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Same Old, Same Old….Except When It’s Not

One Oregon legislative session looks a lot like another: bills are introduced, committees meet and hear the bills, compromises are offered and some are accepted while others are not, some bills make it to the governor’s desk and some don’t. Of course, the issues and people change from one session to another but the process is pretty stable.

But Oregon doesn’t often see its Governor resign and a new Governor take the helm just weeks into the session. It was an unusual time, to say the least, but the legislature got back to work pretty quickly and Governor Kate Brown has already signed her first few bills into law.

CUB is hard at work on some key issues. Our top priority is a bill dubbed Coal-to-Clean, aimed at urging electric utilities to eliminate coal from their power mix by 2025. Not surprisingly, the utilities aren’t thrilled at the prospect of having to confront their coal problem. But CUB is working with a broad network of groups led by Renewable NW and the Sierra Club. There is broad public support against coal and we’ll be working hard to translate that public support into legislative support.

CUB has been fortunate to have the help of a talented volunteer – Max Muller. Max was a legislative assistant for an Oregon legislator in the mid-2000s and then worked for 10 years as a staffer and then director for Environment Illinois. He came back home to the Pacific Northwest late last year and offered to help out in the legislature while he looked for permanent work.

Max has been taking the lead on two bills for CUB. The first bill would allow the Oregon Department of Energy to administratively adopt efficiency standards for appliances (something we’ve needed to do through the legislature up until now, but it makes more sense to do something so technical through administrative rulemaking). The second bill would allow residential customers to get a tax credit for installing solar water heaters.

Overall, CUB is tracking over 100 bills and actively working on about a dozen. One thing that doesn’t change from session to session: CUB’s commitment to ensure that residential ratepayers interests are represented, helping Oregon continue as a leader in adopting utility policies that are good for both the consumer and the environment. As usual, we’ll need our members’ support to make that happen, so here are a couple of things you can do to help!

  • Show your support for the Coal-to-Clean initiative by joining us in Salem on March 26th for Environmental Lobby Day, coordinated by the OLCV. This is a great opportunity to make your voice heard by meeting directly with members of Oregon’s legislative leadership.
  • If you have not already done so, please consider becoming an inaugural member of CUB’s Anniversary Club by donating $100 today! Your member contributions ensure that CUB has the power to continue advocating on your behalf for decades to come!

Stay tuned for more opportunities to help out as the session progresses.

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04/28/17  |  1 Comment  |  Same Old, Same Old….Except When It’s Not

Comments
  • 1.Yeah I agree, why not break the first goal up into smaller ahaeivecble goals? Get organised and write everything down so when you do achieve something and get something done you can tick it off the list and this visual will show you what you have done! Goodluck!

    Juvane | October 2015

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