OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Hillsboro City Council Considers 2026 Legislative Agenda and Adopts Community Flag on Jan 6, 2026

City Council — Tuesday, January 6, 2026
BodyHillsboro, Oregon
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, January 6, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:14:37

Transcript — Verbatim
0:05

Good evening, everyone.

0:06

Welcome to the work session.

0:08

Uh, tonight we're going to be talking about Hillsborough's legislative agenda for 2026.

0:14

And I know we have Ariel Nelson and Andy Smith here to do a briefing, but I'll turn it over to Robbie.

0:18

Service off.

0:19

Thank you, Mayor, and happy new year to everyone.

0:22

As Mayor mentioned, tonight we're going to be talking about the 2026 federal and state legislative agenda, maybe just a little bit of context why this is important for us.

0:31

As we get into the legislative session, whether it's a short session or a long session, things move very quickly.

0:37

There's hundreds, if not thousands of bills, I think last session that we have to go through that staff goes through.

0:43

And so what this does tonight is it gives us the ability to have confidence that we have direction from the city council about what areas we want to support, what areas we don't want to support.

0:53

And so that's what really tonight is about is our proposal to you all.

0:56

It's very similar to years past.

0:57

You'll see lots of common themes.

0:59

There are a few tweets that we made this year, just based on obviously new things from the federal government, for example.

1:04

So with that though, I'm going to turn it over to Ariel and uh and Andy, and they can take it from here.

1:19

Thanks, Robbie.

1:20

Uh, good evening, everyone, and happy new year.

1:23

Uh just for for the record and those listening I'm in, I'm Ariel Nelson.

1:27

I'm the city's uh government relations manager, which includes both federal and state relations.

1:32

Uh, joining me today um to take all the hard questions is Andy Smith, one of our contract lobbyists on the state side, and we also have our federal contract lobbyist Jeff Markey here joining us virtually from DC.

1:45

Um, also any hard questions for him.

1:48

Um, but we'll uh we're gonna go through uh the agenda today.

1:52

Um it's um currently in uh draft form and until we get some feedback from you.

1:58

Um, and we'll also cover some political context and the process.

2:08

All right.

2:08

So just to give you a sense of what we'll cover, we're gonna talk briefly about the federal dynamics, um, the state legislative session and those dynamics, um, both the process and political context.

2:19

Uh, and then we'll dig into the actual draft agenda, uh, which is structured, uh, similar structure to years past.

2:25

Um, but you'll note this is the first year we've had a formal federal agenda on paper.

2:30

Um, so you'll see that reflected, and we'll go into more of those details.

2:33

Um, welcome your questions throughout.

2:35

We will have, I'll ask that you leave your uh feedback for the agenda to specific moments that we'll pause for.

2:47

So diving right into uh the federal dynamics and the context as we head into our federal advocacy for this year.

2:54

Um this is obviously we are in uncharted territory.

2:58

Um last year, when I presented to you, we talked about a major theme for the state legislative session was federal uncertainty.

3:04

And we're experiencing that.

3:06

You've been experiencing that.

3:07

And um, so what that really has meant is that we're really approaching our federal advocacy and engagement in kind of two separate tracks.

3:15

The first, and um, this is largely informed by a lot of your discussion, a lot of what we've experienced with um federal changes at the administrative level is um there's a clear commitment to push back against federal overreach and provide support and protection for members of the community that are being targeted and harmed by undemocratic and discriminatory federal actions.

3:33

We'll get into more details about where that's in the agenda.

3:36

And then second, the city of Hillsborough is going to continue to engage as we always have on a wide array of federal issues that help us deliver core city functions and services to meet the needs of our residents and you know, approaching that collaboratively positively, but they you know, there's been some uncertainty and challenges there as well.

3:53

Um, and we'll get into the specifics of what that means.

3:57

So any questions there.

3:58

I mean, this is kind of just a broad general statement and lens of how we're approaching the engagement.

4:05

Yeah.

4:09

Oh, sorry.

4:10

Yeah, I do have a question on that real quickly for you and for Andy's those those two tracks that we've just discussed, potentially could conflict with each other as far as outcomes.

4:22

I'm assuming you're taking that into account as you strategize on these two tracks.

4:27

That's right.

4:28

And it's, you know, there's there's congressional advocacy with our delegation.

4:31

A lot of the work what when we're looking at what Congress is approaching and and is is the budget process, what's being funded, how that funding is coming to us regionally or directly, what we're able to apply for.

4:43

Um, we'll all get into some more specifics.

4:45

A lot of that relates to um infrastructure funding.

4:48

Um, but then there's also what we've seen federal actions with immigration enforcement and what which we'll you're very familiar with and go into more detail.

5:00

So the other point, I guess maybe I didn't make it very well, is that pushing on priority strategy number one here.

5:05

We've seen an administration who has significantly abandoned typical policies and practices seek retribution against organizations that have taken a strong track on number one.

5:19

And I just want to make sure we've thought about how that approach will work over the next 12 hours.

5:27

Yes, I think I can think so.

5:29

I think Robbie, I you can speak to it's a balancing act as we as we work through different grant processes and agency processes.

5:35

Agreed.

5:36

I would say it's very similar to the last 12 months.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Economic Development██████████████████18%
Water And Wastewater Management██████████████14%
Procedural█████████████13%
Immigration Enforcement████████████12%
Legislative Updates██████████10%
Public Engagement██████6%
Affordable Housing█████5%
Workforce Development█████5%
Land Use Appeals████4%
Summary of Proceedings

Hillsboro City Council Considers 2026 Legislative Agenda and Adopts Community Flag on Jan 6, 2026

The Hillsboro City Council held a combined work session and regular meeting on January 6, 2026. The meeting centered on reviewing the city's 2026 federal and state legislative priorities, receiving an update from Clean Water Services, hearing public testimony from over a dozen residents, and conducting official business including the adoption of a new city flag.

Work Session: 2026 Federal and State Legislative Agenda

City Government Relations Manager Ariel Nelson, alongside state lobbyist Andy Smith and federal lobbyist Jeff Markey, presented the draft legislative agenda for the upcoming short session (Feb 2 – Mar 6), which is heavily shaped by state budget deficits and federal uncertainty.

Federal Priorities:

  • Staff outlined a dual-track approach: (1) pushing back against what they termed undemocratic and discriminatory federal actions to protect community members, and (2) maintaining traditional advocacy for core city funding and infrastructure.
  • Councillor Sogato questioned the potential strategic conflicts between these two tracks. Staff acknowledged the need for careful balancing, consulting legal counsel on legal risks, and navigating the tension at the administrative and congressional levels.
  • Staff noted positive progress on a $1,092,000 federal earmark for a seismically resilient water treatment plant.

State Priorities & Policy Context:

  • Major state-level dynamics include significant budget deficits (the first in over a decade) and the uncertain status of the recent transportation funding package, which faces a referendum.
  • Immigration Enforcement Response: The city proposes to support state-level data privacy (e.g., exempting automatic license plate reader data from public records requests), and seek state funding for impacted families and small businesses.
    • Councillor Alcair stressed the urgency of state funding, noting that city resources are finite and the timeline for state support is too slow for families in crisis.
    • Councillor Sogato advocated for expanding data privacy protections to other state-collected data beyond just license plate readers.
  • Economic Development: The city is backing Senator Solman's "Oregon Jobs Act." Key proposals include legislative authority to bring 1,700 acres of land (former urban reserves) into the urban growth boundary for advanced manufacturing, expanding the state R&D tax credit, and creating a local-option property tax exemption for high-tech equipment.
    • Councillor Harris expressed significant concern over the land use approach, arguing the city must retain flexibility to zone portions of the expansion for high-density residential, office, or green space to ensure good urban planning. He also questioned the sustainability of workforce development in the context of major tech layoffs.
    • Councillor Anvery expressed concern that tax abatements could shift the financial burden onto residents. Staff clarified that mechanisms like the enterprise zone community service fee help offset foregone property tax revenue.
  • Housing Production and Homelessness Response: The city supports preserving funding for affordable housing and shelter, and refining state laws to facilitate housing for older adults and manufactured homes.

Presentation: Clean Water Services (CWS) Partnership Update

CWS Interim CEO Rick Shanley and Chief Utility Relations Officer Joe Gall provided an overview of the regional partnership. Highlights included the completed West Basin Master Plan, which identifies $1.4 billion in regional infrastructure investments over 20 years. CWS is launching a study of its billing structure to explore efficiencies. Council members questioned the potential impact of billing changes on customer costs and asked for details on how infrastructure costs are recovered from large industrial users.

Public Comments & Testimony

Over a dozen residents provided testimony on several topics:

  • Sanctuary City Opposition: John Grabski and Colleen McGee spoke against the city's sanctuary policies, arguing they burden local resources and harbor illegal activity.
  • Land Use Planning Process: Dirk Keniston criticized the contrast between the community-engaged process for the new city flag and the perceived lack of public involvement in decisions regarding the 1,700-acre industrial land expansion.
  • Battery Storage and Data Centers: Aaron Nichols opposed a battery storage facility located near West Union Elementary School, citing public safety risks and wasteful use of industrial land. Erica Halperin requested the council address community concerns about UGB expansion for data centers, questioning who benefits and who pays for infrastructure.
  • Economic Hardship from Immigration Enforcement: A group of Latino small business owners and advocates (Myra Contreras, Johanna Soto, Maria, Antonio Mendoza, Liliana Castro, Candido Lara) testified about the severe economic impact of immigration enforcement on their customer base and businesses. They pleaded for financial assistance, describing struggles with rent, business permits, and the potential closure of their family-run businesses and commercial plazas.
  • Response from Council: Councillor Sogato directly responded to the anti-sanctuary testimony, stating, "If you believe the lies that were told today... Research the data," and urged the council and community to base decisions on factual research about crime rates and undocumented immigrants.

Key Outcomes

  • Annual Appointments: The council approved the annual appointments and reappointments to city boards and commissions.
  • Metro Policy Advisory Committee (MPAC): An appointment to the MPAC was approved. Councillor Alcair abstained, stating they needed more time to review the document.
  • Ordinance 6511: Adopted.
  • Hillsboro Community Flag: Resolution 2909, adopting a new community flag designed by the Civic Leadership Academy, was approved. Council members celebrated the inclusive, bilingual community process that led to its creation. Councillor Alcair did not participate in the vote, noting they had not been present for the flag presentation.
  • City Manager Contract: The second amendment to City Manager Robbie Hammond's employment contract, following his annual review, was approved. Councillor Alcair abstained, citing a conscious decision not to engage in the full review process.
  • Community Events & City Anniversary: City Manager Hammond reported on recent event successes: Litopia drew nearly 17,000 cars and 200 bicyclists, and Winter Village ice skating sessions frequently reached their 50-person capacity. He also announced the city's 150th anniversary celebration, planned for October 2026.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening, everyone. Welcome to the work session. Uh, tonight we're going to be talking about Hillsborough's legislative agenda for 2026. And I know we have Ariel Nelson and Andy Smith here to do a briefing, but I'll turn it over to Robbie. Service off. Thank you, Mayor, and happy new year to everyone. As Mayor mentioned, tonight we're going to be talking about the 2026 federal and state legislative agenda, maybe just a little bit of context why this is important for us. As we get into the legislative session, whether it's a short session or a long session, things move very quickly. There's hundreds, if not thousands of bills, I think last session that we have to go through that staff goes through. And so what this does tonight is it gives us the ability to have confidence that we have direction from the city council about what areas we want to support, what areas we don't want to support. And so that's what really tonight is about is our proposal to you all. It's very similar to years past. You'll see lots of common themes. There are a few tweets that we made this year, just based on obviously new things from the federal government, for example. So with that though, I'm going to turn it over to Ariel and uh and Andy, and they can take it from here. Thanks, Robbie. Uh, good evening, everyone, and happy new year. Uh just for for the record and those listening I'm in, I'm Ariel Nelson. I'm the city's uh government relations manager, which includes both federal and state relations. Uh, joining me today um to take all the hard questions is Andy Smith, one of our contract lobbyists on the state side, and we also have our federal contract lobbyist Jeff Markey here joining us virtually from DC. Um, also any hard questions for him. Um, but we'll uh we're gonna go through uh the agenda today. Um it's um currently in uh draft form and until we get some feedback from you. Um, and we'll also cover some political context and the process. All right. So just to give you a sense of what we'll cover, we're gonna talk briefly about the federal dynamics, um, the state legislative session and those dynamics, um, both the process and political context. Uh, and then we'll dig into the actual draft agenda, uh, which is structured, uh, similar structure to years past. Um, but you'll note this is the first year we've had a formal federal agenda on paper. Um, so you'll see that reflected, and we'll go into more of those details. Um, welcome your questions throughout. We will have, I'll ask that you leave your uh feedback for the agenda to specific moments that we'll pause for. So diving right into uh the federal dynamics and the context as we head into our federal advocacy for this year. Um this is obviously we are in uncharted territory. Um last year, when I presented to you, we talked about a major theme for the state legislative session was federal uncertainty. And we're experiencing that. You've been experiencing that. And um, so what that really has meant is that we're really approaching our federal advocacy and engagement in kind of two separate tracks. The first, and um, this is largely informed by a lot of your discussion, a lot of what we've experienced with um federal changes at the administrative level is um there's a clear commitment to push back against federal overreach and provide support and protection for members of the community that are being targeted and harmed by undemocratic and discriminatory federal actions. We'll get into more details about where that's in the agenda. And then second, the city of Hillsborough is going to continue to engage as we always have on a wide array of federal issues that help us deliver core city functions and services to meet the needs of our residents and you know, approaching that collaboratively positively, but they you know, there's been some uncertainty and challenges there as well. Um, and we'll get into the specifics of what that means. So any questions there. I mean, this is kind of just a broad general statement and lens of how we're approaching the engagement. Yeah. Oh, sorry. Yeah, I do have a question on that real quickly for you and for Andy's those those two tracks that we've just discussed, potentially could conflict with each other as far as outcomes. I'm assuming you're taking that into account as you strategize on these two tracks. That's right. And it's, you know, there's there's congressional advocacy with our delegation. A lot of the work what when we're looking at what Congress is approaching and and is is the budget process, what's being funded, how that funding is coming to us regionally or directly, what we're able to apply for.

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