Town Hall Meeting, Jan. 22

State Senator Arnie Roblan and Rep. Caddy McKeown will join Treasurer Ted Wheeler at a Town Hall scheduled for Thursday, January 22, 7:00 p.m., at the Coos Bay Library. Treasurer Ted Wheeler chaired the Retirement Savings Task Force to address the crisis created by the woeful status of savings and retirement planning in our state. Oregon’s senior population is expected to double in the next 20 years. Roughly half of employees have no retirement savings option at work. One in six Oregonians aged 45-64 has less than $5,000 in a retirement savings account. Treasurer Wheeler noted that failure to save adequately for retirement will likely lead to increased burdens on costly social services. Treasurer Wheeler will discuss in more detail the Task Force’s recommendations on providing a voluntary, portable, and secure way for Oregonians to consistently save some of the money they earn. Funding for seniors has long been a priority for Senator Roblan and his Senate Democrats. He will work with his colleagues in the upcoming Session to continue this commitment to helping seniors and work on the Retirement Savings Task Force’s recommendations. Senator Roblan will also host a series of town halls throughout the District after the Legislature convenes for January 12 – 14 Organizational Session. As usual, the public is strongly encouraged to attend and talk about the issues that are critical to our region, to find out what local seniors, working families and other residents see as the main concerns and how we can address them together.