Oregon GOP senators force a recess
By Terry Murry on Tuesday, May 2nd, 2023 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
SALEM – Sen. Suzanne Weber (R-Tillamook) called for a point of order on the floor of the Oregon Senate Monday saying that House Bill 2285 fails to meet the readability standards laid out in Senate rules and the Oregon Revised Statute. Republicans say that bill and many others are unlawful.
The Oregon Constitution requires every legislative act be plainly worded, avoiding as far as practicable the use of technical terms. As a result of the point of order, Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp (R-Bend) said the GOP lawmakers are closing down business due to the lack of clarity in Democrat-sponsored legislation.
“Government attorneys are required to write bill summaries in clear and simple language so every Oregonian can understand what their elected representatives are doing in the Legislature,” he wrote in a prepared statement. “This is made clear in Senate Rules, in Oregon’s Constitution, and further clarified in statute. We will not conduct business until a remedy is agreed upon.”
The Oregon Senate is standing in recess until there is a legal ruling from the presiding officer. Knopp said Republicans have been very clear about the need for understandable language in legislation since the session began.
“Transparency and accountability are required for our system to thrive,” he said.
House Bill 2285 would “remove obsolete provisions relating to the Social Security Revolving Account,” according to the brief descriptive supplied by legislative staff. It was filed at the request of then-Gov. Kate Brown for the Public Employees Retirement System.
