I think that the free parking should extend to all who have displayed the qualifications to have the "disabled" parking permit. To change the law to pertain only to those in wheel chairs because some people use the priviledge is an act of Punishing the WRONG GROUP! How about punishing the actual offenders. Why is it that people who don't know the facts are able to come up with this kind of VERY Poorly thought out legislation. Some legislators seem bend on just grinding their own axes rather that representing the voters at large.

You don't need a wheelchair to need handicapped parking and they should not get any special benefit. I have a heart condition and I can walk on level ground but absolutely not uphill or upstairs so I have to park near to where I am going. A lot of people have stopped me when they do not see a placard but I have a permanent license plate which they do not notice.

I have MS. Sometimes I am in a wheelchair, sometimes I am not. I have a lot of fatigue and some days walking across a parking lot is too much. I am on disability. Last year I couldn't sit up, roll over, swallow, or talk clearly. I only use handicapped parking when I really need to, there isn't a lot of it. When I do need it, I shouldn't have to feel like I need to apologize if I am not completely legless.

The percentage of offenders compared to the actual users is minute. Don't punish those in need over a few that break the law. This has to be one of the most silliest laws I've heard of in a long time.

We have attorneys licensed in Idaho and Washington but not Oregon so this is not legal advice, it is merely a solution suggestion with the hope of offering help in the form of compromise:

It sounds like one important issue is the impact it will have on those disabled persons who cannot afford to now have to pay for parking. At least for that one issue, merely redraft the proposal to structure the parking program to be on a sliding scale basis, to be paid directly to whatever office is appropriate as the council could designate. It could also potentially have the added benefit of not having to pay for changing, current parking signs, etc.

For the additional issue of the length of time disabled persons have to park now being limited, you could add a provision that includes an exemption for work, medical or educational purposes.

The moment the state puts charges on disabled parking situations, is the day they put disabled people's health at risk. Disabled drivers that cannot afford the extra money for parking will start parking out with the normal population and start dropping from heart attacks and other health issues, while the state laughs all the way to the bank. GREEDY JERKS!!!!

And, I would only hope that the disabled people file very large lawsuits against the state for putting them in that dangerous situation. I, for one, am disabled due to leg joint damages. I already live at less than poverty level, under $1000 a month, and struggle to feed the both of us on that. My wife has no medicaal insurance. Thank God for the VA to help me with my medical. Now, if Washington state, the already greediest state in union, decides to start charging disabled people to park, well... you know what I say they can do with that idea.

Oh, and my wife is disabled too. She has had a total knee replacement and has painful arthritis throughout her body and struggles walking also. She has been waiting 5 years for an answer from SSA and she has 0 income. Not exactly how we had planned our life out to be.

The greedy Washington legislators cannot seem to think for themselves, they always watch and copy what some other state does. Just because Oregon does it, doesn't make it right.

so then witch presidential candidate do you think is the biggest liar?

It may not seem logical to limit handicap access but from our experience we have a much harder time finding spaces to park our van with a lift. It requires that a parking structure be of a certain hight or that enough room is available beside the van for the lift and driving the wheelchair off the lift.
I'm sure their are plenty of doctors that will sign for their patients even though their patients are not using any devices to help their mobility. Many times I have seen people with disabled tabs walk into a store and walk through out the store for an extended time without problem, while we parked in a regular space and hoped that no one would be park beside us when we returned.
I have had to leave my son in a compromised situation while I move our van out of a regular space so that their would be enough room for the lift and him to drive onto the lift.

That makes no sense for handicapped spaces to be kept only for those with wheelchairs! While I agree that wheelchairs need special parking for lifts and such, people who cannot walk long distances because of heart conditions or lack of leg strength should not be punished for not using a wheelchair. My husband has MS, and my mother cannot walk without a walker anymore. Neither one uses a wheelchair regularly, although my husband does have days when his legs give out on him.

It seems to me that it would be wise to put additional handicapped parking out further into the parking lots for those with lifts. Once their wheelchair is out of the vehicle, it's usually not a problem for the person to get around. But it can be very hard for one with limited leg power to maneuver in the store after having to walk a distance through the parking lot.

Just a thought.....

I am disabled and I tell you this. The small inconvenience of not being first is not much to pay to be able bodied. I would gladly give up handicap priveleges to park closer if I weren't sick. Anytime.... Anyday. Shame on anyone for not caring about the handicapped.

As for the issue? All handicaps should be able to park LEGALLY wherever they can find space without cost or ticket. As long as the parking is in a LEGAL spot. There should be no difference for level of handicap... that is a slippery slope.

We handicapped are pretty good to one another and would not block a wheel chair van.

I suffered a brain aneurism almost 5 years ago, and as a result I can not remember things, like where in the lot I parked my car. I am legally handicapped, and I qualified for Social Security Disability pay (after two appeals and a court hearing). Yet here they are trying to say that I am not disabled because I do not need a wheel chair? This will make my trips to Portland very few and far between. Perhaps these politicians should remember that there are many different forms of disability that do not require a person to be in a wheel chair. This type of action shows how limited the understanding is of various handicaps and how they impact peoples lives in different ways, not just by being in a wheel chair.

If you have a "disabled" parking sticker and are eating junk food, then you should have to walk.

So one has to use a wheelchair to be disabled? Think not! Yes, I also have a "disabled" license plate - I do not use a wheelchair now, however, tomorrow may be another case, so how would I be "categorized" .. yes, this law categorizes the term disability into categories in which certain parking permits are for each category. I think not - the cities already do enough categorizing of its citizens into certain categories.

I find it very hard to park my van so that I can use my wheelchair lift. Even most disabled persons don't give a second thought about parking in a van accesible parking stall when other disabled spots are available.
I think the easiest solution would be to have a fair amount of disabled parking stalls for wheelchair vehicles. If they prevented persons that don't need a van accesible spot from parking in one at all times then it would probably be a more fair solution.

If all big stores (like Wal-Mart) were to make the first 8 to 10 parking spaces in ALL parking rows into disabled places, there would be less issue here. There simply aren't enough handicap parking stalls to accomodate the amount of handicapped shoppers. Sometimes we have to drive around in a lot of circles to finally find a parking spot available. I have had other handicapped drivers race me to a parking stall before. All you store managers and mall managers should pay heed to these words. I personally am spending the next 4 months on crutches. I do however appreciate the electric carts and wheelchairs offered by most stores. Although sometimes there just aren't enough of them to go around.

Bad idea! People do abuse the handicap parking privilege. I see it everyday in downtown Seattle. I have a sticker, use it, and need it, however, I do not use a wheelchair. The problem is all of the people who have someone in their family who may be handicapped, along with others who have fraudulently obtained a sticker who abuse the parking privilge. It's all about enforcement.

I hate to see healthy people use handicap spaces. I saw a young guy park and walk away, nothing wrong with him, so I ran him over. Then his mother got out waving her crutches at me. Point is: spend just ONE day in a wheelchair and you will realize how difficult and downright awful it is to do almost anything; use a bathroom, reach a shelf, go through a doorway, EVERYTHING is a chore. ..... "there but for the grace of God go I", comes to mind.

What is this country coming to??? I worked with people who have developmental disabilities. Most of them were not wheelchair bound but still had disabilities. One does not have to be in a wheelchair to need an accessible parking space. The government and other people need to visit the Governor's Council on Developmental Disabilities before throwing your unintelligent comments at others. Then thank God you do not "walk" in the shoes of one of these people.