AEE PAC Member Message
Members,
As everyone of you now knows, the legislature has failed to pass a funding package for transportation and impacting our agency, our cities, our counties and the transit services they rely on.
We have all started to feel the turmoil that layoffs cause; and seen the damage that it creates for us individually, for our fellow coworkers, and the state as a whole.
As things stand now, our main hope to repair the damage is to demand the Governor call a Special Session for the legislature and get a funding package passed. However, the Governor will only call a Special Session if there is a clear path forward to a funding package that serves the state of Oregon's needs. Failing a special session, we need to fight for a general fund transfer to hold us over. We all know the damage that inaction will cause; but we need to make sure that our elected officials know what is at stake as well.
The AEE Political Action Committee is asking each and every one of our members to write their elected representatives, as well as the Governor, and call for action. We are all stronger when we stand together. You can find you Oregon legislators (both your senator and representative) and their contact information here: Find Your Legislator And you can contact the Governor to ask her to call a Special Session Here: Governor of Oregon : Share Your Opinion : State of Oregon
Please share your own story; everyone of you has a unique perspective on this issue. Our lawmakers need to hear from all of us. In particular here are the members on the Joint Committee on Transportation Reinvestment, if your representative is on this list, it is vitally important that they are engaged with this issue, and they need to hear from you:
Senator Khanh Pham, Democrat - District 23 - Outer SE & NE Portland
Representative Susan McLain, Democrat - District 29 - Forest Grove, Cornelius, Hillsboro
Senator Bruce Starr, Republican - District 12 - Rural Polk & Yamhill Counties
Representative Shelly Boshart Davis, Republican - District 15 -Albany, Millersburg, Tangent
Senator Lew Frederick, Democrat - District 22 - N/NE Portland
Senator James Manning Jr., Democrat - District 7 - Eugene communities of Bethel, Churchill, Sheldon, Cal Young, Whiteaker, Trainsong, Harlow, Santa Clara, River Road and Cities of Elmira and Veneta
Senator Suzanne Weber, Republican - District 16 - Tillamook -Whip
Representative Mark Gamba, Democrat - District 41 - Milwaukie
Representative Jeffrey Helfrich, Republican - District 52
Representative John Lively, Democrat - District 7 - Springfield
Representative Kevin Mannix, Republican - District 21
Representative Nancy Nathanson, Democrat - District 13 - Eugene
The Joint Committee on Transportation Reinvestment was created this session intending to address the funding issue - and it is a separate committee from the longstanding Joint Committee on Transportation. The following are the members of the JCT but not the JCTR:
Senator Chris Gorsek - Senate District 25 - Gresham
Senator Mark Meek - Senate District 20 - Oregon City, Gladstone, Happy Valley
Representative Paul Evans - House District 20, South Salem, Independence, Monmouth
As many legislator's support as possible - particularly from the above groups - will be crucial to bringing a vote before the rest of the legislature, whether in special session or next year's short session. Here's a optional start to your letter:
Senator/Representative _________________,
I am your constituent, an Oregonian and an ODOT employee - fornow. I was very disappointed that a compromise wasn't found that would have ideally funded the transportation system Oregonians need via HB2025. I was further dismayed that a stop-gap measure wasn't supported widely enough to ensure that our transportation system - including our local jurisdiction partners -could remain functional while the legislature attempted again in the next session(s).
That failure has resulted in 449 vacant positions being eliminated. Any vacancy over the last few years has required special permission for filling to minimize risk of layoffs, cuts and budget inadequacy. We've all picked up extra duties to keep the system as functional as we can.
Worse, those vacancies weren't enough. The layoffs that were warned of are occurring. 483 of my colleagues will lose their jobs to this failure. Even for those that are expected to remain, work is slowed because we all have to stay abreast of staff losses, layoff processes, managing tasks that need transferring, staff bumping via seniority rights and generally poor morale. Specifically, my work is impacted by ... [talk about the team members you're losing and the work they do].
I am urging you to voice support for any measure that will keep these talented Oregonians doing the public service work our state needs. I am under the impression those measures could range from support for a general fund transfer, or legislation in preferably a special session, and failing that next year's short session.
ODOT and local agencies are worse today and will continue to degrade without a funding solution even one that is a stop-gap.
Regards,
Please demand more from our elected officials; we deserve better than this, the state of Oregon deserves better than this.
In Unity,
AEE PAC