County Commissioner Urges Legislature to Reconsider House Bill 2005

SALEM, Ore. — June 17, 2025 — Marion County Commissioner Danielle Bethell testified yesterday before the Oregon State Legislature’s Joint Committee On Addiction and Community Safety Response, expressing frustration with House Bill 2005 and asking for a renewed focus on House Bill 2467 as the more effective path to support vulnerable individuals in the community.

Commissioner Bethell emphasized the urgent need for real solutions in mental health care, saying that current legislative efforts are failing to adequately address this ongoing crisis.

“House Bill 2005 puts two systems of work together and harms one or both,” said Commissioner Bethell. “The counties are not being heard at all in the aid and assist space.

“As a County Commissioner, I am responsible for vulnerable individuals in my community, and I take that work very seriously.”

Commissioner Bethell spoke of the recent stabbing at the Union Gospel Mission, where a man who was presumably experiencing a crisis violently attacked 12 people at the shelter.

“That same gentleman has over 100 pages of interactions with the City of Bend Police Department,” said Bethell. “He had already been at the state hospital for attempted murder in the past.

“Why he had to attempt murder in order to get help is beyond me. The fact that we're trying to smash these two things together to get to an outcome because we have a federal court order over our heads seems asinine to me at best, especially when our community has done such great work on House Bill 2467.”

According to Commissioner Bethell, House Bill 2005 attempts to combine two distinct systems of work, ultimately hindering progress and failing to incorporate crucial input from county leadership. She urged with the Legislature to take a step back and not rush the bill through.

“There is still work to be done,” said Bethell. “And I would like to be at the table to help you get there because we can do it together."