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Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Legislative Caucus Releases Detailed Policy Platform

Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Legislative Caucus

On Wednesday(March 29, 2023), the 17-member Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Caucus in the Oregon State Legislature issued an agenda focused on issues affecting marginalized communities, such as healthcare fairness, criminal justice reform, and environmental protection.

With a more diverse Legislature, the four-year-old caucus is more significant than ever and has signed on to 18 measures this year. House Bill 2996 would prevent the dental board from forcing dental assistants to take an expensive radiological test and is an example of a bill that would make a small but significant improvement.

Some might have far-reaching effects, such as Senate Bill 610, which would model the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) on a state-funded program for an estimated 62,000 unauthorized immigrants.

Sen. Wlnsvey Campos, D-Aloha, co-chair of the caucus, stated at a press conference that all measures are designed to help break down the social and economic hurdles that Black, Indigenous, and People of Color confront.

Equal access to health care and other services for underrepresented populations is a primary priority for the caucus.

“Oregonians across the state struggle to access quality, affordable health care, nutritious food, and mental health services on average,” Campos said. “We have so much work to do to advance racial equity in our state, and these pieces of legislation are an important step toward meeting that goal.”

The agenda also addresses the challenges Indigenous communities encounter, such as a lack of access to language resources and the effects of climate change.

It is far into the session before the agenda is made public. Rep. Ricki Ruiz (D-Gresham), the caucus co-chair, said that the group was waiting until after all the measures on the list had been thoroughly reviewed and discussed to ensure everyone was on board.

He added that the caucus members are confident that both houses can approve the bills. Some of them are divisive. Oregon House Bill 2002, opposed by many Republicans, would shield medical professionals who assist with abortions and gender-affirming treatment from losing their licenses or suffering any sanctions for doing so.

It would make interfering with medical facilities a criminal, establish a grant program for remote reproductive health clinics, and mandate that the state’s Medicaid program and commercial insurers cover a variety of reproductive and gender-related treatments.

Some people aren’t. House Bill 3016 would establish a fund to conserve trees where citizens are exposed to extreme heat. It has the backing of environmentalists, Portland General Electric, and the nursery sector. According to Ruiz, it will take time and a community-wide effort to address concerns of equality and other types.

“We are aware that a caucus like this won’t fix racism in our state,” Ruiz said. “The fact that this caucus is getting larger with each legislative session tells us that our communities are paying attention and want to roll up their sleeves to do the work that needs to be done.”

Wake up to the buzz in Oregon State: The headlines you need to know-

The Caucus Promotes a Range of Issues

The caucus also backs the following bills-

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