Latest news with #WlnsveyCampos
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Oregon lawmakers advance bill banning medical debt from credit reports
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The Oregon Senate passed a bill on Wednesday that would prevent Oregon medical debt from appearing on credit reports. Under Senate Bill 605, consumer reporting agencies would be banned from including any medical debt in credit reports and medical service providers — such as hospitals and clinics — would be banned from notifying consumer reporting agencies of owed money for care. The bill comes as consumer reporting agencies collect information on credit history, such as how bills are paid and if an individual files for bankruptcy. From there, businesses use that information to decide whether to offer people loans, credit, insurance, or the opportunity to rent a home, lawmakers note. Police seize enough fentanyl 'to kill everyone in Portland twice,' arrest 46 in multi-agency trafficking crackdown 'One big hospital bill can wreck your finances, even if you're chipping away at the debt over time,' said the bill's chief sponsor Senator Wlnsvey Campos (D – Beaverton & Aloha). 'It should not stop you from qualifying for a car loan or getting a good interest rate on a mortgage.' Officials added that credit cards used for health care can still be included in credit reports unless the card was specifically used to pay for medical services, noting that any violations to the new law could be subject to lawsuits as unlawful trade practices. 'Bouncing back from a serious illness is hard enough,' added Sen. Deb Patterson (D – Salem), chair of the Senate Health Care Committee. 'We're stopping that experience from dimming the financial future of responsible borrowers.' 'Game of whack-a-mole': Audit finds Portland faces $1B infrastructure crisis In a late January , Seth Frotman — general counsel for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — noted the agency finalized a regulation earlier in the month called the Prohibition on Creditors and Consumer Reporting Agencies Concerning Medical Information. That regulation used by lenders and banned lenders from using medical information from influencing lending decisions. However, the regulation faces challenges in court, including two lawsuits from Texas. A U.S. District Court in Texas has temporarily paused the CFPB rule from taking effect until June 15. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now While the CFPB regulation faces legal challenges, Frotman noted 'SB 605 would cement important protections against medical bill credit reporting into Oregon law,' as similar legislation has been passed in other states including New York and Colorado. Legislation surrounding medical debt comes as $88 billion in outstanding medical bills are in collections — impacting one in five Americans, according to the CFPB. Two Senate Republicans joined Democrats in passing the Oregon bill in an 18-10 vote. The bill now heads to the House for consideration. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Senate votes to outlaw discrimination against Oregon tenants based on immigration status
Rep. Wlnsvey Campos, D-Aloha, participates in a committee meeting in December 2022. (Photo by Connor Radnovich/Oregon Capital Chronicle) Calling it a 'moral imperative,' the Oregon Senate voted Monday to ban landlords from asking about or disclosing tenants' immigration status. Senate Bill 599 barring discrimination against immigrant tenants is a top priority for the Legislature's 18-member BIPOC caucus and now heads to the state House for approval. It comes as Oregon strives to strengthen state laws protecting immigrants against a backdrop of threats from President Donald Trump's administration, and as the state grapples with a housing crisis that has led to nearly 23,000 homeless Oregonians and many more struggling to afford rent or mortgage payments. State law already prohibits housing discrimination based on national origin or race, and the bill's supporters say it closes a gap by also prohibiting discrimination based on immigration status. Sen. Wlnsvey Campos, D-Aloha and the bill's chief sponsor, described it on the Senate floor Monday as a way to create a more just and inclusive Oregon while protecting vulnerable residents. 'Hardworking individuals in our communities who contribute immensely to Oregon's economy have too often faced the sting of discrimination and exclusion,' Campos said. 'They are our neighbors, our coworkers, our friends. There are people who deserve the security and safety that a home represents.' Republican Sens. Dick Anderson of Lincoln City, Mike McLane of Powell Butte, Todd Nash of Enterprise and Suzanne Weber of Tillamook joined 17 Democrats to pass the bill with no debate. It now heads to the Oregon House, where it's also expected to pass. State Rep. Ricki Ruiz, D-Gresham and the BIPOC caucus's co-chair, laid out his personal support for the bill during a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this month. Ruiz's parents immigrated from Mexico in the 1980s and spent decades as farmworkers picking fruit in east Multnomah County. 'Growing up, I saw firsthand the barriers that stood in their way — the fear of not having a safe place to call home, the anxiety of not knowing if someone would turn us away because of where we came from or the language we spoke,' Ruiz said. 'That constant fear follows families like mine, not just for weeks or months, but for years, shaping the way we move through the world. No child should have to carry that weight.' The bill would allow tenants to supply landlords with identification like a driver's license or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number instead of a Social Security number or birth certificate. Landlords would still be allowed to ask about immigration status if required by a federal government program for affordable housing. Portland passed a similar city ordinance in 2019, and at least four other states — Washington, California, Illinois and New York — have similar laws on their books. Cameron Herrington, representing the Oregon Housing Alliance, told lawmakers that while working on the Portland ordinance he gathered accounts from multiple tenants whose landlords threatened to call immigration enforcement in retaliation for tenants' requests for accommodations or repairs. Sybill Hebb, director of legislative advocacy of the Oregon Law Center, said her organization has similar accounts from some of its clients. 'We have had anecdotal experiences where we've been working with clients who have expressed concern or fear about the idea,' Hebb said. 'Mothers, fathers afraid of calling to request a repair to a stove or a bathroom fixture because of the fear of what might happen as a result. And in that situation, we couldn't offer the specific, explicit protection that we would like to be able to do in helping them feel like they could, in fact, assert their rights as tenants.' Lawmakers received twice as many comments supporting the bill as those opposing it. Opponent John Masterman, a Republican who narrowly lost two Clackamas County state House races in 2022 and 2024, said in written testimony that immigration status matters to landlords who want to make sure tenants follow rules. 'Someone in Oregon that has not entered the country in the proper, legal way, has already broken the law once,' Masterman wrote. 'Respect for the rules has already been compromised. It's not a stretch to be concerned about future issues with following the rules.' Oregon was the first state in the nation to pass a sanctuary law prohibiting state and local law enforcement from helping federal officials to enforce immigration law nearly four decades ago, and the state has strengthened that law several times over the years. In general, state and local agencies don't gather, store or share information about Oregonians' immigration status, citizenship or country of origin. They're not allowed to share records or grant access to non-public spaces to federal immigration authorities without a court order signed by a judge. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Oregon advocates seek state food aid for immigrants excluded by feds
Farmworker Francisca Aparicio washes lettuce in July 2023 as part of an Oregon Food Bank program. The Food Bank and other advocates back a bill that would make food benefits available to more immigrants. (Oregon Food Bank) Oregon lawmakers and food advocates are starting smaller this year in their bid to make cash food benefits available to immigrants who are ineligible under federal rules. After failing to get a bill passed in 2023, they've narrowed the group who would be eligible for state aid to children and youth and older people at risk of hunger. In 2023, supporters unsuccessfully lobbied for the passage of a proposal that would have provided state funding to provide food benefits to about 62,000 immigrants. Food for All Oregonians, a coalition of more than 160 organizations and the Oregon Food Bank, wants to see all immigrants get the food benefits they would otherwise qualify for through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which is administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. About 770,000 Oregonians receive SNAP food benefits, representing nearly 447,000 households. In November, $138.4 million in benefits were issued for food, an average of $309 a month for each family. To qualify, individuals can earn up to $2,510 and a family of four can earn up to $5,200 a month. On Monday, advocates said they are pushing for a scaled-down version, Senate Bill 611, that would provide state-funded food benefits to immigrants who are under 26 years old or 55 and older and are ineligible for SNAP benefits because of their immigrant status. The 2023 bill which died in a budget subcommittee, would have included all ineligible immigrants, regardless of their age. 'This bill isn't just about food — it's about building a stronger, more equitable Oregon where everyone has the opportunity to thrive,' said Wlnsvey Campos, D-Aloha, and a chief sponsor of the bill. The group includes undocumented immigrants and residents under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA. It also includes legal permanent residents who have not yet been in the U.S. for five years, which generally is required for SNAP benefits. 'Our seniors who are very vulnerable to food insecurity, and our children – those are the two populations that this particular bill is focused on,' Andrea Williams, president of the Oregon Food Bank, said in an interview. Now we don't want to stop there. We would eventually like every age.' Advocates don't yet know how many people of the 62,000 fall within the two age groups, or what the costs would be. The Oregon Latino Health Coalition, part of the coalition, noted the role of immigrants in working to provide food for Oregonians, even as they cannot access SNAP. 'Access to nourishing food is a fundamental aspect of health,' said Andrea Vanessa Castillo, policy and advocacy manager at Oregon Latino Health Coalition. 'Immigrants and refugees are vital — they help put food on the table for families across our state. Yet, they remain excluded from essential benefits like SNAP.' Outside the SNAP program, demand for food assistance is high. Oregonians made 2.5 million visits in 2024 to the Oregon Food Bank network's 1,400 sites, an increase of 31%. They distributed nearly 100 million pounds. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
