What the Legislature did this year: Lane County lawmakers reflect

Lane County lawmakers started work on the short legislative session soon after protests in late January at the Eugene Federal Building, where demonstrators and federal officers clashed.

The clashes were a reminder — rather than a catalyst — of the legislation that consumed much of the short session in Salem. State lawmakers repeatedly looked for ways to rein in federal immigration activity, such as requiring officers to be more transparent and not wear masks.

They also looked for ways to preserve funding for Planned Parenthood and protect health care providers and patients who may face scrutiny from out-of-state or federal law enforcement. 

Lawmakers put regulations in place after privacy concerns emerged in Eugene and Springfield over the use of license-plate reader technology to solve crimes — and the potential for that data to fall into wrong hands, federal or otherwise.

Other priorities emerged, too, as lawmakers looked for ways to inject life into Oregon’s economy and chip away at the housing shortage that plagues Lane County and the state.

“We approached this session knowing that there were a few key things we needed to do,” House Speaker Julie Fahey, D-Eugene, said in a briefing with reporters shortly after the session ended Friday, March 6.

Here’s a look at what local lawmakers were up to in Salem. Many of the bills that passed the session await a signature from Gov. Tina Kotek.

Health care

Lawmakers passed House Bill 4088, which puts stronger protections in place for providers and patients seeking reproductive health care and gender-affirming care. A chief goal is to protect providers from actions taken by the federal government or other states. The measure prohibits cooperation with law enforcement agencies investigating legally protected health care activities.

“Basically at the heart of it is protecting health care providers who provide these forms of care,” said state Rep. Lisa Fragala, D-Eugene, a chief sponsor of the bill who made it one of her top priorities this session.

Kotek hasn’t signed the bill yet, but her office included the measure on a list of “major wins” for the session.

Fragala said the measure is necessary with the “significant increase in intimidation, political pressure and fear of punishment” from the federal government and other states.

Lawmakers also passed House Bill 4127, which is designed to provide payments to Planned Parenthood to replace the Medicaid funding that the federal government has cut.  Federal funding does not cover abortions, and Congress has cut federal Medicaid funding for other Planned Parenthood services, which include cervical cancer screenings, primary care and screenings for sexually transmitted infections.

Lawmakers also passed House Bill 4107, which puts state regulations in place for urgent care clinics. The bill requires such clinics to have at least one licensed health care provider on site and have the capacity to test for common respiratory diseases; certain electrocardiograms; splints for strain, sprains and fractures; and to provide stitches for simple lacerations. Signs and websites need to include insurance plans that are accepted and services offered.

“As people across the state are losing access to primary care and specialty care, they’re turning more to urgent care. It’s time to set minimum standards for services,” Rep. Nancy Nathanson, D-North Eugene, said in a statement. Nathanson sponsored the bill.

Nathanson also sponsored House Bill 4115, which cuts red tape for home care workers, personal caregivers and peer support specialists who work in behavioral health. The measure cuts red tape for background checks, eliminating the need for a second background check when they change jobs.

“Both of those bills were inspired by situations facing our community, but they’re actually facing Oregonians across the state,” Nathanson said. “So I took local concerns that had been raised and just dug into it, and it’s going to help the whole state.”

While Nathanson is pleased her bills passed, she also said the federal government’s actions cast a shadow over the short session.

“It was an unusual session in that we spent a huge amount of time reacting to policies and budgets and actions from the federal government where we needed to take some action to protect Oregonians,” Nathanson said.

Immigration and law enforcement 

Lawmakers passed House Bill 4138, which requires officers to identify themselves and prohibits the use of masks in most circumstances — with exceptions, such as health reasons.

The measure applies to all law enforcement agencies, including federal, and comes in response to a wave of immigration enforcement activity across the country with masked federal officers. The Trump administration sued California last year when that state’s Legislature passed a similar law. A federal judge in early February blocked the law from going into effect, but lawmakers said they are confident the Oregon measure can withstand a court challenge.

“With the amendments to that bill, I feel much more confident about its ability to hold up in court,” Fahey said Friday. 

Sen. Floyd Prozanski, a Eugene Democrat who is chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said the bill treats all officers equally.

“It applies to all officers no matter what agency or what level of government you’re engaged in,” he said.

Other bills protect immigrants in different settings, such as schools and hospitals. Senate Bill 1570 requires hospitals to have clear policies for responding to law enforcement visits and designates areas not open to the public.

House Bill 4079 and Senate Bill 1538 would provide protections for immigrants in public schools, including higher education, from federal enforcement activity, including requirements that warrants be verified and notifications be made to the school’s community.

“We passed a very robust immigration justice package,” Fragala said. “I think it’s something we can be really proud of.”

Prozanski’s Senate Judiciary Committee passed Senate Bill 1516A, which also cleared both chambers and regulates law enforcement use of license-plate reader technology.

The bill addresses the storage and use of license-plate data, which was a concern in Eugene and Springfield. Both cities ended agreements to use Flock Safety cameras for law enforcement work, citing concerns about the vendor. But as federal immigration enforcement activity continues to raise concerns, worries persist about the broader technology, not just Flock Safety’s products.

Issues that might need tweaking in the future include the definition of encryption — there isn’t one in the version passed — and the 30-day period of data retention. Privacy advocates were concerned that vendors would work around requirements, given the lack of a definition for encrypted technology.

“We will work through this interim watching and observing and then coming up with hopefully a resolution on what needs to be defined,” Prozanski said.

Housing and land use

Fragala sponsored House Bill 4108, which allows landowners to voluntarily annex their property into the city of Eugene. The bill applies to noncontiguous land that is within the city’s urban growth boundary.

Fragala, who served eight years on the Eugene Planning Commission, said the measure is intended to help the city increase its housing supply.

Fragala touted a potential additional benefit of the bill: “If they voluntarily choose to annex into the city, they will get to participate in local government and also get access to city services.”

In submitted testimony, Eugene Mayor Kaarin Knudson said the bill would help the city with its housing goal, adding that the contiguous requirement is a barrier to voluntary annexation, especially in areas such as the River Road and Santa Clara neighborhoods.

Kotek requested passage of House Bill 4082, which allows cities to designate land for senior housing and manufactured housing communities. The goal is to get more homes on the market with faster development.

Solar and renewable energy 

Rep. John Lively — a Springfield Democrat who is chair of the House Committee on Climate, Energy and Environment — passed several bills that aid solar and renewable energy work.

They include: House Bill 4029, which provides consumer protection for people when they hire solar equipment and panel installers to work on their property, including requirements for a contractor’s license and disclosures to consumers to avoid deceptive statements. 

House Bill 4031 exempts energy facilities from needing a site certificate from the state’s Energy Facility Siting Council in certain cases, such as if construction starts before the end of 2028, or if it starts operations by the end of 2030. The goal is to help projects become qualified on a quicker timeline, making them eligible for federal renewable energy tax credits before they expire. The projects would still have to meet local county permitting requirements.