OPAL Executive Director Jonathan Ostar submitted the following testimony conditionally supporting the city Transportation User Fee (TUD) today. He explicitly stated in todays testimony at City Hall that he does not speak for the Bus Riders Unite membership, who speak for themselves. Jonathan will be in attendance at the beginning of tomorrow evening’s Bus Riders Unite membership meeting to talk with members about the implications of the proposal. Commissioner Novick, Attached please find OPALs letter of conditional support for the TUF. I hope that the unresolved details and concerns outlined in the letter will be addressed in the coming weeks, and that I can continue to work with you to ensure that we mitigate the disproportionate burden on low-income families as much as possible and stay true to the Citys equity goals. I believe that failure to include a sunset clause could be a downfall of this proposal. In all my community conversations on this topic, the desire for a sunset clause is widespread, second only behind the desire for mitigation for low-income families and small businesses. Even many progressive advocates see this as a deal-breaker, as it seems an example of politics trumping what is patently right. Including a sunset reassures the public and shows humility in conceding that this is merely the most viable option on the table at the moment, providing incentive for stakeholders and City staff to persist in seeking out a more progressive, regional solution. I hope you will reconsider. It has been a pleasure working with you and the Mayor on the Advisory Committee. Thank you for your genuine consideration of equity and accountability concerns. This decision has the opportunity to deliver real benefits to underserved communities to improve safety, accessibility and quality of life, while sharing in the cost. I hope you will see through the remaining tough decisions to earn our unqualified support and ensure that this full potential is realized. Sincerely, Jonathan Ostar cc: Mayor Charlie Hales, Portland City Council
Posted on: Fri, 30 May 2014 00:15:03 +0000
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