Sen. Boquist: OLCC scandal update, new parental alerts, more…

By Oregon State Senator Brian Boquist,
Highlights, excerpts from Sen. Boquist newsletter

— Oregon schools may be required to electronically notify families, employees of threats.

— Senators Boquist and Knopp and Representative Breese-Iverson continue to call for a fair investigation of corruption within the OLCC. As it stands right now, the Oregon AG is essentially investigating herself, meaning it will not be fair. Furthermore, the OLCC spent a TON of money to build a new HQ. Is that a good use of taxpayer dollars?

— Remember, it is common practice that when a new governor takes over, they bring in new agency heads. The OLCC director, who resigned amid the storing fancy bottles of bourbon scandal, even said in a statement that he understands Gov. Kotek wants to have someone else run the agency: “Because I believe that the Governor is entitled to have her own management team, I will honor that request.”

— Dozens of tenants and landlord associations showed up Monday to testify for and against a SB 611, which would adjust the state’s rent cap laws. Rent control will further disincentive developers and contractors from working in Oregon because stakeholders want to be assured that they can at least keep up with inflation and taxes when considering pricing new housing and apartment units.

— Planned Intel building could point to future Oregon factory expansion.

— After Oregon voters decriminalized hard drugs such as heroin and meth, and while the hard drugs have had no issue making their way through the state, the drug addiction recovery services that were supposed to be integral to the measure, have floundered. Now, the legislature wants to give the Oregon Health Authority, the agency that ran point on the pandemic and helped destroy Oregon hospitals with vaccine mandates (that have disappeared in the stealth of night) and changed the COVID-19 numbers and reporting as needed, more money and power than voters originally agreed to.

— Last week the legislature approved a $200 million dollar bill to help address the housing issue and according to OPB, the money is strictly limited to creating new shelter spaces. “Shelters already operating don’t qualify, and as OPB reported last week, city officials across Oregon are worried shelters they currently have open are at risk of closing.” This sounds a lot like throwing money at a brick wall. Why create new shelters if the current ones are unable to help? The new ones will surely suffer the same fate.

— KGW has a great story on the $200 million dollar bill and the host has commentary that most Oregonians would agree with: “

— GROSS: A vice principal at Centennial High School in Gresham was among eight men arrested Thursday on allegations of sex solicitation.

— HB 2002 is a bad bill working its way through the legislature and it has the government is stepping in to take the place of the parent by taking away the age of consent requirements for “reproductive health care”, which includes abortion and hormone therapy for transgender youth. It creates secrecy between parent and child and important medical decisions when there should be none.

— Dozens testify against firearm bill that critics say tries to circumvent the courts. A proposal in the Legislature would enact a gun permit system as Measure 114 is tied up in the courts

— A mansion known as “Portland’s White House” has hit the market in the Oregon city for $3 million.

— Oregon state budget expected to be a 25% increase, nearly double other states.

— Congresswoman Chavez-DeRemer joined others in the U.S. House of Representatives to help introduce the End Fentanyl Act, which would require a review of outdated policies and procedures in an effort to help mitigate dangerous drug trafficking.