Interview: Rep. Elmer on the Legislature

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon
OregonWatchdog.com

The Taxpayer Association of Oregon had the opportunity to conduct an exclusive interview with Oregon State Representative Lucetta Elmer (R-McMinnville), who serves as the Deputy Leader of the Oregon House Republican Caucus. We asked her to share her perspective on key issues for the current legislative cycle, the concerns of her constituents, and the initiatives she is most proud of supporting.

 

Top priorities of the 2025 session.

This session represents a change for Representative Elmer. Not only does she serve her house district, but she also holds a leadership role as the deputy leader of the Oregon House Republican Caucus, which presents its unique challenges, especially since Republicans are in the super-minority. Despite these challenges, Rep. Elmer has prioritized housing initiatives, introducing House Bill 3939, a public-private partnership aimed at promoting workforce housing. She is particularly proud of the bill’s emphasis on financial transparency and guidelines for the grants, which prioritize the interests of Oregon taxpayers. “because it is spelled out, and there’s sideboards around it, there’s timelines with it, and at the end of the day, if those aren’t all met, then that money goes back.”

 

In addition to the housing project, Elmer highlighted several bills she successfully passed during the session, including one that establishes August 25 as Adoption Day in Oregon and another that designates October 9 as Youth Suicide Awareness Day. The passing of Youth Suicide Awareness Day was brought to her by a constituent who lost a teenage granddaughter to suicide. “I didn’t know how bad Oregon was ranked pretty high in youth suicide, and we ranked pretty low in available treatment. So a lot to do to elevate the conversation there.”

 

Top Priorities of House District 24

A significant concern for residents in her district is infrastructure and the associated mandates. “This goes throughout the whole state, specifically in rural Oregon. We have these mandates that get passed, and then we do not have a way to fund them in smaller towns.” Many roads are deteriorating, and aging sewer pipes are breaking, leading to spills in small communities. “We’ve passed some legislation that is requiring upgrades that cost millions, and there’s just no way that you can raise rates on 600 people to raise enough funds to come into compliance.” Requests must be made to secure sufficient funding for repairing the aging infrastructure, from the local level all the way to the state and federal levels.

 

Another major issue for her constituents is the Fire and Emergency Services. “Just the reimbursement rates with Medicaid and Medicare do not, do not fall into line as where they should…. We’re not able to really have a sustainable financial plan around fire and EMS.”

 

What problems should the media recognize more?

The Representative noted that the media simplifies the legislative process more than it actually is. Rep. Elmer explained that even the best ideas often face significant challenges in getting through this process: “This policy could actually fix something, and maybe you even get bipartisan and bicameral support, but then it has to go to Ways and Means, and we have to tackle the financial part of it. And if it’s not something that is a high priority, or we simply do not have the funds, then that great policy idea dies.” Even the most well-thought-out and widely supported ideas struggle with the complexities of the legislative process, and the portrayal of this process often fails to reflect these struggles.

 

Perspective on the Governors focused on low-income housing.

As an essential issue, the Representative’s focus is on housing; we asked what she thinks of Governor Kotek’s focus on low-income housing and considerable dedication of state resources. Rep. Elmer agrees that low-income housing is a significant focus of the Governor’s and that Oregon generally has a shortage of all housing options.

 

In McMinnville, the housing shortage has posed challenges for the local community due to a lack of housing. “Oftentimes, people are commuting from Newberg, Sherwood, Salem, or elsewhere.”  To address this issue, the Representative has chosen to focus on middle-income housing, aiming to create more opportunities for nurses, firefighters, law enforcement officers, and other essential workers. Her goal is to enable these vital community members to live where they work and invest in their local communities. “People that are the heartbeat of the community, we want those people to live where they work. We want them to be invested in the community and part of the community,” she emphasized.

 

Favorite moment of the legislative session.

Wrapping up the interview, Representative Elmer asked about her favorite moment of the legislative session. She chose the experience of passing Oregon Adoption Day, during which she was called to the Senate Committee on Rules to present her bill. As she was adopted herself, it was a very emotional moment for her. As she was wrapping up her presentation, “I had every senator on up on the dais tell me that they were signing on to the bill, and they all had a specific tie to the adoption, to the word adoption. And I just thought that was, it was pretty special. You think you’re doing it for maybe a small reason over here, and that specific bill opened my eyes to how big of a topic it is.” The bill passed unanimously in both the House and the Senate and has been signed into law by the Governor.

 

Final Remarks.

We asked Rep. Elmer if she had any final comments to share. She expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to serve in the legislature. “People have entrusted their voice to meet as a Representative, and they do not take that lightly. I always, always want to hear from my constituents. It doesn’t matter what party they line up with or if we agree or disagree, because their voice matters and their thoughts matter. And I definitely want to hear them.”

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