During a hectic week in Oregon, as Governor Kate Brown has decided to call a ‘closed-to-the public’ Special Legislative Session, where normal legislative rules are to be overlooked in an unfamiliar capitol environment where “social-distancing” rules are to be mandated in the building. Here, as observers have recently noted, we are once again seeing some rules- that were once in effect, now deemed “non-essential”. We all have certainly become familiar with these terms as of late, whether we believe if they do legitimately work, or not.

Senate Minority Republican Leader Fred Girod has released the following statement citing concern over the Special Session rules adopted:

“The rules the Senate Republicans voted against included that only the Senate President and Speaker of the House have the capabilities to create bills or amendments during the special session, not any other sitting legislator. “The rights of the minority, no matter who the minority party is, are extremely important and they are compromised by these special session rules,” said Senate Republican Leader Fred Girod (R-Stayton). “Without the ability to create or amend legislation, my colleagues and I are legislators by name only during the special session.”

The second rule change the Republicans voted against was about the lack of transparency in the process. Typically dependent on the participation of Oregonians, the rule change largely excludes citizens from the legislative process during the special session. Senator Girod continued,

“In the midst of this pandemic, why is the Governor willing to risk the health of legislators by calling the special session, yet prevent Oregonians from being part of the process? No matter how you want to phrase it, this is the building of the people, not legislators.”

Despite the plea of concern, which observers have also noted as being echoed by the public, Oregon Democrats will likely push through policy legislation as quickly as they possibly can, while affording themselves extra powers to accomplish what they might not be able to normally -all while cutting the public out of the normal process. One can only hope that the people of Oregon will weather the effects of this legislation that is likely to be passed by this often excessively authoritarian Democrat Majority.

To see a full list of the bills that will be considered during the special session and to keep up with everything happening in the Joint Committee on the First Special Session of 2020, click here.


--Ben Fisher

Post Date: 2020-06-24 16:27:14

Last Update: 2020-06-25 07:43:12