Sen. Boquist: Vaccine passports, Checking Gov. power, more…

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

• Gov. Kate Brown announced on Thursday she would immediately have the state follow the CDC guidance on masks.

• FIRST STEP TO VACCINE PASSPORTS: Oregon businesses likely will need to review COVID-19 vaccination cards for maskless entry by customers. It is no one’s business to have access to private medical info.

• HB 3057 is Oregon’s attempt to make vaccine passports a reality. The bill violates federal law and HIPPA patient privacy. The intent is to allow nurses and bureaucrats not involved in patient care to access a citizens’ medical records on a computer system without either the patient or patient’s providers knowledge. Read Sen. Boquist’s vote explanation here.

• SB 865, a bill sponsored by two Senate Republicans and the Senate Democrat Leader that directly targets two sitting senators, is illegal. From this court case: “laws directly burden the associational rights of a party and its members by limiting the party’s discretion in how to organize itself, conduct its affairs, and select its leaders.”

• Legislature passing taxes and keeping public iced out.

• OPINION: Legislature must reign in governor’s unchecked emergency power. Where was this 6 months ago?

• 600 Portlanders answered a survey describing Portland, using words like “filthy, dirty, homeless, riots”