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83rd OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2025 Regular Session
Senate Bill 971
Sponsored by Senator GELSER BLOUIN
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: The Act tells DAS to set up a program to train educational surrogates. (Flesch Read-
ability Score: 63.4).
Directs the Department of Administrative Services to contract with a disability protection and
advocacy agency to develop and administer a certification program for educational surrogates.
Appropriates moneys to the Department of Administrative Services for the certification pro-
gram.
Takes effect on the 91st day following adjournment sine die.
A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to educational surrogates; creating new provisions; amending ORS 419B.220 and 419B.223;
and prescribing an effective date.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1. Educational surrogate certification program. (1) The Department of Admin-
istrative Services shall enter into a contract with a nonprofit organization to develop and
administer a certification program for educational surrogates. In awarding the contract, the
department shall consult with the Oregon Council on Developmental Disabilities and organ-
izations that provide support, programs and resources to children with disabilities and their
families.
(2) The program must provide training and instruction on, at a minimum:
(a) The history of section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. 794, the Americans with
Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. 12131-12165, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act,
20 U.S.C. 1400 et seq.;
(b) The individualized education program process;
(c) Negotiation and communication skills;
(d) The filing of formal complaints and requests for mediation;
(e) Behavior support needs and options;
(f) Abbreviated school days;
(g) Restraint and seclusion;
(h) Student discipline; and
(i) Transportation.
(3)(a) The program shall require at least 20 hours of training for an educational
surrogate’s initial certification and three hours of training every two years thereafter for
recertification.
(b) The program shall require applicants to demonstrate proficiency in the program ma-
terials in writing and orally at the time of initial certification and each recertification
thereafter.
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.
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(c) An initial certification is valid for two years. At the end of the two years, and every
four years thereafter, the applicant must apply for recertification.
(4) The program administrator shall maintain a current list of certified educational sur-
rogates and make that list available to the Department of Education, the CASA Volunteer
Program as defined in ORS 184.489, the Department of Human Services, the Judicial De-
partment and nonprofit organizations that provide support, programs and resources to fam-
ilies experiencing disability.
(5)(a) The program administrator’s compensation must reflect reasonable reimbursement
for the provision of training, travel, facility rental, translation services and material devel-
opment.
(b) The program administrator shall calculate the certification program tuition by divid-
ing the program administrator’s compensation under this subsection by the anticipated
number of participants for the given year.
(6)(a) The program shall administer a grant program for certification applicants to cover
certification program tuition, travel expenses and a daily stipend.
(b) To be eligible to receive a grant under this subsection, a certification applicant must:
(A) Commit to a minimum of two years of service as an educational surrogate;
(B) Agree to accept court appointment under ORS 419B.220 for a minimum of four stu-
dents per school year; and
(C) Agree not to take on other clients for pay as an education advocate in a given school
year until the applicant has been appointed under ORS 419B.220 for at least eight students
in the school year.
(7) The program may accept a certification applicant that is not a grant recipient under
subsection (6) of this section if space remains available in a given training session. The pro-
gram shall charge a certification applicant attending under this section the certification
program tuition calculated under subsection (5)(b) of this section.
(8) As used in this section, “program administrator” means the nonprofit organization
contracted with by the Department of Administrative Services to administer the certification
program.
SECTION 2. Section 1 of this 2025 Act is amended to read:
Sec. 1. (1) The Department of Administrative Services shall enter into a contract with a
nonprofit organization to develop and administer a certification program for educational surrogates.
In awarding the contract, the department shall consult with the Oregon Council on Developmental
Disabilities and organizations that provide support, programs and resources to children with disa-
bilities and their families.
(2) The program must provide training and instruction on, at a minimum:
(a) The history of section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. 794, the Americans with Dis-
abilities Act, 42 U.S.C. 12131-12165, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C.
1400 et seq.;
(b) The individualized education program process;
(c) Negotiation and communication skills;
(d) The filing of formal complaints and requests for mediation;
(e) Behavior support needs and options;
(f) Abbreviated school days;
(g) Restraint and seclusion;
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(h) Student discipline; and
(i) Transportation.
(3)(a) The program shall require at least 20 hours of training for an educational surrogate’s in-
itial certification and three hours of training every two years thereafter for recertification.
(b) The program shall require applicants to demonstrate proficiency in the program materials in
writing and orally at the time of initial certification and each recertification thereafter.
(c) An initial certification is valid for two years. At the end of the two years, and every four
years thereafter, the applicant must apply for recertification.
(4) The program administrator shall maintain a current list of certified educational surrogates
and make that list available to the Department of Education, the CASA Volunteer Program as de-
fined in ORS 184.489, the Department of Human Services, the Judicial Department and nonprofit
organizations that provide support, programs and resources to families experiencing disability.
(5)(a) The program administrator’s compensation must reflect reasonable reimbursement for the
provision of training, travel, facility rental, translation services and material development.
(b) The program administrator shall calculate the certification program tuition by dividing the
program administrator’s compensation under this subsection by the anticipated number of partic-
ipants for the given year.
(6)(a) The program shall administer a grant program for certification applicants to cover certi-
fication program tuition, travel expenses and a daily stipend.
(b) To be eligible to receive a grant under this subsection, a certification applicant must:
(A) Commit to a minimum of two years of service as an educational surrogate;
(B) Agree to accept court appointment under ORS 419B.220 for a minimum of four students per
school year; and
(C) Agree not to take on other clients for pay as an education advocate in a given school year
until the applicant has been appointed under ORS 419B.220 for at least eight students in the school
year.
(7) The program may accept a certification applicant that is not a grant recipient under sub-
section (6) of this section if space remains available in a given training session. The program shall
charge a certification applicant attending under this section the certification program tuition cal-
culated under subsection (5)(b) of this section.
(8) The program shall develop and administer an abbreviated training program for sur-
rogates appointed under ORS 419B.220 (3).
[(8)] (9) As used in this section, “program administrator” means the nonprofit organization con-
tracted with by the Department of Administrative Services to administer the certification program.
SECTION 3. Certification program tuition. Except as otherwise provided by the Depart-
ment of Administrative Services by rule, the program administrator under section 1 of this
2025 Act shall calculate the educational surrogate certification program tuition under section
1 (5)(b) of this 2025 Act.
SECTION 4. ORS 419B.220 is amended to read:
419B.220. (1) Upon the request of any party, the court shall appoint a surrogate for a child who
is temporarily or permanently in the custody of, or committed to, a public or private agency through
the action of the juvenile court if:
(a) The court finds that the child may be eligible for special education programs because of a
disabling condition as provided in ORS chapter 343;
(b) The child does not already have a surrogate appointed by a school district or other educa-
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tional agency; and
(c) The requesting party nominates a person who is willing to serve as the surrogate and who
meets the requirements described in subsection (2) of this section.
(2) A surrogate appointed under this section:
(a) May not be an employee of the state educational agency, a school district or any other
agency that is involved in the education or care of the child;
(b) May not have a conflict of interest that would interfere with the surrogate representing the
special education interests of the child;
(c) [Shall] Must have knowledge and skills that ensure that the surrogate can adequately rep-
resent the child in special education decisions; [and]
(d) Must be certified as provided in section 1 of this 2025 Act; and
[(d)] (e) May not be a person who is the child’s parent, guardian or former guardian if:
(A) At any time while the child was under the care, custody or control of the person, a court
entered an order:
(i) Taking the child into protective custody under ORS 419B.150; or
(ii) Committing the child to the legal custody of the Department of Human Services for care,
placement and supervision under ORS 419B.337; and
(B) The court entered a subsequent order that:
(i) The child should be permanently removed from the person’s home, or continued in substitute
care, because it was not safe for the child to be returned to the person’s home, and no subsequent
order of the court was entered that permitted the child to return to the person’s home before the
child’s wardship was terminated under ORS 419B.328; or
(ii) Terminated the person’s parental rights under ORS 419B.500 and 419B.502 to 419B.524.
(3) Notwithstanding subsection (2)(d) of this section, a court may appoint a surrogate
that is not certified under section 1 of this 2025 Act if, after a reasonable search, there are
no certified surrogates available to serve.
(4) The court may set a reasonable rate for compensation of a surrogate appointed under
this section, to be paid by the Department of Human Services.
SECTION 5. ORS 419B.223 is amended to read:
419B.223. (1) A person that is appointed surrogate for a ward has the duty and authority to
protect the due process rights of the ward with respect to the provision of free appropriate public
education.
(2) A surrogate appointed by the court shall immediately apply to the attending school district
for an evaluation of the ward’s eligibility for special education and shall participate in the devel-
opment of the ward’s educational plan as provided in ORS chapter 343.
(3) The duties and responsibilities of the surrogate shall continue until whichever of the fol-
lowing occurs first:
(a) The surrogate is dismissed by the court;
[(1)] (b) The ward is 21 years of age;
[(2)] (c) The ward is determined to be no longer eligible for special education; or
[(3)] (d) The juvenile court terminates wardship and determines that the child’s parent or
guardian is both known and available to protect the special educational rights of the child.
(4) After a surrogate’s duties have discontinued based on subsection (3)(a) or (c) of this
section, the surrogate may provide continuing advocacy services:
(a) As engaged by the Department of Human Services; or
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(b) Upon the request of the family.
SECTION 6. Appropriation. (1) There is appropriated to the Department of Administra-
tive Services, for the biennium beginning July 1, 2025, out of the General Fund, the amount
of $_______ for the purpose of establishing the certification program described in section 1
of this 2025 Act, including for costs associated with developing the program curricula, staff,
data management platform and other necessary expenses.
(2) There is appropriated to the Department of Administrative Services, for the biennium
beginning July 1, 2025, out of the General Fund, the amount of $_______ for the purpose of
administering the certification program described in section 1 of this 2025 Act, including for
the program administrator’s compensation and the certification applicant grant program.
SECTION 7. The amendments to section 1 of this 2025 Act by section 2 of this 2025 Act
and the amendments to ORS 419B.220 and 419B.223 by sections 4 and 5 of this 2025 Act be-
come operative on July 1, 2028.
SECTION 8. The section captions used in this 2025 Act are provided only for the con-
venience of the reader and do not become part of the statutory law of this state or express
any legislative intent in the enactment of this 2025 Act.
SECTION 9.This 2025 Act takes effect on the 91st day after the date on which the 2025
regular session of the Eighty-third Legislative Assembly adjourns sine die.
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