Archive for the 'Road Trips' Category

Secretary Brown inspires high school students to register to vote

Published on October 2, 2012 in Elections, Headlines, Road Trips and Uncategorized. 0 Comments

More than 16 hundred Oregon high school students to register on National Voter Registration Day

Salem – On September 25, Secretary of State Kate Brown hosted a statewide voter registration drive in nearly 200 Oregon high schools, promoting civics education and inviting those 17 and older to register to vote. The results are still coming in, but so far administrators, teachers and students have reported they registered more than 1,600 students to vote.

“The tremendous number of teachers and schools that participated, and the huge number of students who chose to register, increased my belief that Oregon leads the nation in civic participation,” said Secretary of State Kate Brown. “These young people realize that voting is their voice, and registering is the first step to making sure their voice is heard. To every student who registered to vote: welcome to being a voter in Oregon – make it a life-long habit.”

National Voter Registration Day was a single day of action held nationwide with the purpose of registering as many eligible Americans as possible. The national campaign is reporting more than 270,000 registrations so far.

Although National Voter Registration Day is over, it is not too late to register in Oregon. Our voter registration deadline is October 16, 2012. If you need to register to vote or aren’t sure about your voter registration status, please visit www.oregonvotes.gov.

Secretary Brown to announce legislation creating a new corporate entity for sustainable businesses

Published on September 28, 2012 in Headlines, Press Releases, Road Trips and Secretary Brown. 1 Comment Tags: , , , , , , .

SALEM – On Monday, October 1, Secretary of State Kate Brown will be at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland to discuss Benefit Company legislation, at the first annual Oregon Social Business Challenge sponsored by the Oregon University System.

“Together with a group of Oregon Business Leaders we have created legislation that gives Oregon businesses the freedom and legal protection to pursue more than just profit,” said Secretary Brown. “We hope to join the 11 other states that have already passed similar laws meeting the growing needs of entrepreneurs and investors who want to use their business as a tool to solve social and environmental problems.”

Secretary Brown will join more than 1,000 Oregonians at the sell-out event next Monday featuring Muhammad Yunus, a Nobel Peace Prize recipient and leading thinker on micro-lending, in a bid to show average Oregonians that state higher education is making the world a better place.

Secretary Brown will be available to media after the opening ceremony.

When:              Monday, October 1st, at 12:00 PM

Where:             Oregon Convention Center

777 Northeast Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard

Portland, OR 97232

Nearly 200 high schools join Secretary of State Kate Brown in celebrating National Voter Registration Day

Published on September 21, 2012 in Elections, Headlines, Press Releases, Road Trips, Secretary Brown, Social Media and Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

SALEM – On Tuesday, September 25, 2012, volunteers, civic groups and organizations from all over the country will hit the streets for the first National Voter Registration Day. Here in Oregon, Secretary of State Kate Brown is hosting a massive voter registration drive in high schools, inviting those 17 and older to participate. Nearly 200 high schools across the state from Joseph to Brookings have signed up. A video called Voting in Oregon, voter registration cards and a survey was provided to make it as easy as possible for educators and students to participate.

“I chose to reach out to students because a lot of these kids don’t know how or when to register to vote and I want to help change, that encouraging a life time of voting,” said Secretary of State Kate Brown. “It is my mission to engage all Oregonians in the political process, and that is what we are doing on September 25. I truly believe your vote is your voice and every voice matters.”

Secretary Brown will visit Lincoln, McKay and Sheldon High Schools on September 25.

8 a.m. Lincoln High School, 1600 SW Salmon, Portland
10:15 a.m. McKay High School, 2450 Lancaster Dr. NE, Salem
2 p.m. Sheldon High School, 2455 Willakenzie Road, Eugene

Follow the link, for a list and map of all Oregon high schools participating in National Voter Registration Day.

Brown also invites students and the public to join her by posting updates and sharing their National Voter Registration Day stories and photos on Facebook and Twitter using hashtag #KateBrownNVRD.

Secretary of State’s public-private partnership creates jobs in eastern Oregon

Published on May 3, 2012 in Archives, Press Releases, Road Trips, Secretary Brown and Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , .

Press Release
May 3, 2012

SALEM – Oregon Secretary of State Kate Brown will celebrate the public-private partnership with Chaves Consulting, Inc. at a ribbon cutting ceremony at 2 p.m. on May 4, 2012 in Baker City, Oregon. This unique partnership allows the Secretary of State’s office to implement the first statewide electronic records management solution, the first of its kind in the country. Oregon’s Records Management Solution (ORMS) is estimated to create more than 25 jobs in eastern Oregon.

“In rural eastern Oregon 25 jobs is significant; it is equivalent to 2,500 jobs in the Portland metro area,” said Secretary Brown. “I am so proud of this partnership. The work allows us to create jobs, preserve Oregon’s history and provide better services to Oregonians at a lower cost.”

ORMS allows for the simplification of records management across the entire state and local government using Hewlett Packard’s software called TRIM. Additionally, this single records management system will enable Oregon to gain economies of scale, cost savings, as well as greater efficiencies due to the consolidation of workloads and reduction of duplicative storage. The system copies, stores, archives and retrieves records creating less work for staff. It also reduces the chances of losing records and is sustainable, decreasing the need for paper and storage.

Cities such as Beaverton, West Linn and Milwaukie; state agencies – Public Utilities Commission and pilot field offices from the Department of Human Services Children, Adults and Families Division; Tillamook County and Tualatin Hills Parks and Recreation District have all joined as pilot agencies. Additional state and local government agencies are expected to join this year.

The ribbon cutting ceremony will take place at the Synergy Data Center in Baker City. This state of the art facility houses stores the data for ORMS and other clients such as the Wyoming and Missouri Secretaries of State.

For more information, please contact

Andrea Cantu-Schomus
Communications Director
Oregon Secretary of State
503-986-2368
503-507-0082

Sec Brown Launches Pilot to Make Voting More Accessible

Published on November 2, 2011 in Elections, Headlines, Press Releases, Road Trips, Secretary Brown, Special Elections, Special Primary and Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , .
County Clerk Maeve Grimes exploring voting assistive device with Sec Brown

County Clerk Maeve Grimes exploring voting assistive device with Secretary Brown

On Tuesday, Oregon Secretary of State Kate Brown concluded her tour of all five Oregon counties taking part in the November 8 special primary election. These five counties are part of a pilot project lead by the Secretary of State’s Elections Division. With a goal of making voting more accessible to those with disabilities, each of the counties were given a portable computer or iPad. The applications available on the iPad can assist Oregon voters with limited visibility or other issues causing them difficulty filling out their mail-in ballots.

In Washington County, Deborah Houghton a resident at an assisted living facility found the iPad helpful because she couldn’t read the fine print on her ballot. Members of Washington County’s Voter Assistance Team brought the iPad to Deborah. Using the screen to make the print larger Deborah was able to read the voter’s guide and the ballot for herself and vote. “This is so much better,” said Deborah. “I’ll be back in January to use the iPad again.”

If the pilot proves successful, the state elections office will make iPad’s available to all 36 counties. “I won my first race for the Oregon House of Representatives by seven votes,” said Secretary Brown. “I know how important every vote is and as your Secretary of State I am working hard to make voting more accessible to all eligible Oregonians

Andrea Cantu-Schomus
Communications Director
Oregon Secretary of State
andrea.l.cantu-schomus@state.or.us
503-986-2368
503-507-0082

Sustainability Board Members Visit Eastern Oregon Innovators

Published on September 26, 2011 in Headlines, Press Releases, Road Trips, Secretary Brown, Sustainability Board and Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .
Oregon Sustainability Board members tour airport pellet boiler

As the chair of the Oregon Sustainability Board, Secretary Brown is committed to traveling across the state to hear from every Oregonian about preserving Oregon’s natural resources, innovating for the future, and spurring economic growth.

In September, Secretary Brown convened a meeting of the Sustainability Board in John Day and Baker City and was joined by her fellow board members including Willamette University environmental law professor Robin Morris Collin and Trey Senn, director of the Klamath County Economic Development Association.

The first day of meetings took place on September 15 at the Grant County Regional Airport, which completed a noteworthy renovation last year. The airport now boasts a LEED certified, sustainable design that incorporates local and recycled materials. The retrofit has improved energy performance by more than a third.

The airport now doubles as an event and meeting center. Recently one of President Obama’s top advisers, Nancy Sutley, visited the Grant County Regional Airport on her trip to discuss the collaborative approach to forest health taken by Grant and Harney Counties, an approach that not only creates local, renewable energy sources but, also, creates local jobs.

Kate Brown checks out pellet boiler

Kate Brown checks out pellet boiler

During the first day of meetings, the Oregon Sustainability Board heard from the Blue Mountain Forest Collaborative and toured Malheur Lumber Company. Seeing new opportunity in this economic climate, Malheur Lumber Company started to manufacture pellet-burning boilers for sustainably harvested biomass. This investment in the future created at least six new jobs directly related to the new boilers. It has also resulted in the thinning of unhealthy and flammable forest growth.

Grant County Regional Airport features one of these innovative pellet boilers.

Robin Morris Collin and Sara Vickerman enjoy the tour of Malheur Lumber

Robin Morris Collin and Sara Vickerman enjoy the tour of Malheur Lumber

After a night at the haunted Geiser Grand Hotel in Baker City, the Board continued their work. Speaking with regional sustainability planners, they learned how historical preservation is at the heart of sustainability planning.

Fun fact: Over 100 Baker City buildings are on the National Register of Historic Places.

While visiting sites like the underground tunnels, the Board saw how locally sourced and recycled materials are incorporated into historical buildings during preservation projects. They learned about the money energy retrofits save as well as the local employment they engender – all while preserving some of Oregon’s most amazing gems east of the Cascades.

Baker City’s emphasis on preservation has paid off because tourism is one of its largest industries. With its colorful history, Victorian-style houses, and Oregon Trail Interpretive Center, Baker City is a site to see!

Kate Brown: Postal Service Makes OR Vote-by-Mail Successful

Published on September 8, 2011 in Elections, Headlines, Press Releases, Road Trips, Secretary Brown, Social Media and Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , .

Oregon Secretary of State Kate Brown spent her Labor Day weekend traveling to Washington D.C. where she attended a conference with postal union leaders from around the world. In her remarks she illustrated why the best way to enfranchise Americans is not through the ballot box, but through the mail box. Without a vibrant, efficient and reliable postal service, Vote By Mail would not be the resounding success that it is.

Pictures from Campus(es)

Published on October 22, 2010 in Road Trips and Secretary Brown. 0 Comments

Dear Oregonians,

This last week, I was invited by the Oregon Student Association, and its partners in the Vote or Vote coalition, to visit the campuses of PSU, PCC Sylvania and Mount Hood Community College in order to promote voter registration before the October 12th deadline. I was once again blown away and inspired by the unbelievable work being done by these dedicated students to get their peers registered to vote.

Part of my visit consisted of visiting classrooms for “class raps.” The message I wanted to convey to the mixture of young and older voters is simple: This election is going to have a lasting effect on issues that impact them as students; things like funding for higher education and access to student loans. From City Council elections to those running for office in Washington, D.C. their vote is critically meaningful and if they choose not to use it, they are depending on the rest of us to make decisions for them.

Clearly, Oregon’s students are getting the message. OSA registered 18,405 people to vote from June of this year up to the October 12 deadline. Add that to the 2,231 they registered for the primary and you’ve got 20,636 people registered for the 2010 General Election.

It is now too late to register to vote in this November’s election, but if you or someone you know wants to get registered for future elections, jump over to Oregonvotes.org and get registered online!

I want to thank the OSA for having me and for all of the hard work they and the countless other voter registration organizations did to make sure that every eligible Oregonian has the chance to vote this November.

Sincerely,

Kate Brown

Secretary of State Kate Brown Goes to Washington (Again)

Published on September 15, 2010 in Elections, Road Trips, Secretary Brown and Uncategorized. 0 Comments

This time to testify before the Postal Regulatory Commission about the Postal Service’s proposed service reduction.

In these tough economic times and with Postal Service revenue shrinking, the USPS is proposing to cut a day of service in order to help fix some of the holes in its budget. As a Vote-By-Mail State, the State of Oregon relies a great deal on the USPS to deliver and receive ballots and thus has a major stake in any changes that may take place. Simply put, a reduction in Service will adversely affect Oregonian voters, particularly in our rural counties.

Audio of Secretary of State’s testimony can be found here.

OPB’s Chris Lehman wrote a short story about Secretary Brown’s trip and the reasoning behind Oregon (and Washington) elections officials opposition to the proposal.

Vote By Mail Tour Pictures

Published on May 13, 2010 in Elections, Road Trips, Secretary Brown and Social Media. 0 Comments Tags: .

The Vote By Mail tour is wrapping up and there is lots to talk about. But before we get our thoughts up on this blog, I wanted to share some pictures from the tour.

Enjoy!

Continue reading ‘Vote By Mail Tour Pictures’