Let’s get these bills over the finish line!
It’s been a busy session with many important bills passing out of the legislature and heading to the Governor’s desk … but our work is not done yet. This year’s long legislative session runs until June 28th and we have a lot of important bills we want to see passed this year. Here are three bills we support because they impact our work in several programs including the Energy Challenge, school gardens, and Rethink Waste. Read more to find out ways to show your support.
1.) 100% Clean (HB 2021)
100% Clean Energy for All, HB 2021, will transition Oregon’s electricity away from coal and to 100% clean energy sources by 2040, and it will ensure rural communities and people of color benefit from the transition. The bill was developed by the Oregon Clean Energy Opportunity campaign, which was led by environmental justice groups from across the state, and has broad-based support. Here is a great background article about the bill from OPB.
Support this bill by contacting your legislator.
Support this bill by phone banking with OLCV on Thursday, June 3rd from 5:30 PM-8:00 PM.
Together, we’ll be calling constituents in key legislative districts to ask them to get involved in the campaign by contacting their legislator. This is a great opportunity to roll up your sleeves and help us win the Oregon Clean Energy Opportunity campaign to pass justice-centered energy policy this legislative session. Even if you’ve never phone banked before or are feeling rusty, we’ll start off with a training on how to phone bank and will provide talking points on the bills.
RSVP today!
2.) Oregon Farm to School Grant Program
The Oregon Farm to School and School Garden Network has been working hard to secure funding for Oregon’s Farm to School Grant Program, now we need your help! Critical decisions about Farm to School funding are being made in the next two weeks, and we need to make sure our legislators do all they can to secure adequate and stable funding for the Program.
Oregon Farm to School Grants provide funding for schools to purchase healthy, local foods and provide farm and garden-based education. Farm to School is a win, win, win — supporting kids, farms and communities. Here’s more info about the impact of program.
Support this program by contacting your legislator.
Here are instructions and a template for your email message. Our legislators need to hear from us, please do send a message if you’re able.
3.) Modernize Oregon’s Recycling System
Senate Bill 582A passed through the house committee last month. The bill represents two years of research and a comprehensive plan that will accomplish the following (and more):
- make recycling more equitable by requiring living wages for facility workers and providing recycling collection opportunities across the state
- make recycling easier by having a statewide list of what goes and what doesn’t
- make producers of packaging materials accountable for their products through a shared cost responsibility model: it wont just be our garbage collection rates, it’ll be the producers who have to pay for recycling costs
582A is currently sitting in the joint committee on ways and means and it needs a boost to make it out of there. The state must act now to prevent another generation of recycling programs that lack transparency and accountability, and can’t guarantee the environmental outcomes that community members across the state expect and deserve.
Support this bill by contacting your legislator.
Your legislators need to know that you’re in support of this bill. If you have a moment, here are instructions and a template for your email message.