Note:  Education reports after January, 2024, are included in Social policy reports. Education reports prior to February, 2024, can be found HERE.

Please see the Legislation Tracker for 2025 Social Policy bills.

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Child Care

By Jean Pierce

SP 5514A received a Do Pass as Amended Recommendation from the Joint Ways and Means Committee. The League filed testimony on the original bill. Since the May 2025 Revenue Forecast projected a reduction in available Corporate Activity, so the Fund for Student Success is not able to sustain the 2025-27 current service level budget. This will particularly impact programs funded through the Early Learning Account, including Preschool Promise; Early Childhood Equity Fund; Early Learning Professional Development, Parenting Education and Program Supports; and Healthy Families. Some money is being pulled from reserves to fund the Department of Early Learning and Care.

Education

By Jean Pierce

SB 1098, the Freedom to Read bill, passed in the House essentially along party lines. LWVOR provided testimony in support.

SB 5516A passed in the Senate. In recognition of the revenue forecast, this bill would provide for an adjusted current service level of almost $11.4 billion.  It is  anticipated that local revenues will total $5.6 billion in the next two years,  so total formula resources are expected to be more than $16.7 billion for the 2025-27 biennium. This represents a 10.5% increase over the 2023-25 biennium. The funds would provide a welcome boost, though it still falls short of the 30% increase recommended by the American Institute of Research which recommended a 30% increase in funding, with more attention to equitable spending for the education of low income and high needs students.

On June 6 the Joint Ways and Means recommended Do Pass as Amended SB 5525-3, the Higher Education Coordinating Committee  budget   For the most part, the proposed budget maintains the Current Service Level, (CSL). so this bill does nothing to address the fact that Oregon has been ranked 46th in the nation for state investment in higher education. Members of the Education Ways and Means Committee recognized that in future sessions, the thinking needs to shift from CSL to setting a higher target. 

Impact of Federal Actions on Oregon

The Budget Reconciliation bill, which was passed by the U.S. House, contains some very damaging provisions which could affect funding for education in Oregon, including

reducing spending on student loans by $350 billion by eliminating subsidized and income-driven loan repayment plans, imposing new overall limitations on student borrowing, and tightening Pell Grant eligibility. The National Association of Student Financial aid has analyzed the impacts on students. The bill would revise the definition of full-time enrollment for Pell Grant eligibility from 12 credit hours to 15 credit hours. This change would mean that over half of students currently enrolled would receive smaller Pell Grants. Additionally, the bill proposes that students enrolled less than half-time would no longer qualify for Pell Grants.  About 10% of Pell Grant recipients were enrolled for less than half time. Currently, 77,275 Oregonians are receiving an average of $4,644 in Pell Grants for higher education.

Another provision of the Reconciliation bill  would provide a 100% federal tax credit to individuals who donate to private scholarship-granting organizations. The proposal would divert $20 billion in taxpayer money to private schools and families who homeschool. This bill would create a national school voucher program, expanding school vouchers to states like Oregon whose voters have already rejected them.

Further, the bill does not mention funding for McKinney-Vento Homeless Act grants (supporting schools in serving students experiencing homelessness)—$129 million. Approximately 22,000 K-12 students in Oregon are homeless.

Gun Policy

By Marge Easley

SB 243 B was sent to House Rules on June 3rd after it passed the Senate following a contentious floor discussion. The bill bans rapid fire devices and gives cities and counties the option to ban firearms in public buildings, including those carried by concealed handgun license holders. 

SB 473 B unexpectedly became a gun policy bill after the adoption of the A-4 amendment during  its House Judiciary hearing on May 22. The original bill created a new crime of menacing a public official, while the amended version also prohibits the possession of a firearm by a person convicted of menacing a public official. The bill was referred to House Rules on June 2. 

There was some recent positive news at the federal level that may give a boost to Oregon’s gun laws. On June 2 the US Supreme Court 6-3 declined to hear two major gun cases: a challenge to a Maryland law that bans assault-style weapons and a challenge to a Rhode Island restriction on large-capacity magazines. These two laws will remain on the books for now. 

To counter the previous good news, a bill called the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act has been introduced in the US House. H.R. 38, supported by twenty-four state attorneys general, would override state laws to mandate that all states must recognize the concealed carry standards of every other state—even those with no permit requirement at all. According to Everytown for Gun Safety, this attempted mandate, broadly opposed by the public and long opposed by law enforcement, would “increase gun deaths and assaults in our country and would make it more challenging for law enforcement to protect our communities.

Healthcare

By Christa Danielson

SB 951 A passed the house and is on its way to the Governor’s desk. The League supplied testimony in support.  This bill restricts individuals who are not licensed medical providers from owning or controlling medical decisions. The bill also prohibits non-compete and non-disparagement agreements. Basically this allows your medical provider to make medical decisions about your care without fear of losing their job.

HB 3134  is on 2nd Reading in the Senate. The League submitted testimony in support.  Requires additional reporting from health insurances about prior authorization to the Department of Consumer and Business Services.

Housing

By Nancy Donovan and Debbie Aiona

Oregon Housing and Community Services Proposed Funding for Emergency Rent Assistance and Homelessness Prevention Services 

In the face of a very tight budget, the Oregon Housing Alliance is urging the Legislature to continue to provide funding for the following programs:  

1.  Emergency rent assistance to prevent homelessness:  $109 million (POP 505)

A $109 million allocation would avoid cuts to rent assistance funding and help prevent evictions over the next biennium. Emergency rent assistance can help keep families and individuals in their homes and prevent homelessness. This funding is distributed through community action agencies and community-based organizations throughout the state. Quite often, all that is needed to keep someone in their housing is one month’s assistance.  

2.  Homelessness prevention services:  $63.2 million (POP 504)

This funding will avoid cuts to housing navigation services, landlord tenant education and outreach, legal services, tenant supports, eviction, prevention, tenant advocacy, and rapid rehousing services. 

Prevention is far less expensive than re-housing programs. 

• Keeping people in their homes is less expensive than shelter and results in better health and educational outcomes.  

• People who are offered assistance and stay in their homes are 81 percent less likely to become homeless within six months and 73 percent less likely within 12 months. 

• Statewide, over 2,300 families face eviction proceedings each month, with evictions now one-third higher than pre-pandemic levels. 

• The housing crisis has the greatest impact on families with children, Black and Latino renters who encounter housing discrimination, and seniors who are the fastest growing group losing their homes.  

The Joint Committee on Ways and Means Subcommittee on Transportation and Economic Development is holding a work session on Tuesday, June 10 on the following housing bills: 

• HB 5011:  This bill appropriates money to Oregon Housing and Community Services Department for its biennial expenses and includes the following:  housing stabilization programs, project-based rent assistance, multi-family rental housing programs, single family housing programs, disaster recovery and resilience, central services, and debt service.  

• HB 3644 A:  This bill establishes a statewide shelter program under Oregon Housing and Community Services Department to reduce unsheltered homelessness and transition individuals into permanent housing. 

• SB 829 A:  This bill establishes the Affordable Housing Insurance Program and Affordable Housing Premium Assistance Fund in the Department of Consumer and Business Services. The funds would help eligible affordable housing providers and others serving low-income Oregonians cover the cost of their property or liability insurance premiums.  

Bills Progressing 

HB 2964: Requires Oregon Housing and Community Services Department to award loans to non-profit affordable housing developers to cover pre-development costs of developing new housing. The bill passed the House Committee on Housing and Homelessness on April 15. It was then referred to the Senate Committee on Housing and Development. Its latest status is that on June 5, it was carried over to June 9, by unanimous consent. LWV testimony supports passage of the bill. 

HB 3054 A would limit rent increases and sales constraints by a landlord in a home park or marina, which can threaten residents’ ability to stay in their homes. It would fix at six percent the maximum rent increases for rental spaces in a larger facility and limit to 10 percent the maximum increase in rent paid by the purchaser of a dwelling or home in a facility. It prohibits a landlord from requiring aesthetic improvements or internal inspections as conditions of sale of a dwelling or home in a facility. The bill passed the House, and the Senate Committee on Housing and Development held a work session on May 19 and recommended passage. On June 5, the bill was carried over by the Senate to June 9 by unanimous consent. It declares an emergency, effective September 1, 2025. LWVOR submitted a letter in support. 

Immigration

By Becky Gladstone and Claudia Keith

Highlights - News 

Updated: League of Women Voters Files Briefs Opposing Executive Order Attacking Birthright Citizenship | League of Women Voters

The Xenophobic Rumors Driving the SAVE Act & Threats to Voting Rights | League of Women Voters

Agents Use Military-Style Force Against Protesters at L.A. Immigration Raid - The New York Times

‘A complete sea change’: Trump’s immigration crackdown goes into hyperdrive- POLITICO

ICE detains another asylum-seeker outside Portland courtroom, legal petition says - OPB

Trump officials crafting rule to prevent asylum-seekers from getting work permits - CBS News

ICE Won’t Rule Out Retaliating Against Immigrants Who testify in free speech case

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