ADVOCACY

AOC Steering Committees

AOC steering committees meet monthly to review issues of interest to counties and make policy and legislative recommendations to the AOC Legislative Committee and the AOC Board of Directors. Committee chairs are appointed by the AOC President and Board of Directors. Steering committee membership is open to AOC members and representatives from affiliate organizations. Membership on all steering committees is self-selected.

AOC Governance, Revenue, and Economic Development Steering Committee is actively involved in a wide array of state and federal legislation, rulemaking, and litigation that impact the governance of counties, such as finance and accounting, home rule, insurance, personnel and employment, economic development, public contracting, public records and meetings, taxation, and other policy issues that promote and support the efficient and effective operation of county government.

Resources: Governance, Revenue, and Economic Development Steering Committee Principles (PDF)

AOC recognizes the responsibility of county governments to help protect and enhance the lives of its citizens and residents. The work of the AOC Health and Human Services Steering Committee includes issues of healthcare, Medicaid, mental health, alcohol and drug addiction treatment, public health, intellectual and developmental disabilities, early childhood development, and seniors. Counties have been at the forefront in implementing a comprehensive, integrated system of health and human services, encompassing evidence-based prevention, intervention, and treatment approaches. In recognizing and building upon existing social foundations, county governments serve as the link among federal, state and municipal policies and the delivery of critical services in ways that maintain and foster healthy and self-sufficient communities, families, and individuals. The committee supports the work of counties through the lens of the state – county shared services model, and continues to advocate for partnership and collaboration at all levels of government.

Resources  Committee Principles

Related Committees: Local Government Advisory Committee

HHS Summit Series

Related Committees

The Natural Resources Policy Steering Committee seeks appropriate management policies and policy-making processes for water, public lands, and natural resources, guided by the principles of “Enlibra” (national standards, neighborhood solutions; collaboration, not polarization; reward results, not programs; science for facts, the process for priorities; markets before mandates; change a heart, change a nation; recognition of benefits and costs; solutions transcend political boundaries).

Resources: Natural Resources Steering Committee Principles
2023 Wildfire Hazard Map Meetings

Related Committees:

The Public Safety Steering Committee focuses on issues relating to the protection of individual and community safety from injury or loss of property. Topic areas considered by the committee are very diverse, such as behavioral health, community corrections, courts, diversionary programs, emergency services, law enforcement, jails, juvenile justice, substance use disorder, and victim rights, to name just a few. Some of these topics also overlap with the work of other AOC steering committees.

Resources: Public Safety Steering Committee Principles

The AOC Transportation and Community Development Steering Committee focuses on policy issues related to the systems necessary to sustain a community such as infrastructure, utilities, and waste management, as well as construction and land use relating to “non-resource” lands (generally, lands not zoned exclusively for farming or forestry). In addition, the committee advocates for the role of counties in providing for the effective movement of people and goods through all modes of transportation.

Resources: Transportation Steering Committee Principles

Association of County Planning Directors (AOCPD)

The Legislative Committee formulates policies and legislative positions for the association on matters of local, state, and federal concern. The Legislative Committee is chaired by the AOC President and consists of all members of the board directors, plus one additional member from each of the eight districts, the chair(s) of each steering committee, one district attorney, and one member from any county that is not otherwise represented. The committee can meet as often as once a month, and if necessary, twice a month when the Oregon Legislature is in session.

Resources:
Committee Principles
Legislative Summaries
2024 Legislative Priorities