Negotiator-in-Chief Issues Challenge

In a rare pre-May forecast press conference, Governor Kitzhaber challenged lawmakers to agree to a grand bargain on PERS and new tax revenue or face a shriveled budget for education. He also called on lawmakers to take a bipartisan look at tax reform.

In his third term, Kitzhaber has become known for his keen negotiations skills that have helped to ensure bipartisan passage of his major policy initiatives during the last two sessions.

His methods have included bipartisan legislative leadership meetings at Mahonia Hall, weekly meetings with presiding officers, one-on-one diplomacy with key members, attending caucuses of both parties and, when necessary, public pressure to break logjams in negotiations. He clearly resorted to the latter yesterday.

Signaling that the legislature is at a crossroads and faces a “partisan impasse,” the governor used his public “bully pulpit” to call on legislative leadership to take on two major challenges:

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Putting the Death Penalty to Sleep

Despite advocacy from former Oregon Supreme Court chief justices and administrators of the Department of Corrections, a ballot measure to repeal Oregon's death penalty seems unlikely until at least 2016. A legislative resolution by Rep. Mitch Greenlick to put the issue on the ballot next year died in committee.

Meanwhile, all that stands between the execution of convicted killer Gary Haugen and lethal injection is Governor Kitzhaber, who has refused to preside over any executions during his term in office. Haugen is pursuing legal action to allow his execution to proceed, despite an Oregon constitutional provision giving a governor sole authority over clemency decisions.

Oregonians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty staged a forum at Willamette University last week that attracted more than 200 people and featured an address by retired Supreme Court Chief Justice Paul DeMuniz. He said the death penalty doesn't work as a deterrent to violent crime, creates enormous legal complexities and costs Oregonians more than housing convicted felons for a life sentence.

Aliza Kaplan, a Lewis & Clark Law School professor, says the cost of trying to execute someone is at least 50 percent more that a life sentence without parole. She cited the case of Randy Lee Guzek who has been on death row in Oregon for 24 years and still has remaining appeals, costing Oregon taxpayers approximately $2.2 million.

Former Oregon State Penitentiary Warden Frank Thompson, who oversaw the two most recent state executions in 1996 and 1997, told the crowd, "Oregon should not be implementing policy that has been proven not to work." Both executions occurred during Kitzhaber's first stint as governor, which he has cited as a major reason for his moratorium on any further executions while he is governor.

Backers of death penalty repeal took solace in passage of similar legislation in Maryland. Governor Martin O'Malley signed the legislation last week, making Maryland the 18th state to outlaw the death penalty.

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Finding Budget Happiness

When Governor Kitzhaber returns from his Bhutan sojourn to find the secrets to happiness, he will discover unhappiness engulfs his homeland.

A Democratic plan to raise taxes on wealthy Oregonians and corporations evaporated on the House floor for that pesky constitutional problem of too few votes. Two days later, labor-backed Our Oregon responded by filing six proposed ballot measures to hike corporate taxes from as little as $185 million to as much as $1 billion per year. All that has business groups howling about a reprise of the divisive Measure 66 and 67 tax battles.

The purpose behind raising revenue is to prevent more K-12 school cuts. Nervous about the legislature's ability to boost spending on schools, droves of parents in the beleaguered Beaverton School District took to knocking on doors to drum up votes for a special levy.

The governor stepped back to let rookie House Speaker Tina Kotek, D-Portland, have a go at the $275 million bill, which never even came to a vote. Now it may be time for Kitzhaber to invite legislative leaders to Mahonia Hall to find common ground.

Senate Republican Leader Ted Ferrioli, R-John Day, told reporters the failed House tax vote last week created an opportunity to find solutions in the political center. In his first two years of this term, Kitzhaber was adept at finding bipartisan support for major initiatives, in part because he spent time meeting with both Democrats and Republicans. That same skill set will be called on this session.

In reality, the 2013 Oregon legislative session has not been overly partisan. Going into the session, observers said it would be necessary for Democrats to recruit Republicans to support budget and revenue packages — as well as wise to sustain the bipartisan esprit that developed as a result of the unique power-sharing agreement in the 2011 and 2012 sessions.

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Seeking Opinions on an Oregon Drivers' Card

Rep. Dennis Richardson, R-Central Point, is known for having a point of view on many subjects. But his recent online newsletter to constituents reflects indecision on how to vote next week on hotly debated legislation to allow undocumented residents to obtain something called an Oregon drivers' card.

"I could argue this issue either way," he says. "Instead, let me give you both sides of the issue and ask for your opinion." 

Richardson's newsletter does a good job laying out both sides of the argument on Senate Bill 833, introduced in the Senate with bipartisan support and which passed this week by a lopsided 20-7 vote.

He starts off by describing what the bill actually does — gives people who can document their identity, prove they have lived in Oregon for at least a year and pass a written and driving test an Oregon Drivers' Card that is good for up to four years. The fees for drivers' cards must cover the entire cost of the program.

Proponents of SB 833 say there are thousands of undocumented residents in Oregon who drive to work and school illegally because they cannot qualify for an Oregon drivers' license. The absence of a valid drivers' license disqualifies them from obtaining legally required auto insurance.

Richardson notes undocumented residents also include elderly persons without birth certificates or other documents needed to obtain a drivers' license.

The proposed Oregon drivers' card only would be valid for non-commercial vehicles and could not be used as identification, for example, to board an airplane or buy a gun. Drivers' cards, like drivers' licenses, would be recorded so law enforcement officers could check on driving records for speeding tickets or alcohol-related offenses, which is not possible now.

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Untimely Death Sparks Thoughts of Life

Whenever there is a death of a friend, thoughts often travel ironically to the meaning of life. Such is the case as Salem-area community leader Mike McLaran died of a heart attack while jogging last weekend at age 53.

McLaran, who retired a couple years ago as the admired CEO of the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce, embodied traits in life to which all of us can aspire. Tributes have poured in from throughout the Mid-Willamette Valley from all sorts of residents who found Mike be an inspiring leader who didn't take credit for accomplishments, but deflected credit to others, often mentoring them to make contributions of their own.

In a column in the Statesman-Journal, Editorial Page Editor Dick Hughes said, "One mark of a leader is the ability to recognize, understand and learn from one’s mistakes — and to forgive. Mike exemplified these traits. In later years, he and I sometimes talked about how we could have handled situations differently. Mike was a leader, whether during his 16 years as CEO of the Salem Area Chamber of Commerce, in his subsequent community involvement or in his devotion to his family. His death on Saturday hit the community hard. Obviously, that was because he was so involved in the Salem area, so accessible and so appreciated. But I also think it’s because true leadership is so rare."

Hughes went on to suggest that "society offers many pseudo-leaders: People who confuse having titles with exerting leadership. Men and women who lust to be part of the “in” crowd — the movers and shakers — but falsely equate that camaraderie with leadership. People who mistake conducting meetings for making progress. People who manage organizations but don’t lead them."

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Happy Birthday, Tom McCall

Today would be Tom McCall's 100th birthday and memories are flowing from all quarters about Oregon's iconic and maverick former governor.

Historian Matt Love, writing on the Powell's Books blog, relates an sentimental anecdote from Jay Nicholls who played golf with McCall at the Devil's Lake Golf Course in Lincoln City after McCall had exited politics and had a home at Roads End. After a round of apparently bad golf, Nicholls said his 1964 Volkswagen microbus broke down and he wasn't able to give McCall his usual ride home.

Nicholls recalls he and McCall got behind the vehicle and pushed until there was enough momentum to allow Nicholls to hop in and jump-start it.  McCall loped alongside the now moving bus and dived in the passenger side, smiling broadly and saying, "Jay, they can never tell you I'm not a man of the people."

Most people then and now view McCall as a man deeply committed to preserving the richness and natural beauty of Oregon — from its beaches to litter-free roadsides to a cleaner Willamette River.

McCall was a Republican, at least in party affiliation, and a hulking man with a New England accent, which gave him his charm. But it was his candor and passion that made people love him, even when they disagreed with him, which for some was often.

Capitol reporters loved McCall because he was prone to wander out of his office after a drink or two to offer up opinions on almost any subject. His well-known and respected press secretary, Ron Schmidt, was left to pick up the pieces and translate what McCall really meant to say. 

While McCall might at times seem careless, he was, in fact, careful. He picked his fights to fit a larger narrative of the Oregon he wanted to preserve. He famously told the rest of the world to visit Oregon, but not stay, which became an irresistible siren call for thousands of people to move to someplace with a governor who would talk like that.

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Kitzhaber Makes National Waves

Governor Kitzhaber went from a face in the crowd in the First Lady's State of the Union box to a news media headliner talking about Oregon's bold venture into transforming the health care delivery system to deliver better quality at less cost.

The former emergency room physician told national audiences this week he couldn't accept budget cuts that forced low-income and working poor families to access their health care in the ER. He told The Washington Post he still vividly recalls an elderly man who was culled for budgetary reasons from the state's Medicaid rolls, but who showed up at his emergency room after suffering a stroke. "These people don't disappear," Kitzhaber said.

Appearing on NPR's Here and Now show, Oregon's third-term governor explained the approach the state is pioneering to "bend the cost curve" of health care by creating incentives to keep people healthy rather than just treat them when they are sick. 

Kitzhaber focused on the care of patients with chronic illnesses who can avoid hospital admissions and additional prescription drugs through more personalized care, often in the form of a Registered Nurse. He said helping to manage chronic illnesses can result in better outcomes for patients and drastic reductions in medical costs. Another cost driver is untreated mental illness, which can result in frequent, costly medical incidents that are treated, but without getting to their root cause.

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The Governor as Prop

Governor Kitzhaber will be sitting in First Lady Michelle Obama's box tonight as the President delivers his State of the Union Address. Kitzhaber's presence will be highlighted on national television when Obama talks about health care and Medicaid reform.

While in the role of a prop tonight, Kitzhaber has been anything but inert in pushing for health care transformation. His energy for health care reform, early adoption of the health insurance exchange and his push for changes in the health care delivery system have thrust Oregon to the forefront. His ideas for change have won widespread support among health care providers and insurers, business leaders and legislators on both sides of the political aisle.

Perhaps the most fundamental change Kitzhaber is pushing is a system of coordinated care organizations through the state that are charged with improving patient outcomes while reducing costs. Early efforts are aimed at problems such as treatment of complex, chronic diseases to avoid unnecessary hospitalization or prescription drugs.

Oregonians are too often reflected nationally by the shenanigans of Tonya Harding or the caricatures of the televised comedy, Portlandia. We may not know how to act when Oregon is singled out for praise in such a high-profile moment.

Kitzhaber will be joined in the First Lady's box by a teacher from Sandy Hook Elementary, a police officer who responded to the massacre at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin and the parents of a girl killed by gunfire in Chicago, just days after she participated in Obama's inauguration. They will be reminders of the collateral damage of gun violence in America and symbols of why Obama is asking Congress to act on gun control.

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Courtney Urges Mental Health Spending Boost

Senate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem, called today for a "game-changing" investment in Oregon community mental health programs, but stopped short of specific recommendations on how to pay for $331 million in additional spending. Courtney noted that a number of funding options were under consideration — including a dedicated beer and wine tax increase.

The champion of replacing the state mental hospital nearly a decade ago, Courtney has maintained a passionate interest in treating the one in eight children and one in 18 adults in Oregon who suffer from mental illness.

He cited "recent tragedies," including the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, as a reason to act now to bolster mental health treatment programs.

Courtney's early-session pitch for mental health funding increases follows a tradition in Oregon of an issue quickly rising to the surface and changing the complexion of an entire session. In the 2011 session, an opinion from Legislative Counsel about federal tax reconnect legislation put pressure on the evenly divided Oregon House and its unique power-sharing agreement, which produced a solution without a political meltdown.

The longest serving Oregon legislator, Courtney said, "Nearly two-thirds of young Oregonians who need mental health services aren't getting them. We have to do better. Before we can fill their minds with knowledge, we need to make sure their minds are healthy."

A press release issued by Courtney said $285 million is needed for crisis services, case management, outpatient programs and housing for mentally ill adults. Another $46 million is need for programs for children and young adults.

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A Grand Bargain on PERS, Public Safety

Oregon lawmakers settle in for real Monday and will quickly see, if they haven't already, that the 2013 session pivots on the outcome of two tough political decisions — modifying PERS and public safety reforms.

The legislature's only absolute duty is to approve a balanced budget and Governor Kitzhaber has teed up that task on the backs of saving a lot of money on PERS and new approaches to managing public safety. He also wants to slow the rate of growth of Medicaid and save $400 million in projected health care costs in the next biennium.

Squeezing money out of Medicaid rests on the ability of hospitals, doctors and health systems to, in Kitzhaber's words, "bend the cost curve" of the health care delivery system. But squeezing money out of PERS and Oregon’s public safety system falls squarely on the shoulders of legislators.

If there ever was a need for a grand bargain, this is it.

That's undoubtedly why legislative leaders have created a bipartisan, bicameral committee with equal numbers of Democrats and Republicans to address the public safety reforms — or, in legislative parlance, to provide both parties with political cover on what surely will be tough votes.

Leaders know there will be hell-no votes on both issues in both Democratic and Republican caucuses. Bipartisan majorities will be required if PERS and public safety changes are going to pass this session.

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