Oregon business and labor groups’ campaign finance proposal receives first hearing.

TLDR:

Key points:

• Campaign finance reform proposal in Oregon crafted by business and labor groups gets first hearing.
• Proposal has drawn criticism for being rushed and full of loopholes.

Campaign finance reform advocates criticized a legislative proposal in Oregon that was drafted with labor and business groups, stating that it was rushed and contained many loopholes. The proposal, known as House Bill 4024, would set limits on campaign contributions but still allows unions and small donor committees to give large sums of money to candidates. Critics argue that the proposal was introduced with very little time left in the legislative session and lacks proper vetting in broad daylight.

The legislative proposal was developed in response to the possibility of voters having to choose between two conflicting campaign finance ballot measures in November, one backed by good government groups and the other by labor unions and progressive organizations. The proposal aims to prevent chaos from dual ballot measures by setting limits on contributions. However, the bill has faced backlash for still permitting substantial contributions from unions and small donor committees.