Murmurs: Will Trump Hire Chavez-DeRemer?

WILL TRUMP HIRE CHAVEZ-DEREMER? The incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump will be light on Northwestern flavor, given the region’s politics. But one Oregonian whose name is circulating in Trumpworld, according to four GOP sources, is U.S. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Ore.), who lost a close reelection bid in the 5th Congressional District to state Rep. Janelle Bynum (D-Happy Valley). Chavez-DeRemer is vying for secretary of labor. For a Republican, Chavez-DeRemer drew strong labor support, including endorsements by the largest federal employees union and numerous public safety unions, as well as United Food and Commercial Workers and Teamsters Local 37. (Some unions issued dual endorsements.) Perhaps most importantly to a president who prizes loyalty, Chavez-DeRemer imperiled her own reelection chances by endorsing Trump—a bold move in the 5th Congressional District, where Democrats hold a 5-point voter registration advantage. Chavez-DeRemer could not be reached for comment.

HEALTH INSURERS SUE TO KEEP RECORDS FROM PUBLIC: Federal law requires health care insurers to achieve “parity” between behavioral and physical health benefits. Of course, this is a farce. Break your leg? Go to the emergency room and get a cast. Mental breakdown? Good luck. So, in 2021, Oregon lawmakers began demanding that insurance companies explain themselves. Since then, the Oregon Health Authority, which regulates Medicaid providers, and the state Department of Consumer and Business Services, which regulates commercial ones, have released annual reports summing up what insurers have told them. OHA’s runs over 200 pages and largely found that Medicaid providers were doing an OK job. In contrast, DCBS’s 2023 report was only 29 pages long and was littered with red flags. Some insurers, it said, have stricter standards for providing behavioral health benefits, which “underscore disparities that continue to affect equitable access to behavioral health services,” it noted. The report, however, named no names. So, in April, WW asked the department to give it the data that insurers had reported. Last week, it finally did. But the dataset, which included limited data from only four insurers, was incomplete—six other insurers had sued in Marion County Circuit Court, asking for a temporary restraining order to stop Willamette Week from obtaining what they deem trade secrets. The state disagrees, saying the data is a matter of public record under state and federal transparency laws. Still, officials are withholding the documents until a judge makes a ruling.

CITY LABOR NEGOTIATIONS STALL: Three labor unions representing 2,000 employees at the city of Portland, including plumbers, park rangers, 911 dispatchers and financial analysts, have reached an impasse with the city over contract negotiations. The contract for two of the unions—the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 189 and the District Council of Trade Unions—expires Dec. 31. The third union, the City of Portland Professional Workers, which represents 770 office workers, is newly formed and therefore does not yet have a contract. Two of the three unions have since opted to enter mediation with a third party to try and reach a deal. The primary tension is over the unions’ pay increase demands. The city faces a budget reduction next year of 5% to 8% across the board, leaving it little wiggle room for pay increases.

LEGISLATIVE ELECTION RESULTS YIELD SURPRISES: The latest-breaking development in the aftermath of the Nov. 5 election is the apparent victory of Democratic challenger Lesly Muñoz over incumbent state Rep. Tracy Cramer (R-Gervais) in House District 22 (Marion County). After trailing by about 5 percentage points in the early count, Muñoz caught up Nov. 14 and now leads by 104 votes (0.52%). If Muñoz’s lead holds, House Democrats, like those in the Senate, will pick up one seat and gain a supermajority, which allows them to pass taxes without a vote of the people. The biggest surprise on the Senate side: Sen. Kathleen Taylor (D-Portland), who just won election as Senate majority leader in June, lost that leadership position to Sen. Kayse Jama (D-Portland). Meanwhile, former state Rep. Christine Drazan (R-Canby), who won election to the seat she surrendered to run for governor in 2022, was voted House minority leader, replacing Rep. Jeff Helfrich (R-Hood River), who decided not to seek the position again. “The status quo simply isn’t working for Oregon families,” Drazan says. “Our caucus is united in our resolve to push for policies that put people ahead of politics, to hold those in power accountable for their failures, and to get Oregon back on the right track.”