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VOTE 2020: Raquel Moore-Green says she’ll seek more accountability in Legislature if given full term

State Rep. Raquel Moore-Green. (Courtesy/Raquel Moore-Green.)

If elected to a full-term, Republican state Rep. Raquel Moore-Green said she’ll focus on making sure that legislation does what it’s actually intended to do.

Moore-Green said she’ll also introduce legislation requiring bills to be accompanied by a statement of intent as well as its impact on state finances before it can come up for a vote in either the House or Senate.

“The focus is greater transparency, greater access for the public and creating a more accountable government,” said Moore-Green. “If you don’t have clear intent, then then you can have a bill that is kind of all over the board.”

In 2019, Moore-Green was appointed state representative for House District 19 after Denyc Boles took an empty Senate position. The district includes part of southeast Salem and extends to Turner and Aumsville.

It’s been a GOP stronghold for nearly two decades. Republicans make up 32% of registered voters to the Democrats’ 29%, with unaffiliated voters accounting for 32%.

Democrat Jackie Leung, a Salem city councilor, is hoping to flip the seat.

RELATED COVERAGE: VOTE 2020: In her run for state representative, Jackie Leung wants to help Oregon’s marginalized  

Jeff Heyen, chair of the Marion County Republicans, said that the race is competitive as money flows in and both sides target unaffiliated voters. But he said that Moore-Green is in a good position to win.

Moore-Green, 65, has owned her own her own consulting businesses, rmg consulting, for the last five years. She’s been involved in Salem’s civic and political life. She’s volunteered with the Salem Police Foundation, Willamette Heritage Center, Salem City Club and others. Over the years, she said she’s been involved with efforts to reduce class sizes in local schools and to raise money for Union Gospel Mission’s new building.

Moore-Green said she tries to work with others to find common ground.

“We all want the same thing, right?” said Moore-Green. “We want good schools. We want clean water. We want jobs. We want to be healthy.”

Marion County Commissioner Kevin Cameron, a Republican, said he met Moore-Green in 2010 when he was running for the legislative seat she’s currently seeking.

“She is one of those people that doesn’t seem to miss a cross in a ‘t’ or a dot in an ‘i,” said Cameron.

He said that she listens to people and seeks to work with others who might disagree. While Republicans are poised to keep the seat, he said that anything can happen in politics.

Legislative priorities

Moore-Green said she would focus on procedures at the Legislature in the next session.

Under her proposals, bills that package multiple subjects together must include a statement of intent that can’t be overridden when it’s implemented by the executive branch. It would also prevent lawmakers from voting on bills without first seeing the full cost, likening the situation to knowing about the details of a home loan before signing.

She said her proposals were spurred by conversations with citizens who voiced concerns about the legislative process. She also pointed to a bill passed last year revising aggravated murder that caused confusion as it played out in the courts.

“If the intention is to make sure that all stop signs are red, you’re going to want to make sure that all stop signs are read, right?” she said. “When you can read that upfront, it’s transparent, it’s straightforward.”

Pandemic

Moore-Green said that while Covid is a serious disease, she’s concerned about the effect distance learning is having on kids.

When asked, she wouldn’t say what changes she would make to the benchmarks communities must meet before classroom instruction can resume. But she pointed to how Gov. Kate Brown is reevaluating what metrics must be met for students to return to the classroom.

“Some of the metrics will be, perhaps, adjusted,” she said. “I would hope that we will have some loosening of the restrictions.”

She noted that daycare businesses have been allowed to operate and that they could provide lessons for classrooms.

Asked about how the state has spent its share of federal pandemic relief money, she expressed concern that a large share intended to help renters hasn’t gone out.

She said that late rent payments are also affecting landlords trying to pay their mortgages.

“If rents are not paid, then you end up with a renter with a poor credit history, and then an owner who could potentially lose their property because they can’t make their mortgage payments,” she said.

State budget

When asked about what she would prioritize or cut in the next two-year state budget, Next year, the Legislature will have to write a new two-year budget for the state. Moore-Green pointed out that in September, state economists released a report concluding that tax revenue was better than expected.

She said there is likely pent-up consumer demand that’ll be unleashed and reinvigorate the economy once restrictions are eased further.

But she didn’t cite specifics on the budget, pointing out that Congress could pass another relief package that would provide money to the state.

“At this time, I will wait for the December forecast before I start making budgetary recommendations,” she said.

However, she said her funding priorities are public safety and mental health. She also wants to increase funding to community corrections programs to reduce recidivism and drug and alcohol rehabilitation. 

Police accountability

Over the summer, the Legislature reformed law governing police, making law enforcement disciplinary records accessible while also restricting the use of tear gas and chokeholds.

Moore-Green voted for the reforms but didn’t have a specific proposal on what else should be done.

“I’ve not followed this in great detail,” she said.

Climate change

Last session, a climate change proposal was scuttled after Republicans, including Moore-Green, walked out of the Legislature.

The governor subsequently issued a sweeping executive order to independently set some state policies. Moore-Green had no specific proposal for what the Legislature should do next.

“I’ve not tracked that issue specifically,” she said.

Housing and homelessness

Regarding housing and homelessness, she said that fees and regulations have prevented the construction of needed homes worse.

She didn’t have specific proposals to address the problems, but she said that the state should watch as communities are rebuilt in the wake of last month’s wildfires. If they’re rebuilt quickly, it could provide a lesson to how to speed the construction of more housing, she said.

 Campaign cash

Total raised:

$475,384.92

Total spent:

$487,673.28

Top give contributors:

Evergreen Oregon PAC (campaign arm of the House Republicans), $211,901.81

Commercial Property Resources, Inc., $50,000

Oregon Realtors Political Action Committee, $20,000

Associated General Contractors Committee for Action, $19,500

Miscellaneous cash contributions $100 and under, $12,658

 Contact reporter Jake Thomas at 503-575-1251 or [email protected] or @jakethomas2009.

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