Legislative Priorities

Legislative Priorities & Moral Imperatives for the 2007 Oregon Legislature
Addressing the root causes of poverty with a focus on community and family stability

May 30, 2007, OpEd in the Oregonian, "When the right thing is the prudent thing."

Faith in Action
Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon is committed to bringing the voices of people of faith in the policy-making process at the Oregon Legislature and beyond. Our advocacy is designed to create systems, institutions and public policies that promote peace, justice and a life of possibility for all people. A full statement of the Social Principles that guide Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon is available on our website at http://www.emoregon.org/pdfs/Statement_of_Social_Principles.PDF   

The goal of our public policy advocacy program is to empower people of faith with the tools they need to put their faith into action. A central focus of our advocacy work is to be a voice for those who live in poverty and a voice for civil rights and social justice. We advocate for housing, health care, and hunger relief as fundamental human rights. We believe that the scriptural mandate to "love your neighbor as you love yourself" calls us to acknowledge the dignity of all people and to resist the denigration of any person or group in our society. We also hear a biblical call to environmental stewardship, and believe we have a moral obligation to ensure that the earth and its natural resources are available for our children and their children for many generations into the future.

Throughout 2007, Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon will be at the Capitol monitoring legislation and advocating for policies that are consistent with these moral principles. Through our advocacy network, we will provide parishioners with timely information on legislation, key votes and opportunities to meet with legislators and participate in rallies. We will also help arrange meetings with legislators on behalf of local congregations or clergy. We encourage you to invite our public policy staff to meet with your members to discuss issues of social concern.

Below are Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon's legislative priorities in the 2007 Legislature.

Family Economic Security & Tax Fairness
For working families in Oregon rising housing and health care costs, stagnant or declining wages, and difficulty finding work frequently cause distress and too often threaten family stability itself. Over the past decade, the tax burden has shifted from wealthier individuals and large businesses to working people and small businesses. Taxes are a social investment used for the common good. Oregon's unbalanced tax system causes government services to be unreliable due to over-dependence on the income tax.

Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon supports changes to the tax code that reduce the tax burden on low income Oregonians, including expanding and extending the Refundable Earned Income Tax Credit.   We also support strengthening family supports in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program. We support interest rate caps on consumer loans; incentives that create living wage jobs; adequate tax revenue for public education, public safety and social services; and a "rainy day" fund.   We oppose the expansion of the state lottery and are deeply concerned about the reliance on gambling revenues to fund government services.  

View Earned Income Tax Credit Fact Sheet.

Health Care
With over 662,000 Oregonians without health insurance and the cost of private health care premiums rising at a rate faster than inflation and wages, the need for policies that increase access to health care and reduce health costs is critical. In 2007 Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon supports legislation that expands health care access for Oregon's children and youth (the Healthy Kids Plan), insures nursing mothers a right to express milk at work (the Return to Work and Breastfeeding Bill), creates stronger school nutrition requirements (Healthy Foods for Healthy Students bill), and legislation that moves toward universal health care access for all Oregonians. Additionally, Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon has consistently supported parity for mental health coverage in health insurance programs, a policy that was adopted in the 2005 legislature. Much more work is needed however to ensure that the state's mental health system is providing adequate care to the estimated 160,000 Oregonians who suffer from serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, depression or bipolar disorder. We will be monitoring this issue, and supporting proposals that effectively address shortcomings in the current system.  

Housing
Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon supports increased funding to build and maintain affordable housing throughout the state of Oregon. Specifically we support The Housing Alliance's efforts to secure spending of $100 million during the 2007-2009 biennium. This funding would be used to develop new housing options for low income Oregonians, rehabilitate existing rental housing, enhance support services and provide new home ownership funding options in both rural and urban areas of the state. We support reinstating programs that provide emergency rental assistance to families and individuals at risk of losing their housing. We will also support legislation to remove the state inclusionary zoning pre-emption that prevents local communities from requiring that new housing developments include a minimum percentage of affordable housing units.  

Hunger
Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon supports policies that relieve hunger, as well as policies to address the underlying causes of poverty and hunger. State funding for the Oregon Food Bank Statewide Network should be immediately increased to $2 million. We support the Oregon Hunger Relief Task Force's proposal to incorporate the Statewide Food Policy Council into statute, thereby furthering collaboration between farmers, consumers and public/private institutions to improve local food systems in Oregon. We also support expanding the Farmers' Market Coupon Programs for WIC recipients and for seniors.   

Preserving and Protecting the Environment
Oregonians take great pride in their state's natural heritage and resources, but threats from a growing population, Measure 37 and overuse of natural resources are endangering clean air and water, fertile farmland, pristine forests and wildlife. Globally climate change, deforestation, and access to clean air and water are among a host of pressing environmental issues. In 2007 Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon supports a package of legislation to promote clean renewable energy, bio-fuels, and improved energy efficiency standards in order to combat global warming and promote a sustainable economy. Measure 37 should be reformed to protect open space and farmland against large-scale development, while continuing to insure the rights of individual property owners as voters intended. We support a temporary suspension of Measure 37 to allow the legislature time to enact these reforms. We will also support efforts to reduce environmental toxins, improve air and water quality, and protect endangered species.  

Human and Civil Rights of All People
We must continue to defend and extend the great civil rights gains of past decades. In the 2007 legislative session Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon supports recommendations from the Task Force on Equality in Oregon to strengthen anti-discrimination laws including the creation of a statute to allow civil unions for same sex couples. We support efforts to eliminate the death penalty in Oregon, and will oppose any 2007 legislation that seeks to expand the use of the death penalty. We will express support for legislation that moves toward fuller equality for all races, and for women, and we will oppose legislative efforts to deny benefits to undocumented workers or otherwise target undocumented workers and other immigrants.  

Church and state relations
Religious diversity is critical to religious freedom. The state must respect the right to freedom of religion and must not enshrine the doctrines of any one religion. In 2007 Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon will support legislation that preserves religious freedom and religious diversity, while opposing any legislation that seeks to constrain religious freedom or unduly burden religious institutional integrity. At the same time, we will seek to insure that religious minorities do not suffer from state policies or practices that seem to favor or advantage any particular faith over others.  

"You are called to raise up the foundations, to repair the breaches, to restore the streets to live in." Isaiah 58:12