State lawmakers will meet today before taking a recess until early February.
BY JACOB PALMER | OB DIGITAL NEWS EDITOR
Gov. John Kitzhaber is set to be sworn in for a record fourth term when he will address the state legislature.
The 67-year-old governor has been cryptic about what he will focus on in his address, according to the Portland Tribune.
“I want to look back over my political career — this term will close that arc — and reflect on the lessons I’ve learned that could be useful to veteran and novice lawmakers, and maybe a few thoughts about why I did it,” he said in an interview last week.
Kitzhaber enters his fourth term with support in both houses, which the Statesman Journal speculates could make it easier for him to push through his agenda.
Unlike his last inauguration in 2010 when the House was evenly split 30-30 between Republicans and Democrats, Kitzhaber enters his final four years with a Democratic super majority in the Senate and one vote shy of a super majority in the House.
The Portland-based Democrat has talked openly about his hopes to pass legislation to toughen carbon fuel standards for cars and trucks, target education funding for kindergarten readiness and third grade reading, as well as expanding the social safety net for working families.
Read Oregon Business’ in-depth legislative preview here.
