Catherine "Kitty" Piercy (born July 6, 1942) is an American politician. She was elected mayor of

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2020 United States Census, Eu ...

in 2004, and was re-elected in 2008, and again in 2012, serving three full terms until January 2017. During the 1990s she served as Minority Leader of the

Oregon House of Representatives The Oregon House of Representatives is the lower house of the Oregon Legislative Assembly. There are 60 members of the House, representing 60 districts across the state, each with a population of 65,000. The House meets in the west wing of the ...

Oregon State Legislature

Piercy was elected state representative in 1994, 1996, and 1998, serving from 1995–2000, for House District 39 serving West Eugene, River Road and Santa Clara. She served for the maximum three consecutive two-year terms. She served as both assistant caucus leader and Minority Leader in 1999. She was elected assistant Democratic leader in her second term and leader in her third term.

Climate change

Piercy has been concerned with the issues of sustainability and climate change. Early in her first term she assembled a broad group of stakeholders into a forum called the Sustainable Business Initiative, one of whose recommendations was to create the city's Sustainability Commission, which Council officially created in 2007. In 2005 Piercy became an early signatory of the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement. over 900 mayors had signed the Agreement.

Eugene issues

West Eugene EmX

Piercy supported the west Eugene extension of

Lane Transit District The Lane Transit District (LTD) is a public agency that provides public transportation in Lane County, Oregon, United States. The transit district serves the Eugene and Springfield metropolitan areas, including the neighboring cities of Coburg, ...

bus rapid transit Bus rapid transit (BRT), also called a busway or transitway, is a bus-based public transport system designed to have much more capacity, reliability and other quality features than a conventional bus system. Typically, a BRT system includes ...

system, having voted for it in her capacity as city representative to the regional Metropolitan Planning Commission. All local jurisdictions have been proponents of the EmX system for over a decade. Two segments were completed and were successful. This mass transit system is built into all local planning documents. It is designed to be efficient and reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Opponents to the project include citizens and business owners who say that the bus system is too expensive, is not needed, and will cause many businesses to lose business or have to close because of the construction. Proponents include local elected bodies, Lane Transit District, community members and the Eugene Chamber of Commerce.

Proposed city tax for schools

While Piercy was mayor, a local income tax to fund schools was proposed, but defeated.

Pledge of Allegiance controversy

While Piercy was mayor, a proposal to have Eugene council members begin saying the

pledge of allegiance The Pledge of Allegiance of the United States is a patriotic recited verse that promises allegiance to the flag of the United States and the republic of the United States of America. The first version, with a text different from the one used ...

prior to council meetings on days of national patriotic importance was passed. Piercy said that the measure was likely to be divisive: "If there's one thing the flag stands for, it's that people don't have to be compelled to say the Pledge of Allegiance or anything else."Dan Springer
"Compromise on Pledge of Allegiance in Oregon Town Has Some Seeing Red,"
FoxNews.com June 28, 2011. Supporters of the measure said that objecting to it "vindicates all of us who say our Judeo-Christian heritage is under attack."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Piercy, Kitty Peace Corps volunteers Mayors of Eugene, Oregon Women mayors of places in Oregon Democratic Party members of the Oregon House of Representatives Women state legislators in Oregon Living people 1942 births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians