovative policies to improve homes and buildings so they’re more resilient, affordable, and healthy. Some bills failed Some bills that were a priority for en- vironmental groups did not make it through, however. Wildlife corridors: Drivers in Ore- gon are more likely to collide with an animal on the road than those in other West Coast states, insurer State Farm says. The state has five wildlife crossings, compared with 30 in Washington and 50 in California. House Bill 4130 would have allocated Primary Continued from Page 1A use mass media,” Oregon political ana- lyst Jim Moore said. “It’s stunning to me that it has all seemed to be in suspended animation." In general, candidates whom politi- cos consider to be “serious” are those with previous governmental experience and — arguably more importantly — those with a lot of cash on hand. The size of one’s political action bank ac- count isn’t important in and of itself, but having a substantial war chest allows candidates to shape a race to their bene- fit. Before the filing deadline, if a candi- date already in the race has consider- able fundraising success, that alone can discourage potential opponents from contending for the position. Once campaign season begins in ear- nest, candidates need to introduce themselves to voters while simulta- neously setting themselves apart from their rivals. Much of this comes down to framing: how does a candidate define themselves and how do they attempt to define their opponents. Money makes this much easier. It pays for highly produced television and radio advertisements, boosted social media posts, mailers, yard signs, bill- boards and webpages. And in Oregon, there is still no limit on how much mon- ey an individual can contribute to a campaign. As the primary campaign season be- gins, here is a look at some of the top races: Three dozen candidates for governor The last time Oregon had a guberna- torial race this unsettled was in 2002, when the two primaries were fought for by three strong candidates on both sides of the aisle. In total, 11 candidates participated in the election, with future governor Ted Kulongoski receiving less than 50% of the vote in his primary and Republican primary winner Kevin Man- nix getting 35%. Two decades later, more than three times that number are in the running to replace Brown — a staggering 17 Demo- crats and 19 Republicans. Moore specu- lated the winner of the Republican pri- mary this year might do so with less than 30% of the vote. “For the first time in 20 years, it’s just totally wide open," he said. "There's no favorites. No one’s been anointed as the successor to Kate Brown." The Democratic race is considered a two-person contest between former House Speaker Tina Kotek of Portland and Oregon Treasurer Tobias Read. Both have landed noteworthy endorse- ments and numerous campaign contri- butions. As of Tuesday, Kotek had about $950,000 in her campaign account, while Read had about $610,000. Things are a bit more crowded at the top of the Republican primary with at least half a dozen candidates with expe- rience, money or both: h Christine Drazan, former House Republican leader — $1 million in cam- paign account. h Bud Pierce, Salem oncologist and former gubernatorial candidate — $175,000 in campaign account. h Bob Tiernan, former Oregon repre- sentative — $1 million in campaign ac- count. h Stan Pulliam, mayor of Sandy — $280,000 in campaign account. h Bridget Barton, GOP consultant — $410,000 in campaign account. h Jessica Gomez, entrepreneur — $110,000 in campaign account. The full list of candidates for this and every other race can be found on ORESTAR through the Oregon Secretary of State's website. Candidates and members of the public watch as the registration for the 2022 elections closes on Tuesday, March 8, 2022 at the Oregon State Capitol in Salem, Ore. ABIGAIL DOLLINS / STATESMAN JOURNAL Congressional District 6 Oregon was granted a sixth congres- sional seat for the first time during the nationwide redistricting process last year, and 15 candidates have emerged to become its inaugural representative. CD 6 encompasses Polk and Yamhill counties as well as portions of Marion County (including Salem), Clackamas County and Washington County. Six are on the Republican side: Rep. Ron Noble of McMinnville; former Keiz- er city councilor Amy Ryan Courser; clean energy executive Nate Sandvig; former U.S. representative and state senator Jim Bunn; Dundee mayor David Russ; and U.S. Air Force veteran Angela Plowhead. Among the Democrats, Rep. Teresa Alonso Leon of Woodburn, Rep. Andrea Salinas of Lake Oswego and former Multnomah County commissioner Lo- retta Smith are the candidates with the most government experience. But there are a host of well-funded, if inexperi- enced, candidates also vying for oters' approval. Redistricting experts rate the district as leaning Democratic, but outside of the relative toss-up Congressional Dis- trict 5, CD 6 appears to be the GOP's best chance at nabbing another spot in the congressional delegation. Oregon vot- ers haven't sent more than one Repub- lican to the U.S. House of Representa- tives since 1994. The new district also has no incum- bent, so the name recognition and fund- ing advantages incumbents usually maintain will not apply. “It’s wonderfully wide open,” Moore said. Here are the top five candidates in the race when looking at funding, ac- cording to Federal Election Commission data. Campaign finance information for federal races is reported quarterly to the FEC; the next report will be on April 15. h Democrat Cody Reynolds, United States Army veteran — $2 million in campaign account (from a loan he made to himself). h Democrat Matt West, Intel devel- opment engineer —$620,000 in cam- paign account. h Sandvig — $185,000 in campaign account. h Salinas — $180,000 in campaign account. h Smith — $175,000 in campaign ac- count. Bureau of Labor and Industries commissioner This statewide race also lacks an in- cumbent as current BOLI commissioner Val Hoyle decided to run to represent Oregon Congressional District 4. It's also unique as the only nonparti- san statewide position on the ballot this year. All candidates will run in the same primary this spring, but if no one se- cures more than 50% of the vote, the top two vote-getters will advance to the No- vember general election. Seven candidates have filed for the position, which is responsible for over- seeing the state agency tasked with pro- tecting the rights of workers, enforcing compliance with employment laws, educating employers on wage and civil rights law and promoting workforce de- velopment. The position tends to attract fewer campaign contributions than other con- tested statewide seats. The candidates for BOLI commis- sioner are: h Casey Kulla, Yamhill County com- missioner. h Cheri Helt, former Oregon repre- sentative. h Christina Stephenson, civil rights attorney. h Brent Barker, principal broker. h Aaron Baca, small business owner. h Chris Henry, truck driver. h Robert Neuman, general laborer. Oregon Legislature In the state Legislature, Republicans hope to at least undo the 18-seat and 37- seat supermajorities Democrats control in the Senate and House, respectively. In the Senate, Republicans have even loftier goals, believing they have a shot at flipping at least three seats to secure a split Senate or even a Republican major- ity. They point to Courtney retiring, for- mer Sen. Betsy Johnson stepping down to run for governor, general uncertainty around the new state legislative maps and the prospect of high Republican voter enthusiasm as clear marks in their favor. “This is the best chance for Republi- cans to move things around, right now,” Moore said. The balance of the Legislature could come down to a handful of seats in the relatively purple greater Salem area. Senate District 11 Next January, for the first time since 1999, Salem will not be represented in the Oregon Senate by Senate President Peter Courtney. Five people are running, two Republicans and three Democrats. Sen. Kim Thatcher, R-Keizer, will square off against small business owner Marcello De Cicco in the Republican pri- mary. The Democratic race will be among at least $5 million in the current bienni- um for structures to help wildlife safely get across roads. It also would have al- lowed the state to apply for federal matching funds available through Presi- dent Biden’s infrastructure package. While the bill failed, Oregon invested $7 million in wildlife crossings through the budget bill. Carbon sequestration: In Decem- ber, the Oregon Department of Environ- mental Quality adopted its Climate Pro- tection Program, an ambitious plan to reduce the state’s greenhouse gas emis- sions. At the last minute, the department dropped provisions for carbon sequestration. In response, legislators introduced Senate Bill 1534, creating the framework to eventually allow natural and working lands to be voluntarily managed for carbon sequestration. The bill was supported by dozens of climate organizations, small farms and ranches, and water and conservation districts. But many of the state’s major agriculture and forest industry groups opposed it, saying it could lead to new regulatory requirements rather than in- centives or partnerships. Tracy Loew is a reporter at the Statesman Journal. She can be reached at tloew@statesmanjournal.com, 503- 399-6779 or on Twitter at @Tracy_Loew . Anthony Rosilez, executive director of the Oregon Teacher Standards and Practices Commission; Eric Swenson, Woodburn mayor; and Richard Walsh, former Keizer city councilor. House District 19 With current Rep. Raquel Moore- Green deciding to run for Senate, this race also is without an incumbent but is full of current and former elected poli- ticians. Only one Republican is running, for- mer Salem city councilor TJ Sullivan. Two current Salem city councilors are competing against each other in the Democratic primary — Tom Andersen and Jackie Leung. Andersen has about $10,000 in his campaign account, while Leung has about $20,000. Adding himself to the mix on Monday was Rep. Brad Witt, who currently rep- resents House District 31 northwest of Portland. Witt said in October he would not run for reelection because of how his district was redrawn; it is now less favorable for Democrats and he has called the new maps gerrymandered. It is unclear when Witt moved into House District 19. According to the state Constitution, candidates must live in the district they seek to represent for at least one year. Near the end of the 2021 legislative session, Witt was removed from his po- sition as chair of the House Agriculture and Natural Resources committee after texts he sent to a fellow lawmaker were found to have violated the Legislature's workplace harassment policy. House District 21 Five candidates are seeking the seat formerly held by Rep. Brian Clem, who announced his resignation from the House of Representatives in October. Salem City Councilor Chris Hoy current- ly holds the seat after he was appointed to replace Clem, but does not live in the re-drawn district. In the Republican primary, long-time Oregon politico Kevin Mannix is run- ning against forklift operator Kyler McNaught. Among the Democrats, the race is among small business owner and veter- an Ramiro Navarro Jr., farm and outdoor store manager David McCall and finan- cial analyst Robert Husseman. House District 22 Two Republicans and two Democrats will compete to fill the seat vacated by Alonso Leon and her campaign for Con- gress. Accounts receivable clerk Karl Emm- rich and senior education policy analyst Anthony Medina will face off in the Democratic primary. The Republican race will be between cybersecurity ana- lyst Jim Lowder and former dental as- sistant Tracy Cramer. The remaining seats in the greater Salem area won't have a contested pri- mary on either side of the aisle: Senate District 10 h Democrat: Sen. Deb Patterson (in- cumbent) h Republican: Rep. Raquel Moore- Green House District 18 h Republican: Rep. Rick Lewis (in- cumbent) h Democrat: Jesse Smith, former small business owner and part-time web developer House District 20 h Democrat: Rep. Paul Evans (incum- bent) h Republican: Dan Farrington, medi- cal consulting business owner House District 23 h Republican: Anna Scharf (incum- bent) h Democrat: Elise Yarnell Hollamon, Newberg city councilor Reporter Connor Radnovich covers the Oregon Legislature and state gov- ernment. Contact him at cradnovich@statesmanjournal.com or 503-508-6131, or follow him on Twitter at @CDRadnovich.