There are some things that the Oregon Legislature does very well – its development and passage of a transformational educational funding bill in 2019 is one example of how legislators can cut through complexity to deliver for Oregonians.
And then there are those issues that the Legislature doesn’t do well – or doesn’t do at all – particularly when they affect lawmakers’ own power. Those are the times that Oregonians need to step up and show the way through the ballot initiative process.
Two examples stand out as the session nears the end. First, the Legislature has failed to advance a credible bill to limit campaign contributions, despite voters’ broad support for enacting such caps. The lack of progress reflects how difficult it is for lawmakers to cut off the spigots that have funded them and the system for so long. We laid out our reasons for the Legislature to adopt stronger limits in an editorial last month.
And second, as The Oregonian/OregonLive’s Hillary Borrud reported, Democratic House leaders are refusing to put before voters a measure that would authorize an independent commission to draw the boundaries for legislative and congressional districts, instead of leaving that responsibility in state legislators’ hands. The reform has been adopted in other states, including California and Washington, to safeguard against gerrymandering.
A coalition of good-government groups sought to put the measure on the ballot themselves last year, until the pandemic derailed their organizing efforts. They had hoped legislators would get behind a resolution, sponsored by House Minority Leader Christine Drazan, to put it on the ballot so that it’s in place for the next redistricting.
But House Majority Leader Barbara Smith Warner told Borrud that she believes legislators will be more accountable and representative of voters than a redistricting commission, which might not have explicit requirements reflecting the racial, gender, age and geographical demographics.
There are many flaws in her argument, not the least of which is the fact that the measure does call for the commission to reflect the state’s diversity. But also notable is the glaring lack of representation in the existing process. Of the 90 legislators, 88 are members of the Democratic or Republican parties. Two are independents who were longtime Republicans. If she’s concerned about a lack of representation, she might consider that fully one-third of registered Oregonians are not affiliated with any of those three parties. An independent commission, as envisioned by the network of good-government groups backing this effort, would bring to the table representatives of voters who have chosen not to be aligned with the two major parties, which have long dominated Oregon’s politics.
There’s no doubt that the ballot initiative process has many drawbacks. Policy by ballot box automatically lacks the nuance and consideration of consequences that legislators typically work through. Campaign spending, aimed at delivering simplistic or misleading messages to voters, holds huge sway over voters’ understanding of what a ballot measure may or may not do.
But there are few options for holding an entire Legislature accountable for failing to do its work. On campaign finance and redistricting, voters will have to carry the load.
-The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board