Title 17, State Legislative Department and Laws

The regular sessions of the Legislative Assembly shall be held at the capital of the state and shall commence: (1) In the case of an odd-numbered year regular session, on the Tuesday after the holiday for Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday. (2) In the case of an even-numbered yea…

(1) When a majority of the members of each house of the Legislative Assembly has cause to believe that an emergency exists and so notifies the presiding officers of each house in the manner described in this section, the presiding officers shall invoke section 10a, Article IV of …

Except as otherwise provided in the Act, an Act of the Legislative Assembly takes effect on January 1 of the year after passage of the Act. [1999 c.1012 §1] (Resignation)

Any person who receives a certificate of election as a member of the Legislative Assembly is at liberty to resign the office, though the person may not have entered upon the execution of its duties or taken the requisite oath of office. [1981 c.517 §1]

(1) When any vacancy occurs in the Legislative Assembly due to death or recall or by reason of resignation filed in writing with the Secretary of State or a person is declared disqualified by the house to which the person was elected, the vacancy shall be filled by appointment if…

(1) When any vacancy as is mentioned in ORS 171.051 exists in the office of Senator or Representative affiliated with a major political party and that vacancy is to be filled by an appointing authority as provided in ORS 171.051, the Secretary of State forthwith shall notify the …

(1) When a legislative district in which a vacancy occurs encompasses two or more counties, each county shall be entitled to one vote for each 1,000 of its electors or major fraction thereof residing within the legislative district at the time when either the office becomes vacan…

The number of votes apportioned to each county commissioner in filling a legislative vacancy shall be equal to the total number allotted to the respective county of the county commissioner in the manner set forth in ORS 171.062 divided by the total number of county commissioners …

(1) For purposes of ORS 171.060, 171.062 and 171.064, the county court or the board of county commissioners which shall fill the vacancy in the Legislative Assembly in a district created by reapportionment shall be the county court or board of county commissioners of each county …

(1) A member of the Legislative Assembly shall receive for services an annual salary that equals one step below the maximum step of Salary Range 1 in the Management Service Compensation Plan in the executive department as defined in ORS 174.112. (2) The President of the Senate an…

It is the policy of the Legislative Assembly that all use of state provided phones by members or by legislative staff at the members’ direction, including phones assigned either at the member’s residence or at the Capitol, shall be considered to be used on state business for purp…

(1) When requested in writing by the Legislative Administrator, the Oregon Department of Administrative Services shall draw a warrant in favor of the Legislative Assembly for use as a revolving fund. Warrants drawn to establish or increase the revolving fund, rather than to reimb…

There is established for the Legislative Assembly a Lounge Revolving Account. The Legislative Administration Committee may pay for the costs of food served in the members’ lounges from the Lounge Revolving Account for the purpose of supplying current requirements, the cost of whi…

(1) It is the purpose and intent of the Legislative Assembly in enacting this section and ORS 171.122 and 171.125 that, subject to the conditions set forth in these sections, any member of the Legislative Assembly whose employment is interrupted because of attendance at regular o…

(1) Any member or prospective member of the Legislative Assembly who leaves regular employment in order to attend upon any regular or special session of the Legislative Assembly or to perform official duties as a member or prospective member of the Legislative Assembly for which …

(1) If any employer fails to comply with the provisions of ORS 171.120 and 171.122, the circuit court for any county in which such employer maintains a place of business has jurisdiction, upon the filing of a petition by the Attorney General on behalf of the person entitled to su…

(1) Each proposed legislative measure shall at the time of submission for filing bear the name of any state or other public agency or representative thereof, any private organization or representative thereof, or any person other than a member of the Legislative Assembly at whose…

(1) At any time in advance of any regular or special session of the Legislative Assembly fixed by the Legislative Counsel Committee, or at any time in advance of a special session as may be fixed by joint rules of both houses of the Legislative Assembly, the following may file a …

(1) A state agency shall not cause a bill or measure to be introduced before the Legislative Assembly if the bill or measure has not been approved by the Governor. (2) As used in ORS 171.130 and this section, “state agency” means every state agency whose costs are paid wholly or …

Any measure digest or measure summary prepared by the Legislative Assembly shall be written in a manner that results in a score of at least 60 on the Flesch readability test or meets an equivalent standard of a comparable test. [1979 c.270 §1]

(1) The Legislative Administrator, subject to the policies of the Legislative Administration Committee and the rules of each house, shall furnish necessary office supplies, equipment and stationery for the use of all members, officers and employees of the Legislative Assembly, ta…

An application for an amendment convention under Article V of the United States Constitution that was submitted by the Legislative Assembly to Congress before September 24, 2023, is hereby withdrawn and is null and void. [2023 c.349 §1] ELECTION DATES

The Legislative Assembly finds that to limit the number of days on which elections are held in this state would consolidate separate single purpose elections, reduce the cost of elections and local government, and increase participation in the electoral process. It, therefore, fi…

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, an election called by the Legislative Assembly shall be held only on: (a) The second Tuesday in March; (b) The third Tuesday in May; (c) The fourth Tuesday in August; or (d) The first Tuesday after the first Monday in Nove…

As used in ORS 171.206, “publications” does not include materials published under ORS 171.236 or 171.275, but does include: (1) Bills, resolutions and memorials and amendments thereto. (2) Reports of statutory, standing, special or interim legislative committees. (3) Periodic leg…

(1) Except as provided in ORS 171.236 and 171.275, all publications printed for either house of the Legislative Assembly and their committees, including joint committees created by law, rule or joint resolution, shall be published and distributed by the Legislative Administrator,…

(1) The Legislative Counsel, under the direction of the Legislative Counsel Committee, shall publish and distribute the laws enacted by the Legislative Assembly. (2) The Legislative Counsel Committee shall determine the form, number and distribution of and charges for, if any, th…

(1) There is established in the General Fund an account to be known as the Legislative Publications Account. All moneys collected or received under ORS 171.236 shall be paid into the account. All moneys in the account are appropriated continuously for and shall be used for the pu…

The laws enacted by the Legislative Assembly and by the people, when published in accordance with the provisions of ORS 171.236, shall be received in all courts of this state as an authorized publication of the laws of Oregon published therein. [1965 c.424 §2; 1981 c.517 §17]

Except as otherwise provided by or pursuant to law, the copies of the legislative materials referred to in ORS 171.236 furnished free of charge to the public officers of this state pursuant to law are public property and shall be delivered over by them to their successors in offi…

(1) Each biennium, the Legislative Counsel, under the direction of the Legislative Counsel Committee, shall publish and distribute the Oregon Revised Statutes, including an index and annotations. (2) Each biennium, the Legislative Counsel shall solicit bids for the printing of th…

(1) When any edition of the statutes, or part or supplement designed to replace parts of or to supplement a previous edition and to bring such edition up to date, is published by the Legislative Counsel Committee, the Legislative Counsel shall cause to be printed in the edition, …

(1) In any contract for the printing of the Oregon Revised Statutes, the Legislative Counsel Committee may provide for preservation or purchase, on behalf of the state, of the medium from which the statutes were printed. (2) The committee may permit the use of the medium or mater…

(1) The proceeds from the sale of an edition or publication made pursuant to ORS 171.275 shall be deposited in the State Treasury to the credit of a revolving account for the use of the Legislative Counsel Committee in publishing and distributing future editions or publications. …

(1) The Legislative Counsel shall provide one set of Oregon Revised Statutes, including an index and annotations: (a) For each member of the Legislative Assembly. (b) For each judgeship, the salary of which is paid by the state. (2)(a) The costs of providing sets to members of th…

(1) Upon request of any person, the Secretary of State may certify under the seal of the State of Oregon: (a) A copy of any statute of this state published in the Oregon Revised Statutes. (b) A copy of any rule contained in the Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure and published in the…

The Legislative Counsel Committee shall cause the original enrolled laws and joint resolutions passed at each session of the Legislative Assembly to be bound in a volume in a substantial manner in the order in which they are approved. The Legislative Counsel Committee is not requ…

(1) Sound recordings, produced on equipment selected by the Legislative Administration Committee for compatibility with equipment for reproduction by the State Archives, shall be made of every meeting of the Legislative Assembly and of every hearing and meeting of every standing,…

As used in ORS 171.410 to 171.430, unless the context requires otherwise, “legislative record” means a measure or amendment thereto, a document, book, paper, photograph, sound recording or other material exclusive of personal correspondence, regardless of physical form or charact…

(1) Except as provided in subsections (2) and (3) of this section, a committee or employee of the Legislative Assembly having possession of legislative records that are not required for the regular performance of official duties shall, within 10 days after the adjournment sine di…

The Legislative Administrator shall classify and arrange the legislative records delivered to the Legislative Administrator pursuant to ORS 171.415, in a manner that the Legislative Administrator considers best suited to carry out the efficient and economical utilization, mainten…

The State Archivist shall allow the Legislative Fiscal Officer, the Legislative Administrator, the Legislative Counsel, the Legislative Revenue Officer or the Legislative Policy and Research Director to borrow and temporarily have possession of such legislative records as such of…

The Legislative Administration Committee and State Archivist shall establish and from time to time may revise a schedule that shall govern the retention and destruction or other disposition of legislative records delivered to and in the custody of the archivist under ORS 171.420 …

(1) Except for legislative records borrowed under ORS 171.425 and except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, the Emergency Board, the Legislative Administration Committee, the Legislative Counsel Committee, the Legislative Policy and Research Committee or the Joint Com…

In enacting ORS 171.455 to 171.465, it is the intention of the Legislative Assembly to support the privilege of free suffrage and to protect the integrity of the election process against improper conduct: (1) By establishing a procedure to examine complaints about election conduc…

(1) Within 30 days after a general election, any elector may file a complaint with the Secretary of State alleging a criminal violation of any election law by a member or member-elect of the Legislative Assembly. (2) The complaint shall be specific in its allegations. If the comp…

(1) Upon receipt of the complaint, the Secretary of State shall conduct an investigation to determine whether there is probable cause to believe that the alleged violation occurred, and that it was both deliberate and capable of having some possible effect upon the election. (2) …

The presiding officer of each house of the Legislative Assembly shall appoint a credentials committee. The credentials committee shall review the finding of any report of the Secretary of State submitted under this section and ORS 171.450 to 171.460, hear additional evidence if i…

The President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the chairperson or vice chairperson of any statutory, standing, special or interim committee of either house of the Legislative Assembly, or the chairperson or vice chairperson of a statutory, standing, spe…

(1) The President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, or the chairperson or vice chairperson of any of the legislative committees referred to in ORS 171.505 upon a majority vote of any such committee, may issue any processes necessary to compel the attenda…