Oregon lawmakers gear up for budget fixes, federal fights

Between the lines: Shortly after lawmakers approved Oregon's two-year budget last June, Trump signed his massive spending and tax cuts package, which is expected to reduce the money coming into the state's general fund by $890 million this cycle.

• The Legislature will look to fill that hole when the session starts next month.

Here's what else we're watching:

Federal pushback: Rep. Willy Chotzen will introduce a bill building off Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield's work in court to safeguard federal funds for the state.

• Chotzen told Axios his bill would allow Oregon to withhold payments to the federal government if it unlawfully withholds money from Oregon in violation of a future court order.
• Plus: He's backing a Democratic-led package expanding immigrant protections and limiting cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. It would require schools to notify families when ICE is on campus and ensure law enforcement officers are clearly identifiable and unmasked.

Housing and renters: Sen. Khanh Pham is focused on addressing Oregon's chronic shortage of affordable housing with a bill that would establish a revolving loan fund with lower-interest, short-term construction loans for mixed-income developments.

• Another of her priorities is to guarantee "the right for tenants to opt out of landlords' electronic portals for housing applications and monthly rent checks" in order to ensure accessibility for seniors and Oregonians with disabilities, while limiting online processing fees.

Workers' rights: Rep. Travis Nelson said his pair of bills this session aim to strengthen workplace protections for people with disabilities and require employers to pay out earned vacation when a job ends.

Health care: Rep. Rob Nosse said he plans to introduce bills to change how Medicaid payment rates are set for coordinated care organizations and to phase out Oregon's long-standing "prioritized list" for treatments to comply with new federal coverage rules.