Sara currently chairs the Senate Committee on Human Services and also serves as the National Co-Chair for the National Council on State Legislatures’ “Children, Family and Human Services Committee.” In 2009, President Barack Obama nominated Sara to the National Council on Disability.  Her nomination was unanimously confirmed by the US Senate and she completed two terms on the Council.

Sara entered public service through the disability community. That cemented her unwavering commitment to centering the voices of people with lived experience in policy discussions.   Policy cannot work if the people intended to be served by the policy aren’t empowered to shape the discussion.  This includes youth, immigrants, workers and people with disabilities.

Sara’s career is marked by fierce advocacy for her constituents and for all Oregonians too often ignored by systems of power.   Her accomplishments include reducing the use of institutional placements for people of all ages and abilities, landmark legislation to improve safety and transparency in long term care and memory care facilities, elevating the rights and dignity of kids in foster care, expanding access to education for students of all abilities and responding to the needs of victims of domestic abuse and sexual assault.