Measure For Measure

On Feb. 1, the Legislature will meet for a pre-scheduled "special" session that advocates say budget woes demand.

If state voters reject Measures 66 and 67 on Jan. 26, lawmakers are likely to spend much of the monthlong session plugging the $727 million budget hole the defeat would create.

But if the two tax hikes pass, lawmakers will have a lot more time to spend on their own bills. Senate Majority Leader Richard Devlin (D-Tualatin) says by design most bills will be simple and have no fiscal impact.

"Bills have to move rapidly," Devlin says.

This is legislators' second carefully stage-managed effort to convince Oregonians the Legislature should meet more often. According to the Oregon Constitution, lawmakers are only supposed to meet every other year, except in cases of emergency. But many policymakers among the majority Democrats, led by Senate President Peter Courtney (D-Salem), want lawmakers to move from biennial sessions to annual ones.

Most states have abandoned biennial meetings as an historic relic from a simpler era: The National Council on State Legislatures says 45 states now meet annually and 30 prepare an annual budget.

Each Oregon House member gets to introduce one bill next month. Senators get to introduce two bills apiece. Here are some of the highlights and lowlights of the measures released so far:

Smart Bills

Bill: HB 3615, Rep Nick Kahl, (D-East Portland)

What it would do: Include banks and insurance companies in Oregon's Unfair Trade Practices Act.

Why the bill is good: Right now, if you buy a lemon from a car dealer or get ripped off by a business, you can sue under state law. But unlike most states, Oregon exempts both banks and insurance companies from that basic consumer protection law. Kahl says Oregonians who fall victim in this housing crisis to mortgage fraud, for example, have far less recourse than residents of many states. "I want banks and insurers to have to follow the same standard that every other business in this state follows," Kahl says.

Bill: SB 1045, Sen. Diane Rosenbaum and Rep. Tina Kotek (both D-Portland)

What it would do: Limit employers' ability to use a job applicant's credit history.

Why the bill is good: Even before the recession wrecked Oregonians' credit scores, many people carried huge student loans, remnants of divorces, medical debt or other black marks on their credit reports. Proponents of SB 1045 say that with some exceptions, innocuous credit issues should not disqualify qualified job seekers. "This bill will make it easier for people to get jobs," Kotek says. "This argument some people make is low credit scores correlate to employee fraud but there's no evidence to support that."

Silly Bills

Bill: HB 3628, Rep. Brian Clem (D-Salem)

What it would do: Authorize the state superintendent of public instruction to enter into a contract with nonprofit Mandarin Chinese instructors.

Why it is a bad bill: Clem, 38, briefly explored running for governor last year. He came back from a legislative trip last fall to China with an offer from Chinese authorities to send Mandarin teachers to Oregon if local districts cover housing and travel. We know China is important. But with all the challenges facing the state and all the unmet needs in the K-12 educational system, this bill seems more of a résumé builder than a policy solution. Clem agrees it's not vital. "This bill is not critical," he says. "We could have probably waited two years or the department would have done it administratively."

Bill: HB 3620, Rep. Tim Freeman (R-Roseburg)

What it would do: Create a new state tax credit for capital improvements to businesses or homes.

Why it is a bad bill: Dubbed the "swimming pool bill" by Capitol wags, this proposal would reward big-ticket home improvements. Generous tax credits already exist for energy efficiency, which help property owners save money and energy. But Freeman's bill would give a homeowner up to a $50,000 credit for raising his home's value. Freeman says private-sector job creation is his aim and if the worst thing his bill does is create new swimming pools, that's fine. "A rich guy isn't going to hire another rich guy to build his pool," Freeman says.

WWeek 2015