Dr. Cowles is asking for two people to help present concerns to the Portland City Council at their Jan. 7th meeting. Please contact a member of the GEAC committee or Dr. Cowles if you want to help him with the presentation.

Dr. Cowles advises that "Because the City Council no longer allows one person to speak for more than three minutes, we need two more 'volunteers' to help deliver the messages.  All will have a script with accompanying poster-boards as needed.  Last time, I taped my script to the back of each poster board.  Seemed to work.

The goal is to let the Council know that Vision Zero's two major goals, Eliminate all traffic fatalities, and Eliminate all serious traffic injuries, is not only not working, but is resulting in increased frustration and anger, and record traffic fatalities.  And, to make the recommendation that an independent expert examine each VZ project in context of the two goals, and make suggestions.  And, prepare a summary of the talks to send to the general Portland groups."

Dr. Cowles asked Transportation Engineer Christopher M. Clemow PE, PTOE to review the  PBOT 102nd project to see if it will meet the Vision Zero Mission.

Here is his response:

I have reviewed the crash data and the NE 102nd improvement project identified on the PBOT Vision Zero website.

Your concerns are well-founded, particularly as they relate to serious injury crashes. The 102nd improvements will most likely improve overall corridor safety as intended by PBOT; however, these improvements are less effective at reducing/eliminating excessive speeding and alcohol-related crashes. While most corridor crashes (turning, angle, sideswipe, rear-end) occur during congested periods and have less severity, most speeding and alcohol crashes do not occur during these periods. 

Reducing the posted corridor speed will likely improve safety; however, the two elements of truly improving corridor safety are missing - increased enforcement and increased societal accountability.  Both elements can (and should) be improved/implemented; however, it requires a fundamental shift in City policy and increased traffic enforcement funding. This also gets to another point you make - when a public agency is attempting to reduce corridor crashes, the primary focus of Vision Zero should be on eliminating severe crash types versus overall crash reduction (although this is also important) which is the current basis for how projects are priority ranked and funded.

I am not positive what more I can do for you on this issue. Overall, I believe that improving corridor safety is a good objective and that PBOT is doing the 'best' they can given the parameters of the Vision Zero project and the political willingness of the elected/appointed officials to implement change. However, I also believe that until we get serious about enforcement, there are increased societal consequences, we fundamentally change how vehicles and drivers are licensed/insured, and our transportation system shifts to predominately autonomous vehicles that we will never really get to (or approach) zero serious injury or fatal crashes.

Thank you,

Chris

Christopher M. Clemow PE, PTOE

Transportation Engineer

Please contact Dr. Cowles directly, a member of the GEAC committee or Debbie Utberg if you want to help Dr. Cowles make the presentation to City Council. Thank you.

The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) is planning to make safety improvements along the three-mile section of SE Stark Street between SE 108th Avenue and SE 162nd Avenue.This corridor has been identified as a High Crash Corridor for all modes – people in motor vehicles, people walking, and people bicycling. We need your help in prioritizing what type of improvements should move into the next phase of project design.

An online survey on the proposed improvements is now available! It will be open until December 31st.

https://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/saferstark

The State's quarterly revenue forecast was released this morning with continued economic growth and increases in tax collections which are producing major increases in available revenue for the state budget.

Projected ending balance revenue from the previous budget cycle increased by $118 million while corporate taxes are projected to increase by another $56 million. 

All told, available resources for the current 2019-21 budget cycle increased by $166.8 million as a result of this morning's forecast.

The General Fund/Lottery budget now stands at $24.936 billion.

Other items of note: 

1. The State has now accrued a record $2.738 billion in reserve funds that can be used to offset revenue losses during a recession.
   
   
2. There is no projected personal income tax "kicker" projected yet for the
   2019-21 budget cycle.
    
3. Talk of a recession has diminished. Continued economic growth is projected over the next year.

You can find the official forecast projections here:

 https://olis.leg.state.or.us/liz/2019I1/Downloads/CommitteeMeetingDocument/207878 

Business Oregon is conducting a statewide assessment of Oregon's current broadband infrastructure and service availability. The assessment will help drive public policy regarding gaps in broadband access, the need for state funding, and strategies for deploying broadband infrastructure statewide.

Broadband is increasingly viewed as essential infrastructure for economic and community development. Earlier this year, the Oregon Broadband Office was established in statute with legislative directives to track the availability of broadband services and help make the business case for broadband investment in unserved and underserved areas to close Oregon's "digital divide."

We're asking both households and businesses to help in the assessment by completing a simple questionnaire developed in partnership with our consultants, Strategic Networks Group. The few minutes it takes to complete the online survey can help make future broadband improvements across the state, particularly in rural areas.

Business Oregon asks that you provide your input today, or at the latest by December 15, 2019 by going to www.broadband.oregon.gov, clicking on the Broadband Assessment link, and completing the survey. On that website, you can also find other resources Business Oregon has in our work to advance broadband availability across Oregon.

A report on findings will be posted at the end of January 2020.

2^nd Community Conversation on Homelessness | December in the Pearl

We had such a strong turnout this summer for our first Community Conversation on Homelessness that we’re doing it again! This time in the Pearl District in downtown Portland. Join us. RSVP to Lisa Frack. Event Details: Who: Anyone interested in understanding and solving homelessness in our community. Where: CENTRL Office Pearl - 1355 NW Everett Street, Portland, OR 97209  When: Tuesday, December 3rd from 5:30 to 7:30 PM (program begins at 6:00 PM, settle in and grab food from 5:30-6:00). Food/Drink: Light snacks and beverages available – or BYO if you prefer! Questions? Contact Lisa Frack, Human Solutions: 503.548.0282 or lfrack@humansolutions.org. For CENTRL Office, contact Madeline at madeline@centrloffice.com

Join project staff for updates on design, station types and more.

November 14 4-7pm    PCC SE Campus, Community Hall Annex

2305 SE 82^nd Ave.

Interested in learning more about the transit design plans for Division? Come to the Division Transit Project Open House on Thursday, November 14^th from 4-7 pm. There will be representatives from TriMet, PBOT, and more to answer your transit design related questions.

The Oregon Department of Revenue is inviting business taxpayers and tax preparers to take part in discussions of the administrative rules for the state's new Corporate Activity Tax. Traveling across Oregon, rule writers will sit down in a series of meetings over the next three weeks to hear the concerns, questions, and suggestions of those affected by the rules.

The meetings in the Portland area include:

Thursday, September 19, 5:30 to 7 p.m., City of Beaverton Griffith Building Room 150, 4755 SW Griffith Drive, Beaverton. 

Thursday, October 3, 5:30 to 7 p.m., Portland State Office Building Room 1B, 800 NE Oregon St, Portland. 

For those who are unable to attend the in-state meetings, DOR is planning a series of conference call meetings. Those meetings will be scheduled once the in-state tour is complete.

At all meetings, Department of Revenue representatives will ensure two-way conversations and do their best to answer questions from attendees. They'll also seek input from attendees to help guide the rule-making process. Issues expected to be discussed include:

• Who must register.
• When and how businesses register.
• Who must file and who must pay the tax.
• Annual returns based on calendar year activity.
• How corporate activity is defined. (Of particular interest to ASA members)
• Exemptions for charitable organizations.
• Exclusions for groceries, subcontractors, wholesalers, and others.
• What counts toward the 35 percent subtraction.
• How estimated payments will be calculated.
• When estimated payments are due.

You can find more information about the Corporate Activity Tax, including a list of frequently asked questions, and sign up for email notifications about CAT on the Department of Revenue website :

 https://www.oregon.gov/DOR/programs/businesses/Pages/corporate-activity-tax.aspx.

Those who are unable to attend but want to provide input can email questions or comments to cat.help.dor@Oregon.gov

OSCC will keep members updated on the progress of the rulemaking, BUT any specific questions or concerns that OSCC members want addressed need to be communicated to us so that we can provide input and comment to DOR.

Come join U.S. Senator Ron Wyden for a

Multnomah County Town Hall Meeting

Thursday August 29 5:30 PM

East Portland Community Center Gymnasium 740 SE 106th Ave Portland, OR  Parking may fill quickly. Please consider public transit or carpooling.

Questions: Call Senator Wyden’s Portland Office at 503-326-7525

Show support for Senator Monnes Anderson

Dear members and colleagues -

See below.

 

Senator Laurie Monnes Anderson listened and responded to the voices in her community to the cost and unfairness embedded in the 'Cap and Trade' bill.   In particular, the voice of her local business community in the Gresham Chamber.

As you can see, she is being torn down by the environmentalists.  They are, of course, staging this pressure campaign to compel her to switch her vote in the 2020 session.

Now is a good time to surround Laurie with authentic care, thanks, and support from your community.

A personal note of thanks to her would be very timely. 

Sen.LaurieMonnesAnderson@oregonlegislature.gov

This is a perfect time to differentiate ourselves from our opponents in tone, tenor and support.