These policies passed in 2020!
OREGON DISTRICT ATTORNEY FOR THE PEOPLE
Led by SURJ (Showing Up for Racial Justice)
The District Attorney (DA) is the most powerful player in the criminal legal system. As the top prosecutor, the DA has the power to decide who gets charged with what crime and influences the culture of law enforcement within their county. The goal of the Oregon DA for the People campaign is to build community power with those who are most affected by the criminal legal system and policing. Our people’s platform demands concrete actions to decrease the harmful impact that the District Attorney has on people’s lives. Below are the list of demands our coalition wants the DA to commit to within their first 100 days of office. (1) Stop Targeting Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Immigrant Communities (2) Treat Kids Like Kids (3) Decline to Prosecute Individuals with Mental Health Conditions (4) Commit to Ending Mass Incarceration (5) Hold Police and Prosecutors Accountable (6) Decriminalize Houselessness, Sex Work, and Drug Use. https://www.oregondaforthepeople.com/
UP NOW! UNIVERSAL PRESCHOOL IN MULTNOMAH COUNTY
Led by the Universal Preschool NOW! Coalition and Portland DSA
Quality education is a right, not a privilege based on income or location. Providing young children with quality care and education is the best way to raise high school graduation rates, lower incarceration rates, and reduce unemployment. But many families are burdened with monthly childcare costs as high as their rent or mortgage payment, just for one child. Having one or more children in preschool means that both parents MUST work just to survive. Universal Preschool NOW! will provide play-based, culturally-responsive preschool in the parents' choice of setting. This preschool will be free to all Multnomah County families, regardless of family income and guarantees to pay preschool caregivers and teachers a living wage. UP NOW! will be funded through a new tax on very high incomes and will not increase taxes for at least 95% of households. The UP NOW! funding structure will allow sustainability and growth for the future. https://upnow2020.org/
CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM
Led by Alliance for Democracy, Portland Forward
Money is the largest influencer of political decision-making at all levels of government, including the city. The presence of large contributions from special interests discourages people from running for office, makes people distrust their government and therefore undermines our democracy. Almost 90% of Multnomah County and Portland voters approved strict campaign contribution limits and disclosure requirements for independent expenditures in ads (called taglines). In the 2019 Oregon State Legislative session the legislature referred SJR18 to the ballot. The ballot measure would amend the Oregon State Constitution to explicitly legalize campaign contribution limits and disclosures enabling the local campaign finance reform measures to be fully enforceable and legally defensible. We support passage of the SJR18 ballot measure on the 2020 statewide ballot. https://www.honest-elections.com/, http://www.afd-pdx.org/, https://www.portlandforward.org/