This email contains the following urgent action items:

1) Updates from the Ashland and Talent Council meetings this week

2) Information for contacting the Medford and Phoenix Council meetings tonight

3) An email you can send right away to county officials urging action now on Covid-19

4) A list of items that the Rogue Action Center and its partners are asking the state to act on and that you can contact state officials to support

Update: Your Emails and Calls are Making a Difference, Keep Pushing for Action

Because of community calls and emails the Ashland City Council declared a state of emergency on Tuesday night and called for the county and the Governor to suspend evictions in a document that goes to the County Commissioners and the Governor:

“Due to the economic impact COVID-19 will have on its residents and businesses, the City recommends that residential and commercial eviction proceedings based on failure to pay rent be suspended during this State of Emergency and any extension(s) thereof.” Read the full declaration here.

Talent City Council joined the City of Ashland in calling called for a moratorium on evictions and foreclosures in a resolution passed 5-1 on Wednesday. Talent also called for an end to ticketing for unsheltered sleeping. Thank you for your leadership!

You can read the whole Talent Resolution on Coronavirus (Covid-19) here.

We are calling on City, County, and State leaders to act immediately to make sure there are safeguards for those who are already struggling the most during this crisis: unhoused people, low-income folks, families losing their jobs, elders on fixed incomes, and struggling small businesses.

If we are going to have a shot at stabilizing families and local economies during the Coronavirus crisis we cannot afford to wait. Immediate action is crucial for all of us because we know that our health as individuals depends on our community’s health, including the health of those at highest risk and those who are already impacted by this crisis.

City Councils are meeting this week to decide if and how to respond to Covid-19 in Medford and Phoenix tonight, Thursday March 19th. You can find examples of what city councils can, and should do right now, as well as email addresses for many city councils on our website here.

These local city council decisions will set the tone for smaller communities in Oregon and how they should be responding, while also and sending a message to county and state elected officials who are listening to city leaders as they consider policy responses.

The state legislature convened a Joint Committee on Coronavirus Response today at 10am. We joined partners across the state to draft a letter outlining the bold action Oregon communities need from the statewide elected leaders right now.

Read the full letter on our website here.

Dear Commissioners,

Thank you for all that you have put in place to respond to Covid-19. Please act now to put safeguards in place for those who are already struggling the most: unhoused people, low-income folks, families losing their jobs, elders on fixed incomes, and struggling small businesses.

This is crucial right now for all of us because we know that each of our health depends on community health, including those at highest risk.

County managed economic relief measures for impacted residents including: low income families, those without shelter, people on fixed incomes, workers and small business owners experiencing income loss due to the crisis:

• Create a moratorium on evictions through September 2020 for renting families and struggling businesses impacted by the Covid-19 crisis

• Suspend camping ticketing and displacement of those without shelter and designate a place where people can sleep safely in their vehicles to ensure houseless folks have a place to rest, receive medical care if needed, and access hand washing and other basic prevention measures.

• End Greenway sweeps and instead work with agencies to provide basic services to houseless people who are already at high risk for Coronavirus.

County Commissioner communication and meetings

• Suspend all in-person public meetings and arrange Skype or Zoom meetings to meet statutory guidelines

• Use your leadership role to make it clear that there is no room for racism and xenophobia and that the correct way to refer to this virus is by using medically correct terminology such as the Coronavirus, or COVID-19

• County updates regarding Covid-19 should be available in both English and Spanish, on the county website, with a link to language access options for residents who need information in a language other than English or Spanish

Finally, please use your leadership roles to call on the Governor and state legislators to do all they can to address the very real, long-term health and economic impacts for families, workers, small businesses, the houseless, and those on fixed incomes due to disability or retirement. These include strong action on paid sick leave, unemployment insurance, and moratoriums on mortgages, rents, and basic utilities.

With your leadership our county can make sure everyone in our community gets the care they need and that families and local businesses who are already struggling don’t lose their homes and businesses because of this unprecedented public health crisis.

Thank you,

Your name