OSTA: Empowering Park & Marina Residents
If you are an Oregon Manufactured Home Park or Marina resident who owns their home, but rents the space or slip in which your home is located, then we are here for you.
OSTA is your support network, a trusted source of information about your rights, and your advocate for more secure housing through improved legislation.
Through these efforts and initiatives, we enhance your quality of life.
OSTA is a nonprofit, grassroots organization that seeks direction from members, avoiding a top-down approach, regarding decision-making on critical issues affecting members’ lifestyle choices, quality of life, and rights as residents in manufactured housing and floating home communities.
OSTA works to provide an expanding array of programs, information, and services to its members. It is an organization focused, not only on protecting the rights of homeowners as residents in parks and marinas but an organization that supports all aspects of manufactured and floating home living.
To enable this to happen we rely on members, teams, and colleagues, across the state who support this common vision. This work requires time, investment, and dedication to serve our 80,000+ residents and we rely solely on memberships and donations to achieve our goals.
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OSTA: Empowering Park & Marina Residents
Empowering Tenants: The Fight Against Unfair Increases
What if the fight for fair rent could start with just one groundbreaking bill? Join us as we welcome Bill Bateman from the Oregon State Tenants Association, who shares compelling insights into tenant advocacy and the legislative journey of a transformative bill led by Pam Marsh. This proposal aims to revolutionize the way rent increases are handled, tying them directly to the cost of living and alleviating arbitrary financial pressures on tenants. With the bill having successfully passed judicial review, we're on the edge of significant progress. We'll also discuss an ongoing survey that captures the real-life impact of rent hikes on tenants, providing vital evidence to support this legislative push.
Engagement is the key to making this vision a reality. We invite all members—past, present, and future—to become active participants in this movement, emphasizing the power of teamwork and collective action. Bill shares a lighthearted story that underscores the influence of tenant advocacy on property managers, illustrating that change is not only possible but already underway. We can tackle ignorance and persist through challenges by fostering continued communication with legislators and staying informed. Let's unite to support one another, turning ambitious goals into remarkable achievements.
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Email: bbateman@oregontenants.com
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Well, hi everybody. I'm Bill Bateman, I'm part of the team here at OSTA, oregon State Tenants Association and it's time for an OSTA update, and it is the 25th of October. I've been getting a lot of questions about the survey, about the status of the bill, and here's the information I have at this time on this day, have at this time on this day. First of all, the bill for those of you who don't know was in fact written. It was the result of months of work by Pam Marsh and her committee, including Representative Neron, a number I can't name everybody because I'll forget someone, but a lot of people came together. I had the privilege of being part of that effort, some other OSTA folks, so this has totally been a group effort gaming, moving, working, whatever you want to call it getting in there to try and get this thing taken care of, and we have been successful. The result is we have been successful in producing an effective bill. Is we have been successful in producing an effective bill. That bill went to the judicial review process on the 25th of September and that has been percolating through the process and has been released. I understand it just came out and is ready for presentation and further review by the committee. So the bill has happened and the things we wanted and this is what's important. The rent cap has been suggested to be moved from the 10% to the COLA. The cost of living, the same thing that Social Security is the ability to raise the rent when you move out, instead of several hundred dollars or an arbitrary amount, is now going to be linked, hopefully, to 10% of the existing rent. It means if your rent's $700, it doesn't go to $1,000, it can go to $770. Makes it a little easier to sell your home. And the artificial cosmetic improvements well, we just want all the coaches painted blue this month. That's kind of arbitrary and that is not happening either. Now, bear in mind folks and I've got to make this very clear this is step one. We've put a lot of good things in this bill, but there's no guarantee it's going to pass in that form. Think of it this way let's say you want blue and somebody else wants yellow. The final product is going to end up being green, because there's going to have to be some give and take on both sides. What's important is that we started out bright blue so that we can get as much of what we want as we hope to. There's been very little pushback so far, but that doesn't mean there won't be in the next step. What happens? It's going to be introduced in the assembly. It'll have a name and a number and as soon as that's officially attached we'll get that information to you. Then it's time to start pushing Assembly Bill whatever that number is to our legislators. So it's happening. Thank you for your support so far.
Speaker 1:The survey A lot of folks are saying what's going on with the survey. The survey is up, it's running. Responses were about 240 as of about five minutes ago. I got a complaint and I thought it was kind of interesting. Everybody says, well, we want this to be confidential and it is confidential. But somebody said after I took the survey I couldn't see the results. No, because if you could see them, everybody could see them. And then somebody say, oh, bill said this about us. Okay, no, we've got it set so the people running the survey can see it, but no one else. And OSTA is doing the survey and as a private nonprofit we are not subject to public disclosure laws, so nobody's going to know what you said to who about what.
Speaker 1:We will be turning in the narratives. We will be turning in the comments and some of the information that folks have shared with us. It's absolutely fascinating. Like 97% of the people have been affected by the rent increases, the big things are not enough money for food, not enough money for medicine, unable to make rent, fear of eviction. This is not something that's happening to one or two people. This is something that's happening from Brookings all the way up to Portland. So this is documentation to go with the bill, to show that there is indeed a serious problem. So the survey is happening. That's good. Until the 5th of November Election Day.
Speaker 1:We are going to put a link to the survey on the OSTA website. You can go there. If you're an OSTA member, you should have had a link come to you already If you didn't give us an email, and we'll be more than happy to follow up with you and make sure you get a link to the survey. We also have paper surveys. Now we don't want to just flood the country with those because anybody could pick one up, but if you would like one and you are an OSTU member, reach in on your membership account and we'll make sure one gets to you. So, electronic or paper, the surveys are still out. The surveys are still growing. I'm looking at 239, 240, and I'm thinking, well, I'd like to see 10 times that amount, but I'm really pleased to see what we've got so far.
Speaker 1:We started out from ground zero, working, as we kind of building it. We're building an airplane as it's in flight Kind of difficult, it's working. Folks are getting involved, calls are happening, and I want to share a humorous story with you. I think it's kind of interesting. We learned that at one of the large meetings that the owners and managers have, one of the officials stood up and said guys, knock it off. I don't know whose idea it was to start causing this trouble for the tenants.
Speaker 1:I'm in flooded with calls from legislators, from newspapers, from senators, assemblymen, from constituents what are you doing? You're going to mess up a good thing. Stop it. Well, my advice is let's not stop it. Let's keep those calls and letters going. Now I'm going to suggest and this is my suggestion only the bill is going to be put into motion at the start of the legislative term. I think that's the end of January, maybe the first part of February. We'll get more information as it becomes available and when it does, that's when we're going to want to concentrate our efforts on key assembly members, key committee members, key senators and, as that information is available, come back here and we'll have it for you.
Speaker 1:Right now, let's work at the city and local and county level County commissions, board of supervisors, whatever you have in your particular county and let's see if you can get a resolution passed for rent stabilization. Jackson County supports rent stabilization. That should not be too difficult. We'll be helping you out. We'll have online sessions on how to organize and how to get this done. Write to your local papers. If you don't have a local paper in your area, write to blogs or online forums. Don't get involved in fighting the trolls. Do not feed the trolls. There's always going to be somebody writing back, blah, blah, blah. Be factual, be fair, be civil, because we're nice old people, aren't we? So let's get our word out locally.
Speaker 1:For right now, as we get closer to launch date in the assembly, we will have information on who to send to and how to send to it, and I'd really, really like to get us up to Salem for a legislative day. That is in the works. It's going to be hard. We're going to need a sponsor, we're going to need somebody to step up, but seniors as cash cows I just I don't accept that. That's not good. So, checking in as of today, the bill has been written. The bill has cleared the legislative hurdle. The bill is in its final review process and getting ready to be submitted. It'll have a title and a number. As soon as that's available, you'll know it and we'll have some more information on who to contact and, if you need to, we'll have some online workshops on the best way to do that. I know a lot of people are champing at the bit, and that's great energy. Use your energy right now to make sure everybody gets a survey and gets a chance for some confidential input. That input is going to go to our legislative review team and eventually to legislators. So that's what's going on as of today, legislators. So that's what's going on as of today and that's what's going on as far as the bill and the survey.
Speaker 1:I put the link to OSTA on the front of the podcast and, by the way, as you know, they are currently giving OSTA is currently giving a welcome back discount. Now people were saying Osta kind of fell apart and it did. People died and people retired and people got sick. It happens. So we're back. We're better than ever. We can see we're obviously active.
Speaker 1:And if you'd like to come back, if you're a former member, you can do it for half price $15. Now some people popped up and said hey, bill, now hang on here. What about new members? Yes, you can come in for $15 too. That's half price. And if you're an existing member and you're feeling a little slighted, don't. You can come in for $15 to renew. So that offer is good through November the 5th. You are invited. There's a code on the website and that will, when entered on the website, will give you the discount.
Speaker 1:So, previous member, present member, new member come on in the water is fine, we're going to be keeping you up to date the best we can. And the missing piece in this puzzle is you, because I can do so much, our team can do so much. We need you to stand up to be counted, and folks I've gotten involved with in the past six months have been really amazed what just a little organization and what some appropriate teamwork can do to solve a problem. Not going to solve them all. Some problems often you can fix ignorance, but devout stupidity is going to require a miracle. We're going to work on it, and who knows, we may get to do a miracle at some point. Let's keep informed, let's keep active, let's keep each other supported, and with that I'll say goodbye for today. Thank you, and have a good weekend.
