A guide for voters

The League of Women Voters of Lane County (LWVLC) wants to help you prepare for the general election on November 5, 2024. We are a nonpartisan, grassroots organization working to protect and expand voting rights. The League empowers voters and defends democracy through advocacy, education, and litigation, at the local, state, and national levels.

The League of Women Voters produces a digital voting guide called VOTE411 found at http://Vote411.org. “Election information you need. Brought to you by The League of Women Voters Education Fund”. 

By entering your address a customized set of information for your location is created. All candidates have been asked to respond to questions from the League. VOTE411 explains ballot measures including arguments by both supporters and opponents. 

All Lane County voters will be voting on four local measures. Three of these ballot measures are recommendations from the Lane County Charter Review Committee (CRC). This Committee is convened every ten years to review and recommend changes or updates to our Lane County Charter. The CRC recommended repealing three sections as being out of date and no longer relevant.  There is no opposition to these measures.  

Measure 20-359 would repeal Section 32 of the Lane County Charter. In 1984  specific limits on annual County expenditures were imposed. Since then property tax limitations have been added to our Oregon Constitution and supersedes the need for computing annual complicated calculations based on budgets from 40 years ago. 

Measure 20-360 would repeal Section 33 which placed restrictions on use and development of East Alton Baker Park. Lane County no longer owns this land.

Measure 20-361 would repeal Section 34 which limits the rate and directs use of any Lane County income tax. Lane County does not have an income tax. 

A fourth, Measure 20-362, has been placed on the ballot by a three-to-two vote of Lane CountyCommissioners. Measure 20-362 would replace Lane Code Chapter 21.001 - Independent Redistricting Committee  (Ordinance 21-04, 07.08.21) by placing in the Lane County Charter a newly created Citizens Redistricting Commission and one-time redistricting to redraw county commissioner district boundaries effective before the 2026 election. Current district boundaries were approved in December 2021 by a three-to-two vote selecting one of three maps provided by an Independent Redistricting Committee.

Arguments in support say that the new commission, not the Board of County Commissioners, should have the final say in adopting district maps. New selection criteria are needed to keep political interests out of the process using a blind drawing of eligible applicants. The measure also introduces a one-time mid-cycle redistricting process noting that the redistricting effort in 2021 drew map boundaries with a portion of Eugene in every district suggesting that all five commissioners could have Eugene addresses.  

Opponents say the requirement that redistricting be done by an independent  committee already exists in Lane County code and was used in the creation of the current district map. To uphold the equality principle of one-person, one-vote each district must, to the degree possible, have an equal number of residents. The non-Eugene districts have relatively small percentages of voters with Eugene addresses, from 3% to 20%, making it implausible that all five commissioners could all be Eugeneans.  

Conducting redistricting before new census data comes available is a waste of taxpayers money and puts an undue burden on County elections staff. There was no indication that the current map is flawed, never having been appealed to the Secretary of State or in court. The measure was put on the ballot without a public hearing and against the recommendation of the Charter Review Committee. Opponents claim Measure 20-362 is an attempt by elected officials to gerrymander district boundaries and is misleading. 

Find recordings of Commissioner and other meeting webcasts at https://www.lanecounty