The Newberg Graphic - Bonamici highlights bypass, local economic challenges

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By Colin Staub

Rep. Suzanne Bonamici appeared in Newberg for a town hall last week, talking with a few dozen constituents about both nationwide issues as well as some more local measures she has been involved with.

She praised the comprehensive transportation bill passed in Congress last fall, particularly highlighting her inclusion of the Newberg-Dundee bypass as a high-priority project.

"That designation we see as important for advocating more funding in the future," Bonamici said.

A member of the local wine industry brought up the Market Access Program (MAP), a United States Department of Agriculture initiative that works on agricultural export markets. It has been utilized by the wine industry to increase foreign exports of local wine products.

"Opening up exports is really important for this area," Bonamici said. "The Northwest has so much potential to increase our jobs here, to build our businesses here when we have more customers."

The MAP and other federal programs can help develop export markets, she said, but there are also a lot of concerns about foreign trade, particularly with the pending Trans Pacific Partnership trade agreement.

While proponents of the TPP highlight its potential to benefit the domestic economy through increased exports, critics have argued the TPP would send more jobs overseas and have a negative impact on the United States workforce.

"Some people are very concerned about (the TPP)," Bonamici said. "I'm looking at that very carefully, because I would be looking for a trade agreement that results in exporting goods, not exporting jobs."

The TPP has garnered some interest locally due to the plethora of agricultural products produced, but it has also come under fire locally, particularly in light of the recent WestRock mill closure. The federal government determined that competition with foreign markets and imports contributed to the mill closure, and in December a group of laid-off mill workers rallied specifically against the TPP, alleging it would lead to more such U.S. company closures. The same market forces led to recent layoffs at Climax Portable Machining & Welding Systems, the Department of Labor determined.

"I know a lot of people here in this area have lost their jobs recently," Bonamici said. "That is a tough, tough thing for the community and those families, so we need to make sure that any trade agreement and any piece of policy protects Oregon businesses and U.S. businesses and opens up export markets."

Also on the economic theme, Bonamici lauded Oregon's recent passage of a phased minimum wage increase, which will increase during the coming six years. She added that the federal minimum wage, which applies to states that don't have a designated state minimum wage, is still $7.25 an hour and ought to be raised as well.

"There's a misconception that minimum wage is for high school students when they need to figure out how to get some job skills, but in fact there are many people who are trying to support a family on minimum wage," she said.

Bonamici said one of her priorities is working on family issues, such as advocating for paid maternity leave.

"Estonia has a year and a half of paid leave, we have zero," Bonamici noted. "Policies have not kept pace with who's in our workforce now."

Guests asked Bonamici about other hot-button issues including housing affordability, climate change and gun control.

One attendee brought up gun violence, particularly in light of the recent threat at Newberg High School, and wondered whether a gun control caucus could be formed by Congress. Bonamici said she would look into the possibility, although she stressed that gun control legislation is very difficult to pass.

"This isn't about taking away people's Second Amendment rights, it's about looking at how we can address this issue in a way that protects Second Amendment rights but also protects the right of students to go to school without the fear of somebody coming in and shooting them," she said. She brought up the potential for expanded background checks and other gun control measures, but added that in the current congressional environment, it's unlikely they will get passed.

One of the less-common topics aired at the forum was elder abuse and particularly telephone scam artists. An attendee said he is getting more and more calls from his "grandson" who "needs bail money," but then "the caller wanted me to guess who my grandson was."

"Since NSA taps our phone calls all the time anyway, can they be harnessed to get after these people and give them jail time?" he asked.

Bonamici noted that "the NSA is not listening to your phone calls unless they have some reason to suspect that you're involved with some sort of crime or terrorism," but advised that scams of that nature are hard to prosecute because the scammers are often overseas. One strategy, she added, is to tell the scam caller to call back at a different number, and give them the Department of Justice consumer fraud division phone number.

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