June 2015
NEWS
The Southwest Portland Post • 3
Multnomah’s five elected officials gather for legislative town hall
By Erik Vidstrand
The Southwest Portland Post
On May 9, a legislative town hall was
held at the Multnomah Arts Center. In
attendance were Sens. Richard Devlin
(Senate District 19) and Ginny Burdick
(SD-18), and Reps. Margaret Doherty
(House District 35), Jennifer Williamson
(HD- 36), and Ann Lininger (HD-38)
All are members of the Democratic
Party.
Why so many at one meeting? District
lines cut right through the heart of the
Multnomah neighborhood. One may
have a different legislator than their
neighbor across the street.
“I had no role in redrawing the
district lines,” Sen. Burdick began with
a chuckle. Her district is right across
the street north of Capitol Highway
extending beyond Hillsdale.
A graduate of Wilson High School,
Burdick has been serving in the Senate
for the last three terms.
As co-chair of the House/Senate
conference committee on implementing
Measure 91, the senator said she is
working to ensure that Oregon sets
a national example on implementing
recreational marijuana use.
The senate has been struggling with
legislative directives on medical versus
recreational marijuana this session.
“We’re trying to strike a balance,” she
said, “without interfering with access to
medicinal cannabis.”
She has been working on some other
contentious issues.
“Passing universal background
checks was a massive deal to get across
the House floor,” Burdick confessed. “I
have been grateful that my constituents
have my back when it comes to gun
safety.”
Sen. Devlin is co-chair of the Senate
Ways and Means Committee where
appropriations are sorted out. His
district is south of Capitol Highway.
A former Metro councilor and park
district commissioner, Devlin has been
an avid environmentalist and social
justice crusader.
“I just had 85 visits in three weeks,”
Devlin said, “with 90 requests!”
Over 3,400 bills have been proposed
this year. Devlin has been sorting about
90 with the highest priority.
Rep. Lininger ’s district also cuts
through the middle of Multnomah.
Similar to Devlin’s district, the dividing
line is Capitol and she represents the
south portions.
Lininger just began her second term.
A public interest lawyer and former
Clackamas County commissioner,
her priorities are strong schools and
affordable college.
“We’re looking at strict rules for tax
credits and electric vehicles,” Lininger
announced firmly. “There’s no money
to spend on these services if we keep
providing attractive credits.”
Lininger stated that there needs to
be new revenue sources which are
not too popular with many of her
colleagues, but she said she will support
it nonetheless.
Lininger also sits on the conference
committee for Measure
91 and relayed that she is
working on a fair process as
the voters intended.
Rep. Doherty was up next.
She attended Multnomah
School and graduated
from Wilson. Doherty has
been a lifelong educator,
teaching locally and then
as an administrator. She
is the chair of the House
Education Committee.
Doherty said, “All of
the chairs of the various
education committees are
educators. This is a first.”
The audience of almost 200
citizens expressed their
delight.
“My highest priority is
child nutrition and free
lunch, not reduced lunch!” Sen. Ginny Burdick greets a crowd of 200 people on May
9 at a legislative town hall at the Multnomah Arts Center.
Doherty stressed.
The last to speak was Rep. Lininger, Sen. Devlin, Rep. Doherty, and Rep.
Rep. Williamson [who also Williamson join her. (Post photo by Erik Vidstrand)
represents part of Multnomah].
Williamson sits on the judicial and
Questions were organized by theme
higher-education committees. She also
and facilitated for the sake of time.
chairs the House Ways and Means
These included the recent Oregon
Committee.
Supreme Court ruling on the Public
Williamson, a lawyer, is a big advocate
Employees Retirement System and how
for public safety but wants to cut the
it might affect the state budget.
Department of Corrections in order to
“Would there be a need to raise taxes?”
fund higher education.
added a member of the audience.
“We need to look upstream,”
Devlin replied that the ruling would
Williamson said. “We’re close to
certainly increase the state’s expenses
opening another women’s prison.
including Obamacare costs.
We need to look at alternatives to
“It will be difficult to fund,” Devlin
community corrections.”
(Continued on Page 6)
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