My Vision For Oregon

February 19, 2006

Dear fellow Oregonians:

As many of you may already know, I, along with Jim Hill, was endorsed yesterday by the Multnomah County Democratic Party. Both Mr. Hill and I received this endorsement not because we are the “anti-Ted” candidates running in the democratic party, as some have hinted at in recent weeks, but because each of us have brought forth our own vision for the future of our state. In contrast to the failed leadership and policies of Ted Kulongoski, I present below my own Vision for Oregon.

Oregon has long been recognized for its innovation, prosperity and equality. Oregon was once renowned for its beach protection law, its use of the initiative to create positive change—such as securing for women the right to vote—and for its strong public education system. Oregon used to be a national benchmark for health care, for land use planning, and for equality of opportunity.

In recent years, our state has ceased to exist as a beacon of hope. Oregon boasts a population of 3.5 million people. This last year, 751,000 of those have been forced to eat from emergency food boxes. Six-hundred fifteen thousand Oregonians do not have health care. Thousands of our citizens have been thrown off the Oregon Health Plan and have been denied access to our community colleges. We lead the country in hunger and in unemployment and every day we crowd more children into our classrooms.

When I am your Governor, I will pull Oregon out of this downward spiral and restore the innovative programs that have long made this state a harbinger of hope.

My BIG VISION for Oregon is more than a campaign promise. This vision was borne of a lifelong dedication to the state of Oregon; from working in the rural fields of Coos County as a child to working in the State Senate and as a Lane County Commissioner. My vision has been influenced by public school teachers during my time at North Bend High School and my experiences at Southwestern Oregon Community College and at the University of Oregon, where I received my BA, MA, and JD. Whether as a state prosecutor or an attorney in private practice, or as a State Senator or Lane County Commissioner, the people of Oregon have invested in me. It is time I return this investment.

Open and Accessible Government—Oregon is a familial state, founded on a sense of community, and Oregon’s government should be no different. As Governor, I will hold open office hours, so that citizens can meet with their elected officials. We will hold town hall meetings so that Oregonians can contribute to Oregon government with suggestions of their own and ask questions of their Governor. I have done this in every position to which I have been elected and it benefits both elected officials as well as citizens. Additionally, I will push for campaign finance reform and require greater disclosures from lobbyists. Lastly, I will look to implement the Golden Hammer Award—for people who work hard to develop projects that will save taxpayers money—and the Golden Fleece Award—for someone who has “fleeced” the taxpayers.

Public Education: Investing in Oregon’s Future —Public education is essential for our economic future—both Oregon’s and the nation’s. In Oregon, public education is under-funded at every level. We must have a greater investment in Head Start, public schools, community colleges, and public universities, as well as graduate scientific and medical programs. Oregon requires a multi-billion dollar investment simply to compete with other states. It will take even more than that to restore Oregon to its place as a national, and world, leader in education.

Health Care: A Right For All Oregonians— Current health care access in Oregon is a disgrace. The national government has developed policies that serve only to enrich pharmaceutical companies. Ted Kulongoski has cut 75,000 people from the Oregon Health Plan since he came into office. We must make it our goal to provide health care to every Oregonian, so that the 615,000 people in this state who cannot see a doctor will get the ongoing and preventative care they need. This is an overwhelming problem and must be addressed incrementally. We can begin by assisting small businesses with their health care costs like Governor Brian Schweitzer has done in Montana. We can work together to make health care in Oregon a right. We can also end frivolous corporate tax giveaways and begin getting people back on the Oregon Health Plan.

A Fair and Equitable Tax System—We need to raise revenue in order to take care of our most vulnerable citizens, pay for health care and finance our children’s educations. In 1973, Oregon received 18% of its income tax revenue from the largest corporations doing business in the state. By 2006, those corporations were contributing only 5% of our state income tax. Two-thirds of major corporations pay NO income tax at all to the state of Oregon. As Governor, I will work to make Oregon’s income tax system more equitable. Oregonians have voted no on personal income tax increases, we have voted no many times on the implementation of a sales tax, and we have voted three times in recent history to cap local property taxes. The corporate income tax should be modified so that loopholes such as credits, exemptions, and deductions result in a more equitable level of contribution. Last year my daughter Jennifer, a student at the University of Oregon, paid more in income taxes that two-thirds of Oregon’s largest corporations. That’s not right. Oregon employees and small businesses pay 95% of the income while Subchapter C corporations—those with 75 shareholders or more—pay only 5%. That’s not right either, and makes little sense at a time when we are disinvesting in education and social services.

Sustainable Economic Development –Sustainable economic development must be the watchword for Oregon state government. Worldwide oil production has peaked and Oregon must begin to cultivate and promote our substantial assets. Our small-scale agriculture and our wind, solar and wave energy resources can be stimulated by partnerships with our municipal and rural electric cooperatives and the state’s bonding capacity. Furthermore, the productive agricultural and forestlands around our cities must be protected from urban sprawl.

Working Families, Family-Waged Jobs – Working people are the lifeblood of Oregon's economy. Wages have been falling and we need to return to a concept of "family wage jobs." When government – at all levels – ignores the situation many working people are in, we're in a world of hurt. Right now, in Oregon, it's a shame that many full-time workers don't make enough to buy a house or even send their kids to school. We need good, sustainable jobs, and ones with benefits like medical, dental, vacation, and retirement. When government recruits businesses to Oregon who don't pay family wages – and I'm talking about one worker supporting himself or herself and two other people – then we're going backwards, and we're not going in the right direction. As Governor, I will always be looking forward and towards the interests of working Oregonians.

Protecting Our Environment –Oregon is more than a state. It's a state of mind. We are known throughout the country, and even the rest of the world, as a unique and beautiful place. Most people live in Oregon because of its serene and natural beauty: our rivers, our mountains, our deserts and our ocean and beaches. They are a legacy for us all. We have to treasure our natural environment. We've got to build an economy that recognizes that we can't live without good jobs but we really can't live – really live – without the beauty that is Oregon. As Governor, I will work tirelessly to protect Oregon's environment. I won't, as the incumbent Governor has done, weaken our clean water standards, support the construction of a Casino along the Columbia River Gorge, or use taxpayer funds to help put ship scrapping and factory farms near our rivers.

Eradicating Hunger— No one should go hungry in the richest nation in the world, and certainly not in an agricultural state such as Oregon. Our state must provide basic foodstuffs to our citizens. There has been more than 750,000 Oregonians in the last year who have required emergency food assistance. Over a quarter of a million people in this state suffer from poor nutrition. By increasing farmer-to-consumer direct marketing of fresh fruits and vegetables, we can utilize the bounty of Oregon’s land and family farms to serve this goal.

Emergency Response and Public Safety— Oregon sits on an active volcano range, borders an ocean, and receives significant amounts of rain and snow. This means Oregon is at risk for floods, slides and avalanches, for earthquakes and tsunamis, and for volcanic eruption. Oregon needs a state program of hazard insurance, funded by the people who purchase such policies. We need government and local agencies to work together to inform people of these hazards. Oregon also needs police, fire, emergency medical technicians and a National Guard that are trained and prepared to respond to such emergencies.

Improving the Common Good—A Governor for the state of Oregon should work for the improvement of the common good. This includes pushing for advances such as social justice, equality and opportunity both in our state and in our country. It also includes standing up for Oregon’s interests and speaking out against policies that are manifestly bad for our state and our citizens. Oregon has sacrificed more lives per capita in the war in Iraq than any other state with a population exceeding one million people. So, when President Bush lies to Congress and leads our country to war under false pretenses, we need a Governor of Oregon who will speak loudly against an injustice of this magnitude. We need a Governor who will speak out against any plan to repeal Social Security, gut our federal lands, roll back our environmental standards, or eliminate financial aid for students. When Mark Hatfield was Governor of Oregon he stood for up for Oregonians and spoke out publicly against President Johnson’s proposed expansion of the Vietnam War. This is the kind of leadership Oregonians need and deserve.

Equality—Every citizen in our state is equally important and it follows that every citizen in our state should participate equally and be afforded the right to live as they choose. We need to silence hate crimes against our gay and minority populations by launching an anti-discrimination task force. We need to protect doctors and nurses who perform abortions. We need to appoint more women and minorities to state agencies. We need to protect Oregon’s voter-passed Medical Marijuana laws and Death with Dignity.

This vision is a flexible vision, amenable to the inevitable changes in our society and in our needs as a state.

Oregon is not the nexus of and education and opportunity it once was. But it can be again. I have a vision for Oregon that we can achieve together and I welcome your involvement as this vision unfolds.