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• Campaign Finance

• General Governance, Privacy, and Consumer Protection

• Artificial Intelligence

• Rule Making

Campaign Finance and Initiatives

By Norman Turrill

The Elections Division of the Secretary of State is asking the public for feedback on draft administrative rules that would implement HB 4025 (2024). It has also appointed a Rules Advisory Committee (RAC) to work on these new administrative rules.

SB 1180 would require the Secretary of State to send to the Legislature for odd-numbered year sessions a list of prospective initiative petitions. The purpose is said to provide the Legislature a better chance to consider initiatives. The League will probably comment that the list of initiatives is readily available on the SoS website, and that the Legislature can now do any oversight of initiatives that it wants to do. In other words, this bill is likely a waste of money.

General Governance, Privacy, and Consumer Protection

By Becky Gladstone 

SB1191 Enrolled  has now been signed by both the Senate President and the House Speaker. The bill states that informing someone about their civil or constitutional rights cannot be construed as obstructing justice. The League submitted testimony and asked members to speak to the bill on our Lobby Day. 

Thanks to legislators for unanimously passing HB 3875 Enrolled for car makers to comply with Oregon’s privacy laws in controlling and processing the personal data that our cars collect from us. Oregon Senate Expands Protections Over Personal Data Collected By Your Car. Privacy Protections for Oregonians Are Stronger Under Legislation Passed Today in the State Senate. 

We regret missing HB 3875 before now. We can use volunteer help for many of our issues. This Governance portfolio section is pleased to have recently added specialists in AI, emergency preparedness, and general governance issues. 

HB 3569 A: We are researching comments of concern for a second public hearing for this amended bill, to (basically) invite a sponsoring legislator onto the bill’s Rules Advisory Committees, as a non-voting member. 

SB 473 A passed a second, House Judiciary, work session, to create a crime of threatening a public official, with amendments to include those elected, appointed, or filed to serve an established office, adding numerous judicial branch roles. See League testimony in support. 

SB 952 to consider interim US Senator appointments, passed a second work session in House Rules on a partisan vote, after passing on the Senate floor along nearly partisan lines, 26 to 13. See League testimony in support. 

SB 430 B: Our League testimony in support was filed and comments abridged for hearing brevity, addressing the extensive amendments that broadly address business transparency for consumer protections. The bill passed a second work session in House Commerce and Consumer Protection. The initial bill, for online transaction cost disclosure to improve transparency passed in Senate Labor and Business on partisan lines, similarly passing on partisan lines on the Senate Floor, 18 to 11. 

SB 1121 A passed a second chamber work session, almost unanimously, to create a new Class B misdemeanor crime of unlawful private data disclosure. We are following up on the dissenting vote based on conflating property destruction with personal crimes. Amendments edited for doxxing, timing to protect “basically OPB”, and adding as a provision to the Oregon Consumer Privacy Act. League testimony was filed and presented, supporting the bill, including the amendment relating to data broker issues.

HB 3382 is up for a May 28 work session in House Rules, directing the Secretary of State to maintain an online Rulemaking Information system. We are watching HB 3382 based on Sen Sollman asking about the concept of a central state rulemaking site in the context of the HB 3931 coordinated state portal Task Force proposal presented here earlier. See League testimony. 

HB 2006 would limit long session bill requests to 25 bills from legislators to legislative counsel. We are preparing, watching for a 5/29 public hearing in House Rules, which will also consider a -7 amendment.

HB 3569 A has a second public hearing, scheduled for 5/28 in Senate Rules, after passing not quite fully on partisan lines in House Rules, similarly on the House floor. 

SB 5537, the SoS budget bill, is up for a 5/28 first work session after the 5/9 public hearing in Joint General Government. We are watching for opportunities to follow up on highlighted issues.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

By Lindsey Washburn

The Governor has signed HB 2299 Enrolled, which modifies the crime of unlawful dissemination of an intimate image to include the disclosure of digitally created, manipulated or altered images.

Rule Making

By Peggy Lynch

A number of bills related to agency rulemaking and the role of the legislature, many of which are listed below, are getting work sessions.  The League and others have concerns about many of these bills.  The legislature’s job is to set policy.  The agencies are responsible for implementing that policy.  That action often requires rulemaking to clarify the details around that implementation.  But the League is concerned when legislators “get a second bite at the apple” by relitigating the legislation when rulemaking is only meant to implement, not change policies or facilitate an agency’s mission.  Blurring those lines is problematic.

HB 3569, a bill that would require a Chief Sponsor (legislator) of a bill to be a part of a rules advisory committee for legislation they had a hand in passing, passed the House and now goes to Senate Rules. A public hearing is scheduled for May 28. 

The League continues to follow the bills listed on the March 17 agenda of the Senate Committee On Rules since some of the bills relate to the process of rulemaking (SB 437, SB 1006, SB 370, SB 483)  and SB 411, SB 895 also in Senate Rules. 

HB 2454 passed House Rules with the -1 amendment and was sent to Ways and Means. The bill creates a new Audits Officer (with possible additional staff). The Jt. Audits Committee would hire the Officer.  It is unclear that, if funded, what the relationship will be with the Secretary of State’s Audit Division and the work of the Legislative Fiscal Office staff.  

Separately, the League was invited to a conversation among state agency rules staff on addressing concerns of the Governor and in an attempt to standardize the process statewide. The Governor has provided Rulemaking Guidance to state agencies: This document includes questions received from agencies since the Governor’s letter. This document includes additional resources for agencies including direction to post updates to the Transparency site, a website template that agencies can use (if they choose) to develop their pages, and links to other comprehensive agency rule making sites to review. There is a broader discussion to increase transparency and consistency in the state agencies’ rulemaking process. A second meeting related to the state agency rules process is set for June with an invitation to the League to continue to participate.

We are concerned with HB 3382, since the requirements of the Secretary of State to gather ALL the state agencies’ rulemaking, including all materials, would be overwhelming. Individual state agencies provide that information on their rulemaking websites.  A work session is set for May 28. 

Because the League is often engaged in rulemaking, we regularly comment on legislation that would affect changes in Oregon’s current Administrative Rules.  We have provided testimony in opposition to HB 2692, a bill that would create complicated and burdensome processes for agencies to implement legislation with their rulemaking procedures.  Sadly, a work session is scheduled for May 28 in House Rules. 

Interested in reading additional reports?  Please see our Climate Emergency, Revenue, Natural Resources, and Social Policy report sections.