This post will not contain any opinion or commentary; furthermore, this post does not indorse nor discredit any political candidate. The purpose of this post is to give Oregonians information about Knute Buehler’s voting record during his time in the Oregon Legislature.
Abortion
In 2017, Oregon House bill 3391 became law. HB 3391 guarantees the following protections:
- It protects a woman’s right to choose–even if the Supreme Court votes to overturn Roe v. Wade.
- Insurers have to cover abortions at no additional cost to patients.
- It also guarantees coverage for contraception, STD screenings, post natal care, and vasectomies.
- The bill guarantees the above coverage for all Oregonians–regardless of immigration status or gender equity.
Simply put, HB 3391 guarantees all Oregon women access to free reproductive care (including abortions) no matter what happens in the Supreme Court. The legislation also covers vasectomies for men.
Knute Buehler voted against HB 3391.
In 2015, Oregon House Bill 2758 became law. The idea behind HB 2758 is to prevent insurance companies from sharing information about health care services accessed by someone to anyone but the person accessing those services. From the standpoint of abortion, this means that if a woman is on her husband’s health insurance, she can access health care services without his knowledge.
Supporters of HB 2758 point out how this protection gives someone suffering through domestic violence can access health care without her abuser finding out what services she is getting.
Knute Buehler voted against HB 2758 because he said it interferes with a parent’s right to know what their child is doing.
Here is an audio clip of an interview with Knute Buehler where he admits he has regularly voted to oppose expanding access to abortion.
Health Care
In January of 2018, more than 60 percent of Oregonians voted in support of question 101. Question 101 put in place a tax on hospitals to help fund insurance for Oregonians receiving Medicaid.
Knute Buehler voted no on question 101.
Taxes
This Article from the Oregonian discusses some of Buehler’s votes against raising taxes. If you read the brief descriptions of the bills, you will note the number of times Buehler voted against raising taxes on the wealthy and corporations. One of the votes in the article addresses Buehler’s opposition to question 97 (which would have raised taxes on large corporations).
Immigration
In this video clip, Buehler admits he’s voting yes on ballot question 105. To recap, question 105 would repeal Oregon’s sanctuary law and would require Oregon taxpayers to fund federal law enforcement programs. Question 105 is opposed by many members of the law enforcement community including the sheriffs of Multnomah and Washington Counties.