Val Hoyle

Avakian would be positioned to take action on his civics education and clean energy promises as secretary of state.

Creating Jobs and Opportunity During the worst recession we faced in our lifetime, Val focused on creating good jobs and promoting healthy businesses—in the state house district she represented and across our state. Val supported the construction of the Oregon State Hospital in Junction City, bringing thousands of good family wage jobs to Lane County and providing important access to high­-level care for those who need it. She supported public works and transportation projects across Oregon that created good jobs and improved our infrastructure to help businesses grow and thrive. She worked to expand access to capital for small businesses and reduce red tape for starting a business in Oregon. She supports equal work for equal pay for women, paid time off for workers and a higher minimum wage so no Oregonian who works full time will live in poverty. Val has also been a strong advocate for Oregon farmers markets by modernizing laws to allow farmers to sell directly to the public.

Improving Public Education Val first got involved in Oregon politics over a decade ago working for grassroots education groups like Stand for Children and fighting for adequate and stable funding for K­12 education. Since taking office, Val has continued to stand up for education and served as the Vice­ Chair of the House Higher Education Sub­-Committee. In the last three years as Majority Leader of the Oregon House, Val has made protecting public education one of her top priorities. Val is helping lead the effort in Salem to create a seamless education pathway from birth to higher education that focuses on the best outcomes for students. In 2013, Val led Democrats in the House to pass the largest K­12 budget in Oregon history—increasing education funding by over $1 billion. Even during the worst days of the financial crisis, Val never gave up on her commitment to find solutions to reduce class sizes and add school days. Val is a tireless advocate for our state universities and community colleges. She has worked to reform our higher education system through innovative ideas to make college more affordable and accessible—like the University of Oregon’s New Partnership Proposal and the Higher Education Coordinating Commission. She’s been an advocate for increasing workforce development programs at our community colleges. And Val voted to freeze college tuition at Oregon’s public universities and to increase financial aid so more Oregonians could go to college.

Making it Easier to Vote Oregon led the nation in making it easier for all our citizens to participate in elections with our groundbreaking vote-by-mail system. But Val Hoyle believes even more can be done to increase voter participation and remove barriers. That’s why Val led the effort in the State House to pass a NEW Motor Voter law to automatically register Oregon drivers who are eligible to vote but who are not currently on the state’s voter rolls. The updated process using DMV records will make voter registration simpler, more convenient and more secure. Automatic motor voter registration will dramatically expand access to Oregon elections. The new law could add as many as 300,000 Oregonians to the voter rolls. For Val, this isn’t a partisan issue. It’s about removing unnecessary, outdated barriers to voting and making sure every eligible voter has a chance to cast a ballot.

Government Transparency and Accountability Val Hoyle knows nothing is more important than making sure the people of Oregon have a government they can trust. That’s why Val is committed to passing new laws to increase accountability and transparency in state offices and agencies. She’s ready to work closely with Governor Kate Brown on comprehensive legislation to restore Oregonians’ confidence in our state government.

Women's Health and Wellness Val Hoyle is proudly pro-choice. As Majority Leader and a State Representative, she worked to make sure women across Oregon could access reproductive health care services when they needed them most. Val championed new laws requiring insurance coverage for 12-months of contraceptives and allowing pharmacists to write on-demand birth control prescriptions.

Val Hoyle also helped pass Oregon’s landmark paid sick time bill. This will ensure all working Oregonians can earn paid time off when they are ill or when they need to care for a sick child, spouse or parent.^[19][20]