State Reps. Anna Williams (D-Hood River) and Rachel Prusak (D-West Linn), who recently announced their resignations from the Oregon House because of the low pay and high demands of serving in the Legislature, intend to launch a new political action committee: the ‘9to5’ PAC.

The committee aims to support women in their efforts to run for office and work to reform and modernize the Legislature.

Following the conclusion of the 2022 legislative session, Prusak, Williams and Rep. Karin Power (D-Milwaukie), announced they wouldn’t run for reelection, saying they couldn’t afford to.

Within hours of it becoming clear that Senate Bill 1566 — which would have raised lawmakers’ pay — wouldn’t make it out of committee, Prusak, Power and Williams announced they were stepping down.

All of them are women. All are of working age. All of them represent parts of Clackamas County, one of Oregon’s most politically divided counties. And all are giving up committee chairmanships because the more-than-full-time positions pay less than $33,000 per year.

“The Legislature is, on average, older and whiter than the state of Oregon,” Williams said in March. “That’s because you need some wealth to sustain you in this job. We don’t see many single parents, people with disabilities or formerly homeless people as elected officials. To solve today’s difficult problems, we must pay legislators a fair wage, so every excellent candidate can afford to serve once elected.”

The current base pay for Oregon lawmakers is around $33,000 a year, and the bill that was under consideration would have increased it to about $63,500 per year.

“A fair wage is the only way people with varied backgrounds and life experiences can afford to serve our state,” said Prusak, a nurse practitioner who currently recruits and mentors women candidates through the Emerge Oregon program. “I don’t believe that the people of Oregon want to only be represented by wealthy people with trust funds and hedge funds. In fact, I know they don’t – they elected me twice because of, not in spite of, my working background.”

The resigning legislators have noted that BIPOC, women and LGBTQ+ people are leaving public service because of economic need across the nation at the moment. Prusak, Williams, and Oregon-based advocacy groups including Coalition of Communities of Color, APANO, BRO and others have raised concerns Oregon’s state house may become less diverse.

“Electing people who have done the work to uplift communities during the challenges of the pandemic will ensure our state’s ongoing economic recovery addresses the complex needs of all Oregonians,” Williams said. “9to5 PAC is proud to support candidates who will continue focusing on the kitchen-table issues that real working people in our state face on a daily basis.”

For more information about the PAC and a list of candidates the committee is endorsing, visit 9to5pac.com.

“Inspired by Dolly Parton’s song, ‘9-5’ we decided to pour ourselves a cup of ambition and support and mentor the diverse candidates who will advocate to modernize the Legislature,” the representatives said. “The song is an anthem that still rings true today; ‘you’re in the same boat with a lot of your friends. Launching ideas you all believe in. The tide’s gonna turn.'”