The Oregon Legislative Session started Tuesday, February 1, and your AIA Oregon Legislative Affairs Committee (LAC) is at work tracking this years’ bills and priorities. This “Short Session” cannot last more than 35 days without a special vote for extension, so look for it to end by March 7.

Committee hearings will all be held virtually, with only floor voting in person. The capitol is open to the public, though since it is still under construction, actual open areas are very limited. COVID protocols are causing many legislators to say they will not take in-person meetings. This will make it near impossible to arrange a “hill day” for our organization, but Kim Olsen, AIA, is working closely with our lobbyist, Cindy Robert, to ensure we’ve tuned in to every relevant conversation.

A quick synopsis of this sessions’ landscape: We expect about 300 bills – each legislator was able to introduce 2, each committee 3. There have been many leadership changes, announcements and open seats for next fall; immediate impacts for short session include:

All new leadership in the House of Representatives

New Speaker of the House: Tina Kotek (D-Portland) has left to focus on her campaign for Governor and Dan Rayfield is in. Rep. Rayfield is a Democrat from Corvallis and a civil rights lawyer.
Rep. Tawna Sanchez (D-Portland) will take Rep. Rayfield’s prominent role as Ways & Means Co-Chair
House Republican leader Christine Drazan (Canby) resigned from the legislature for her campaign for Governor - she has been replaced by Rep. Vikki Breese-Iverson (Prineville).
House Majority leader Barbara Smith Warner (Portland) stepped down and Rep. Julie Fahey (Eugene) took the position.

Major Issues

Economic recovery after COVID will continue to pervade all conversations and decision-making…rumor is the state now has $700 million more to spend this biennium than expected.
The Governor’s Workforce Initiative “Future Ready Oregon” will loom large, as will the historic Private Forest Accord and the controversial agriculture overtime and campaign finance issues.
On the workforce effort:

The Governor wants $200 million to assist with training more workers for higher-paying jobs in health care, manufacturing and construction.
Drafted by the Racial Justice Council, the workforce plan emphasizes diversifying workforce.
$82 million infusion to existing work programs like those administered by the state’s nine regional workforce development boards ($35 million), community colleges ($17 million) and career-specific apprenticeship programs.
$95 million for training programs and education as well as direct stipends to subsidize other costs (such as child care, housing, food and transportation) for people learning new skills.
$10 million for local pilot programs that have community-based organizations hire employees who help others navigate public benefits available to them.

We will be on the lookout for reintroduction of legislation on police limitations, the building reach code, illegal marijuana, affordable housing and education/educator diversity, and we expect proposed changes to K-12 rules and regulations surrounding schools decision-making amidst COVID as well as making up for lost learning time. While some of those items seem tangential at best to our mission, we will key in on any intersections with business practice, taxation, pipeline development, and diversity.

And…we also know…we’ll see a self-service gasoline bill. We’ll…be sure to tell you how it goes. :)

Look for updated legislation tracking reports throughout the session. If you’d like to join the LAC for weekly meetings during this short session please click here to register.