QuickTake:

Several Oregon laws go into effect in the new year, which expand health care access, protect unpaid construction workers, limit pesky telemarketers and increase the marriage age to 18.

In the new year, Oregon residents will see laws take effect that influence the purchase concert tickets, add protections for renters, and fend off unwanted contacts from telemarketers. Utility companies may face more accountability before they can raise rates. And construction workers will have more tools to collect unpaid wages.

There’s more, too. Here’s a look at state laws that go into effect Jan. 1:

Consumer fairness and household expenses 

Ticket scalpers, beware. House Bill 3167, the Fan Fairness and Transparency Act, puts protections in place for third-party ticket sales for events like concerts and sports. Sellers must disclose all fees upfront. The law prohibits “speculative ticketing,” in which ticket resellers list tickets they don’t actually own. The law requires clear labeling so ticket purchasers know they are buying from a third party. This prevents resellers from setting up websites that resemble those of official venues.

Tired of tacked-on fees? Senate Bill 430 offers consumer protections for online purchases. It prohibits online merchants from adding extra costs like “convenience charges” or “service fees” without notification. Under the new law, anyone who sells products or services online to Oregon residents is required to include such charges in the advertised price online. The online advertised price need not include any taxes or shipping costs, but the seller still needs to disclose those to customers.

Accountability for utility companies: Senate Bill 688 allows the Public Utility Commission to create a framework that will require investor-owned power companies to meet specific performance targets before they can raise customer rates. Those targets, called “performance-based regulation,” can include lowering greenhouse gas emissions, cutting costs and preventing low-income Oregonians from having their power shut off.

Fewer spammy texts ahead: House Bill 3865, the Telemarketing Modernization Act, adds texting to the law’s definition of “telephone solicitation.” The bill also gives you an extra hour of peace in the evening. The law prohibits telephone or texting solicitation after 8 p.m. Previously, the cutoff time was 9 p.m. Solicitations can happen only three times a day.

Construction worker protections: Senate Bill 426 allows construction workers to sue project owners and general contractors for unpaid wages, regardless of whether they are direct employees or work through a subcontractor. The law is intended to hold developers and general contractors more accountable, allowing civil actions to recover wages, benefits and penalties.

Refunds for potential tenants: House Bill 3521 gives potential tenants a pathway to get their deposit back before signing a rental agreement. Landlords must return the deposit if the potential tenant discovers issues that make the dwelling unsuitable. This could include a leaky roof, poor heating, broken windows, contaminated water or heaps of rubbish. If a potential tenant declines to sign a lease after discovering the problems, the landlord has five business days to return the deposit.

An old-fashioned key, please: House Bill 3378 requires landlords provide tenants with a choice for locking and unlocking their rental without relying exclusively on an app that requires them to use their cellphone. Landlords will need to provide options that could include an access code, fob, key card or even an old-school metal key.

Health care access 

Medical debt no longer on credit: Senate Bill 605 prevents medical debt from landing on credit reports. Health care providers like hospitals and clinics cannot notify consumer reporting agencies about debt. Reporting agencies are banned from including medical debts on reports.

More covered care: House Bill 3064 requires state-regulated health plans to cover treatment for perimenopause, menopause and postmenopause. The law includes plans for individuals and families, small businesses, and plans overseen by the Oregon Educators Benefit Board and the Public Employees’ Benefit Board. Plans will need to cover hormone therapies and osteoporosis prevention and treatment.

Expanded coverage for surgery: Senate Bill 1137 requires health insurance plans to cover breast reconstruction surgery when it relies on a patient’s tissue for reconstruction instead of traditional implants. The bill requires insurers to cover this type of breast reconstruction with the same or better terms and conditions as they do for reconstruction with implants.

More personal safety precautions 

Intimate image law expanded: House Bill 2299 expands the state law that bans the distribution of intimate images without a person’s consent. The law will include deepfakes that are generated through artificial intelligence. A first offense is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 364 days in jail, a $6,250 fine or both. A second offense is a class C felony, which carries up to five years in prison, a $125,000 fine or both.

Marriage age increases: Seventeen-year-olds will have to wait a year to get married. Senate Bill 548 raises Oregon’s legal minimum age for marriage from 17 to 18. Previously, the law allowed 17-year-olds to marry with a parent or guardian’s written consent — even if the teenage bride did not consent. The law is intended to provide more safeguards for youth against sexual exploitation, closing a loophole that allowed an adult to have sexual contact with a 17-year-old minor if the two were married.

Workplace violence targeted: Senate Bill 170 targets offenders who repeatedly assault people in their workplaces. The law makes fourth-degree assault a felony when the victim is assaulted while performing their job and the perpetrator has assaulted others in workplaces or due to the victim’s occupation. The law makes it a felony, not a misdemeanor, if a person has two or more convictions for workplace assaults. 

For two decades, Ben Botkin’s journalism career saw him criss-cross the West, a path with stops in rural Idaho, Las Vegas and, now, finally, Lane County. Ben reported on local government and the statehouse in Idaho before he moved to the Bulletin in Bend and covered education in central Oregon.

Then, for four years, he covered Clark County government, which has oversight over the Las Vegas Strip, and served as the lead political reporter during the 2016 election cycle. During that time, Ben wrote about the county’s child welfare agency, law enforcement, the start of Nevada’s medical marijuana industry and homeland security. His reporting sparked the criminal indictments and convictions of three government officials, including a city animal control supervisor convicted of animal cruelty.

He also covered national stories like the 2016 armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in eastern Oregon and the 2017 mass shooting in Las Vegas.

Since 2018, Ben has reported on Oregon state government, first for the Statesman-Journal in Salem and then for The Lund Report, a Portland-based nonprofit that covers health care. His reporting on gaps in children’s health coverage led to state Medicaid policy changes.

Most recently, Ben worked more than two years at the Oregon Capital Chronicle, where he covered criminal justice, health and human services. His work often incorporates the voices of vulnerable Oregonians from all walks of life.

As Lookout’s Politics & Policy Correspondent, Ben digs up the most intriguing and relevant stories about how Lane County decisions impact residents.