Laurie Monnes Anderson

Issues

  • Why I'm Running...

    “I believe government can be part of the solution as long as it’s not wasting our money. Public finance is tricky business, which is why I believe we need to hold our government more accountable for spending decisions.”
    ~Sen. Laurie Monnes Anderson

    Health Care:
    I have and will continue to fight for health care affordability.  Last session I sponsored the bill that expanded the Oregon Prescription Drug Program, a program that has brought relief to thousands of individuals and small businesses that struggle with high prescription costs.

    When I am reelected I will fight to make health care providers more accountable, and require hospitals and insurance companies to follow fair, consistent pricing guidelines. Until we force hospitals and insurance companies to play fair, they’ll keep squeezing local families and businesses, and make a bad economy even worse.

    Cutting Government Waste and Creating Accountability:
    Last session, I voted to help uncover waste through annual audits of our state funds. Every dollar we save through audits is another dollar that can be invested in affordable health care, or educational opportunities for people looking for new and better jobs.

    I also fought for greater government oversight and greater accountability for state contracts, part of which is to protect whistleblowers so they aren’t afraid to report cost overruns and waste.

    And if a business gets a tax break, let’s require them to actually create the jobs they promised.

    When I am reelected, I will continue to fight for better government transparency.  Every voter has the right to know how his or her tax dollars are being spent.

    Public Safety:
    In the legislature, I’ve fought to protect abused and neglected children, and for tougher penalties against Internet predators.

    When it comes to drug crimes and meth dealers, I see a two-pronged approach: tougher penalties, and at the same time, more treatment for addiction.

    I’ll also keep fighting for more cops on our roads and on Tri-Met, and for better gang-prevention programs.

  • Oregon Cultural Trust

    Support Oregon’s culture, pay less in taxes
    Oregon Cultural Trust offers a tax credit for a matching donation; there are 55 eligible nonprofits in the county
    State Sen. Laurie Monnes Anderson     The Oregon Cultural Trust has been ranked with the bottle bill and vote-by-mail as among Oregon’s most far-sighted public policy measures. Conceived in 1998, passed by the legislature in 2001 and effective as of December 2002, the Cultural Trust is a unique cultural funding plan.

    East County citizens should be proud of and actively participate in the Cultural Trust program. Particularly as the 150th anniversary of Oregon statehood approaches in 2009, every Oregonian should appreciate how culture – heritage, humanities, arts and historic preservation – defines our state. The Cultural Trust exists to protect and advance Oregon’s culture…and to make it accessible to every citizen.

    Of 1,200 heritage, humanities and arts nonprofits included in the Trust program, about a dozen call East County home. They include KMHD through the Mt. Hood Community College Foundation, Mt. Hood Repertory Theatre and the Gresham Historical Society. Since grantmaking began in 2003 – from donations that began in December 2002 – the Trust has invested $1,772,241 throughout the Multnomah County, with significant awards to the Gresham area. East County grants include two to the Fairview-Rockwood-Wilkes Historical Society and, just this year, $20,000 to our own Center for the Arts Foundation.

    It’s clear the Cultural Trust benefits the community … and it rewards its donors directly, too! Anyone who’s a member of a cultural organization like a public broadcaster, a museum or an historical society or who makes cash donations to a school music booster or library friends group, an Oregon college alumni fund, or almost any performing arts organization is eligible to make a matching gift to the Trust and earn Oregon’s unique cultural tax credit. A tax credit is a much more powerful tax savings than a deduction since it reduces the bottom line of your Oregon tax bill. And it can be claimed by anyone who owes Oregon taxes. To claim the cultural tax credit, you needn’t itemize deductions, and you can use the short form, or long.

    But there’s not much more time to double your support of Oregon’s culture at no additional cost to you. By December 31, add up your cultural memberships and donations – let’s just say they total $125; then, make a matching gift to the Trust of $125 so that, come tax time, you can claim the cultural credit and reduce your Oregon tax bill by…$125!

    The Cultural Trust makes it easy to donate online at its secure website, www.culturaltrust.org, by mail at 775 Summer Street, NE, Ste 200, Salem OR 97301; or by phone: 503-986-0088. If you want to confirm that the organizations you support are part of the Trust program, you’ll also find a searchable database at the Trust website.

    Get an early start on celebrating Oregon 150. Support Clackamas culture and what it means to be Oregonian by supporting the Oregon Cultural Trust.



Paid for and authorized by Friends of Laurie Monnes Anderson