{{Short description|American politician (born 1942)}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Kitty Piercy | image = Kitty Piercy.jpg | caption = Piercy in 2013 | office = Mayor of Eugene | term_start = January 1, 2005 | term_end = January 9, 2017 | predecessor = Jim Torrey | successor = Lucy Vinis | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1942|7|6}} | birth_place = Tampa, Florida, U.S. | party = Democrat | spouse = David Piercy (m. 1970) | relations = | children = Andrew, Vincent, and Jessica | alma_mater = Western Michigan University | occupation = | profession = Politician }}
'''Catherine "Kitty" Piercy''' (born July 6, 1942) is an American politician. She was elected mayor of Eugene, Oregon in 2004,<ref>[http://www.dpo.org/people/kitty-piercy Kitty Oiercy: Democratic Party of Oregon]</ref> and was re-elected in 2008, and again in 2012, serving three full terms until January 2017.<ref>[http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2014/12/eugene_mayor_kitty_piercy_wont.html After 12 years: Associated Press, December 17, 2014]</ref> During the 1990s she served as Minority Leader of the Oregon House of Representatives.<ref name=WWwentz>{{cite news |title = There's Something About Larry |first = Patty |last = Wentz |date = February 24, 1999 |work = Willamette Week |url = http://wweek.com/html/lead022499.html |url-status = dead |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20081203205045/http://www.wweek.com/html/lead022499.html |archivedate = December 3, 2008 }}</ref>
==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.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Katz|first=Anni|date=December 12, 2016|title=City Club of Eugene: Farewell to Mayor Kitty Piercy|work=KLCC|url=https://www.klcc.org/politics-government/2016-12-12/city-club-of-eugene-farewell-to-mayor-kitty-piercy|access-date=February 9, 2022}}</ref> She was elected assistant Democratic leader in her second term and leader in her third term.<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1310&dat=19940725&id=w99WAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ousDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6690,6376300&hl=en District 39: ''Eugene Register-Guard'', July 25, 1994]</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20160405060954/http://www.lanecounty.org/departments/cao/operations/countyclerk/elections/pages/19981103.aspx Lane County Elections, November 3, 1998]</ref>
== 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.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eugene-or.gov/sustainabilitycommission|title=Eugene, OR Website - Sustainability Commission|work=eugene-or.gov}}</ref>
In 2005 Piercy became an early signatory of the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://usmayors.org/climateprotection/agreement.htm|title=The Agreement - Mayors Climate Protection Center|work=usmayors.org|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://archive.today/20120715144319/http://usmayors.org/climateprotection/agreement.htm|archivedate=2012-07-15}}</ref> {{As of|2012}} over 900 mayors had signed the Agreement.
== Eugene issues ==
=== West Eugene EmX === Piercy supported the west Eugene extension of Lane Transit District's bus rapid transit system, having voted for it in her capacity as city representative to the regional Metropolitan Planning Commission.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://eugenedailynews.com/2011/04/14/emx-funding-vote-passes-8-to-1|title=EmX funding vote passes 8 to 1|work=Eugene Daily News}}</ref>
=== Proposed city tax for schools ===
While Piercy was mayor, a local income tax to fund schools was proposed, but defeated.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eugeneweekly.com/2011/04/28/news1.html|title=Eugene Weekly : News : 4.28.11|work=eugeneweekly.com|access-date=2011-11-05|archive-date=2016-03-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305011403/http://www.eugeneweekly.com/2011/04/28/news1.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/City+tax+for+schools%3A+No.-a0258860337|title=City tax for schools: No.|work=thefreelibrary.com}}</ref>
===Pledge of Allegiance controversy===
While Piercy was mayor, a proposal to have Eugene council members begin saying the Pledge of Allegiance 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."<ref name="Springer">{{cite news|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110808022950/https://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/06/28/compromise-on-pledge-allegiance-in-oregon-town-has-some-seeing-red|archive-date=2011-08-08|author=Dan Springer|url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/compromise-on-pledge-of-allegiance-in-oregon-town-has-some-seeing-red/ |title=Compromise on Pledge of Allegiance in Oregon Town Has Some Seeing Red|website=FoxNews.com |url-status=live|date=June 28, 2011}}</ref> Supporters of the measure said that objecting to it "vindicates all of us who say our Judeo-Christian heritage is under attack."<ref name="Springer"/>
==References== {{reflist|30em}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Piercy, Kitty}} Category:Living people Category:1942 births Category:Mayors of Eugene, Oregon Category:Women mayors of places in Oregon Category:Democratic Party members of the Oregon House of Representatives Category:Women state legislators in Oregon Category:20th-century members of the Oregon Legislative Assembly Category:21st-century American women politicians Category:21st-century mayors of places in Oregon Category:20th-century American women politicians