SECURE MEDICINE TAKE BACK

House Bill (HB) 2645 with the -5 amendments passed the House Health Care Committee on a party line 5-3 vote.  AOC staff believes the bill should be appealing to both parties and would appreciate help reaching out to members – both Democrats and Republicans. If you have any interest in helping please reach out to Mark Nystrom. The bill now heads to the Ways and Means Committee.

BIOMASS

Senate Bill (SB) 634 passed through the Senate 30-0 last week. The bill states that energy from a biomass facility can be used to meet the state’s 1.5 percent investment in renewable energy requirement. The bill moves to the House where it has died the last couple of attempts.

RURAL RESIDENTIAL ACCESSORY DWELLING UNITS

SB 1024 was scheduled for work session on April 17th but was pulled from the agenda right before the meeting. The feeling was that there was still some work that needed to be done on the bill before moving it forward. The committee recommended stakeholders work over the interim to continue to develop the concept. HB 3012  was amended and had a work session on April 18th. The bill would allow the construction of a second home on a rural residential parcel under certain conditions.

MINING

SB 1036 had a work session on April 17th. It exempts the creation of landfills from mining regulations. AOC has proposed an amendment which would include exempting public works projects as well. There was a great deal of coordination with stakeholders during the past week to ensure there would be no opposition to the bill.

SB 644 also had a work session on April 17th. The bill would expedite the local land use process for mines meeting certain criteria in several Eastern Oregon counties. If the mine meets both Federal and Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) requirements the county process would be much simpler, ensuring that the mine meets certain local criteria.

RURAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BILLS

SB 432 had a work session on April 17th. The bill allows rural counties with no population growth to adopt a comprehensive land use plan without complying with the statewide land use planning goals.

BUDGET

The week of April 17 the Natural Resources Subcommittee of Ways and Means will be hearing testimony on the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Contributed by: Mark Nystrom | AOC Energy, Environment, and Land Use policy mangager