US Conference of Mayors Adopts Portland-Sponsored Resolutions
By Sam Adams
Mon, June 18, 2012 5:33pm
Last week marked the 80th annual meeting of the US Conference of Mayors in Orlando, Florida. This year, I co-sponsored four resolutions which I believe to be representative of the values of all Portlanders – all four, which were discussed and debated by my fellow mayors, were adopted unanimously.
The resolutions ranged from speaking against corporate personhood and reversing Citizens United, to opposing the shipment of radioactive nuclear waste through our cities and towns, and re-establishing the ‘polluter pays’ principle in our environmental laws, as well as confronting the issues of the housing crisis facing our communities with respect to vacant and nuisance houses.
Here are some brief overviews of the resolutions:
- The Conference should adopt the position that corporations should not receive the same legal rights as individual human beings, and that the USCM should advocate to Congress that the most urgent action needed is to enact legislation to reverse the impacts of the US Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, which has allowed unlimited corporate donations to influence the outcome of our elections. (Click here for the full resolution)
- The Conference calls on the US Department of Energy to focus on the treatment and storage of radioactive waste on-site, which is the best opportunity for our communities to avoid further health and environmental impacts from toxic nuclear waste, rather than to transport it to regional facilities. (Click here for the full resolution)
- The Conference urges the passage and enactment of H.R.1596, the Superfund Reinvestment Act, to reinstate the Superfund excise tax and help pay for the environmental damage that big polluters have left our cities to deal with. (Click here for the full resolution)
- The Conference calls upon Congress to investigate what financial institutions are doing to address municipal concerns over financial and public safety burdens associated with vacant and nuisance properties going through the foreclosure process. (Click here for the full resolution)
Additionally, I helped to co-author a resolution with Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn on human trafficking, which was also adopted by the Conference. This resolution calls upon Backpage.com and other classified services nationwide to implement in person age verification and end the use of such websites in the sexual trafficking and abuse of minors. It also calls upon Congress and state legislatures to pass laws addressing these abuses. (Click here for the full resolution)
Thanks to the US Conference of Mayors for all their work in advancing local priorities at a national level. I would like to thank all my fellow mayors for their consideration and support of these resolutions, as well as for the work they do on behalf of their citizens every day.
