The Legislature Moves Toward Organization

“Planning for bipartisan coalition governance...” said House Speaker Dave Hunt the day after the November 2 election. The statement seems neither hopeful, nor hopeless. So how has the Legislature organized itself since the election?

The recounts are finished with no change to initial results. The Democrats still have a majority in the Senate, albeit this time by only one vote instead of three. Sen. Alan Bates, D-Ashland, is still a senator; Alan Olsen, R-Canby, will replace Senator Martha Schrader. Senator Peter Courtney, D-Salem, will remain the Senate President. Senator Richard Devlin, D-Tualatin, will co-chair the Full Ways and Means Committee, handing over control of the Senate Democratic Caucus to Sen. Diane Rosenbaum of Portland. Senate Committee assignments already have been decided.

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A Top 10 List of Questions for 2011

With apologies to David Letterman, here is a "Top 10 List of Political Questions for 2011" – and beyond.

1. Will Republicans and Democrats be able to co-exist – or even produce middle-ground compromise – in a House evenly-split with 30 Republicans and 30 Democrats?

2. Will Senate Democrats, with a thin 16-14 margin of control, be able to reckon with the split House as it processes legislation?

3. Will the new governor and legislators be able to reconcile state health care policy with national health care policy in a way that avoids deadline confusion for the public?

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Election Implication: Oregon as Health Care Laboratory Faces Uncertain Future

Governor-Elect John Kitzhaber, once an emergency room physician, may create a laboratory for health care reform in his new administration.A couple of years ago, the Oregonian editorialized in favor of Oregon "being a laboratory" for innovative health care reform in much the same way as happened when John Kitzhaber was governor.

Does that prospect still hold in the aftermath of the November election that will change the political landscape in Salem? The jury is out.

Here are some questions about the unknown future:

• What type of role will Governor-Elect John Kitzhaber play? During his 16 years of his previous state service, first as Senate President and then as Governor, he focused on health care, including with the then-innovative Oregon Health Plan. The demands of his office this time around – prodding economic recovery around the state – might get in the way of health care policy.

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Health Care Reform: Apples and Oregons

Oregon's health care system will look remarkably different by 2020, despite promises by Republicans in Congress to derail the health care reform legislation signed by President Obama last spring. Why? Because the Oregon legislature passed House Bill 2009, which requires health care reform at the state level, nearly a year before "Obamacare" went into effect.

While pundits are focused on the national battle over health care reform, the Oregon Health Authority quietly is hiring staff and making decisions about how to implement the provisions of HB 2009.

Many of the elements of HB 2009 are similar to the federal legislation. Oregon's timeline is similar, requiring full implementation by 2019. Oregon will have an Insurance Exchange by 2014, as required by the feds, and it will study the viability of a public option. HB 2009 requires changes to the way the delivery system works, including the organization of physicians into "medical homes." And it places emphasis on prevention by implementing financial incentives.

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Voters Will Decide Legislative Schedule

If voters approve Measure 72, the new carpet from the 2008 remodel will wear out more quickly.Measure 71, one of seven measures on the ballot this November, could change the way the Oregon legislature does business in significant and permanent ways. The measure calls for meetings every year and limits the length of sessions to 160 days in the odd-numbered years and 45 days in the even-numbered years.

Currently the Oregon constitution restricts meetings to every other year without a limit on length. The Oregon budget will continue on a biennial basis.

Legislators would meet for roughly the same number of days under the annual session schedule as they currently do in the six-month biennial session – five months in the odd-numbered years and a little more than a month in the even numbered years.

The new schedule likely will mean more legislation, more chances to tweak the budget and more work for everyone involved in the process.

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Key Dates and Themes for the 2011 Session

The 2011 legislative session is going to look different than past sessions. We've got the elements, theme and calendar to watch.

Elements of the 2011 session

• A February 1 "start" date. The Oregon constitution requires legislators to be sworn in on the second Monday in January. Legislators will show up January 10 for the customary pomp and circumstance. Pre-session-filed bills will get their first readings (so committees can get down to business when legislators return). Then the legislature will go into recess until February 1.

• The hard-and-fast deadline to adjourn on June 30. After the 2003 and 2005 sessions, when budget negotiations dragged on through the summer months, House and Senate leaders agreed upon and stuck to a June 30 goal in 2007 and 2009. Legislative leaders say they want to end earlier than June 30, but with huge budget problems and a shortened session, the legislature likely will need every minute it has to pass bills. There is no budget for legislative action past June 30, though.

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