I hope your spring is going well. When I travel around NW Oregon, I hear ideas and concerns from Oregonians and see some of our challenges firsthand—like the dangerous safety conditions on TV Highway in Forest Grove. My staff and I then look for opportunities to help, and one option is to advocate for Community Project Funding.

I’m happy to report that earlier in March I helped secure $16.8 million for 15 community projects across NW Oregon.

The projects I advocated for address the top priorities I hear from Oregonians: housing affordability, aging infrastructure, climate change, and access to wraparound support services. You can see a full list of the 15 projects and the funding amounts here.

I was also able to secure a robust funding increase for child care and early childhood education in the most recent bipartisan funding bill President Biden signed into law. The Child Care and Development Block Grant—which helps low-income families afford child care and supports child care providers—will get a $725 million increase, and Head Start will receive a $275 million increase.

A budget is a statement of our values. My focus is shaping the federal government’s budget to better reflect the needs of NW Oregon.

Image

Visiting the North Coast

ImageDuring March I had the opportunity to visit and learn more about several exciting projects in Clatsop County. At Trillium House in Warrenton, I spoke with residents and providers about how having secure, affordable housing with wraparound services has changed and saved lives. Clatsop County has one of the highest rates of homelessness per capita in Oregon, and there is a critical need for more developments like Trillium.

At Columbia Memorial Hospital (CMH) in Astoria, I learned how CMH is building a resilient hospital to better serve the community for everyday health care needs and in response to an earthquake, tsunami, or other disaster. I advocated for the $13.9 million grant this project received from FEMA, and I will continue to look for opportunities to support resiliency efforts on the coast and across Oregon.

I stopped by the Port of Astoria to celebrate funding for the rehabilitation of Pier 2. Along with Senators Wyden and Merkley, we secured an additional $1 million for Pier 2 in addition to the more than $25 million in infrastructure dollars awarded last year. I look forward to seeing how these upgrades and repairs help invigorate the community and the local fishing economy. 

 Standing Up for Reproductive Rights

ImageDecisions about the safety and efficacy of medications should be made by medical experts, not judges or politicians. The U.S. Supreme Court heard a case this month that has the potential to limit access to mifepristone, which would further undermine access to safe abortion and reproductive health care.

We will never stop fighting to protect, restore, and expand access to abortion care. I was grateful to stand with many strong advocates for reproductive rights at Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette.


Reconnecting the Lower Albina Neighborhood

ImageWe wrote and passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law so it could help reconnect communities like Albina that were torn apart by racist and discriminatory highway projects.

It was an honor to join Sen. Wyden, Sen. Merkley, Rep. Blumenauer, and many community partners at Albina Vision Trust to celebrate the federal investment of nearly half a billion dollars we secured to revitalize this historically Black neighborhood.

ICYMI

  • I invited Jon Epstein, a Beaverton parent and fentanyl awareness education advocate, to join me at the State of the Union
  • Read my view on how federal investments are helping Oregon workers
  • I visited Aloha High School where students and educators showed off their great CTE programs
  • My staff and student loan expert Lane Thompson will be holding several student loan workshops
  • I spoke about how expanding the Child Tax Credit would benefit Oregon families
  • The Congressional Art Competition is underway! Submissions are due by 4/29
 

   

Unsubscribe | Privacy Policy

instagram youtube facebook twitter contact
imageimage