Oregon House Passes Impeachment Bill on Bipartisan Vote

Willamette Week:

In the wake of the abrupt resignation of former Gov. John Kitzhaber on Feb. 18, lawmakers and Kitzhaber's successor, Gov. Kate Brown, have introduced a variety of bills aimed at increasing accountability and transparency in government. Many of the proposed reform bills are going nowhere but one, House Joint Resolution 31, passed out of the Oregon House today on a 47 to 12 vote. The proposed bill would let the Legislature impeach officials for “malfeasance in office, corruption, neglect of duty or other high crime or misdemeanor.” The process would being in the House, and if it passed there, it would go to the Senate for a trial. Oregon is currently the only state in which the Legislature cannot impeach executive branch elected officials. The lack of impeachment authority became an issue prior to Kitzhaber's resignation when both Sen. President Peter Courtney (D-Salem) and House Speaker Tina Kotek (D-Portland) called on the governor to quit but had no avenue to force him to do so. “This resolution is not a weapon, but a tool for accountability of the executive branch,” said one of the measure's sponsors, Rep. Jodi Hack (R-Salem) in a statement.  “It is constructed in a manner that provides for a difficult yet fair process of impeachment, and while we all hope that it is never needed, we need to have this tool available so that the integrity and duties of the executive branch are maintained.”Adds House Majority Leader Val Hoyle (D-Eugene) in a statement: “It strengthens Oregon’s system of checks and balances by providing an option, in very serious circumstances, for elected executive branch officials to be removed from office." Hoyle added, "It includes protections against abuse to ensure that the proceedings are carried out with integrity.”The measure, which would amend the Oregon Constitution, now moves to the Senate. If it passes there, it must then be sent to voters, meaning it could appear on the November 2016 ballot.

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