[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6246795,"mediaKeyId","3215232-2a5ada8b9b40b8cf4519eb5b170bff31","parentId",3215232,"title","Proposal to create construction revolving loan fund wins broad support in Finance and Revenue hearing","audioSeconds",1923,"startMs",3405010,"endMs",5328685,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3215232-2a5ada8b9b40b8cf4519eb5b170bff31&start=3405&end=5328","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3215232-2a5ada8b9b40b8cf4519eb5b170bff31/thumbnail_3405010.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6246795/Oregon/Proposal-to-create-construction-revolving-loan-fund-wins-broad-support-in-Finance-and-Revenue-hearing","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6246795-3470af4655eb58e9c7d9b5e01a22fa35/orig.mp4?Expires=1770929234&Signature=elZgjgGRSusVJbkZawHEjGMktxQP5yrtWuUd1rHHvoZtCph8hqwqgbRZi-kM35vC-wj~P6aQ6z1JstjW6wxg7aoSyAjLTwVACGyTopZ1rdqcVlzKUH9S2AdvAn0q2kM9PcJpO48iMloWEc2gy6h6Lcp8SmZS1ga3RihoyRiyj-0NjImLdcb8ES2J97bEsE7c3xJjtBhtZNT3QwR4sizK~RtXngiOfV6p1z6iB0LxIYiC1AkhWQ0XOP89bKmLsST-FvAZk4P4zAb-eJhT86fGsqlaKlum9fcbeEpFSy8HAmYcS0gYeGIUhPIZNIL2pPY0gcBqk3FeFJaVnFHezwq87Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Oregon Legislature","date","2025-05-07T00:00:00Z","article","Senator Khan Pham told the Senate Committee on Finance and Revenue on May 7 that Senate Bill 684 would establish a construction revolving loan fund to provide short‑term, subsidized construction loans aimed at producing mixed‑income housing without relying solely on federal low‑income housing tax credits.

The fund model proposed in SB 684 mirrors a program pioneered by the Housing Opportunities Commission of Montgomery County, Maryland, and presented to the committee by Ashwin Warrier of the Center for Public Enterprise and Council Member Andrew Friedson of Montgomery County. Warrier told the committee Montgomery County launched a $50 million housing production fund in 2021 and used it to make a construction loan that enabled a 268‑unit project to open in mid‑2023; the project included roughly 30% affordable units and did not rely on low‑income housing tax credit equity.

Why it matters: Sponsors said the requirement for lower‑cost private equity and federal tax credits has constrained housing production, especially when interest rates are high. A revolving construction loan fund supplies temporary, lower‑cost construction capital so projects that otherwise \"don’t pencil\" at current rates can move forward. Loans are short term (typically three to five years) and repaid so capital revolves into new projects.

State and implementation details: Senator Pham and witnesses said initial capitalization is a budget decision; examples from other jurisdictions cited sums ranging from $25 million to $100 million. Council Member Friedson described Montgomery County’s approach: the county approved annual appropriations and financed $100 million in bonds to create a fund, made construction loans with roughly five‑year terms and 5% interest, and used repayments to fund future loans. Friedson said the program is \"additive, not competitive\" with existing subsidies and reported that the county expects to finance thousands of units over decades. He described tangible economic impacts, saying a modest public investment \"can enable $2,000,000,000 in investment\" and cited job and tax revenue figures tied to the county’s projects.

State agencies and stakeholders: Natasha Detwiler Davie of the Oregon Housing and Community Services said OHCS would be the implementing agency for the program and noted the agency’s existing lending and asset‑management capacity. The Housing Authorities of Oregon and local housing advocates testified in support. Witnesses urged additional technical work on capitalization, eligible borrowers, ownership structures and long‑term affordability safeguards; Senator Taylor asked whether the fund’s initial capitalization would come from the general fund and was told the bill leaves the amount unspecified for later budget decisions.

Actions and next steps: The committee opened the public hearing on SB 684, heard several in‑person and remote witnesses, and then rolled the hearing over to Monday, May 12, for further testimony and technical questions. Committee members signaled broad support but asked for more details on capitalization, ownership, and implementation.

Ending: Supporters said a revolving construction loan fund is a potentially scalable, reusable tool to increase mixed‑income housing production across the state while preserving scarce federal subsidies for the deepest affordability needs.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Senate Committee On Finance and Revenue 05/07/2025 8:00 AM","oneSentenceSummary","Senate Bill 684 would create a revolving construction loan fund to provide low‑interest, short‑term construction financing for mixed‑income housing. Supporters and experts, including Montgomery County officials who use a similar model, urged passage and further study of capitalization and implementation details.","taxTitle","Finance and Revenue, Senate, Committees, Legislative, Oregon","taxId",17809,"location","Oregon","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6246801,"Senate amends estate‑tax exemption to better include small woodland owners, supporters say",809,2560079,3369730,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3215232-2a5ada8b9b40b8cf4519eb5b170bff31&start=2560&end=3369","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3215232-2a5ada8b9b40b8cf4519eb5b170bff31/thumbnail_2560079.jpg","/articles/6246801/Oregon/Senate-amends-estatetax-exemption-to-better-include-small-woodland-owners-supporters-say","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6246801-cf0ffb406d013f3c53f420b5cd104cf7/orig.mp4?Expires=1770929234&Signature=jpVkZSlw5gsyd~Im4230j4Sb5WA1~EiRHoNzTb11HmuHaTXmTxn0kYP8wCNIRXkeaTNvBGSrXJMTQlQcMM4FfRXlkMVvN4EdB5eXcg0H-YWitdByz4AVVYguURO~2IEUBmtXt-7VViOydxYvhMl~a9SpDK2WrUIAEsVypjJW4VpcZXaWthD19J6BAiU0pzygTdaJpokS2WQuSQiV6kyZ4ztHT6M2wkziOyJNyuGwGVBq3fzycTU5P4D~J2WOuTov~krJIHOrd71ZsvOiOTTaPl~YZ45k-g2DW9~c9a0rzBT4FtzJhkWhN6QN0wDoht-QUmQunUDZNAvDH6eRnuWB9Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Senator David Brock Smith, representing Southwest Oregon, told the Senate Committee on Finance and Revenue on May 7 that the dash‑2 amendment to Senate Bill 485 creates a separate qualification path so small woodland owners can access the natural resource estate‑tax exemption enacted in 2023.

The amendment would preserve the existing five‑year pre‑ and post‑death ownership and management continuity tests but replace a \"material participation 75% of days\" documentation requirement with a standard that landowners \"actively manage the land with customary silvicultural activities appropriate for the age in the forest management cycle.\" Senator Brock Smith said the change targets small family forest owners who manage timber on longer cycles than row crops or livestock.

Why it matters: Supporters said the original 2023 exemption (Senate Bill 498) aimed to keep family natural‑resource properties in production and in families, but the material‑participation requirement is a poor fit for forestry. Gordon Culbertson, president of the Oregon Small Woodlands Association, said forest management is episodic — intense during harvest and reforestation, then less active for years — and daily tracking for a decade \"does not make sense for small woodland owners.\" Daniel Newton, a small woodland owner from Douglas County, made similar points that forest stewardship includes intermittent silvicultural actions rather than continuous daily tasks.

Details in testimony: Witnesses described customary silvicultural activities that would demonstrate active management, including road maintenance and access, thinning, pruning, reforestation, protection of young trees, salvage after storms and fencing to protect stands. Supporters said the amendment relies on existing statutory definitions for \"small woodlands\" (10 to 2,500 acres) and maintains safeguards that the property remain in family stewardship for at least five years after the decedent’s death.

Opposition or debate: No opponents offered live testimony at the hearing. Senator Proxmire and others asked clarifying questions about the bill’s scope; proponents reiterated that the change preserves anti‑abuse language while adjusting documentation requirements to reflect forestry’s longer management cycles.

Actions and next steps: The committee opened and heard testimony on SB 485 and the dash‑2 amendment; no vote occurred during the hearing. Supporters asked the legislature to adopt the amendment so family forests could pass to heirs without forced sales to pay estate tax.

Ending: Proponents told the committee the measure would help keep small woodlands as forests and preserve stewardship legacies across generations.","Senate Bill 485 dash‑2 would change the natural resource estate‑tax exemption’s participation requirement so small forest owners can qualify without daily activity records, supporters told the Finance and Revenue Committee on May 7.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6246806,"Senator Hayden urges task force to study insurer assessments as Medicaid costs near $40 billion",2117,21445,2138855,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3215232-2a5ada8b9b40b8cf4519eb5b170bff31&start=21&end=2138","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3215232-2a5ada8b9b40b8cf4519eb5b170bff31/thumbnail_21445.jpg","/articles/6246806/Oregon/Senator-Hayden-urges-task-force-to-study-insurer-assessments-as-Medicaid-costs-near-40-billion","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6246806-6805d048ba4e8454ccaeefadefd84147/orig.mp4?Expires=1770929234&Signature=Kpuk6txvMst625r4xYU08ScZxWa41uurQBTITdUcVm4UzsMOz6RtTgScX826WFwkke-Nv54R9yi5I3FH01~uTEgAUqFHgB7DPah5jqPcvbUj7UODAnMexAFIj-qsSlE8KHcV9d28aasoLTThWUnGSA1536OMTlxRKTyFK9fl0tEPM8AMCzazzrxWLBu~2gq-Zw4chvw1p4JITaaNcU7jKo1rYFrlizQWj~vM2XFeyUCEO270H3CZfJCrunfokMZhW7n2NVtHtNRNCyGUPepyMkOGyXbUK~jky4Z2UM4uY47OYyLeoTNrIjbOzr02q3xoylbnZSMPbO8Nm1-bfVupsg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Senator Hayden, a state senator from Senate District 6, told the Senate Committee on Finance and Revenue on May 7 that Oregon’s Medicaid program is approaching \"almost up to $40,000,000,000 in cost,\" and asked the committee to form a task force to study insurer assessments, intergovernmental transfers and other funding tools contained in Senate Bill 1206.

The task force proposal, contained in the posted dash‑1 amendment to SB 1206, would review how shifts in the mix of payers — including declines in commercial premiums and growth in ERISA and Medicaid enrollments — affect the state’s insurer assessment revenues. \"If we have a 10% shift there, that could amount to $4,000,000,000 in our state budget,\" Hayden said in his presentation.

Why it matters: Hayden said declining commercial enrollment reduces the revenue base for a percentage‑based insurer assessment that helps fund the Oregon Health Plan. He noted past projections have missed targets (a $291 million projection that fell short by $48 million) and warned of a growing gap between projected insurer assessment revenue and Medicaid spending needs.

Hayden walked the committee through charts and historical bills he said set the policy baseline, saying the original insurer assessment was 1.5% and later raised to 2%, based on roughly $14.5 billion in annual premiums. He said the 2% projection produced an estimate of $291 million that ultimately came in about $48 million short. Hayden told the committee that shortfall contributes to pressure on the general fund to backfill Medicaid costs.

On enrollment changes and rates, Hayden cited agency figures showing steep premium increases in earlier years — \"in the small group market... an 80% increase on premiums\" and in the individual market about \"a 72% increase\" — while covered lives in some commercial markets have fallen. He said the ACA‑compliant individual market fell from about 191,895 covered lives in 2017 to 157,860 in 2024, a roughly 18% decline, and that the combined individual market decline approaches 25%. Small group enrollment dropped from about 171,000 in 2017 to 147,000 in 2024. By contrast Hayden said self‑insured and ERISA plans grew from roughly 800,000 to over one million covered lives.

Hayden also raised the intergovernmental transfer (IGT) mechanism and hospital assessment changes as part of the funding mix, and mentioned the potential inclusion of the Coos Bay Health District in calculations. He said current IGT formulas deliver higher federal matching dollars for certain hospital payments and suggested those mechanics could be examined by a task force.

On ERISA plans the senator pointed to other states’ approaches. He cited Michigan’s experience and a federal court decision he identified as \"American versus Snyder\" in the Sixth Circuit, saying that court upheld a 1% assessment on ERISA plans in that state. Hayden said the court outcome shows a possible legal path for including ERISA lives in an assessment, but he acknowledged uncertainty about how a Ninth Circuit court would rule on a similar measure in Oregon.

Providence Health and Services offered cautious support for deliberation. Jessica Adams, representing Providence, told the committee the hospital system \"is strongly supportive of the work that this body has done to pass [hospital assessment legislation] this session\" and urged that any next steps include broad engagement. She also warned that the dash‑1 amendment arrived to some stakeholders \"moments before this hearing started\" and asked for additional time for the sector to review and weigh in.

Discussion and next steps: Senators asked questions about the portion of that enrollment shift attributable to Medicare (aging into Medicare) versus other causes; Hayden said Medicare is a federal program the state cannot directly change and that the task force should focus on state levers. Hayden recommended the task force examine alternatives such as a per‑member, per‑month assessment (which proponents have proposed elsewhere) and to consider the legal and federal policy risks to pooled assessments, including possible federal changes to pooled assessment rules he said could arrive in coming years.

No formal action was taken in committee; the hearing on SB 1206 was opened for public testimony and closed without a committee vote. Staff and stakeholders said more work in the interim and broader stakeholder meetings would be necessary before any legislative changes.

Ending: Hayden told the committee he \"would be supportive to have a task force to go through this\" and that the objective was to consider ways to sustain the Oregon Health Plan’s funding amid shifting payer mixes. Committee staff closed the public hearing and moved to the next agenda item.

","At a May 7 public hearing of the Senate Committee on Finance and Revenue, Senator Hayden presented an amendment to Senate Bill 1206 to form a task force examining insurer assessments, hospital assessments and caseload shifts that he said are straining Oregon’s Medicaid financing.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Proposal to create construction revolving loan fund wins broad support in Finance and Revenue hearing

Senate amends estate‑tax exemption to better include small woodland owners, supporters say

Senator Hayden urges task force to study insurer assessments as Medicaid costs near $40 billion