’m writing today to let you know about a great opportunity for action! LD 1867: An Act to Establish the Community Housing and Rural Development Authority, is having a hearing this Friday, May 19th at 9:00a.
This bill, presented by Portland Representative Grayson Lookner and cosponsored by a number of other House Democrats, seeks to establish the Community Housing and Rural Development Authority, whose chief function would be to “Develop, own, lease and maintain community housing developments, … that serve a mix of household income ranges, including households with extremely low income, very low income, low income and moderate income, and a mix of household sizes.” You can find the full text of the bill HERE.
PDCC has been deep in conversation lately about the various ways the housing crisis is affecting Portland, and this bill represents one step that could be taken to alleviate some of the pressure on low- and middle-income families to find affordable housing in Portland and beyond.
So, how to get involved? If you are able to attend in person and support this bill, fantastic! If you plan to come to the State House to testify in person, you should bring 20 printed copies of your testimony and arrive a couple of minutes early for the public hearing beginning at 9 :00 am in the Joint Select Committee on Housing. The committee is located in the Cross Building (across from the State House) Room 216. You do NOT need to sign up ahead of time if you are going to testify in person.
If you can’t attend in person but still would like to support this bill, not to fear! You can submit testimony, either written or over Zoom! It’s a great way to make your voice heard and share with your legislators why you support a bill! Here’s how:
If you want to testify via Zoom, you will need to sign up ahead of time by visiting this link and following the prompts:
· Select “public hearing”
· Select the “Housing Committee”
· Select “May 19 2023 9:00 AM”
· Select “LD 1867 - An Act to Establish the Community Housing and Rural Development Authority ”
· Make sure to check the box that says “I would like to testify electronically over Zoom.”
· Upload your written testimony by selecting “choose file”
· Fill out your name, email, phone number, and other personal information the form requires.
· Submit and wait to receive a Zoom link from the committee clerk.
Here is the contact information for the Housing Clerk, Marianne MacMaster, in case you run into any trouble:
Cross Building, Room 216, (207) 287-4149
For those interested in testifying, here is a sample introduction for preparing your testimony that might be useful. Typically, when presenting testimony, folks will address and thank the chairs and other members of the committee, introduce themselves and state which bill they are there to testify in support of. Your testimony might start like this:
--
Meaghan Harned in support of LD 1867, Act to Establish the Community Housing and Rural Development Authority
Before the Joint Standing Committee on Labor and Housing
Senator Pierce, Representative Gere and members of the Joint Select Committee on Housing, I am Meaghan Harned and I am here today to speak in support of LD 1867, Act to Establish the Community Housing and Rural Development Authority. (testimony continues with reasons for support, etc.!)
Many thanks to Elle for putting together these instructions on how to testify, and thank YOU for taking action! Let me know if you have any questions, and happy testifying!
Best wishes,
Meg Harned (she/her)
Chair, PDCC
SAVE THE DATE!
Our June General Meeting will be on Sunday, June 4th from 7:00p - 8:30p.
Stay tuned for details!
Make a Donation to PDCC to support the work of Portland Democrats