Legislative Briefs
Mandatory reporting changes and child abuse interviews on school premises
Senate Bill 1540
What it does: The bill as drafted would exempt from the definition of “abuse” any sexual contact or intercourse between a youth over age 14 and a person under age 21 when the person is not three years older than the youth and sexual contact is not the result of force or coercion.
What’s new: The bill was heard Tuesday in the Senate Human Services Committee. Two amendments to the bill were adopted. The first authorizes the Department of Human Services or law enforcement to conduct abuse investigations on school premises. This is a technical fix to Senate Bill 101, passed in 2017. The second amendment reduces the age in the bill from 14 to 12 to coincide with the Oregon Health Authority guidance in the Public Health Departments Reproductive Health materials.
What’s next: The bill moved to the floor of the Senate for a vote. OSBA has been working to get some unintended consequences corrected because of SB 101’s passage in 2017. This bill will help guide districts when law enforcement or DHS comes to the building to interview a student for an abuse investigation purpose.
Concussions and student athletes
Senate Bill 1547
What it does: The bill would expand the definition of health care providers who can return a student to play after suffering a concussion. The bill also would set up the framework for certification/training for health care providers to complete before seeing a student athlete wanting a release to return to play.
What’s new: The bill was met with lots of testimony from supporters for the expansion of the provider list and current health care providers who are advocating exemption from additional requirements on concussion training.
What’s next: The bill will be brought back before the House Health Care Committee on Monday, Feb. 12. OSBA has many concerns about students who may have suffered a concussion and how those student athletes return to the classroom and the field. OSBA will continue to be involved in the conversation as the bill is brought for a vote this week.
Governor’s PERS bill
Senate Bill 1566
What it does: The bill would set up a comprehensive structure that would help school districts deal with the rising costs of their unfunded actuarial liability (UAL) with the Public Employees Retirement System. The bill would put school districts ahead of other jurisdictions for additional financial support because the “school pool” has the largest UAL. The bill would use various funding sources that will require more analysis before the conversation in 2019 about the actual capitalization of the “education side accounts” and the employer incentive fund.
What’s new: The bill has had two public hearings in the Senate Workforce Committee with support from the unions and management for the structure and conversations about how to tackle the problem.
What’s next: The bill is scheduled for work sessions this week and is expected to move out of committee. OSBA supports the structure outlined in the bill and will remain engaged in the conversations about how to fund the program.