Dear Friends,
Next week will be the last week of meetings of the three committees on which I serve:  House Education Committee, House Education Subcommittee on Education Innovation, and House Judiciary Committee.  The House & Senate Revenue committees, House & Senate Ethics and Rules committees, and the Joint Ways and Means Committee will continue to meet as needed.  The main order of business will be to produce a balanced budget with the revenues you as taxpayers will provide to the state.
We remain optimistic that our active bills will complete the process and be signed by the Governor.  Then, I and the other 89 “citizen” legislators can return to our districts and our “full time jobs.”
Best, Gene

“I wish you all an enjoyable and safe Memorial Day holiday and hope you will pause to remember those brave military men and women who gave their lives in the defense of our great nation on this day of remembrance.”  Gene Whisnant

Judiciary Committee Update
The House Judiciary Committee, the most active committee, hears and passes the most bills.  I enjoyed serving as vice-chair on this important committee and learning about many important issues.  One major legislative initiative focused on the “foster care” package of bills, which I described in a previous Legislative Update.  Another group of bills will help fight the meth war by creating additional crimes for meth-related activities.  We also passed out bills which will increase penalties for organized retail theft, aggravated identity theft, and stealing metal.  Other bills passed include bills to protect crime victim’s rights and toughen penalties for crimes involving child pornography and other offenses.

Funding and Policing
Significant Deschutes County Bills Pass Committee
On Tuesday, I testified in the Senate Revenue Committee on House Bill 3530 to allow La Pine city government to borrow against its anticipated 2007 revenue.  There is no opposition to this bill and the Governor’s Office supports the proposal.  I expect the bill to be voted out of Committee next week. 
The Senate Judiciary Committee heard the Sunriver law enforcement bills (House bills 3442 and 3445) on Wednesday.  I testified alongside Police Chief Mike Kenady, Homeowners Association President Scott Hartung and Service District President Doug Seator in favor of both bills.  The Committee unanimously passed House Bill 3445, which will allow the Police Department to cite drivers for violations.  House Bill 3442 also received the support of the Committee, but it needed a technical fix so it will be passed out next week.

House Passes Energy Standard that Fails to Protect Ratepayers
On Wednesday, the House passed Senate Bill 838, creating a “Renewable Energy Standard” (RES).  The bill requires that 25% of Oregon’s energy be ‘renewable’ by the year 2025.  While I support efforts to make Oregon a leader in the production of renewable energies, there are several problems with the bill as written.  I was forced to vote no when the Chair of the Committee that passed the bill would not accept key amendments.  My main concerns are that the proposal does not have adequate protections to ratepayers and no one knows how much the RES will cost.   Rep. Chuck Burley, who worked extensively on the proposal, explained the bill in his newsletter:
     “Renewable energy is good for the environment, good for energy independence and good for our economy.  The question is how to promote renewable energy.  Senate Bill 838 is paved with good intentions but ignores technical and economic problems.  When the bill was in Committee, I worked with stakeholders to develop and effective rate cap to protect the state’s biggest ratepayers and job providers.  These amendments presented in committee were rejected on a party line vote but would have included provisions that account for existing producers of renewable energy.  Senate Bill 838 was prematurely sent to the House Floor and could have received greater bipartisan support had those issues been addressed.  The fast-tracked legislation could increase energy costs and threaten Oregon’s manufacturing base and jobs.”

Bottle Bill Expansion Passes House
Recycling is an important Oregonian value and I supported a proposal to shift the collection of containers from stores to stand-alone recycling centers.  I also supported the creation of a Task Force to re-look at the Bottle Bill and ensure that we are taking the right steps in a cost-effective and business and environmentally sustainable fashion.  Before expanding the Bottle Bill, I believe we need to reevaluate and possibly modify our recycling system.  Though I support recycling, I opposed the expanded bill that passed the House on Thursday, which added water bottles to the list of recyclable containers because it does not address the fundamental concerns with our recycling systems. Grocery stores will be required to accept returned bottles and cans that they did not sell, creating logistical hardships.  The increase will especially be a hardship to small grocery stores like the one in Sunriver.  They do not have enough room to store the recyclables now and it will be even more difficult under the expansion.