PORTLAND — New Oregon laws taking effect Jan. 1 will put new limits on checkout bags from retail stores, allow people to have old marijuana convictions expunged and outlaw the practice of summoning police to arrest people of color engaged in innocuous behavior.
Bicyclists will now be allowed to roll through stop signs when there’s no oncoming traffic.
Schools will face multiple new mandates: to teach about the Holocaust and other genocides, step up their response to suicide and teach diverse perspectives including those of Native Americans and LGBTQ people.
Oregonians should also expect to pay a bit more for some goods and services. A new gross receipts tax on business established to put more dollars in school coffers kicks in Jan 1. Business will start paying 0.57% on most of their sales in Oregon above $1 million, excluding groceries, gas, hospitals and long-term care businesses.
To offset anticipated increases in consumers prices, the bill that creates the tax for schools also cuts personal income tax rates by .25 percent.
Housing affordability and rent control was a major topic for lawmakers this year. Starting Jan. 1, landlords will be barred from charging multiple fees when screening potential tenants’ applications for multiple locations.
The new year will also bring an end to restrictions on so-called “skinny lots” in cities with more than 25,000 people. Senate Bill 534 aims to increase residential density and requires local governments to allow development of at least one housing unit on each platted lot zoned for a single-family dwelling that is within the urban growth boundary.
Former foster children will also get help qualifying to rent apartments, under a program at Oregon Housing and Community Services. The program guarantees payments to landlords for unpaid rent in the case of eviction, as well as property damage costs, within the first 12 months of the rental or lease agreement.
Oregon voters have made it clear that they don’t view adults who use marijuana recreationally as criminals, so lawmakers passed two new laws to retroactively extend that view back in time starting Jan. 1. Senate Bill 975 creates a pathway for people with marijuana convictions to ask a judge to reduce the seriousness of the crime to match current law. Senate Bill 420, meanwhile, allows those previously convicted of marijuana possession, delivery and manufacture to apply to set aside the convictions and seal the old records if the conduct is no longer a crime.
When it comes to education, lawmakers want to help make things more affordable from preschool to college.
As of Jan. 1, each community college and public university in Oregon must have a textbook affordability plan. The state will also add slots at preschools to deliver more high-quality infant and toddler care for families with incomes at or below 200 percent of federal poverty guidelines.
Changes are also coming to Oregon’s 529 College Savings Plan intended to help low- and moderate-income families. House Bill 2164 will now allow families to receive a refundable tax credit — a direct reduction to their tax bill — as high as $300 for contributions to the plan after Jan. 1, replacing the current tax deduction for contributions. Individual filers can receive a credit as high as $150. The credit is based on the filer’s income, and ranges from 100% of contributions for those making less than $30,000 to 5% of contributions for those making more than $250,000.
Protections for pregnant workers, patients facing death
The Legislature is never silent on health care issues, and 2019 was no exception.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death among 10 to 24-year-olds in Oregon so starting Jan. 1, schools, public colleges and other education entities are expected to partner with the state to improve their handling of suspected suicides. Senate Bill 485 requires the Oregon Health Authority to collaborate with them on a communication plan for responding to suspected suicides of those 24 years or younger.
Senate Bill 665 allows trained personnel at schools to administer the anti-overdose medicine naloxone and similar medications if a someone overdoses on opioids at school, on school property or at a school-sponsored activity.
Also as of Jan. 1, Oregon residents will have expanded rights to use the state’s widely hailed Death with Dignity Act. Senate Bill 579 waives the 15-day waiting period after a doctor finds a person qualified for assisted suicide if the doctor determines that the person will likely die during that time.
Another new law will assure pregnant workers that job demands will be modified to accommodate their health. House Bill 2341 makes it unlawful for employers to deny employment opportunities or fail to make reasonable accommodations when an employee or applicant has limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth or a related medical condition.
Oregon consumers and regulators will also be better informed before any prescription drug undergoes a steep price hike. House Bill 2658 requires drug companies to report to Department of Consumer and Business Services when they plan to increase the price of a brand name drug by 10% or more or by $10,000 over a 12-month period. Notification is required for generic drugs when the price increase is at least 25% or $300 over a 12- month period. The notification needs to happen 60 days before the price increase.
Jobs are always a hot topic among lawmakers, particularly in rural areas, and a law taking effect Jan. 1 reflects that.
Senate Bill 2 permits counties in eastern Oregon to designate up to 50 acres outside urban growth boundaries where they can override farmland protections to promote for industrial and other employment uses.
In the past year, police in Oregon were summoned to respond to, among other incidents, a black man sitting in a hotel lobby and a black lawmaker going door-to-door to talk to constituents. House Bill 3216, which takes effect Jan. 1, responds to that. It makes it a crime to summon a police officer with the intent to discriminate against someone or infringe on their constitutional rights.
Two new laws give prisoners new rights as of Jan. 2. Senate Bill 495 prohibits guards from using dogs to remove anyone in custody from their cell. Prisoners also must be provided free tampons, sanitary pads, postpartum pads and panty liners.
Oregonians will also have more protection against revenge porn. Intimate images disclosed through any means, not just via a website, will be illegal to disseminate without consent
Lawmakers also changed some laws affecting voting and public officeholders.
House Bill 2595 lengthens to a full year the period during which former lawmakers are barred from paid lobbying.
Starting in the new year, people who advertise for a political cause or candidate will have to disclose the main financial backers, as is already the case for candidates for federal office.
And people and groups seeking to get a measure before voters will also face more hurdles. Senate Bill 761 means initiative supporters can no longer hand out copies of electronic signature sheets for multiple voters to sign. Instead, each voter must sign a separate form containing the complete text of the proposed measure — a requirement that could require a multipage printout for each signature submission.
Lawmakers also passed new protections for lab animals, low-income computer users and wildlife.
Senate Bill 638 requires research facilities that use dogs or cats for laboratory research to offer them for adoption prior to euthanasia.
Senate Bill 69 requires the Public Utility Commission to establish a program to assist low-income Oregonians – including those who qualify for food stamps – to afford broadband Internet.
And Senate Bill 580 prohibits the use of cyanide devices to control wildlife.
Oregonians will have new assurances they’ll be protected against oil spills or coastal drilling. As of Jan. 1, railroads that own or operate high hazard train routes must have state-approved oil spill contingency plans.
Also on the environmental front, House Bill 2509 bans single-use checkout bags at retail stores. Single-use plastic bags are banned altogether, and recycled paper will cost 5 cents a bag. Statewide.
Senate Bill 256, meanwhile, makes permanent the state’s moratorium on oil, gas and sulfur leasing within three miles of the coastline.
Oregon will join Idaho in letting bicyclists maintain their momentum when biking past stop signs, a maneuver known as an “Idaho stop.” As of Jan. 1, it’s legal for bicyclists to go through intersections with stop signs or flashing red lights without stopping. But they’ll also face new requirements: There are violations police can impose when a biker fails to yield to traffic at an intersection, disobeys a police officer or flagger, fails to exercise care to avoid an accident or fails to yield the right of way to a pedestrian.
