Tag Archives: Senate Democrats

Sen. Burdick steps down as Oregon Senate Majority Leader

After nearly five years as Oregon’s Senate Majority Leader, Ginny Burdick announced Wednesday night that she would be stepping down from the position. Source: Sen. Burdick steps down as Oregon Senate Majority Leader | KATU

Democrats estimate low household costs from cap and trade climate bill; advance bill to full budget committee

Bottom line, however, Democrats maintain that low-income households will see no or very limited cost increases; moderate-income families will see less than a $100 a year impact, and higher-income households in Portland, between $150 to $400 in annual increases. Impacts on higher-income households elsewhere depend on where they live. Source: Democrats estimate low household costs […]
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Editorial: Democrats may come to regret quorum effort

State Democratic leaders last week backed off their plans to fine Republican senators who twice boycotted the Capitol this past legislative session. The reasoning by Democrats, and this probably is correct, is that the big legal bills that would be generated by the court fight that was certain to ensue would more than cancel out […]
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Oregon Senate drops plan to collect fines from Republicans who walked out

The Oregon Senate leadership is dropping its effort to collect $3,500 in fines from each of the Republican senators who participated in a walkout last session, refusing for more than a week to show up. It’s a move Democrats are making so they can pivot and, instead, ask voters to change quorum rules so the Legislature can be in session […]
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Dems back off threat to fine Republicans for walkout

Instead, Democrats will push bills to change the quorum requirements to a simple majority – rather than two-thirds – to stop future walkouts. More than two months after voting to fine protesting Republican senators $500 per day for walking off the job, Senate Democrat leaders announced Friday they will not make good on the threat. […]
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Editorial: Senate Democrats try to bill Republicans for working

Oregon’s Democratic leaders have struggled to react to the failure of House Bill 2020, the carbon tax bill. They tried to blame somebody else. They heaped blame on the walkout by 11 Republican senators. But Democrats didn’t have enough support in their own party to get passage in the Senate. Source: Editorial: Senate Democrats try to […]
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Peter Courtney is Oregon’s longest serving lawmaker. Some say his time is up. Are Democrats really ready to push him out?

Oregon’s 76-year-old Senate president, Peter Courtney, was criticized by environmentalists and some fellow Democrats after he failed to marshal enough support for a climate change bill and appeared not to grasp the seriousness of sexual harassment at the Capitol. In the final days of the legislative session, some mused that his leadership, the longest by […]
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Oregon Republicans issue list of demands to Democrats

Oregon Senate Republicans who’ve fled the state Capitol have made it clear they object to Democrats’ multibillion-dollar business tax plan to fund education. They are pushing Democrats to send the plan, which already passed the House last week, back to committee for unspecified changes that could delay it indefinitely. Source: Oregon Republicans issue list of […]
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Democratic tax plan could trigger a showdown in the Oregon Legislature

The Oregon Senate could vote as soon as Tuesday on new state tax rules in response to the federal tax overhaul. Because the plan would reconfigure a controversial state business tax break, it could turn into the first major showdown between Democrats and Republicans in the short 35-day session. Source: Democratic tax plan could trigger […]
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Democrats in the Oregon Legislature say there’s no quick fix for child welfare problems

Democrats in the Oregon Legislature are not pitching any sweeping plans to improve the state’s child welfare program, following the release of a scathing audit last week that documented the state’s failure to follow through on a decade of reforms. Instead, Senate Democrats point to a $30 million budget boost they approved last year in […]
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