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83rd OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2025 Regular Session
Senate Bill 671
Sponsored by Senator BONHAM (at the request of Senator Noah Robinson) (Presession filed.)
SUMMARY
The following summary is not prepared by the sponsors of the measure and is not a part of the body thereof subject
to consideration by the Legislative Assembly. It is an editor’s brief statement of the essential features of the
measure as introduced.The statement includes a measure digest written in compliance with applicable readability
standards.
Digest: Ends the OGEC. Tells certain heads of government to study how to do the work of the
OGEC and report to the legislature. Tells the OGEC to make a plan for local governments to do the
work of the OGEC and report to the legislature. (Flesch Readability Score: 71.2).
Dissolves the Oregon Government Ethics Commission as of July 2, 2027.
Requires the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Governor, Secretary of State, State Treasurer,
Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor and Industries and Attorney General to conduct studies and
report to the Legislative Assembly on how each entity would supervise identified public officials and
ensure that those public officials comply with all legal requirements currently overseen by the
Oregon Government Ethics Commission.
Requires the Oregon Government Ethics Commission to develop a plan and report to the Leg-
islative Assembly on the most efficient manner of making each local government and local service
district responsible for ensuring that public officials affiliated with the local government or local
service district comply with all legal requirements currently overseen by the Oregon Government
EthicsCommission.
A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to duties of the Oregon Government Ethics Commission; creating new provisions; and re-
pealing ORS 244.250.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1. ORS 244.250 is repealed.
SECTION 2.The repeal of ORS 244.250 by section 1 of this 2025 Act becomes operative
on July 2, 2027.
SECTION 3.(1) The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court shall conduct a study and, sub-
ject to subsection (8) of this section, determine how the judicial department can be made
solely responsible for ensuring that public officials in the judicial department, or public offi-
cials for whom a public official in the judicial department serves as the appointing authority,
comply with all legal requirements currently enforced by the Oregon Government Ethics
Commission, including but not limited to governmental ethics set forth in ORS chapter 244,
executive session provisions of the Oregon public meetings law set forth in ORS 192.610 to
192.705 and the regulation of lobbying set forth in ORS 171.725 to 171.785 and 171.992. The
Chief Justice shall submit a report in the manner provided by ORS 192.245, and must include
recommendations for legislation, to the interim committees of the Legislative Assembly re-
lated to government ethics no later than September 15, 2026.
(2) The Governor shall conduct a study and, subject to subsection (8) of this section, de-
termine how the Governor or the Governor’s designee can be made solely responsible for
ensuring that public officials in the office of the Governor, public officials in the executive
department who are not described in subsections (3) to (7) of this section or public officials
for whom the Governor serves as the appointing authority, comply with all legal require-
ments currently enforced by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission, including but not
NOTE:Matter in boldfaced type in an amended section is new; matter [italic and bracketed] is existing law to be omitted.
New sections are in boldfaced type.
LC 3230 SB671
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limited to governmental ethics set forth in ORS chapter 244, executive session provisions of
the Oregon public meetings law set forth in ORS 192.610 to 192.705 and the regulation of
lobbying set forth in ORS 171.725 to 171.785 and 171.992. The Governor shall submit a report
in the manner provided by ORS 192.245, and must include recommendations for legislation,
to the interim committees of the Legislative Assembly related to government ethics no later
than September 15, 2026.
(3) The Secretary of State shall conduct a study and, subject to subsection (8) of this
section, determine how the secretary or the secretary’s designee can be made solely re-
sponsible for ensuring that public officials in the office of the Secretary of State, or public
officials for whom the Secretary of State serves as the appointing authority, comply with all
legal requirements currently enforced by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission, in-
cluding but not limited to governmental ethics set forth in ORS chapter 244, executive ses-
sion provisions of the Oregon public meetings law set forth in ORS 192.610 to 192.705 and the
regulation of lobbying set forth in ORS 171.725 to 171.785 and 171.992. The secretary shall
submit a report in the manner provided by ORS 192.245, and must include recommendations
for legislation, to the interim committees of the Legislative Assembly related to government
ethics no later than September 15, 2026.
(4) The State Treasurer shall conduct a study and, subject to subsection (8) of this sec-
tion, determine how the State Treasurer or the State Treasurer’s designee can be made
solely responsible for ensuring that public officials in the office of the State Treasurer, or
public officials for whom the State Treasurer serves as the appointing authority, comply with
all legal requirements currently enforced by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission,
including but not limited to governmental ethics set forth in ORS chapter 244, executive
session provisions of the Oregon public meetings law set forth in ORS 192.610 to 192.705 and
the regulation of lobbying set forth in ORS 171.725 to 171.785 and 171.992. The State Treasurer
shall submit a report in the manner provided by ORS 192.245, and must include recommen-
dations for legislation, to the interim committees of the Legislative Assembly related to
government ethics no later than September 15, 2026.
(5) The Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor and Industries shall conduct a study and,
subject to subsection (8) of this section, determine how the commissioner or the
commissioner’s designee can be made solely responsible for ensuring that public officials in
the office of the commissioner, or public officials for whom the commissioner serves as the
appointing authority, comply with all legal requirements currently enforced by the Oregon
Government Ethics Commission, including but not limited to governmental ethics set forth
in ORS chapter 244, executive session provisions of the Oregon public meetings law set forth
in ORS 192.610 to 192.705 and the regulation of lobbying set forth in ORS 171.725 to 171.785
and 171.992. The commissioner shall submit a report in the manner provided by ORS 192.245,
and must include recommendations for legislation, to the interim committees of the Legis-
lative Assembly related to government ethics no later than September 15, 2026.
(6)(a) The Oregon Government Ethics Commission shall conduct a study and, subject to
subsection (8) of this section:
(A) Determine the most efficient method for making each local government and local
service district solely responsible for ensuring that public officials affiliated with the local
government or local service district comply with all legal requirements currently enforced
by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission, including but not limited to governmental
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ethics set forth in ORS chapter 244, executive session provisions of the Oregon public
meetings law set forth in ORS 192.610 to 192.705 and the regulation of lobbying set forth in
ORS 171.725 to 171.785 and 171.992; and
(B) Ensure the orderly dissolution of the Oregon Government Ethics Commission as of
July 2, 2027.
(b) The Oregon Government Ethics Commission shall submit a report in the manner
provided by ORS 192.245, and must include recommendations for legislation, to the interim
committees of the Legislative Assembly related to government ethics no later than Septem-
ber 15, 2026.
(7) The Attorney General shall conduct a study to determine how the Attorney General
or the Attorney General’s designee can be made solely responsible for ensuring that public
officials in the office of the Attorney General, public officials who are part of a special gov-
ernment body, public officials for whom the Attorney General serves as the appointing au-
thority and any public official who is not described in subsections (1) to (6) of this section
and who is not part of the legislative department, comply with all legal requirements cur-
rently enforced by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission, including but not limited to
governmental ethics set forth in ORS chapter 244, executive session provisions of the Oregon
public meetings law set forth in ORS 192.610 to 192.705 and the regulation of lobbying set
forth in ORS 171.725 to 171.785 and 171.992. The Attorney General shall submit a report in
the manner provided by ORS 192.245, and must include recommendations for legislation, to
the interim committees of the Legislative Assembly related to government ethics no later
than September 15, 2026.
(8)(a) Reports submitted under this section must include a method for members of the
general public to bring a claim in circuit court alleging that:
(A) A public official has failed to comply with a legal requirement currently enforced by
the Oregon Government Ethics Commission; and
(B) The entity responsible for ensuring compliance with the legal requirement has failed
to sanction a public official described in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph in the manner
required by law.
(b) Except as provided in subsection (7) of this section, and notwithstanding any other
provision of law, the Attorney General may not provide legal advice or be in any way involved
in:
(A) Advising public officials about the responsibility of a public official regarding legal
requirements currently enforced by the Oregon Government Ethics Commission; or
(B) Defending a public official in a contested proceeding regarding an allegation that the
public official violated a legal requirement currently enforced by the Oregon Government
EthicsCommission.
(9) As used in this section:
(a) “Executive department” has the meaning given that term in ORS 174.112.
(b) “Judicial department” has the meaning given that term in ORS 174.113.
(c) “Legislative department” has the meaning given that term in ORS 174.114.
(d) “Local government” and “local service district” have the meanings given those terms
in ORS 174.116.
(e) “Public official” has the meaning given that term in ORS 244.020.
SECTION 4. Section 3 of this 2025 Act is repealed on January 2, 2028.
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