Interim Legislative Days – Fall 2013
The Interim Legislative Days got off to a start Wednesday morning in Salem as legislators began three packed days of informal committee meetings. From House Higher Education to Senate Rules, your OSA staff was there the entire time. These final committee days of 2013 saw the confirmation and swearing in of Senator Michael Dembrow – formerly the representative from SE Portland and chair of House Higher Ed, Senate confirmations for institutional boards for the University of Oregon, Portland State University and Oregon State University and hearings on the Oregon Promise – Senator Mark Hass’s ‘Free Community College’ concept and University Governance and Shared Services. The legislature was given an update on the Revenue Forecast that showed the state’s economy is essentially flat-lining – which isn’t a bad thing at all. Eastern Oregon Representative and longtime higher education champion, Bob Jenson also announced he will not be seeking re-election in 2014.
Your Legislative Director was able to meet with several legislators who are working on issues for students in the 2014 session and coalition partners as well. Our 2014 – 2015 legislative agenda is continuously being developed and legislators from both sides of the aisle are eager to tackle the issue of affordability and quality of Oregon’s post-secondary education systems. The short session is often a time for fixing bills or defending budgets we passed in the previous session but students aren’t sitting this session out by any means. Our agenda is robust and proactive and will address affordability and student debt from several angles. While our work in the legislature will be thorough this session we also have to be diligent of work being done on campus as budget / tuition season is upon on.
Below are links to a few highlights of the past few days. More details will be included in the next Legislative Director update in January.
Oregon Promise – https://olis.leg.state.or.us/liz/2013I1/Downloads/CommitteeMeetingDocument/31178
University Governance Shared Services Presentation – https://olis.leg.state.or.us/liz/2013I1/Downloads/CommitteeMeetingDocument/31063
Oregon Revenue Forecast December 2013 – http://www.oregon.gov/DAS/OEA/docs/economic/forecast1213.pdf
Written by Mario Parker-Milligan