By State Representative Rob Nosse The short session has started and we at the Oregon Legislature have a lot on our plates. Here is a rundown of some of the […]
Representatively Speaking – February 2026 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Happy New Year! Hopefully 2026 is a better year in politics than 2025 has been. At least there is an election coming.Last month I promised
Representatively Speaking – January 2026 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Those of you that get my weekly email newsletter or follow me on social media know that I just got back from a much-needed vacation.
Representatively Speaking – December 2025 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Lately when people ask me how I am doing, I often give them a grade, like a letter grade like you would get in school
Representatively Speaking – November 2025 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse This month I thought I would be a little more lighthearted and give you some insight into what my workdays are like. I am also
Representatively Speaking – October 2025 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse By the time you read this, the Oregon legislature will have met for a special legislative session to fund transportation in our state, something we
Representatively Speaking – September 2025 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse As I explained last month, the submission deadline for this column means that I had to wait till this month to share my thoughts about
Representatively Speaking – August 2025 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse By the time you’re reading this, the legislative session is probably over. I have to submit this column before the legislative deadline, and I didn’t
Representatively Speaking – July 2025 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Approximately four times a year, the two Revenue and Finance and Tax committees of the Oregon Legislature meet to get an update on the state
Representatively Speaking – June 2025 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse If you only take away one thing from this month’s column, let it be this: The Oregon Transportation Reinvestment Package as presented a few weeks
Representatively Speaking – May 2025 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Every week I get emails or text messages, even a few Facebook messages, asking me what I am doing to resist the dismantling of the
Representatively Speaking – April 2025 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse I am struggling with my sleep. I keep waking up in the middle of the night having the same anxiety dream I have always had—I
Representatively Speaking – March 2025 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse The 2025 legislative session is in full swing. Last month I talked about my bills that are not focused on health care, Medicaid and behavioral
Representatively Speaking – February 2025 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Most of you know I spend a lot of time on behavioral health, healthcare and Medicaid. Of the 71 bills I filed back in December—so
Representatively Speaking – January 2025 Read More
I don’t use this space to communicate as a partisan Democrat very often, but in light of November’s election results I felt like that’s the only way I could accurately
Representatively Speaking – December 2024 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse As this month’s column is published a few days before the election (brace for impact!), I will save my reactions regarding the results for the
Representatively Speaking – November 2024 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse The November election is not that far away. I know there is a lot of anxiety about it. I promise this will be the last
Representatively Speaking – October 2024 Read More
As you read this, we are only 60 or so days out from the November election. Right?!? With that in mind, this column and October’s will deal with topics that
Representatively Speaking – September 2024 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse The recent US Supreme Court ruling upholding Grants Pass’ ban on outdoor sleeping by homeless individuals has garnered significant attention across our state. Because of
Representatively Speaking – August 2024 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse I don’t talk about the outdoors that much in these columns but with summer here I think this topic just makes sense. As you all
Representatively Speaking – July 2024 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse I greatly appreciate that The Southeast Examiner is a newspaper where I learn about the goings on in our sliver of Portland and that it
Representatively Speaking – June 2024 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse When the recommendations from Governor Tina Kotek’s Central City Task Force came out last year before the legislative session started, I was disappointed to see
Representatively Speaking – May 2024 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Last month, my column was written roughly two weeks before the legislative session was predicted to adjourn. The column was published on March 1. The
Representatively Speaking – April 2024 Read More
By Representative Rob Nosse Long time readers know I have to submit this column the week before it goes to print. Normally in politics, that is not too much of
Representatively Speaking – March 2024 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Depending on what day you are reading this, the 2024 session is either about to start or is already underway. In case you do not
Representatively Speaking – February 2024 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Before you start reading, I want to express my deep gratitude to The Southeast Examiner for providing me the opportunity to share my thoughts in
Representatively Speaking – January 2024 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse In October I wrote about the fact-finding trip I was taking to Portugal. I decided to take the trip in spite of some criticism for
Representatively Speaking – December 2023 Read More
By Representative Rob Nosse By the time you read this, I will still be traveling in Portugal trying to understand what we could do differently when it comes to Ballot
Representatively Speaking – November 2023 Read More
By Representative Rob Nosse Given that Ballot Measure 110 (BM 110) has received national news coverage every week this summer, I think it’s imperative that I make my thoughts on
Representatively Speaking – October 2023 Read More
By Rob Nosse Last month in this column I talked about important bills we passed during the legislative session. This month I’m going to talk about a bill that didn’t
Representatively Speaking – September 2023 Read More
By Representative Rob Nosse I am glad I waited until August to write about the conclusion of the 2023 Legislative Session. Back in May I was pretty much of the
Representatively Speaking – August 2023 Read More
By Representative Rob Nosse I had hoped to write a legislative update about how session was going (or how it ended as we are “officially” done on June 25) and
Representatively Speaking July 2023 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse I must submit these columns a week in advance, which can be dangerous when things in politics change fast. Prior to submission, I wrote this column
Representatively Speaking June 2023 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse We are around what I would consider the midpoint of the 2023 legislative session. Admittedly, a lot of the heavy lifting is done toward the end
Representatively Speaking Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse By the time you read this, a critical moment will have passed in the Oregon Legislature and in my Behavioral Health and Health Care committee.
Representatively Speaking Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Most of you already know I have been in working in our Capitol in Salem since early January as the Oregon Legislature is now officially “in
Representatively Speaking February 2023 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse I hope you all enjoyed the holidays with your friends and loved ones. Happy New Year! I am excited for what this year will bring and
Representatively Speaking January 2023 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse The election is over and the results are in. There is a good chance I will be the chair of a combined Behavioral Health and Health
Representatively Speaking December 2022 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse By the time you are reading this, you should have received your ballot in the mail. Election season is almost over, and it is a
Representatively Speaking November 2022 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse I am voting “no” on Measure 26-228, the charter reform proposal to remake our city government. There I said it and, believe me, I really want
Representatively Speaking October 2022 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse About once a month someone asks me how I got into politics or what is it like to be a state representative. Here is what
Representatively Speaking September 2022 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse It was a tough call about what I should write about last month. While this is a bit of “old news” at this point, it is
Representatively Speaking August 2022 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Just before I left for vacation and while I was away, we had two more horrifying mass shooting tragedies, one in Buffalo, NY, and one in
Representatively Speaking July 2022 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Many of you know I write an e-newsletter. It really took off during the start of the pandemic when people were hungry for information and updates
Representatively Speaking Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse In March I wrote this column before the legislative session ended. I tried to avoid making too many predictions, not knowing how all the chips would
Representatively Speaking Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse This month I have been in Salem a lot as we rush to pass bills and improve budgets in a 35-day window. As I mentioned in
Representatively Speaking March 2022 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse By the time you read this I will be in the midst of another legislative session. Last month I wrote about the bills I was working
Representatively Speaking February 2022 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse As you have hopefully heard, we held a special session of the Legislature in December to allocate additional rental assistance and deal with other pressing budget
Representatively Speaking January 2022 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse There is no one in this city who has not felt the impact of our current housing crisis. In my work at the legislature, I am
Representatively Speaking December 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Given how much I hear about the mental and behavioral health challenges in our city, I thought I would provide an update about what is going
Representatively Speaking November 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse This month I can’t stop thinking about what is going on in Newberg and a new policy which does not allow students to display a
Representatively Speaking October 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Fall is coming! I hope you all managed to stay cool and safe despite the heat, smoke and rising Delta variant cases this past month.
Representatively Speaking September 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse This is the first one of these columns that I have written since the 2021 Legislative Session ended. Now that I have had a little
Representatively Speaking August 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse As I write this, our legislative session is close to ending and we are as busy as ever. I am lucky to be a member
Representatively Speaking July 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Some of you know I am a member of the Ways and Means Committee and the Co-Chair of the Health and Human services Subcommittee. Ways
Representatively Speaking June 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse With the speed of change in politics and events in general these days it can be a little tricky to write a column a few
Representatively Speaking May 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse It finally feels like spring is upon us. This has been a long, tough winter but I feel a real sense of optimism for the
Representatively Speaking April 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse I can recall many moments in my lifetime that reveal the sometimes stark differences in the ways people of color experience policing and daily living
Representatively Speaking March 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse These columns are always submitted a week or two in advance of the printing. Hopefully President Biden and Vice President’s Harris’ inauguration, despite the pandemic
Representatively Speaking February 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Happy New Year to all my constituents! This holiday season has been different in so many ways. Despite the pandemic, I hope everyone had some
Representatively Speaking January 2021 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse By the time you read this, our country will be one step closer to ending the presidency of Donald Trump. The Electoral College meets on
Representatively Speaking December 2020 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse I have been your Representative in the State Legislature for almost six years and am heading into my fourth term. Rather than reflect on something
Representatively Speaking September 2020 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Rather than discuss the recent legislative special session this month, I thought I would focus on work in the Legislature that, until recently, has not
Representatively Speaking August 2020 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse As I am writing this column a special session of the legislature is looming to deal with policy questions raised by COVID-19 and to figure
June 2020 Representatively Speaking Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse What a difference a month has made. To say it is a totally different world since my last column feels like a complete understatement. The
Representatively Speaking May 2020 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse By the time you read this, we will be more than halfway through the 2020 legislative short session. Here are a few of the bills
Representatively Speaking March 2020 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse Happy new year to all my constituents. As the new year begins, I have taken time to reflect on my involvement as a member of
Representatively Speaking January 2020 Read More
By State Representative Rob Nosse As State Representative, not a week goes by where someone does not contact me with concerns about homelessness in inner SE and NE Portland. Discussing
Representatively Speaking November 2019 Read More
