Successful experiments can produce meaningful change, but if they are disastrous, can have the opposite effect. The Oregon Legislature’s recent month-long political experiment of holding annual sessions ended late Friday night and left lawmakers scratching their heads as to the success of the trial run.
One thing is for sure, however: a debate in the 2009 legislature about whether Oregon should join the 44 other states in the U.S. that hold annual legislative sessions.
Adding to the different feel of the special session, a number of representatives and senators are running for state-wide positions such as secretary of state and attorney general, and House Speaker Jeff Merkley, D-Portland, is running for U.S. Senate against Republican incumbent Gordon Smith.
Some of those members were accused of political posturing, as critics said legislators may have used the special legislative session as a pulpit for campaign issues.
When asked if Merkley used this session to further his senatorial hopes, House Republican spokesman Nick Smith responded, “Yes, absolutely. This is politics and we’re only a couple of months away from the primaries; there was definitely politicking going on there.”
While Merkley’s communications director Russ Kelly passed on responding to the statement, he offered a positive view on the outcomes of the February session.
“Some of the important things we did really showed that annual session could be successful,” Kelly said. “We came in for 19 days and really got down to business. Oregonians are definitely the winners in this special session.”
The shortened session was limited to one month with the expiration date of Feb. 29. Lawmakers finished ahead of schedule, but in those 19 days they managed to pass 73 measures.
Legislators closed a few loopholes that existed in current laws and regulations, improved public safety, protected children and seniors and addressed recent crises.
? Senate Bill 1072: Changes attending dog fights or possessing dogfighting paraphernalia from a misdemeanor to a felony.
? House Bill 3631: Prohibits retailers from selling dangerous toys that are on recall or warning lists.
? SB 1087: Increases prison terms for people convicted of drug or property crimes.
? SB 1061: Requires the development or a plan for long-term senior care.
? SB 1069: Directs state agencies to fund studies to increase water supply for ranchers and farmers suffering from water shortage.
? HB 3612: Directs state agencies to reduce non-renewable energy usage in state-owned facilities by 20 percent by the year 2015.? Budget Allocations: One allotment helped Oregonians who were victims of floods this winter, and another allocation will help Oregon State Police hire enough troopers to provide 24-7 coverage on Oregon highways.
While many lauded the special session for addressing such pressing issues, some critics say there are a lot of bugs that need to be worked out, such as the length of time for in-depth issues to be properly addressed, ability of the smaller GOP to introduce minority reports and ability of individual representatives to introduce bills instead of the current restriction that only allows committees in the House to introduce bills.
Smith said there was a lot of partisan politics going on, and added, “We wouldn’t call it a disaster … however, there are several things about the session that would need to be fixed.”
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