community
april20
2017
3
Salem Report
By Representative Brad Witt
Most of the bills that
come before us are minor
adjustments to laws that
already exist but, for some
reason, need to be updated, corrected or
just generally cleaned up. Then there
are those, maybe a dozen or so, that cap-
ture the attention of everyone including
my constituents. I’d like to discuss two
such bills that were voted on this week.
HB 2005A, known as the Pay
Equity bill, makes it an unlawful em-
ployment practice to discriminate in the
payment of wages on the basis of race,
age, sex, religion or any of the other
protected classes that already exist in
statute. Two versions of the bill hit the
floor for a vote: The Minority Report
added Veterans as a protected class;
the Majority Report did not. I felt that
leaving out veterans was an inexcusable
omission, so I voted for the Minority
Report, which failed to pass on a narrow
31-29 vote. I did end up supporting the
Majority Report, which at least, further
defines equal pay for equal work. It is
still a good bill, but it could have been
better, and now that it is over on the Sen-
ate side, an amendment may be added to
include Veterans. If that is the case, it
will be a win-win situation.
Another bill of some conse-
quence was HB 2004A, which does
away with the no-cause eviction no-
tice to renters, and it repeals the state
prohibition on rent control. Although
these might seem to be laudable objec-
tives, Oregon’s housing crisis will only
be exacerbated by the bill. Our hous-
ing crisis is a supply crisis; there simply
aren’t enough units to house an ever-
expanding population, especially in the
Portland Metro area. It makes landlords
exclusively responsible for the housing
crisis that the rest of our society shares
the responsibility for. It will result in
the sale of single family rentals and the
conversion of apartment units into con-
dos. This is not a solution to a problem.
It is another crisis waiting to happen.
Recently I had the pleasure
of meeting with many of you at Town
Halls in St. Helens and Vernonia. Sena-
tor Johnson and I had fabulous turnouts
and some really great discussions.
We shared an update on the
work here in the Legislature over the
past two months and heard about your
legislative priorities and fielded ques-
tions on a variety of topics. Issues re-
lated to the budget and possible funding
cuts were discussed, including the state
of K-12 funding, different approaches to
the PERS crisis and the pervasive need
for revenue to fund services in our state.
Other topics of discussion in-
cluded transportation, energy infrastruc-
ture, housing, climate change, fisher-
ies, the Forest Practices Act and much
more. We also heard from many folks
in support of the National Popular Vote.
I am proud to share that after much
thought and observing now two popular
vote winners not having the opportunity
to serve, I have changed my opinion and
support this effort.
Publisher and Managing Editor
Scott Laird
503-367-0098
scott@vernoniasvoice.com
Contributors
Jim Bryson
Chip Bubl
Tobie Finzel
Karen Kain
Karen Miller
Shannon Romtvedt
Robert Schattschneider
Representative Brad Witt
Photography
Karen Kain
Scott Laird
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Folklife Program at the Library
Features Don Webb and Fred Heller
Join folklorist Makaela Kroin
and retired timbermen Fred Heller and
Donald Webb for a conversation about
some of the cultural traditions of Colum-
bia County and the people who practice
them. The talk will be Tuesday, May 2,
at 6:30 pm at the Vernonia Public Li-
brary, 701 Weed Avenue, Vernonia, OR
97064.
This open, community conver-
sation invites audiences to connect with
tradition keepers, Fred Heller and Don
Webb about the timber industry, one of
the occupational traditions that makes
Columbia County unique. Kroin spent
several days in Vernonia and the sur-
rounding area speaking to members of
the community, documenting their tra-
ditions, and learning how their occupa-
tions shaped their lives. Learn about the
historic logging industry in the area from
Heller and Webb; how they learned these
cultural lifeways; and how they are ac-
tively passing their skills and knowledge
through the generations.
Funding for this program comes
from the National Endowment for the
Arts to the Oregon Folklife Network
(OFN), Oregon’s designated Folk & Tra-
ditional Arts Program. The project sent
trained folklorists to conduct research in
the Portland metro counties of Clacka-
mas, Columbia, Multnomah, Washing-
ton, and Yamhill to meet and document
culture bearers in the region. Free public
programs are held in each county.
Makaela Kroin, OFN’s Program
Coordinator, has a Bachelor’s Degree in
Portuguese and Brazilian Studies from
Smith College, a Master’s Degree in In-
formation and Communication Science
from Ball State University, and a Mas-
ter’s Degree in Public Folklore from the
University of Oregon. Kroin served as
OFN’s Summer Folklore Fellow, co-co-
ordinated OFN’s collaborative Folklife
Fieldschool (Confederated Tribes of
Warm Springs K-8 Academy and the
Culture & Heritage Archives), and con-
ducted videographic documentation of
several master artists.
Kroin produced an exhibit for
the OFN and a documentary highlight-
ing the history and revitalization of hop
growing in Oregon. That exhibit is now
on display at the Independence Heritage
Museum, where it was featured for the
2016 Independence Hops & Heritage
Festival. Besides working on the folklife
survey, Kroin continues to coordinate
public programs for the OFN.
For more information about
public programs in Clackamas, Wash-
ington, Columbia, Multnomah, or Yam-
hill counties, contact Makaela Kroin at
makaelak@uoregon.edu or (541) 346-
Vernonia’s Voice is published
on the 1st and 3rd Thursday
of each month.
Vernonia’s Voice, LLC
PO Box 55
Vernonia, OR 97064
503-367-0098
3820.
Please contact Oregon Folklife
Network Director, Riki Saltzman,
at riki@uoregon.edu or (541) 346-
3820 with questions about the Oregon
Folklife Network or recommendations
for traditions, groups, or individual folk
and traditional artists to be documented
in the Portland Metro area.
www.VernoniasVoice.com
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