Mannix, a Republican, is a member of Oregon’s House of Representatives and he represents District 21, previously held by current Salem Mayor Chris Hoy, which covers all of Keizer and northern Salem with the southern boundary along State Street in Salem.
Mannix graduated from Wakefield High School in 1965. From there he went on to earn a Bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts from the Virginia College of Arts and Sciences in 1971.
Mannix then attended the Virginia School of Law, earning his Juris Doctorate in 1974.
Mannix has a number of legal positions under his belt including: working as an attorney in roles such as an Oregon Court of Appeals law clerk; assistant attorney general, Oregon; assistant attorney general, U.S. Territory of Guam; administrative law judge, Oregon; and in private practice.
Mannix assumed office for his two-year term on January 9, 2023 with the term ending Jan. 15, of next year.
The position has a yearly salary of $35,052 per year with $157 in allowable per diem each day.
Currently running for re-election, Mannix has already appeared on ballots for the May primary and local elections, which were due on May 21.
Previously, Mannix served as a Democrat in the Oregon House from 1989 to 1996 although he switched parties in 1997 where he was appointed to serve out a partial term in the State senate.
The following year, Mannix ran for a house seat and won, serving until 2000.
While a state legislator, Mannix acted as the chief sponsor for nearly 135 successfully passed bills.
Mannix served as the vice-chair of the Oregon Republican Party from 1999 – 2001 and was elected to party chair in 2003, serving through 2005.
For the past year, Mannix was a part of several committees, many of them joint committees meaning that both Republicans and Democrats are assigned responsibility within.
The committees he is a part of are: The Joint Conduct Committee as Co-Chair, the Higher Education and Workforce Development Committee, the Joint Information Management and Technology Committee, the Joint Interstate 5 Bridge Committee and the Joint Transportation Committee.
Keizer’s state representative has been active this past year with his participation in and creation of several house bills during his time. Here are some bills from this past year.
OR SB1557 – Relating to services to individuals who are under 21 years of age; declaring an emergency. This bill amends various rules relating to services for individuals under 21. The bill mandates that agencies such as the OHA provide services to those who qualify such as mental health needs for those with intellectual or developmental differences. The bill’s effective date is April 4, 2024.
OR HB4154 – Relating to semiconductors; prescribing an effective date. Also known as the “semiconductor bill” it aims to boost domestic research and manufacturing of semiconductors in the U.S. in response to the federal Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Act. It does this by creating the Semiconductor Talent Sustaining Fund which allocates the needed funding for education, training and research in Oregon. This bill’s effective date is June 6, 2024.
OR HB4156 – Relating to stalking; prescribing an effective date. This bill changes the language and penalties for stalking crimes turning them, in some cases, into felony offenses as well as broadening the scope of how stalking is interpreted. The new increased offenses carry a maximum of 10 years in prison as well as a fine of up to $250,000. This bill’s effective date is July 1, 2024.
OR HB4084 – Relating to the education of foster children; declaring an emergency. This bill deals with creating more focused messaging in regards to foster children and their needs within the school system, in order to help create equity where foster children oftentimes complete high school at less than half the rate of the general student population. This bill’s effective date was March 27, 2024.
Republican Kim Thatcher currently lives in Keizer, and attended Portland State University.
Her prior professional experience includes being the owner/ operator of Highway Specialties and owner/president of KT Contracting Company. She has also worked as an accountant, computer lab technician, construction projects manager, entrepreneur, equipment operator and software developer.
Thatcher has served as a State Representative for the Oregon House of Representatives in District 25 from 2005-2015 as well as a State Senator for Oregon’s State Senate District 13 from 2015.
In 2023, Thatcher, who has represented both Republicans and the Libertarian Party, ran for re-election to the Oregon State Senate to represent District 11, Keizer, in an office previously held by Democrat Peter Courtney.
Thatcher represents District 11 as a member of the Oregon State Senate assuming office in 2023.
District 11 covers Marion County including Keizer, Woodburn and a good portion of the City of Salem.
Her current term ends in 2027 although, due to Measure 113, a measure that disallows legislators who have 10 or more unexcused absences from assembly she cannot run again for her currently held office.
Thatcher ran afoul of this measure when in 2023, she and a handful of other Oregon Republicans walked out of the legislature in May 2023. This walkout denied the legislature a two-thirds quorum, the minimum amount of legislators needed to pass bills and related to bills about abortion access in Oregon as well as gender-affirming care, both of which Republicans deemed ”too extreme.”
For the 2023-24 year, Thatcher served in the following committees: She led the Judiciary and Ballot Measure 110 Implementation Committee as Vice-Chair, the Veterans and Emergency Preparedness Committee, the Joint Information Management and Technology Committee as well as the Joint Legislative Audits Committee.
Thatcher has been active this past year with her participation in multiple house bills. Here are some from this past year.
OR HB4115 – Relating to employment classification of certain strike-prohibited employees; declaring an emergency. This bill seeks to redefine how certain strike-prohibited employees are classified in relation to collective bargaining. The bill will “limit the composition of certain bargaining units, namely those including certain guards/ police officers of a rank equivalent to sergeant and subordinate employees,” according to the Oregon legislature’s definition of the bill. It also seeks to make a distinction between “rank-and-file” employees and supervisory employees. This bill’s effective date was April 4, 2024
OR SB1596 – Relating to a right to repair consumer electronic equipment. This bill supports Oregonians rights to repair electronic possessions without issue from electronic companies such as Apple. The bill will allow Oregonians to repair, reuse or extend the life of products in order to come closer to a more efficient and protected environment by producing less electronic waste. This bill’s effective date is January 1, 2025.
OR SB1502 – Relating to public meetings of educational institution boards. This applies to all public meetings of educational boards and requires high school and college school boards to video-tape the meeting as well as posting them online to increase transparency. The bill will not apply to smaller meetings of 50 or less. This bill’s effective date is January 1, 2025.
OR HB4146 – Relating to victims; declaring an emergency. This bill will create new provisions for victims of abuse by amending current issues with those protection laws. The bill will allow for plaintiffs to file with certain abuse court orders as well as modify the dissemination of an intimate image through removing the need to make the image identifiable. The amendments are due to come into effect on passage, with an immediate emergency declared for public peace, health, and safety. This bill’s effective date was March 27, 2024.
Contact Quinn Stoddard
[email protected] or 503-390-1051
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