First, know who your legislative reps are!

Confirm who your legislative reps are by going to the Oregon Legislative website and typing in your full address in the lower right corner of the page as shown below:

Get to know each legislator through online content (their websites, their biographies, their committees, and their environmental and climate voting records via Oregon League of Conservation Voters scorecards, etc.).

How to follow a bill in the 2025 Legislative Session.

To learn more about a bill (sponsorship, committee assignment, actions, etc.) go to OLIS, The Oregon Legislative Information System:

• Scroll down to “Search Bills.” Enter the bill number and click (make sure to enter a space between the letters and number – for example, SB 88)
• On the new screen under “Filter Your Search” select “2025 Regular Session.” The new screen offers your options.
• Select the correct bill number (you might have to scroll down). The new screen is about the bill.
• You can read the overview, full text, analysis, amendments, and testimony. It also offers options to register and submit testimony.

What is lobbying? What do I need to know?

• When we advocate for specific bills, we are lobbying.
• When we inform and try to influence our elected officials’ actions and votes, we are lobbying.
• Our advocacy might include writing, calling, and visiting elected officials to share our perspectives and encourage them to take certain action.
• Lobbying by ordinary people is effective because officials know we are motivated to take the time to reach out. They also know we are not paid – and we vote. Our lobbying and advocacy show how deeply we care. Through lobbying, we educate, we build constructive relationships, and we also learn!

How to make sure your support is heard: Speak Up!

You’ve probably seen Action Alerts encouraging Third Actors to submit testimony supporting important bills that are under consideration by the Oregon State Legislature.

You might ask: “How do I testify?” “I’m not an expert. Why would they want to hear from me?”

Legislators hear from the “experts” and paid lobbyists, but all too often they don’t hear from us. In a democracy, elected officials care about what we think! We are experienced and our testimony can sway them!

Here’s how to get started: How to submit written testimony and provide oral testimony.

Some hints for effective testimony

Explain your position the same way that you’d explain it to a friend – in a simple, understandable, interesting, and compelling way.

• Explain who you are and why you care.
• What is the problem this bill can solve based on YOUR experience. Statistics have nothing on personal stories!
• Make a clear “ask”. Refer to the bill number, lead sponsor, and ask for their vote.
• Use talking points provided by Third Act or other organizations to help you write your testimony.
• When you submit written testimony, you provide contact details (these are not shared publicly). In your testimony, do not insert personal information that you do not want shared publicly (such as address, phone number, etc.).

Above all, be persuasive and respectful. Go to this webpage for How to Submit Written Testimony.

Oral Testimony: consider delivering your testimony in a hearing or a legislative visit.

• Count on having only 2 minutes. Time yourself! Your written testimony can be longer.
• Nervous? Say so! It humanizes you and breaks the ice. Everyone can relate!
• You can read your testimony but be sure to make eye contact with committee members.
• If you plan to speak, it is a good idea to write it out first. Consider giving the committee a written copy. (It can be longer than your oral testimony.)

Here are guidelines for how to provide oral testimony in Oregon.

This video by Washington State social studies teachers is a helpful introduction to providing testimony.

Let us know if you have questions, want help, or have suggestions! Write to us at Thirdactoregon@gmail.com

Watch Third Act Central’s How to Lobby webinar (Passcode: +J*30trN)

Look on the back of your credit card.  It’s likely to be one of the big Wall Street Banks (Chase, Citi, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo) that continue to finance new fossil fuel extraction and distribution. That’s a crime against humanity that will visit death and destruction on people and animals around the world for centuries to come, and you don’t want to be an accessory that crime!  Check out the Action Hub to find out how to ditch your big bank credit card and move your money to a better bank or credit union.

Contact: David Parker – david.bodhi@gmail.com, or Sheila Golden – goldensheila6@gmail.com.

Last month, we had a terrific, upbeat meeting of 21 like-minded TAO members and friends at DaRa Cafe in Eugene on March 27th.  Finding joy in comradery is one of our radical acts at this time in our nation’s history! We heard from our actions teams and focused on preparing for upcoming eventsand beginning to assemble a team for Sun Day in the fall.

On Saturday, April 5 our TAO Eugene group joined ACES(Activist Coalition of Eugene and Springfield) for the family friendly non-violent Hands Off Mass Mobilization event at City Hall in Eugene. The turnout was fantastic and local news estimated there were over 2,000 people there. Folks completely filled the main arena along the beautiful Willamette river to listen to music and speakers and applaud the wildly creative signs that filled the space. There were kids and teens, families, friends, elders, and other-abled persons with chairs and with walkers. The energy was high and the feelings were so positive! The huge crowd spilled over onto nearby bridges and streets and waved signs and cheered to an orchestra of supportive honks and happy shouts from passing cars. Some of us Third Actors were on the de-escalation and safety team, some of us marched with signs, and some held down the fort at the TAO info table.

A few days later, four members of our group joined other TAO members in Salem on Monday, April  for Lobby Day to support of the Climate Superfund Bill to shift some of the enormous costs of extreme heat, droughts and wildfires from Oregonians to the fossil fuel companies.  

SB 681, a proposed moratorium on private investments by the State Treasurer in fossil fuel dominant funds, called the “Pause Act” (Chief sponsor: Senator Golden). Divest Oregon led the coalition supporting the bill. Nearly 300 people submitted testimony supporting the bill, and many, including Third Actors, attended the hearing in the Committee on Finance and Revenue on March 19th. Unfortunately, the Oregon Treasury opposed the bill, and there is no path forward. The Divest Oregon coalition supports the alternative Treasury-supported HB 2200, while continuing the campaign for a stronger bill in the future.

SB 1187 (formerly SB 682) proposed a Treasury process to collect monies from the fossil fuel industry based on proportional GHG emissions to fund a state resiliency plan to address those climate impacts (chief sponsors: Senators Pham, Golden, Campos, and Representatives Andersen and Gamba). Hundreds rallied for the bill on April 7th, the day the Senate Committee on Energy and Environment heard testimony from more than 30 people, including several Third Actors. Despite the support, the bill died in committee without a vote after a second day of hearings on April 9. TAO will continue the campaign by talking about the bill with leaders in towns, cities, and counties that are struggling to pay the costs of protecting their citizens from extreme weather events.

But several other important bills are still alive! These include:

SJR 28, a proposed amendment to the Oregon Constitution relating to a clean, safe and healthy environment (Chief sponsors: Senators Golden, Manning J., and Prozanski, and Representatives Andersen, Gamba, and Tran). Third Actors joined a lobby day organized by OCERA on March 26th visiting legislators, attending and testifying at a hearing of the Senate Committee on Rules, and joining a rally outside the Capitol. We are waiting for the next action on this bill.

The Critical Energy Infrastructure HUB (HB 3450; HB 2949; HB 2152) provides 90% of the state’s liquid fuels and 100% of the state’s jet fuel – but is at great risk of becoming a catastrophic disaster that will endanger the state’s economic and environmental health – because it is located on unstable liquefaction soils and in a wildland-urban interface fire zone. TAO is supporting 3 bills to prevent these well-documented dangers.

• CEI Hub Transition Plan (HB 3450) that will support a holistic plan, with clear implementation benchmarks to ensure that Oregonians have long-term access to the fuels they need and that public and environmental health and safety are protected.
  • 4/11 Working session complete. Recommended for pass, referred to Ways and Means by order of the Speaker. No scheduled events.
• Risk Bond Requirement (HB 2949) will require privately-owned facilities – not the public – be financially responsible for damages that result from spills, releases, or fires.
  • 4/11 Working session complete. Recommended for pass, referred to Ways and Means by order of the Speaker. No scheduled events.
• Fuels for Disaster Response (HB 2152) directs the OR Department of Energy to develop strategies to geographically diversify liquid fuel reserves for disaster response and recovery.
  • 4/08 Working session complete, recommended for pass. Committee voted 4-3. Next step: referral to Ways and Means.

We’ve added another bill to our list!

A bill for a “One-Stop-Shop 2.0” (Chief Sponsor Levy), will expand the existing energy efficiency and incentives directory program, supporting more dynamic navigation services, reducing complexity, and providing better service to customers. It has just passed from the Committee on Energy and Environment to the Ways and Means Committee. We’ll need volunteers to help shepherd this bill to passage! Please let us know if you’re interested in joining this team.

In your communication with legislators, join CAAT and TAO in thanking our Senators and Representatives who are working hard on these bills for their efforts to safeguard Oregonians. Find info on all the bills and your legislators on the OLIS site. If you want help, let us know!

Let us know if you have questions or if you’d like to join CAAT! Write to us at: oregon@thirdact.org.

April’s Democracy and Voting zoom meeting was held on April 16th. Our monthly meetings are on the third Wednesday of each month from 5 – 6pm; the next meeting will be on May 21st.

To learn more and receive a summary of April’s meeting, email John McAlpine at coachmcalpine@gmail.com.

Reflecting on an historic call to action
From the Hands Off! protest in Beaverton on April 5th, this was among the many memorable signs:

Like me, lots of fellow protestors nodded in agreement and snapped a picture. Indeed, Cory Booker’s substantive and uplifting speech, which was live streamed on multiple platforms and received over 400 million likes on TikTok, was a welcome condemnation of Trump’s first two months in office and an inspiring display of commitment to our democratic ideals.
What Cory Booker said is even more poignant when we consider what he did! Setting a new record for retaining the floor, he spoke in the Senate Chamber for over 25 hours; a remarkable display of stamina, perseverance, and conviction. A truly bright moment during this dark time.

Amidst the Trump administration’s seemingly limitless cruelty, lawlessness, and greed, Cory Booker reminded us that this is “America’s moral moment”. It’s a time when each of us, in our own way, can step up and make a difference.

With so many different areas needing attention and help, the TAO Eugene Working Group is focusing on clarity and action. To facilitate this, we have divided up into five action teams who meet in between our full group monthly meetings. Their task is to gather information to share with the entire group and suggest an immediate action or actions that can be taken in their particular focus area. These teams are Clean Energy, Citizen Advocacy and Lobbying, Forestry and Watershed, Climate Finance, and Democracy and Voting.

We continue to join forces with other like-minded, local groups. On Tuesday, March 4, several TAO Eugene members joined 350.org and others at a lively “Take Action Together” event to hear an explanation of the proposed revisions to the Northwest Forest Plan. They also learned how to write and submit comments to help save our old growth forests from being opened to clear cutting again.

We have welcomed over a dozen new members to our roster and look forward to getting to know them better and being on the “front lines” with them as we resume holding postcarding parties to support important upcoming elections.

Thurs., March 27, 2025: Next meeting of Eugene Working Group: Da Ra Café at 5:30 p.m. for socializing and no-host snacks and sips and 6:30 p.m for the Business Meeting. Email debravquayle@gmail.com for more information or to RSVP.

***

Corvallis

Our February TAO meeting was an encouraging group with new folks joining us. Several Third Actors who made the trek to Salem for the Divest Oregon’s Pause Act Lobby Day gave an uplifting report of their experience.

Cyndi McAlipine shared an organizational chart to explain how Third Act Central organizing works and the three areas of focus: Democratizing Energy, Climate Finance and Democracy and Voting.

A Third Actor shared news of the midterm elections, and how we can get involved with more postcarding through the Environmental Voter Project. It was agreed by the majority of our group that, for those who could attend a half hour before our meetings, we could start writing postcards together.

On Sunday, Feb. 23, a couple of us attended Senator Jeff Merkley’s Town Hall in Dallas, Ore. It was a packed house with people lining the walls. He answered questions honestly and with feeling, without political doublespeak, expressing his concerns over how the Supreme Court will respond given the recent immunity ruling. His charge to all of us was to “show up”, organize and let our voices be heard! He will continue to do what he can.

Many Third actors joined a throng of concerned citizens in front of the Benton Courthouse in support of the International Women’s March, Saturday, March 8. The collective resistance was obvious as people filled both sides of the block expressing their concerns for our country.

Corvallis area residents—join us at Third Act Corvallis as we stand up for our climate and democracy!

Bend

Third Act members Ray Gertler, Jack Nicholl, Julieanne (Jules) Moratti-Green, Mike Reed, and others have been working hard to move our Bend, Oregon City Council to upgrade the City’s climate plan. They have testified before Council sub-committees and also at City Council meetings, providing vetted evidence showing that the new climate plan measures being considered make economic sense, improve our community’s health and safety, and reduce Bend’s carbon footprint!  We cooperated with other environmental groups that are also leading the charge to make Bend more eco-friendly!

In addition, Mike Reed coordinated with statewide faith groups to host an Earth Summit on March 16. The Earth Summit was held at 18 different “hubs” across Oregon and featured important Oregon and local climate/environmental information.  Our hosting “hub” here in Central Oregon featured “Bend Electrification: A pathway for a clean and healthy future.” This presentation informed our community of current climate plan deliberations and ways to actively participate NOW to see Bend City Council adopt a reasonable, forward-thinking climate plan. Sadly, the street word is that our Bend City Council appears (because of fossil fuel lobbying???) to want to weaken and delay any meaningful climate plan reform. We need more community awareness and participation!

We will work with utility regulators, state legislatures, and regional grid operators in support of the clean energy transition. In addition, the TAO Power Up Community Team will continue our work assisting TAO members in the electrification of their vehicles and residential appliances.

TAO members interested in working with the Power Up Communities Team should contact Thor Hinckley at thorhinckley53@gmail.com or Margaret Sherraden at msherraden@gmail.com.