Labor Council issues endorsements for May 21 election
The Northwest Oregon Labor
Council (NOLC) issued endorsements
for several ballot measures, and in sev-
eral political races for the special elec-
tion May 21.
Ballots are in the mail today. They
must be at a county elections office or
designated dropsite by 8 p.m. on Tues-
day, May 21, for your vote to count.
Postmarks don’t count.
NOLC endorsed Measure 26-152
— Restore Our Natural Areas — put
on the ballot by Metro to generate op-
erating and maintenance funds for open
space that it owns. The request for en-
dorsement came from AFSCME Local
3580, which represents most employ-
ees at Metro.
If passed, homeowners in Mult-
nomah, Washington and Clackamas
counties would pay 9.6 cents per
$1,000 of their home’s assessed value.
The owner of a $200,000 house, for ex-
ample, would pay an extra $19.20 a
year. The levy would raise $10 million
annually for five years.
Measure 26-152 is supported by
AFSCME 3580, IBEW 48, Oregon
AFSCME Council 75, and Laborers
Local 483.
NOLC also endorsed Measure 3-
423 in Oregon City. The measure
amends the City Charter to eliminate
the automatic rollback of water rates to
near 1994 levels.
A 1996 City Charter amendment
enacted by Oregon City voters requires
the City to roll back water rates to
1994 levels in 2014. The Charter also
restricts water rate increases to no more
than 3 percent per year without a vote
of the people. The chief petitioner of
the initiative was Dan Holladay. Holla-
day successfully led the May 2011 ref-
erendum that killed Clackamas
County’s $5 annual vehicle registration
fee assessment earmarked to help pay
to replace the Sellwood Bridge.
The resetting of the water rates did-
n’t occur in 1996. That’s because
shortly after the measure was adopted,
a group of bond holders sued the City
to avoid the rate setback and ensure that
their bonds could be repaid. A federal
Graduates of Labor Candidate
School file for public office
For many years, unions have en-
couraged and supported members to
run for public office. Last year, nine
Oregon unions formed the Oregon La-
bor Candidate School. Participants un-
dergo a six month course in the me-
chanics of political campaigns. Alumni
Teachers unions
endorse in several
school board races
The Portland Association of Teach-
ers has endorsed Steve Buel, Pam
Knowles, and Tom Koehler for Port-
land Public Schools board. The teachers
union also endorsed Nels Johnson and
Francisco (Frank) Acosta Jr. for the
Multnomah Education Service District
board.
The Beaverton Education Associa-
tion has endorsed Tom Colett, Anne
Bryan, Susan Greenberg, and
LeeAnn Larson for school board seats.
The Hillsboro Education Associa-
tion has endorsed Jaime Rodriguez,
Rebecca Lantz and Janeen Sollman
for school board seats.
The Tigard-Tualatin Education As-
sociation has endorsed Barry Albert-
son, David Matheson and Maureen
Wolf to school board seats.
Portland Community College Fed-
eration of Faculty and Academic Pro-
fessionals Local 2277 has endorsed
Kali Thorne Ladd for PCC director,
Zone 2.
Reynolds Education Association en-
dorsed Diego Hernandez for Reynolds
School District Board of Directors Po-
sition 2.
MAY 3, 2013
champion policies that positively im-
pact the middle class and working Ore-
gonians, including retirement security,
living wages, a strong education sys-
tem, access to quality and affordable
health care, and collective bargaining
rights.
The following are graduates of the
Class of 2012 who have filed to run for
office.
Trish Stephens of Oregon School
Employees Association is running for
Amity School Board, Position 1.
Stephens is a special education instruc-
tional assistant in the Willamina School
District. She faces one other candidate
for the open board seat.
Erick Flores, a member of the Ore-
gon Education Association, is running
for an open seat on the Parkrose
School Board. Flores is a teacher in
the David Douglas School District.
Two other candidates are seeking the
Position 5 seat.
Nicole (Nikki) Milam, an office
secretary with the International
Brotherhood of Electrical Workers,
is running for Medford School Board,
Position 1. The board has been divided
in recent months over the performance
of its superintendent. Milam is in a
three-person race that includes the in-
cumbent.
Francisco (Frank) Acosta is a
member of Portland Federation of
School Professional Local 111 run-
ning unopposed for the Multnomah
Education Service District Board,
Position 3. A campus monitor at
Franklin High School, Acosta also at-
tends Corban University and is pursu-
ing a masters degree in education.
court judge ordered the City not to im-
plement the provision until the bonds
were repaid. Those bonds are sched-
uled to be repaid in 2014.
“If the rate setback goes into effect,
it would decrease water revenue by ap-
proximately 27 percent, and those rates
would not cover current operating costs
and maintenance requirements, result-
ing in significant changes to the City’s
water system operations and mainte-
nance programs,” said Oregon City
Commission President Kathy Roth,
who made the appeal for endorsement
to NOLC’s Executive Board.
Roth said Oregon City has 154 miles
of water pipe, with many over 40 years
old and some over 100 years old. “Sev-
enty-five miles of pipe are leaking and
need replacement quickly,” she said.
The requerst for endorsement came
from AFSCME Local 350-2, which
represents employees at Oregon City.
NOLC failed to garner enough sup-
port among delegates attending the
March 25 night meeting to endorse
Measure 26-151, a Portland City
Council initiative to fluoridate Port-
land’s water supply. The vote to en-
dorse fell two votes shy of the required
two-thirds majority.
The endorsement request was
brought to the labor council by United
Food and Commercial Workers
(UFCW) Local 555.
Measure 26-151 has received en-
dorsements from Local 555, the Ore-
gon Federation of Nurses & Health
Professionals Local 5017; the Oregon
Nurses Association; and Service Em-
ployees International Union Local 49
and Local 503. “This is a social justice
campaign that advances public health,
one that will benefit our communities,
particularly children without access to
proper dental care,” said Theodora Ko
Thompson, Local 503’s Civil and Hu-
man Rights Committee co-chair.
NOLC endorsed the re-election of
Vivian Scott to the North Clackamas
School Board, Position 5. She is being
challenged by businessman Steven
Schroedl, director of the Cascade
Heights Public Charter School.
North Clackamas is Oregon’s fifth-
largest school district, serving 17,300
students. Scott has served on the seven-
member School Board since 2005 —
the last two years as chair.
A former career counselor and mu-
sic teacher, Scott has worked as an ed-
ucation and workforce development
manager, including three years at Ore-
gon Tradeswomen, Inc. She holds a
masters degree in Education from
Humboldt State University and has car-
ried union cards of the Retail Clerks
Union and the American Federation of
State, County and Municipal Employ-
ees in Northern California.
At its April 22 meeting, NOLC del-
egates endorsed three candidates for the
five-member Clackamas River Water
board of directors. Larry Sowa, Ken-
neth Humberston, and Hugh Kalani
are running for full terms on the volun-
teer board. All three were appointed by
the Clackamas County Board of Com-
missioners in November, following a
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
successful union-led recall of board
member Patricia Holloway in March.
Last September, water district em-
ployees — members of AFSCME Lo-
cal 350 — took a vote of “no confi-
dence” in the board and demanded they
all resign. Workers took the drastic ac-
tion following years of in-fighting
amongst board members that resulted
in more than $1 million spent on law-
suits and special audits. It reached a
point where the board was unable to ac-
complish even routine business, which
threatened the water district’s ability to
obtain liability insurance.
Two “friendly” board members —
Barbara Kemper and board president
Kami Kehoe — heeded the call and re-
signed in October. Holloway and
board member Grafton Sterling refused
to step down, which led to the recall.
[An effort to recall Sterling at the same
time as Holloway failed due to a cleri-
cal error that disqualified the petition.]
Now, Sowa is running unopposed
for Position 3, but Humberston (Posi-
tion 4) and Kalani (Position 5) face op-
position.
Kalani is being challenged by for-
mer Clackamas River Water board
member Warren Mitchell, who was an
ally of Holloway before losing his bid
for re-election in 2009.
Humberston is being challenged by
Sterling (yes, current board member
Grafton Sterling). According to an
Oregonian report, if Sterling, a former
Oregon state trooper who has two years
remaining on his term, wins the seat,
he’ll have to resign either his current
seat or the new one. Either way, the
board would have to appoint a replace-
ment for a still-vacated seat.
Union activist takes a run at
Hillsboro School Board seat
Jaime Rodriguez,
a member of the
Portland Community
College Federation
of Faculty and Aca-
demic Professionals
Local 2277, Ameri-
can Federation of
Teachers (AFT), is
JAIME
running for the Hills-
RODRIGUEZ
boro School Board,
Position 2.
Hillsboro School District serves
23,000 students at four high schools,
four junior high schools, 25 elemen-
tary schools, an alternate school, and
an online charter school.
Rodriguez works as an employ-
ment specialist at Portland Commu-
nity College’s Workforce Develop-
ment Department, where he has
helped hundreds of job seekers and
students since 1999.
He serves as vice president of po-
litical action for Local 2277, and rep-
resents the local as a delegate to the
Northwest Oregon Labor Council
(NOLC), which endorsed his candi-
dacy.
This is Rodriguez’ first foray into
elected office.
Rodriguez is a graduate of the
first class (2012) of the Oregon La-
bor Candidates School. OLCS trains,
prepares, and empowers rank-and-
file union members representing all
sectors of the economy to run for
elected office. Participants learn
practical skills for running for office
— from fundraising, to communica-
tions, to campaign planning.
“I got a lot out of it,” Rodriguez
said. “I think I’m a better candidate
for it.”
Rodriguez, who has a bachelor’s
degree in public administration/po-
litical science from Fresno City Col-
lege in California, is active in the
Democratic Party in Washington
County.
As a founding member of the
Oregon chapter of the Labor Coun-
cil for Latin American Advancement,
a constituency group of the AFL-CIO
and Change to Win labor federation,
Rodriguez volunteered to do out-
reach to the Latino community for
Suzanne Bonamici in her January
2012 special election victory for
Congress.
Later in 2012 he was elected a
delegate from Oregon (and a labor
delegate) to the National Democratic
Convention in Charlotte, N.C..
“The speeches at the convention
were highly motivating,” he said. “I
listened to President Obama and it
really inspired me. I came back (to
Oregon) and the opportunity to run
for school board came up.”
Rodriguez has lived in the Hills-
boro School District for 15 years. His
daughter is a junior at Century High
School. He has served on the Hills-
boro School District Citizen’s Advi-
sory Curriculum Committee and the
Ladd Acres Elementary site council.
Rodriguez is one of three candi-
dates seeking the open seat for Posi-
tion 2. The other candidates are busi-
nessman Glenn Miller and internet
consultant and charter school board
president Miklosch Sander.
In addition to NOLC, Rodriguez
has endorsements from Local 2477;
the Hillsboro Classified Employees
Association; Hillsboro Education
Association; International Brother-
hood of Electrical Workers Local 48;
and Painters and Tapers Local 10.
For more information about Ro-
driguez, or to donate to his cam-
paign, go to his Facebook page at
www.facebook.com/JaimeRo-
driguezforSchoolBoard.
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