A.C.T. Now Lane is a coalition of community leaders, organizations, and residents working together to address Lane County’s housing and homelessness crisis. Our goal is simple: make homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring by increasing housing, improving coordination, and supporting practical solutions.

We believe in protecting our natural environment, including the watersheds that sustain our community. At the same time, we know that the most effective way to reduce homelessness is to increase the supply of housing at all income levels.

Ballot Measure 20-373 raises important questions about how these goals come together.

The measure would create new legal rights for watersheds and allow individuals to file lawsuits against business, government or nonprofits based on perceived environmental harm. Because the language is broad and vague, it could create uncertainty for housing development.

Building housing, especially affordable and supportive housing, already involves careful planning, environmental review, and coordination with multiple agencies. Adding another layer of legal risk, particularly one based on perceived impacts, could slow projects down, increase costs, and make some projects harder to complete.

In a community already facing a housing shortage, even small delays or cost increases matter. When it becomes harder or more expensive to build, fewer homes are created and those that are built are often less affordable.

A.C.T. Now Lane is committed to helping our community understand the factors that affect housing supply and affordability. Decisions about land use, timelines, and costs all play a role in whether we can meet the housing needs in Lane County.

We encourage community members to take time to understand how Measure 20-373 could affect both environmental goals and our shared effort to increase housing and reduce homelessness.