Our 2024 Oregon State Legislative Agenda

• Fund the Employment-Related Daycare Program

• Child Care Facilities Fund (HB 4158)

• Fund Oregon Individual Development Account Initiative (HB 4131)

• Fund Universal Legal Representation

• Economic Equity Investment Act (HB 4041)

• Healthcare Interpreter Reform (SB 1578)

• Expanding Voters' Pamphlet Translation (SB 1533)

• Establishing Immigrant and Refugee Student Success Plan (SB 1532)

• Family Financial Protection Act (SB 1595)

• CHIPS Child Care Bill (HB 4098)

Policy Items for 2024

Child Care

Fund the Employment Related Daycare (ERDC) Program:

Fund the Employment Related Daycare program to address the projected shortfall in program funding and end the waitlist to better help families who are working, in school, or receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families pay their child care costs. Take action with Child Care for Oregon. 

Child Care Facilities Fund (HB 4158):

Develop and improve child care by improving access to financial assistance for licensed home-based and small center child care providers. 

CHIPS Child Care Bill (HB 4098):

The Federal CHIPS Act provides Oregon CHIP manufacturers subsidies to build the infrastructure they need to grow this sector. Leveraging existing state child care systems will ensure CHIPS applicants meet application requirements.

Economic Justice

Fund the Oregon Individual Development Accounts Initiative (HB 4131):

Provides funds to support financial security and work towards a self-determined savings goal through this matched savings program. A total of $13.8 million in matching funds was distributed in the last two years, and nearly half of those funds went to BIPOC participants. 

Economic Equity Investment Act (HB 4041):

Allocates funding to the Economic Equity Investment Program created in 2022 that provides one-time grants to culturally-responsive community-based organizations with programs that build wealth for people experiencing economic risk factors. 

Family Financial Protection Act (SB 1595):

Strengthen protection for consumers who are sued by debt collectors and have wage or bank account garnishments or liens on their home. This bill would also make it easier for consumers to fight back against debt collectors and debt buyers who try to collect from the wrong people.

Health Care

Healthcare Interpreter Reform (SB 1578):

Helps create a path toward fairer compensation for healthcare interpreters and increase access by creating a public online scheduling portal with billing and payment services for Medicaid healthcare interpreters in Oregon.

Democracy

Expanding Voters' Pamphlet Translation (SB 1533):

Increase the number of languages for the Voters’ Pamphlet from top 5 most spoken languages to top 10 statewide and increase the threshold for individual counties to include any language that has 100+ speakers to 300+.

Immigrant and Refugee Support

Establishing Immigrant and Refugee Student Success Plan (SB 1532):

Directs the Oregon Department of Education to develop an advisory committee to inform the development and implementation of a plan to support the success of immigrant and refugee students.

Fund Universal Legal Representation:

Continue funding to provide no-cost immigration legal services to Oregonians through a statewide collaborative of community based organizations, nonprofits and attorneys.