WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced key provisions in the Senate Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriations Committee bill that will help rural communities across Oregon.
"Estoy en todos los condados todos los años, y en las zonas rurales y costeras de Oregón escucho formas en que podemos crear empleos y fortalecer las comunidades". dijo Merkley, quien sirve en el Comité de Asignaciones del Senado. “This bill reflects a lot of those insights, from strengthening coastal infrastructure, to bolstering salmon recovery efforts, to including more money for communities to hire police officers. I’ll keep using my seat on the Senate Appropriations Committee to make sure our small towns and rural communities have a voice when these decisions are being made.”
“From providing essential resources to support law enforcement, salmon recovery efforts, economic development, and more, this bill helps answer the needs of Oregon’s coastal and rural communities,” dijo Wyden. “In all, this adds up to much-needed investments to help communities across our state thrive.”
“The future health of salmon and orca requires well-funded management agencies, both states and tribes,” said Liz Hamilton, executive director of Northwest Sportfishing Industry Association. “From California to Alaska, this funding helps ensure the vibrancy of our fishing communities, as well.”
Merkley es el único miembro del Congreso de Oregón de cualquier cámara desde el Senador Mark Hatfield que forma parte del Comité de Apropiaciones, considerado uno de los más poderosos del Capitolio. Se unió al comité en 2013 para que Oregón tuviera una voz fuerte en las decisiones sobre las inversiones que nuestra nación debería hacer.
Los elementos clave de la legislación que afectará a Oregón incluyen:
Abordar la violencia contra las mujeres: The bill contains $500 million, the highest funding level ever, for grants provided by the Office on Violence Against Women. This funding supports multiple grant programs that support training for police officers and prosecutors, state domestic violence and sexual assault coalitions, rape prevention programs, domestic violence hotlines, and women’s shelters and transitional housing support services.
Administración de Desarrollo Económico (EDA): The bill includes $319.5 million for the program. Merkley led a successful bipartisan effort—that Wyden supported—to secure the funding, a $15.5 million increase. The EDA, which was zeroed out in President Trump’s budget, leverages existing regional assets to support economic development in rural communities.
Research Vessels: Over the last three years, appropriations bills preserved funding for the National Science Foundation Regional Class Research Vessel Program. This year, the bill includes funding for the operations and maintenance of these new vessels. The vessels are being developed by Oregon State University and will greatly bolster the U.S. marine science research capacity for the next 40 years.
Gestión del salmón: Salmon population management programs, including the operations and maintenance of Mitchell Act hatcheries and the implementation of the Pacific Salmon Treaty, received $56 million. The Committee included $34.5 million to support the implementation of Pacific Salmon Treaty.
Recuperación de salmón: El Fondo de Recuperación del Salmón Costero del Pacífico recibió $65 millones. El presupuesto del presidente proponía eliminar este programa vital. El programa de subvenciones competitivas está diseñado para hacer frente a la disminución de las poblaciones de salmón y trucha arcoíris del Pacífico mediante el apoyo a los esfuerzos de conservación en California, Oregón, Washington, Idaho y Alaska.
Programa Sea Grant: The bill includes $75 million for the Sea Grant Program, a $7 million increase. The program, targeted for elimination in the Trump budget, is a priority for Oregon State University and uses targeted local investments to create economic growth, sustainable fisheries, and resilient coastal communities.
Gestión de Zonas Costeras: The Coastal Zone Management grants were funded at $76.5 million, a $1 million increase. The program works with Oregon and other coastal states to address some of today’s most pressing coastal issues—climate change, ocean planning, and planning for energy facilities and development. These grants help protect natural resources, improve public access, facilitate coordination between state and federal authorities, and manage hazardous areas.
cáñamo industrial: The bill includes language that directs the DEA to ensure the subsequent drug codes and scheduling guidance is updated to reflect that the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 removed hemp and its derivatives from the Controlled Substances Act. The cultivation of commercial hemp is projected to bring in more than $1 billion in economic input to Oregon this year.
Subvenciones tribales y asistencia a las víctimas: Historically, the Native and Tribal community in Oregon has been disenfranchised in law enforcement, health outcomes, and victims’ rights. To address these critical issues, the committee approved a total of $77 million in grant funding for various programs, including $38 million for tribal assistance, $27 million for tribal resources, and $4 million for the Office of Violence Against Women for a special domestic violence criminal jurisdiction program.
Office of Community Policing: El proyecto de ley incluye $335 millones para la Oficina de Servicios Policiales Orientados a la Comunidad. Dentro de eso, se han reservado $245 millones para subvenciones de contratación de COPS, que ayudan a las agencias policiales locales y tribales a contratar oficiales de policía adicionales, una necesidad urgente para muchas agencias policiales en Oregón.
Regional Information Sharing Activities: The program received $38 million to support the activities that enable the sharing of nationwide criminal information and other resources. After hearing from police departments across the state, Merkley was able to secure a $1 million increase for the program that supports the Western States Information Network.
The next step for the bill is a merging with a counterpart bill from the U.S. House of Representatives in order to be passed by both houses and signed into law.
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