Oregon County Leaders Attend NACo Legislative Conference

Commissioners and judges attend policy committee meetings, educational sessions, and meet with members of Oregon’s Congressional delegation while in Washington, D.C.

Oregon county commissioners and judges joined elected and appointed officials from across the United States to participate in the National Association of Counties (NACo) Legislative Conference. Attendees adopted positions on pressing federal policies affecting counties and worked collaboratively to identify innovative solutions to challenges facing American communities. The conference was held in Washington, D.C. from March 1 – March 6, 2018.

Several workshops and meetings addressed counties’ role in infrastructure, multigenerational poverty, the opioid crisis, and public lands issues. Attendees also heard from administration and Capitol Hill officials at the General Sessions including Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, FEMA Administrator William “Brock” Long and Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Tim Scott (R-SC).

NACo’s major caucuses – the Large Urban County Caucus (LUCC) and the Rural Action Caucus (RAC) – were among NACo’s standing committees that met during the event to discuss issues ranging from rural America and agriculture to affordable housing and workforce. In addition, the Western Interstate Region (WIR) Board of Directors meeting featured a presentation from U.S. Forest Service Chief, Tony Tooke, who outlined five national priorities to help guide decision making for the agency.

“NACo’s Legislative Conference provides a unique opportunity for counties to exchange best practices and formulate a federal policy agenda to advance our residents’ priorities,” said Coos County Commissioner Melissa Cribbins. “NACo has made significant progress over the past year, and we’re positioned to address the challenges ahead. Counties are on the front lines of keeping our communities healthy, safe and vibrant.”

The reference to counties being on the front lines in delivering vital public services was echoed by U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) when he spoke to a news conference on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol Tuesday afternoon. Surrounded by county officials from all over the country, Sen. Wyden urged his Congressional colleagues to not only fully fund the PILT (Payment in Lieu of Taxes) program, but to also reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) program. Sen. Wyden was introduced by Multnomah County Commissioner Loretta Smith, who worked on the Wyden staff before being elected a county commissioner.

Columbia County Commissioner Henry Heimuller introduced U.S. Rep. Suzann Bonamici (D-OR) who then spoke to the news conference about the importance of fully funding PILT and reauthorizing SRS and what it means to the residents of Oregon’s 1^st Congressional District. Members of the House of Representatives from other Western states joined Sen. Wyden and Rep. Bonamici in support of PILT and SRS but it will take a concerted effort to gain legislative success for both programs.

An epic windstorm in Washington, DC on Friday, March 2^nd forced many Oregon county officials to either change their travel plans or cancel them all together, thus the Oregon delegation to the NACo Legislative Conference was somewhat depleted. Nonetheless, those who were able to make it to Capitol Hill to visit with Members of the Oregon Congressional Delegation found themselves warmly welcomed.

“We had some of the most productive Hill visits we’ve had in several years,” according to Polk County Commissioner and AOC President Craig Pope. “We really engaged in effective dialogue and provided our delegation with a serious and important view on what counties face today.”

U.S. Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR) represents more Oregon counties than other member of the House. The visit to his office featured orange juice, bagels and a long discussion about timber policy. U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) focused on changing federal policy toward marijuana. U.S. Rep. Kurt Schrader (D-OR) talked about federal grants for various projects and how counties can utilize them. U.S. Rep. Suzann Bonamici’s visit with county officials was interrupted by a vote on the House floor, but she returned to her office to engage in a lively discussion about opioid abuse and the challenges it presents Oregon counties. U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio encountered severe weather in his return to Washington and was unable to meet with the Oregon county folks. However, members of his staff provided much needed information on transportation issues.

The meetings with Oregon’s two U.S. Senators were very effective from the county perspective. Sen. Wyden directed his staff on numerous occasions to engage in issues of importance. He spoke of the need to end “fire borrowing” and the need for forest management. U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) also had wildfire on his mind during his meeting, along with land management, infrastructure development and economic opportunity.

Probably the biggest issues all the Congressional offices focused on were wildfires, the cost of fighting them, and how to manage them, along with marijuana policy and enforcement and veterans’ issues, primarily transportation for veterans to get to medical appointments and other needs. That’s not to say that a number of other issues weren’t raised. President Pope extended an invitation to Sen. Merkley to join AOC at an AOC Day in Salem in the near future to continue the discussion started in DC. There will be other invitations going out as well as a standing invitation to be at the annual AOC Conference in November.

Sen. Wyden made a good point in closing his meeting in DC and it was seconded by virtually every other Member of Congress AOC met with this year, keep in touch, he said, let us know what is going on. We will Senator, we promise.

Contributed by: Eric Schmidt | AOC Consultant