MARCH 19, 2021, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A13
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SUCCESS
Editorial Cartoon
A session begins
FROM
THE
Capitol
By BILL POST
I
t’s been quite some time since my
last column, mainly due to elections
and the start of the 2021 legislative ses-
sion. I want to acknowledge right away,
thank you to publisher Lyndon Zaitz for
allowing me to write this.
I’d like to relay where my own bills
are so far this session. This Friday,
March 19, is the First Chamber dead-
line. That means a bill must be sched-
uled for a work session (that’s when the
committee votes on the bill) by March
19 from the House or Senate Chamber
of origination. If a bill doesn’t have a
scheduled work session then it’s “dead”
unless it’s in the Committee on Rules,
Revenue, or a Joint Committee on
Ways and Means.
I’ve been fortunate to have several
bills move out of committee or that
should move later this week. HB 2607
which will help those who lost their
homes in last year’s wildfires by exempt-
ing them from construction taxes, is
now awaiting Third Reading (voting by
the House as a whole). HB 2650, which a
constituent brought to me, would allow
a police dog or K9 to be transported
for treatment by an ambulance. That is
also awaiting a vote of the House floor.
HB 3047 which would prohibit “dox-
ing” is on its way to the House floor.
HB 3239 which would prohibit large
cannabis processing plants in certain
areas is having a public hearing and
work session later this month. HB 2644
and HJM 2 both honor some very spe-
cial veterans. Those veterans were the
ones who cleaned up the atomic waste
in the Enewetak Atoll after the nuclear
bombs were tested earlier in the 1950s
and '60s. Those two bills have a hearing
later this month.
Finally, HB 2648, my attempt again
to make “Sudafed” type products sold
behind the counter with an ID and not
require a prescription. Mississippi just
passed the exact same bill as what I am
proposing, making Oregon the only
state in America that requires a pre-
scription for a common cold medicine.
That bill will have a hearing and work
session later this month.
The 2021 session has begun very
strangely. All committee hearings are
done remotely via Microsoft Teams.
That has been a challenge.
There are many instances of people
not being able to testify because they
couldn’t get “in” or the phone number
was given incorrectly or for other rea-
sons. There are also timeline consider-
ations with this virtual setting. Due to
technical constraints, most committees
must end at a set time, meaning people
who want to testify and get “in," are left
“off.” I had one committee that had over
50 people waiting to testify that weren’t
able to as time ran out.
It’s no secret to those who know me
that I am less than satisfied with this
system. We must get the Capitol back
open, because the voice of Oregonians
is not being heard. Though when there
are no glitches it is actually easier for
people to testify, it still isn’t the best
way. It’s a great addition, but it will
never replace the actual in person testi-
mony of Oregonians. I hope by the next
column things will be different.
(Bill Post represents House District
25. He can be reached at 503-986-
1425 or via email at rep.billpost@
oregonlegislature.gov.)
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