Please review our attorney’s report on the Salem hearing on our state-wide initiative to amend the Constitution of Oregon to give citizens the right to local community self-government in matters that pertain to their fundamental rights.  Remember, we gathered the 1000 qualifying signatures for that initiative about a year ago?  At that time, the state did not authorize us to continue gathering the total number of required signatures for a state-wide initiative, arguing that our initiative did not comply with the single-subject rule, and that the matter was one that needs to bee decided at the legislative level.  Oregonians for Community Rights, the political committee of the Oregon Community Rights Network, which at this point represents 6 active counties, challenged that decision in court, represented by our attorney Ann Kneeland (who also successfully represented us here in Lincoln County in the 2 lawsuits filed by Peter Bregman).  The hearing was long, and there was not enough time to cover all the arguments brought by our attorney or by the State.  There will likely be another hearing on the matter.  What is attached here is Ann Kneeland’s report on what went on at this first hearing.

We are embarked on a long educational project to raise awareness of the fact that we do have a right to local community self-government in matters that pertain to our fundamental rights, and that this right is being thwarted by pre-emption laws in which the State dictates that certain matters can only be decided at the State level, thereby overruling the will of the people, usually in order to protect the rights of corporations to pursue their often harmful projects in our communities.  Our initiative in Lincoln County fits right in with the ORCRN’s state-wide constitutional amentdment effort  by pursuing a BAN ON AERIAL PESTICIDE SPRAYING in our county.  Aerial pesticide spraying violates our fundamental right to safety as stated in Section 1 of the Constitution of Oregon.

PLEASE REMEMBER THAT OUR COMMUNITY RIGHTS EFFORTS LOCALLY AND STATE-WIDE GO HAND IN HAND.  ONE BACKS AND ILLUSTRATES THE NEED FOR THE OTHER.

IN LINCOLN COUNTY, WE ARE PREPARING OUR UPCOMING CAMPAIGN TO BAN AERIAL PESTICIDE SPRAYING THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY VIA MEASURE 21-177 IN THE MAY 2017 ELECTION.

WE WILL NEED MANY VOLUNTEERS TO SPREAD INFORMATIONAL LEAFLETS IN ALL OUR PRECINCTS.  THIS IS NOT A DIFFICULT JOB, AND IF EVERYONE DOES IT IN THEIR IMMEDIATE NEIGHBORHOOD, WE WILL BE ABLE TO COVER THE COUNTY QUITE WELL.  PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOU CAN HELP WITH THIS VERY EASY JOB OF LEAVING INFORMATIONAL LEAFLETS ON THE DOORS OF HOMES IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.  THERE WILL BE OTHER WAYS TO HELP ALSO, AND WE WILL LET YOU KNOW AS THE NEED COMES UP.

WE WILL NEED MONEY TO PRINT LARGE AMOUNTS OF LEAFLETS TO SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY, TO PAY FOR ADVERTISING IN THE MEDIA, FOR YARD SIGNS, FOR BUTTONS, TO PUBLISH A LIST OF PEOPLE ENDORSING OUR MEASURE, AND STATEMENTS OF ENDORSEMENT IN THE VOTER’S PAMPHLET  (EACH STATEMENT OF ENDORSEMENT, AND EACH LIST OF ENDORSERS OF NO MORE THAN 350 WORDS COSTS $400).