My view: House Democrats lay out roadmap for 2023 session

Housing affordability and homelessness: Housing and homelessness are the biggest challenges facing our state right now, so we are working hard to pass a bipartisan package of policies and budget allocations early in the session. This major investment will give the state and local governments tools to prevent people from becoming homeless and provide shelter for Oregonians living on the streets. It will also continue to address our lack of housing supply in Oregon — we are 140,000 homes short of what we need, which drives up the cost of housing and is one of the root causes of homelessness.

Behavioral health and addiction services: For too long, Oregon has lagged behind other states when it comes to access to mental health care and addiction treatment. Addiction destroys lives, tears families apart and contributes to rising property crime and homelessness. This session we’ll prioritize expanding residential and facility treatment centers, funding community mental health programs and bolstering the behavioral health workforce. We’ll also respond to voters by improving Measure 110 implementation, so that people struggling with addiction can get treatment and focus on recovery.

A fair economy for all Oregonians: Now is the time to invest in opportunities that will provide good-paying jobs in communities across Oregon. Building a fair economy for all Oregonians requires supporting our working families, homegrown industries and small businesses. To create more good-paying jobs that pay above the median wage, we also plan to make meaningful investments in the semiconductor industry that help bring federal dollars from the federal CHIPS Act to Oregon. Additionally, we’ll continue to bolster the systems that help low- and middle-income workers participate in the workforce, particularly access to quality child care.

Stronger schools: Our students and schools have faced tremendous challenges these past few years. Our job this session is to make sure students, educators and families have what they need to be successful — in school and in life. One of the Legislature’s primary responsibilities is to ensure that schools have stable and sufficient education funding from cradle to career. Beyond funding, we know we need to strengthen our workforce through recruiting and retaining teachers and school staff. A focus on early literacy, school safety and increasing support for students’ mental health care needs will help our students succeed. Our legislative education leaders will also make sure new policies like the Student Success Act are working as intended to improve students’ lives.

Safer communities: Everyone deserves to feel safe in their community. In large part, that means crime prevention as well as accountability for those who commit crimes. The House Judiciary Committee is holding hearings on the prosecution of domestic violence and DUIs, on support for child advocacy centers that respond to child abuse and neglect cases, and on improvements to victim compensation programs. We’ll partner with local law enforcement and community groups to fund proven violence prevention efforts, and we’ll make sure that Oregon State Police have the resources they need to address serious crime. We’ll also take further steps to address gun violence, including working to implement the voter-approved Measure 114.

When I look at the members of the House Democratic Caucus, I see 35 people who are each doing the hard work to address Oregon’s biggest challenges. For many of us, these issues are personal — we experience them daily in our work as nurses, doctors, firefighters, teachers or small business owners. Many of us have seen the effects of addiction up close, know what it means to be a single parent or have struggled to pay the rent, buy groceries or find child care. By working together — across chambers, across parties, and across communities — we can use this session to address these issues and rebuild for the future.