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A3 THE ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, AUGUST 13, 2020 Lawmakers act on police reform, unemployment By DIRK VANDERHART and LAUREN DAKE Oregon Public Broadcasting Oregon lawmakers pow- ered through a one-day spe- cial session Monday, clos- ing a billion-dollar budget hole and passing bills to help unemployed workers and cur- tail police abuses. Amid bipartisan concerns over a rushed process and uncommonly pointed shots between Senate Republi- cans and Gov. Kate Brown, lawmakers passed 11 bills in about 15 hours. The public was not allowed into the Cap- itol due to coronavirus con- cerns, and lawmakers only accepted written testimony on the bills — including sev- eral that had never been given a public hearing. “When you’re in a crisis that we’re all in right now, sometimes you have to take actions that you normally wouldn’t take,” said Sen- ate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem, addressing con- cerns over a lack of public involvement. “You’ve got to move.” The session — the second time Brown has called law- makers in for extracurricu- lar work in as many months — was primarily focused on trimming a $1.2 billion hole in the current two-year bud- get. And although lawmak- ers moved swiftly, the pro- ceedings weren’t without controversy. As the afternoon wore on, Courtney warned that law- makers were “grumpy and they are getting grumpier.” It turned out he was right. Shortly after state sena- tors took to the fl oor to cast their votes, the conversation quickly turned political when Senate Minority Leader Fred Girod criticized the governor for a statement she sent out blaming Republicans for kill- ing one of her favored bills. That proposal, Senate Bill 1702, would have helped thousands of school employ- ees more quickly access unemployment benefi ts. But it died in committee when a three-person bloc, including a key Democrat, refused to support it. “We just got blasted by the governor,” said Girod, R-Ly- ons, noting that two Repub- licans and one Democrat had killed the bill. “My conclu- sion is the number of Repub- licans equals the IQ of the governor.” Shortly after those com- ments, state Sen. Herman Baertschiger, R-Grants Pass, castigated Portland-area law- makers for not criticizing the vandalism that has come with the nightly protests in the city. That led to a tense back-and- forth that ended when Court- ney threatened to adjourn. The session’s central focal point, balancing the state bud- get, was never in doubt. Law- makers in both parties had been clamoring for weeks to deal with the defi cit created by the coronavirus pandemic. But it became clear over the weekend that leading Democrats would put for- ward other bills over Republi- can objections that the session be limited to budget matters. As a result, GOP legisla- tors wasted no opportunity to condemn what they said was an overall lack of transpar- ency of the process. Several lawmakers weren’t even sure what policy proposals would be considered until Mon- day morning. House Speaker Tina Kotek, D-Portland, sur- prised some again when she announced the public would not have a chance to offer ver- bal testimony. As lawmakers discussed the approximate $400 mil- lion in cuts and administrative savings they had identifi ed to help close the budget gap, House Republican Leader Christine Drazan, R-Canby, said legislators’ should have found a way to better involve the public. “These cuts impact pro- grams that matter to people and as we go through this process … It’s very important to have the context of public input,” she said. Girod echoed the senti- ment later in the hearing. “The process just abso- lutely smells,” he said, point- Brian Hayes/Statesman Journal State Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose, listens during the second special session of the Oregon Legislature at the Oregon State Capitol in Salem on Monday. ing to state policies that allow people in many counties to patronize restaurants or bars. “There’s no reason why we can’t have the public in these meetings.” Lawmakers managed to largely preserve recent invest- ments made to the state’s pub- lic school system. By tapping into a $400 million state edu- cation reserve fund, they managed to keep a $9 billion fund for schools intact. Lawmakers also held off closing two state pris- ons, which at one point was discussed. And although many agreed the budget managed to stave off draconian cuts, some felt it hit certain pro- grams too hard. Sen. Mark Hass, D-Beaverton, voted against the budget because he felt it disproportionately harmed a fund that helps Ore- gon high school graduates pay for community college. support from lawmakers in a legislative committee Mon- day, but many became con- cerned by an estimate that the change could take nearly 300 hours to program into the state’s infl exible and problem-plagued computer system. David Gerstenfeld, act- ing director of the Oregon Employment Department, told lawmakers that change could detract from other pri- orities, as the agency scram- bles to modify its computer program. Gerstenfeld added that the agency would priori- tize any other coding projects that would result in a greater number of people receiving benefi ts. As a result, he could not say when the change might be complete. “We certainly feel the pressure and are doing every- thing we can to get every- thing implemented,” Ger- stenfeld said. ‘I STILL CANNOT GET PAST THE NOTION THAT THIS CREATES AN ADDED BENEFIT FOR A CERTAIN CLASS AND GETS THEM PASSED THROUGH FASTER.’ State Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose Non-budget bills put for- ward by Democrats created more opportunity for con- troversy. Though most leg- islative leaders — includ- ing Courtney — insisted last week the session should not include unrelated policy bills, negotiations over the week- end resulted in fi ve nota- ble proposals being brought forward. Three of the bills aimed to help unemployed work- ers, many of whom have seen their weekly benefi t checks delayed for weeks or months. Just two of the proposals wound up passing. The fi rst bill, SB 1701, will allow unemployed work- ers to make up to $300 a week and still qualify for full unemployment benefi ts. That proposal, suggested by Labor Commissioner Val Hoyle, more than doubles the amount part-time work- ers can earn without losing benefi ts. It had strong back- ing from the state’s restau- rant and hotel owners, who say they’re not able to offer workers full hours, and worry too-little pay will prevent employees from returning. The concept saw broad Lawmakers also passed SB 1703, which allows the state’s Department of Rev- enue to share informa- tion about self-employment income with the Employ- ment Department. The tweak is intended to help employ- ment offi cials verify claims under the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program. But Democratic leaders could not muster support for a third bill that was crafted to help some school employees to more easily access benefi ts. Senate Bill 1702 would have relieved the Employ- ment Department from needing to determine, on a case-by-case basis, whether those employees were likely to have their normal jobs resume at the end of the sum- mer break, a factor which typically disqualifi es them from payments. The bill ran into a crucial skeptic in state Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose, who said she understood the logic of the bill, but wor- ried it would create negative perceptions. “I still cannot get past the notion that this creates an added benefi t for a certain class and gets them passed through faster,” Johnson said. Johnson joined the two Republican senators on the committee in opposing the bill. That meant a major- ity of senators on the com- mittee were against the mea- sure, dooming its chance of advancing. Lawmakers found far more common ground in a bill that limits the use of force by police. That bill, House Bill 4301, was the product of weeks of work by a legislative com- mittee convened in late June. The bill further tightens the rules around chokeholds set during a special session in June. Under the new bill, police are prohibited from using the holds except for instances when they are try- ing to defend themselves or another person. The bill also folded in new rules for when police can use physical force — which under Oregon law includes the use of pepper spray or a stun gun — or deadly phys- ical force. In order to deploy deadly physical force under the new rules, police must believe a person “poses an imminent threat of death or serious physical injury” and that such force is necessary to make an arrest, prevent escape, or to defend the offi - cer or another person. The bill similarly limits when an offi - cer may use physical force to situations where they believe an injury is imminent, or to make an arrest or prevent escape. In any case of using force, police would be required to consider alternatives and give a warning if they have “a rea- sonable opportunity to do so.” The bill had support from sheriffs, police chiefs, and the Oregon State Police. But it drew criticism from some Republicans, who depicted it as a rushed fi x of a chokehold policy lawmakers passed in June. Girod provoked a pas- sionate response in the Sen- ate when he announced that he was voting against the bill “to fi re a shot across the bow that, for now, this is enough” bills on policing. Sens. Lew Frederick, D-Portland, and James Man- ning Jr., D-Eugene, who are both Black, replied that it would not be the last bill the Legislature takes up in the coming months. “I hear people saying, ‘Too much, enough,‘” Man- ning said. “People like me have been saying ‘too much, enough’ for years. Some peo- ple don’t have the ability to say, ‘Too much, enough.’” Lawmakers also made several notable changes to the Legislature’s rules for dealing with harassment. As Oregon Public Broadcast- ing has reported, the current rules contain holes that give harassment victims little say in whether their experiences are dredged up in a public hearing. Among a long list of changes, lawmakers decided to give such “impacted par- ties” a say in whether their cases move forward to a pub- lic hearing, or are resolved Consult a PROFESSIONAL Desktop Computer Cleaning Remove the power cord and side panel. Locate the CPU fan and the metal heatsink LEO FINZI just below. Gently hold the fan in place to keep it from spinning excessively quickly. New HP 14” Using a can of compressed air, or an air Laptop, 15.6” compressor, direct short burst of air to Screen, AMD Athlon Silver, remove dust in the heatsink. 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