Oregon

OREGON

What's New?

State Issues New Revenue Forecasts
November 19, 2009. The Office of Economic Analysis has issued the most recent revenue forecast for the state.
   Access Full Revenue Forecast.
   Access the Summary of the Revenue Forecase.
   Access PowerPoint slide presentation.
   Access the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis website.

Oregon Health Authority Announcement on Transition Rules and Procedures
November 13, 2009. The Oregon Health Authority has announced rulemaking processes for "Transition Period Roles & Responsibilities" with a hearing set for December 21, 2009 at 1:30p.m. and deadline for submission of comments as December 23, 2009 at 5:00p.m. The OHA has also announced it effort to set Procedural Rules with a hearing on December 21, 2009 at 1:30pm and comments required by December 23, 2009 at 5:00pm.
Access the NPR for Transition Period Roles & Rules.
Access the NPR for Procedural Rules.

CPSC Issues Notice on Recall of Children's Toy for Lead Content
November 13, 2009. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has announced a voluntary recall by the MacPherson's firm of Emeryville, CA of a product, manufactured in China, known as the Young Adult Easel. The CPSC announcement states that: "The chalkboard surface coating contains high levels of lead, violating the federal lead paint standard."
   The State of Oregon DHS has a website with information on Lead-related warnings and recalls.
   Access the CPSC Announcement.
   Access Oregon DHS Website on Lead-Related Warnings.

PEW Report Ranks Oregon Fourth in Line Behind California in List of "States in Fiscal Peril"
November 12, 2009. The PEW Center on the States has released a report entitled Beyond California: States in Fiscal Peril that ranks Oregon as fourth in line behind California in the list of states "in fiscal peril." The Report used the following criteria: "(1) high foreclosure rates; (2) increasing joblessness; (3) loss of state revenues; (4) the relative size of budget gaps; (5) legal obstacles to balanced budgets -- specifically, a supermajority requirement for some or all tax increases or budget bills; and (6) poor money-management practices.
Access the Report.

Proposed Rules for Oregon Healthcare Workforce Database Under H.B. 2009
November 10, 2009. The Office of Oregon Health Policy and Research of DHS has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking regarding rules to implement the Oregon Healthcare Workforce Database requirements of H.B. 2009.
Access the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

Oregon Closes Last Institution for Persons with Developmental Disabilities
November 10, 2009. On October 31, Oregon closed the Eastern Oregon Training Center in Pendleton, the last of the state institutions for persons with developmental disabilities.
Read the DHS Director's Statement on the Closure.

Governor Issues Executive Order on H1N1
November 10, 2009. Governor Kulongoski issued Executive Order 09-17 on November 4, concerning H1N1. The order authorizes the state public health director to take any of a number of steps to combat the spread of H1N1 virus in the state.
Read the order.

New York Attorney General Files Major Antitrust Action Against Intel
November 4, 2009. New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has filed a major antitrust suit against Intel Corporation in U.S. District Court for Delaware. For more information and links to documents, see the Public Law, Policy, and Public Administration page of this website.

Major Oregon Health Policy and Administration Shift Moves to Implementation
October 17, 2009. The implementation process for H.B. 2009 which dramatically changed the organization and operation of health policy in the state is now underway. The legislation moved most health programs to the new Oregon Health authority the direction for which is to be provided by a new Oregon Health Policy Board. The nine members of the board have now been appointed. The bill called for two standing committees for the board, which are the Public Health Benefit Purchasers Committee and the Health Care Workforce. Members for these committees have not been selected yet. The Health Authority has produced a document on duties and reporting requirements with deadlines for implementation steps for the authority and the policy board. The governor issued an executive order in July.
   Access Executive Order 09-11 on Oregon Health Authority Planning and Implementation.
   Access "Duties and Reporting Requirements" Document.
   Access the Implementation Timeline.
   Access information on the OHPB Standing Committees.
   Read the biographical statements on the members of the Oregon Health Policy Board .
   Access Oregon Health Authority Website.
   Access the Oregon Health Policy Board Website.
   Access H.B. 2009.
   Access H.B. 2116.

State Supreme Court Upholds Judges' Departures from Measure 11 Sentencing Requirements
September 26, 2009. The Oregon Supreme Court has issued its opinion in the consolidated cases of Oregon v. Rodriguez and Oregon v. Buck in which the court upheld the decision in each of two cases by the judge that the application of the strict mandatory sentences of Measure 11 would violate the Article I, section 16 requirement that "all penalties shall be proportioned to the offense." Writing for the Court, Justice Balmer said: "We conclude that the imposition of the mandatory 75-month sentence for first-degree sexual abuse, as applied to the facts of Rodriguez's and Buck's offenses, would violate the constitutional requirement that the penalty be proportioned to the offense." Chief Justice De Muniz issued an opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part that was joined by Justices Gillette and Walters.
Read the opinion.

Legislature Passes 2009-11 Budget
July 1, 2009. As it ended its 2009 session, the Oregon legislature passed the 2009-11 budget with two bills, H.B. 3199 and H.B. 5054.
Access H.B. 3199.
Access H.B. 5054.

Governor Signs Education Legislation
June 15, 2009. The governor has signed H.B. 2599, requiring more policy development and enforcement action by school districts in matters or bullying, and H.B. 2509, which mandates that sex education that is age appropriate is included in health instruction in schools.
Access H.B. 2599.
Access H.B. 2509.

State Legislature Passes Tax Bills
June 12, 2009. The state legislature has now passed H.B. 2649, dealing with tax increases on personal income tax for higher wage earners, and H.B. 3405 dealing with corporate taxes. These measures now go to the governor for signature.
Access H.B. 2649.
Access H.B. 3405.

Legislature Passes Health Care Bills
June 12, 2009. The Oregon legislature has passed H.B. 2116 designed to increase the number of children covered under state health care programs and provide for revenue measures to support that program and H.B. 2009 which reorganizes health care administration and deals with insurance premium rates. The bills are much more complex than this brief comment suggests. The governor has lauded both measures and his signature is expected shortly.
Access H.B. 2009.
Access H.B. 2116.

Office of Economic Analysis issues Latest Economic and Revenue Forecasts
    Access the OEA Website
    Access the State Economic Forecast.
    Access the State Revenue Forecast.

Supreme Court Hears Forest Grove IDEA Challenge
April 28, 2009. The Supreme Court has heard oral argument in a case from Forest Grove, Oregon in which a family sought reimbursement for tuition for sending their child to a private school. The district argued that the family had acted unilaterally and in the absence of a finding of eligibility for IDEA related services. The parents contended that they had repeated tried to get the district to recognize and address their son's disabilities. For more information and links to the briefs and oral argument transcript, go to the Health Care, Disabilities, and Development page of this website.

Columbia County Circuit Court Issues Ruling Against Implementation of Measure 5-190
April 23, 2009. Columbia County Circuit Court Judge Ted E. Grove issued a final ruling declaring Columbia County Initiative Measure 5-190 entitled "Employment of Unauthorized Aliens" void and unenforceable on grounds of federal preemption. He has issued a preliminary injunction earlier on the validity of initiative passed by voters in 2008. The case was brought as a petition for validation by the County Commissioners. The petition asked the court to determine whether "Ordinance No. 2008-6 is subject to invalidation on account of unreasonableness, procedural error in adoption, or conflict with paramount state law or constitutional provision" under ORS 203.060. The injunction is posted below. The ordinance and related documents provided to the court in this proceeding are posted on the Measure 5-190 page of the Columbia County Commission website.
   Also, the Northwest Workers' Justice Project and Oregon ACLU also filed a suit on behalf of a group of Columbia County citizens and business people challenging the ordinance styled Abbott v. Columbia County The complaint in that suit is posted below. Because he declared the enactment void, he dismissed the other issues as moot.
   Read the final ruling.
   Read the Preliminary Injunction.
   Read the Columbia County Commissioners petition for Validation.
   Access related documents on the Measure 5-190 page.
   Read the Complaint filed by the Northwest Workers' Justice Project and ACLU on behalf of Columbia County Residents Challenging the measure and related ordinance.

State Legislature Revises Ethics Disclosure Law
April 15, 2009. Reacting to complaints about the previous ethics law that many local volunteer officials considered excessively intrusive and burdensome and not really relevant to their offices or their actions, the state legislature has adopted SB 30 which reduces some reporting requirements and makes other changes. The governor has not yet signed the legislation into law.
Access SB 30.

House Joins Senate in Passing Public Lands Bill
March 25, 2009. The House of Representatives has joined the Senate and approved H.R. 146, commonly known as the lands bill. It is a very large omnibus bill that consolidates a large number of pieces of legislation, including legislation that has been pending for some time with respect to lands in Oregon. The current bill is an amendment in the nature of a substitute and now carries the short title "Omnibus Public Lands Management Act of 2009." NOTE: This is a very large bill and therefore a large .pdf file.
Access H.R. 146.

Ninth Circuit Upholds National Marine Fisheries Service Treatment of Wild and Hatchery Spiecies under the Endangered Species Act
March 17, 2009. A panel of the U.S. Court of the Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has upheld National Marine Fisheries Services policies concerning the treatment of wild versus hatchery fish under the Endangered Species Act against challenges by Trout Unlimited and the Building Industry Association of Washington.
Read the opinion in Trout Unlimited v. Lohn.

State Legislature Approves 07-09 Budget Reductions
March 6, 2009. The budget cut package for the FY 07-09 budget has now passed the state legislature and will be signed by the governor soon. The cuts were contained in two bills, SB 5552 AND SB 581. A summary of the cuts has been provided by the Legislative Fiscal Office along with a set of decision principles from the LFO and the committee.
   Read SB 5552
   Read SB 581
   Access the Legislative Fiscal Office "Rebalance Plan."
   Access "Budget Reduction Review Principles" from the Legislative Fiscal Office and Joint Committee on Ways and Means.

Federal Courts Reject Efforts to Block Sea Lion Control Plan
February 27, 2009. Federal District Judge Michael W. Mosman has rejected efforts to block implementation of the sea lion control plan intended to protect endangered salmon in the Columbia river. His opinion in Humane Society v. Gutierrez, CV 08-357-MO, rejected a call for summary judgment by the Humane Society which argued that the plan to capture and either relocate or euthanize sea lions found to be problems for salmon protection was arbitrary and capricious in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act, that it lacked a full environmental impact statement under the National Environmental Policy Act, and that it violated the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
   A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit refused the request by the Humane Society for a stay pending appeal writing that: "Given the narrow and deferential standard of review, and the district court's well-reasoned decision granting summary judgment to appellees, we conclude that appellants have not met their burden of demonstrating a likelihood of success on the merits. They therefore fail to meet the threshold for a stay pending appeal." Slip opinion at 3.
   Access the District Court Opinion and Order.
   Access the Opinion of the Ninth Circuit.

Senate Passes Tort Liability Amendments
February 27, 2009. The Senate has passed SB 311 which amendments the Oregon Tort Liability Act and has sent the bill to the House. The legislation resulted in part from the Oregon Supreme Court's ruling in Clarke v. OHSU, striking down the liability limits in the act as applied in that case as a violation of Article I, Section 10 of the Oregon Constitution.
   While the focus of the amendment effort has focused on the discussion of Oregon Health & Science University, the amendments to the act speak in Section 3 to suits against "the state, or against an officer, employee or agent of the state acting within the person's scope of employment or duties." Section 4 addresses suits against "a local public body, or against an officer, employee or agent of a local body acting within the person's scope of employment duties."
   Read Senate Bill 311.
   Read the opinion in Clarke v. OHSU.

Governor Signs State Stimulus Package
February 6, 2009. The Oregon legislature has passed a stimulus package which was promptly signed into law by the governor. Senate Bill 338 is the stimulus bill itself, while SB 5543 and SB 5562 provide the bond authorizations required by the package.
   Read Senate Bill 338.
   Read Senate Bill 5563.
   Read Senate Bill 5562.

Columbia County Circuit Court to Hear Measure 5-190 Immigration Case
January 29, 2009. The Columbia County Circuit Court is scheduled to hear arguments on January 30 on the validity of Initiative Measure 5-190, the "Employment of Unauthorized Aliens" initiative passed by voters in 2008. The case was brought as a petition for validation by the County Commissioners. The petition asks the court to determine whether "Ordinance No. 2008-6 is subject to invalidation on account of unreasonableness, procedural error in adoption, or conflict with paramount state law or constitutional provision" under ORS 203.060. The ordinance and related documents provided to the court in this proceeding are posted on the Measure 5-190 page of the Columbia County Commission website.
   Also, the Northwest Workers' Justice Project and Oregon ACLU have filed a suit on behalf of a group of Columbia County citizens and business people challenging the ordinance styled Abbott v. Columbia County The complaint in that suit is posted below.
   Read the Columbia County Commissioners petition for Validation.
   Access related documents on the Measure 5-190 page.
   Read the Complaint filed by the Northwest Workers' Justice Project and ACLU on behalf of Columbia County Residents Challenging the measure and related ordinance.

Health Policy Legislation Introduced as Legislature Begins Work
January 16, 2009. Two significant pieces of health related legislation have been introduced as the Oregon legislative session gets underway. The first, H.B. 2009, is a broad proposal for health care reform. The second, H.B. 2347, addresses a variety of issues associated with the powers of clinician regulatory bodies. [NOTE: H.B. 2009 is a large file and may take some time to download.]
Read House Bill 2009 as introduced.
Read House Bill 2347 as introduced.

Governor Kulongoski Delivers the 2009 State of the State Address
January 13, 2009. Governor Kulongoski has delivered his 2009 State of the State address as the 75th Legislative Assembly began work for the session.
Read the State of the State Address for 2009.

Governor Kulongoski Announces Budget Proposal
December 1, 2008. Governor Kulongoski has announced his proposed budget for the 2009-2011 period. The presentation, entitled "A Budget for Progress in Challenging Times," lays out the overall expectations with some detail. The links below go to the budget summary, the agency by agency information, and the governor's press release.
   Read the budget summary.
   Read the detailed budget information, agency by agency.
   Read the Governor's press release on his address and the proposed budget.

FERC Approves Bradwood Landing LNG Terminal
September 19, 2008. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has approved the Bradwood Landing LNG terminal and pipeline project. In so doing, the commission rejected Oregon's petition for a supplemental environmental impact statement and refused requests for a full formal hearing on the decision. The license comes with 109 required conditions for mitigation of impacts.
Read the FERC Order Approving the Project and Granting the Essential Certificates.
Read the FERC press release.

U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Oregon Public Employee Equal Protection Argument
June 15, 2008. Writing for a 6-3 majority, Chief Justice Roberts ruled against an equal protection argument under the Fourteenth Amendment and, in so doing, ruled out a class of employee suits. He explained that: "The question in this case is whether a public employee can state a claim under the Equal Proection Clause by alleging that she was arbitrarily treated differently from other similarly situated employees, with no assertion that the different treatment was based on the employee's membership in any particular class. We hold that such a 'class-of-one' theory of equal protection has no place in the public employment context." Engquist v. Oregon Department of Agriculture, Slip Opinion, at 1. The three dissenters, in an opinion by Justice Stevens, warn that the majority opinion "carves a novel exception out of state employees' constitutional rights." Stevens, J., dissenting, Slip opinion, at 1. "Today," Stevens wrote, "the Court creates a new substantive rule excepting state employees from the Fourteenth Amendment's protection against unequal and irrational treatment at the hands of the State. Even if some surgery were truly necessary to prevent governments from being forced to defend a multitude of equal protections 'class of one' claims, the Court should use a scalpel rather than a meat-axe." Id., at 2.
Read the Engquist v. Oregon Department of Agriculture opinion.

Federal Regulator Completes Environmental Approval of Proposed Oregon LNG Port
June7, 2008. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) staff has issued the final environmental impact statement (EIS) for the proposed Bradwood Landing LNG port and pipeline. (The FERC docket cumbers are CP06-365-000 and CP06-366-000). The FERC found that if the project is developed in accordance with the plan put forward by the company, it would have "mostly limited adverse environmental impacts." The recommendation is to approve the project, but the further action on the project will require the issuance by the Coast Guard of a Letter of Recommendation which is to address the impact on shipping operations in the Columbia and the requisite wetlands and dredging permits by the Army Corps of Engineers. The following are links to the key documents in the FERC action.
   The postings previously made to this site with respect to the Bradford LNG proposal have been moved to just below the current item for ease of reference.
   Access the FERC announcement and links to EIS.
   Read the FERC Environmental Impact Statement Executive Summary.
   Access the full set of EIS documents for Bradford Landing through FERC elibrary.

Oregon Battle Over siting of New LNG Ports
February 16, 2008. The governor has reported asked the Attorney General to look into the range of authority that the state retains with respect to licensing and other issues associated with the proposals to place liquified natural gas terminals on the Oregon coast and in the Columbia River. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 preempted a variety of otherwise standard types of state authority over siting of energy facilities, but the question remains whether the state retains licensing authority in such areas as envrionmental permitting.
   Read P.L. 109-58 the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
   Access the Oregon Department of Energy Website on LNG Facility Siting.
   Access the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality Website on LNG Facility Siting.
   See Governor's 2006 Memorandum Assigning State Agency Responsibility for Work on the Issue.

National Marine Fisheries Service Grants Partial Approval to Northwest States' Request to Eliminate Some Columbia River Sea Lions to Save Salmon
March 19, 2008. The National Marine Fisheries Service has partially granted the request for Northwest states in the Columbia basin to kill some sea lions that are feeding on protected salmon on a number of conditions. The approval letter and Federal Register notice are provided below.
Read the National Marine Fisheries Service Letter of Approval.
Read the National Marine Fishies Notice of Partial Approval Federal Register Language.

Oregon Attorney General Refuses Request to Disclose Contract Financial Information for Athletic Products Contracts
March 4, 2008. On February 25, 2008, the Oregon Attorney General's office refused a public records request for disclosure by Oregon State University and the University of Oregon of "information pertaining to the amount of money the Universities' athletic departments receive from their respective media and marketing agreements" on grounds that the information requested constitutes "trade secrets" exempt from disclosure.
Read the Attorney General's Office Letter via Oregonlive.com.

U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon Lifts Stay and Allows Domestic Partnerships to Proceed
February 5, 2008. Judge Mosman of the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon issued a ruling from the bench in Lemon v. Bradbury, lifting his stay and allowing domestic partnerships to proceed in the state. The case was a challenge to the state's ballott signature verification process brought by parties whose ballott measure aimed at blocking the partnerships had been disqualified. In an unusual action, the judge ordered the transcript of his opinion from the bench to be published as a written opinion.
Read the opinion in Lemon v. Bradbury.

Oregon Supreme Court Rules on OHSU Liability Cap
January 8, 2008. The Oregon Supreme Court has issued its long awaited ruling in the case testing the validity of the Oregon Tort Claims Act liability cap asserted by Oregon Health Science University. The provision was challenged under Article I, Section 10 of the state constitution. The Court had refused in 2002 to strike down the liability limit on a challenge to the facial validity of the statute, but left open the question whether it might be unconstitutional as applied in particular settings. In the present case against OHSU, the Court indeed found that the limit violates the so-called Remedy clause of the Oregon Constitution.
Read the opinion in Clarke v. OHSU.

FERC Issues Environmental Impact Statement on Klamath River Dams
November 17, 2007. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has issued a final Environmental Impact Statement on Klamath River dams which requires some mitigation efforts to deal with burdens on fish populations, but concludes: "Based on our detailed analysis of the environmental benefits and costs associated with the five action alternatives considered in detail in this FEIS, we conclude that the best alternative for the Klamath Hydroelectric Project would be to issue a new license consistent with the environmental measures specified in the Staff Alternative." See site below for quote and full report. (Note: the website announces the report, but the links to the individual parts of the report are at the bottom of the page.)
Read EIS.
Read EIS Executive Summary.

Executive Order Places Constraints on Documentation Required for Drivers Licenses
November 17, 2007. Governor Kulongoski has issued an executive order, 07-22, that places controls on documents required for issuance of drivers licenses. (NOTE: The order was issued November 16, but has not yet been posted on the Governor's "Executive Orders" website. However, it is available through the DMV site at the link below.}
Read Executive Order 07-21.
Governor's Press Release on EO 07-21.

U.S. Ciruit Court of Appeals Rejects Federal Government Response to Threatened Columbia River Salmon under the Endangered Species Act
April 10, 2007. The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit has rejected a federal government challenge to a district court order in the continuing litigation over steps to be taken by the Federal Columbia River Power System (FCRPS) to ensure the survival and recovery of salmon species in the Columbia and Snake rivers. The three judge panel of the 9th Circuit affirmed the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon's ruling that rejected the the National Marine Fisheries Service's (now NOAA Fisheries) Biological Opinion 2004 and the orders issued for actions to be taken by the agencies to come into compliance with the ESA. Using unusually strong language, the panel concluded that: "At its core, the 2004 BiOp amounted to little more than an analytical slight of hand, manipulating the variables to achieve a 'no jeopardy' finding. Statistically speaking, using the 2004 BiOp's analytical framework, the dead fish were really alive. The ESA requires a more realistic, common sense examination. For these reasons, the district court's rejection of the 2004 BiOp's jeopardy analysis was entirely correct." National Wildlife Federation v. National Marine Fisheries Service, Slip Opinion, at 4026.
Read the National Wildlife Federation v. National Marine Fisheries Service opinion.

Governor Issues Executive Order to Address Coordination in Search Issues Based on Kim Search Report
January 23, 2007. Governor Kulongoski has issued Executive Order 07-01 creating a state Search and Rescue Task Force in the wake of the Office of Emergency Management report on the Kim rescue effort to determine whether new legislation or other policy changes are needed to enhance coordination and search and rescue effectiveness.
Read Executive Order 07-01.
Read the Kim Search Chronology.

Senator Wyden Proposes National Health Care Policy
December 14, 2006. Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) has announced a broad new national health policy proposal that he has entitled the Healthy Americans Act to be introduced in the new Congress. In announcing the proposal, Wyden indicated that the plan will "guarantees private health care coverage that cannot be taken away for all Americans; provides benefits for all Americans equal to those of Members of Congress; provides incentives for individuals and insurers to focus on prevention, wellness and disease management; provides tough cost containment and saves $1.48 trillion over 10 years; and is fully paid for by spending the $2.2 trillion currently spent on health care in America." Press Release at URL below.
   Read the press release.
   Read the "Cost and Coverage Estimates" for the Wyden proposal.
   Read the Full Text of the proposed Healthy Americans Act
   Read a "Section by section explanation of the legislation."

Oregon Senate Interim Commission on Health Care Access and Affordability Announces Plan to Introduce a Comprehensive Health Plan for the State in the Upcoming Legislative Session
December 14, 2006. The Senate Interim Commission on Health Care Access and Affordability created by Oregon Senate President Peter Courtney held a news conference recently to announce a plan for a comprehensive health care program for the state. A formal report has not yet been issued, but members of the commission announced that a bill would be forthcoming in time for the upcoming state legislative session.
Read Senator Courtney's Release at Creation of the Interim Commission.
Read the Portland Oregonian article announcing the Commission's proposal.

Governor Kulongoski Announces 2007-09 Budget Proposal
December 4, 2006. Governor Kulongoski has announced his proposal for the 2007-09 budget.
Access the Budget Summary for 1007-09
Access the Full Range of Revenue Estimates, Spending Proposals, and Agency by Agency Elements of the Governor's Budget Proposal

Legislative Reform Commission Presents A Blueprint for a 21st Century Legislature
December 2, 2006. The Public Commission on the Oregon Legislature was created with the enactment of Senate Bill 1084 to examine the organization and operations of the Oregon legislature, a task that had not been undertaken since 1974. The report, entitled A Blueprint for a 21st Century Legislature, contains a variety of significant recommendations and is available in both a full pdf file and section by section in html.
Access the full report in pdf.
Access the Report Section by Section in html.

Ninth Circuit Rejects Challenge to 2003 PERS Changes
October 27, 2006. Employees who attempted unsuccessfully to challenge changes to the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS) program recent lost once again as the United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejected the challengers' claim that the 2003 changes constituted an impairment of the obligations of contract in violation of the U.S. Constitution. The Ninth Circuit panel concluded: "Having considered the Oregon Supreme Court's detailed analysis of the terms of the Employees' statutorily created PERS contract, we conclude, as did the Oregon Supreme Court in Strunk, that the Employees' PERS contract does not contain the promises urged by the Employees. Accordingly, the 2003 legislation does not impair a term of the Employees' PERS contract and, therefore, does not violate the federal Contract Clause." Robertson v. Kulongoski, No. 04-35898, Slip Opinion at 12.
Access the .

GAO Issues Report on Program Development in the Aftermath of the Biscuit Fire
October 5, 2006. Although the debate over the federal government actions in the wake of the Biscuit Fire, the U.S. Government Accountability Office has issued a report in response to a requests from Senators.
Access the GAO Report.

Oregon Department of Human Services Issues Medicaid Citizenship Verification Policy
August 8, 2006. The Oregon Department of Human Service has issued policy guidance to Medicaid services as to the way in which the citizenship verification requirements of the Deficit Reduction Act will be implemented in the state beginning on September 1, 2006. (CAF -- Children, Adults, and Families] [SPD Seniors and People with Disabilities]
    "CAF Child Welfare Policy and Procedures."
    "CAF Self-Sufficiency Policy and Procedures".
    "SPD Policy and Procedures."
    " Process Flow Chart."
    "Questions and answers."

U.S. Supreme Court Strikes U.S. Attorney General's Attempt to Block Oregon Death With Dignity Statute
January, 17, 2006. In a 6-3 opinion authored by Justice Anthony Kennedy, the Supreme Court today rejected the Bush administration's efforts to block the Oregon Death With Dignity statute. Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Scalia and Thomas dissented.
Read the Opinion.

Oregon Supreme Court Speaks in Ongoing National Discussion as to What Can and Cannot be Contracted-Out.
October 13, 2005. The Oregon Supreme Court has offered its own opinion to the ongoing national discussion of what public positions and activities can and which cannot be outsourced. In Walter v. Scherzinger,the Court ruled against a 2002 decision by Portland school authorities to hire a contract firm to replace janitors in its operations based upon a 1937 statute defining the positions and the processes for hiring those who would fill them. "We conclude that, when the 1937 legislature defined custodians and assistant custodians as 'employe[e]s,' it intended to define the legal status of those workers. That definition served to facilitate the civil service board's control over that workforce. Finally, ORS 242.520(1) requires the district to employ custodians pursuant to the terms of the CCSL." Lower courts had upheld the city school district action.
Read the Opinion.

Ninth Circuit Upholds Court Order to Increase River Flow to Protect Salmon
July 26, 2005. A panel of the U.C. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has rejected challenges to the preliminary injunction issued by Federal District Judge James A. Redden, though the appeals court did remand the case for possible modifications to Redden's order in light of changes that may have taken place since it was originally issued. Redden's order was the second of two recent opinions rejecting water flow and other salmon recovery plans in light of the requirements of the Endangered Species Act. The case, National Wildlife Federation v. Oregon, requires further development of plans with more attention to adequate water flows with respect to the operation of key dams.
Read the Ninth Circuit ruling.
Read the Opinion

Attorney General Issues Opinion on Access to and Control of Oregon Waterways
April 21, 2005. Oregon Attorney General Hardy Myers today issued an opinion responding to three questions posed by the State Lands Commission. The Attonrye General Wrote: "1. The United States Supreme Court's Articulation of the criteria for determining state ownership of waterways has been clarikfied over time. At statehood, the state acquired (with few exceptions) all waterways that were tidally-influenced or that satisfied the federal test of title navigability. Federal and state law limit the discretion of the state to alienate its ownership, to the extent that doing so would interfere with the public use of the waterway for vavigation, commerce, recreation or fisheries. 2. even if the bed of a waterway is privately owned, the waterway may be used by the public for certain purposes if it meets the state test of navigable-for-public-use (the "public use doctrine.") A waterway is navigable-for-public-use if it has the capacity, in terms of length, width and depth, to enable boats to make successful progress through its waters. If a privately owned waterway meets this test, the lawful public uses generally include navigation, commerce or creation. Recreation in this case includes use of small boats for pleasure and fishing, as well as swimming. The public may use the land adjacent to a waterway that is navigable-for-public-use as long as the use of the adjacent land is 'necessary' to the lawful use of the waterway. 3. Generally speaking, the public may use state-owned waterways for any use not otherwise unlawful. However, unless state ownership has been confirmed by a judicial decree or the Board under ORS 274.400 et se., persons who use a waterway beliving it to be state-owned incur the risk that it will be held to be privately owned and that their use will constitute a trapass -- unless their use is authorized by the public use doctrine." This opinion comes in the context of an ongoing dispute between land owners and waterway user groups.
Read the Attorney General's Opinion in Full

Oregon Supreme Court Rejects Same-Sex Marriage
April 14, 2005. The Oregon Supreme Court today issued a ruling in Li v. Oregon, S51612, reversing a lower court ruling and rejecting gay and lesbian marriages. The Court concluded: "First, since the effective date of Measure 36, marriage in Oregon has been limited under the Oregon Constitution to opposite-sex couples. Second, Oregon statutory law in existence before the effective date of Measure 36 also limited, and continues to limit, the right to obtain marriage licenses to opposite-sex couples. Third, marriage licenses issued to same-sex couples in Multnomah County before that date were issued without authority and were void at the time that they were issued, and we therefore need not consider the independent effect, if any, of Measure 36 on those marriage licenses. In short, none of plaintiffs' claims properly before the court is well taken. Finally, the abstract question whether ORS chapter 106 confers marriage benefits in violation of Article I, section 20, of the Oregon Constitution is not properly before the court."
Read the Opinion

U.S. Supreme Court Agrees to Review Oregon Death With Dignity Act
February, 22, 2005. Just as he was resigning as U.S. Attorney General, John Ashcroft sought review by the U.S. Supreme Court of the Ninth Circuit ruling rejecting Bush administration efforts to block Oregon's death with dignity law. The Supreme Court today granted certiorari in No. 04-643, Gonzales v. Oregon. The Court will likely not hear the case until at least next October when it begins it new term. The Ninth Circuit issued its ruling in May 2004 in Oregon v. Ashcroft, 368 F.3d 1118 (9th Cir. 2004).
Read the Ninth Circuit Opinion

Governor Kulongoski Presents His State of the State Address to the Legislature
Governor Kulongoski presented his 2005 State of the State Address on January 10, indicating his intention to work through a challenging year, both in terms of meeting the 1 billion dollar budget gap without new taxes and simultaneously addressing stresses on the state that he sees coming from Washington, D.C. on a number of fronts.
Read the Governor's State of the State Address for 2005

Governor Ted Kulongoski Announces the His 2005-2007 Budget Proposal
Governor Kulongoski announced his proposed 2005-2007 on December 1, 2004. He candidly indicated that the $41,962,800 expenditure plan does not provide as much funding in a number of areas as he would like to see, but insisted that the development of sustainable financing for state programs is a priority.
Access the Budget Documents

2004 Election Results, Including Statewide Measures
http://egov.sos.state.or.us/results/

State Pharmacy Board Issues Temporary Rule on Pseudoephedrine Products
The governor's request for action by the state pharmacy board was successful when, on October 13, 2004, the board issued a temporary rule placing a variety of restructions on the sale of products containing pseudoephedrine as the active ingredient. The purpose of the effort was to make it more difficult for manufacurers of methamphetamine to obtain necessary materials.
Download the Rule and Rule Summary

Governor Asks Pharmacy Board to Issue Emergency Rules on Drugs Linked to Methamphetamine
http://governor.oregon.gov/Gov/press_100104.shtml

Budget Information

Governor's FY 2009-2011 Budget Proposal
Access the Budget Summary for 2009-11
Governor's Recommended Budget from Budget and Management Division

Legislatively Adopted FY2007-2009 Budget
Budget Highlights
Budget Analysis

State Revenue and Economic Forecasts: Office of Economic Analysis
    Access the OEA Website
    Access the State Economic Forecast.
    Access the State Revenue Forecast.

Legislative Fiscal Office
http://www.leg.state.or.us/comm/lfo/

Budget and Management Division
http://www.oregon.gov/DAS/BAM/index.shtml

Oregon General Information

State of Oregon
State Government Site
http://www.oregon.gov

Office of the Governor of Oregon
http://governor.oregon.gov/

"State Agencies A-Z"
http://www.oregon.gov/a_to_z_listing.shtml

Oregon Bluebook:
Oregon Blue Book is the official state directory and fact book about all levels of government in Oregon.
http://bluebook.state.or.us/

Oregon State Government Telephone and Employee Directory
http://www.oregon.gov/state_contact.shtml

Oregon Cities and Towns
http://www.theagapecenter.com/Cities-Towns/Oregon.htm

Oregon City/County Management Association
http://www.occma.org

League of Oregon Cities
http://www.orcities.org/

Association of Oregon Counties
http://www.aocweb.org/

Special Districts Association of Oregon
http://www.sdao.com/

Oregon State Procurement Office
http://www.oregon.gov/DAS/PFSS/SPO/index.shtml

Oregon Municipal Finance Officers Association
http://www.omfoa.org/

Oregon Department of Human Services Contracting
http://www.dhs.state.or.us/admin/contracts/

Oregon Weather
http://weather.yahoo.com/regional/USOR.html

Oregon Maps
Oregon Department of Transportation Detailed Maps

Oregon State Tourism Site
Travel Oregon

Oregon News Media

The Portland Oregonian's "The Nine States of Oregon" Series
http://www.oregonlive.com/special/ninestates/

Newspapers

Ashland Tidings
http://www.dailytidings.com/

Daily Astorian
http://www.dailyastorian.info/

Baker City Herald
http://www.bakercityherald.com/

Bend Bulletin
http://www.bendbulletin.com/

Corvallis Gazette-Times
http://www.gazettetimes.com/

Eugene Register Guard
http://www.registerguard.com/

Grants Pass Daily Courier
http://www.thedailycourier.com/

LaGrande Observer
http://www.lagrandeobserver.com/

Medford Mail Tribune
http://www.mailtribune.com/

Portland Oregonian
http://www.oregonlive.com/oregonian/

Salem Statesman Journal
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/

Public Broadcasters

Oregon Public Broadcasting
http://www.opb.org/index.php

Native American Tribes and Nations

Burns Paiute Tribe
http://www.burnspaiute-nsn.gov/TheTribe.htm

Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw
http://www.ctclusi.org/

Confederated Tribes of Grand Rhonde
http://www.grandronde.org/

Confederated Tribes of Siletz
http://ctsi.nsn.us/

Confederated Tribes of Umatilla Indian Reservation
http://www.umatilla.nsn.us/

Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs
http://www.warmsprings.com/

Coquille Indian Tribe
http://www.coquilletribe.org/

Cow Creek Bank of Umpqua Tribe of Indians
http://www.cowcreek.com/

The Klamath Tribes
http://www.klamathtribes.org/

Oregon Legal Materials

Oregon Constitution and Statutes
http://www.leg.state.or.us/ors/

Oregon Legislature
    Bills and Bill Tracking
    http://www.leg.state.or.us/bills_laws/home.htm
    "How to Compile an Oregon Legislative History" The Paul L. Boley Law Library of Lewis & Clark Law School.
    http://lawlib.lclark.edu/research/orleghistory8.pdf

Oregon Administrative Rules
    Rules by Agency Name
    http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/rules/alpha_index.html
    Rules by Oregon Administrative Rules Chapter Number
    http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/rules/number_index.html
    Oregon Administrative Procedure Act
    http://www.leg.state.or.us/ors/183.html

Oregon Bulletin
Official Notices
http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/rules/bulletin_default.html

Oregon Executive Orders
Executive Orders Issued by the Governor
http://governor.oregon.gov/Gov/exec_orders.shtml

Oregon Attorney General Opinions
Legal Opinions Issued by the Attorney General
http://www.doj.state.or.us/agoffice/index.shtml

Oregon Public Contracting Code and Rules
    Oregon State Public Contract Code (ORS 279) and Oregon Department of Administrative Services State Contracting Rules
    http://procurement.oregon.gov/DAS/SSD/SPO/ors279-menu.shtml
    Oregon Products of Individuals with Disabilikties Act
    http://landru.leg.state.or.us/ors/279.html

Oregon Ordinances
http://old.orcities.org/cityinfo/citycodes.cfm

Oregon Basic Statutes on Local Government
    Cities
    Counties
    Special Districts
    Intergovernmental Agreements

Oregon Supreme Court Opinions
http://www.publications.ojd.state.or.us/supreme.htm

Oregon Court of Appeals Opinions
http://www.publications.ojd.state.or.us/appeals.htm

Federal Courts with Jurisdiction Over Oregon
Access the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon Opinions
Access the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Opinions

General Legal Research Sites -- Oregon

Legal Dictionary -- Find Law.com
http://dictionary.lp.findlaw.com/

"Oregon Legal Research," The Paul L. Boley Law Library of Lewis & Clark Law School
http://lawlib.lclark.edu/research/oregonlaw.php#leghx

Oregon Congressional Delegation

Representative David Wu, D., Portland
http://www.house.gov/wu/index.shtml

Representative Greg Walden, R., Hood River
http://walden.house.gov/

Representative Earl Blumenauer, D., Portland
http://blumenauer.house.gov/