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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 14, 2019)
A3 THE DAILY ASTORIAN • MONDAY, JANUARY 14, 2019 Gov. Brown backs bill to limit rent increases By DIRK VANDERHART Oregon Public Broadcasting Gov. Kate Brown sup- ports a bill that would limit how much Oregon land- lords could increase rents and eliminate no-cause evictions of long-term tenants. Brown believes those ideas “are innovative and will give renters some peace of mind,” spokes- woman Kate Kondayen said Friday. The endorsement increases the likelihood Oregon will enact notable tenant protections amid a housing shortage after fail- ing to pass similar laws in 2017. Under the bill being pushed by state House Speaker Tina Kotek, D-Portland, and state Sens. Ginny Burdick, D-Port- land, and Laurie Monnes Anderson, D-Gresham, landlords of properties across the state could only raise rent by up to 7 percent per year, plus the annual change in the consumer price index. That would amount to a statewide rent stabilization policy that offi cials say would be unique in the United States. Rental properties that are less than 15 years old would be exempt from the 7 percent cap, and land- lords could reset the rent at whatever they want if a tenant voluntarily leaves the property. The bill also would pre- vent landlords from evict- ing tenants without cause after they’d lived in a prop- erty for more than one year — essentially banning what is commonly known as “no-cause evictions.” It would also create a new “for-cause” evic- tion framework that would increase the number of valid reasons a landlord can evict, including the need for renovations or wanting to move a fam- ily member into the prop- erty. Many landlords using those new justifi cations would be required to give 90 days notice and provide the tenant a month’s rent for relocation expenses. The bill is a major focus of Kotek, the most powerful lawmaker in the House, and Burdick, the Senate majority leader, in the legislative session that begins Jan. 22. The gover- nor’s support adds to that momentum. Brown has not commit- ted to the fi ne-grain details of the proposal, her offi ce says, but after reading the bill language she plans to signal her support in an inaugural address. “She also understands that Oregon will be the fi rst state to adopt such a policy, and we need to make sure we keep an eye toward the policy’s applicability in the varying housing markets across the state … ,” Kon- dayen said Friday. “The governor is ready to work with the Legislature to make sure that Oregonians today and tomorrow bene- fi t from this legislation.” The tenant protec- tion bill is the Legisla- ture’s second high-profi le crack at rent control since 2017. That year, the House passed a bill that would have allowed cities to limit rent hikes, among other provisions, but the effort died in the Senate without coming up for a vote. In an interview Thurs- day, Burdick said she believes this time will be different. “This was a hard nego- tiation,” Burdick said. “Kudos to the speaker for all her work on this. I’m optimistic we can get it through quickly.” That doesn’t mean the bill would pass without controversy. Since Willa- mette Week fi rst reported details of the proposal, some tenant advocates have lambasted the bill, saying a 7 percent limit on rent increases is far too high. Center for Whale Research Meet the newest southern resident orca whale, born to L77. New orca calf seen among Puget Sound’s critically endangered killer whales By LYNDA V. MAPES Seattle Times A new calf has been born to the critically endan- gered southern resident killer whales, researchers confi rmed. The calf was born to L77, said Ken Balcomb, found- ing director of the Center for Whale Research. He con- fi rmed the birth in a text to The Seattle Times on Friday. He estimated the calf is sev- eral weeks old. The calf, which Balcomb named “Lucky,” is desig- nated L124. The whale’s sex is not yet confi rmed. Center staff fi rst saw the calf Friday morning at the eastern end of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. “It’s great news,” Bal- comb said, adding the calf looks healthy. It is the fi rst known birth to the southern residents since Tahlequah, or J35, gave birth to a calf in July that lived only a half-hour. Tahlequah drew world- wide attention when she car- ried the dead infant for 17 days and more than 1,000 miles, refusing to let it go. Any birth in the south- ern resident population is big news because the orcas that frequent Puget Sound in the J, K and L pods are critically endangered. There are only 74 left, with three whales lost last year. The center on Friday also was observing K25, a south- ern resident whale known to be in poor body condition. If conditions allow, the center is attempting to get an update on that whale’s status. K25 is doing poorly after the death of his mother K13 in 2017. Mother orcas pref- erentially feed their sons and K25 has been getting thinner and thinner — so thin that Balcomb has said he is con- cerned he may not last the summer. J17, Tahlequah’s mother, is also so thin as to cause similar concern. Bill before Legislature would require permits to buy guns, limit ammunition Associated Press SALEM — A bill set to appear in the Legislature this year would require Ore- gonians to obtain a permit before buying a gun, limit the amount of ammunition a person could buy, outlaw magazines with a capacity of more than fi ve rounds and create gun locking and stor- age requirements. The Statesman Journal reported that the measure is the broadest of more than a dozen bills dealing with guns submitted by lawmak- ers ahead of the 2019 Legis- lature , which convenes Jan. 22. The bill came from Stu- dents for Change, a group of Lake Oswego teens formed last year after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Doug- las High School in Parkland, Florida. State Rep. Andrea Sali- nas, D-Lake Oswego, and Sen. Rob Wagner, D- Tuala- tin, submitted Senate Bill 501 on their behalf. Wagner said that it’s “probably a long shot that something like this passes in whole cloth,” but this is the bill the students wanted to put in front of the Legislature. Est. 1987 Now -hru Jan12-21 For more information visit, NorthwestAgShow.com Look for the Show Guide % 25 January 4th in Capital Press E TE PA ES N Y PR N D BY HAR VE ST C A A P IT O L C M off Jan 31 s- Jan 22-30 35 % off 30 % off 1 DAY ONLY Up To % 75 Clearance I-ems c c c OVER 120 EXHIBITORS & PARTNERS MORE THAN 25 seminars & workshops 3 BIG DAYS IN 3 BUILDINGS Courtesy of : TED OUN DISC REE & F N ISSIO ADM Northwest Ag Show Sponsors Title Sponsor Major Sponsors Presenting Sponsors Annual January Sale! 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