Bill Text: OR HB3459 | 2013 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to the Office of Small Business Assistance; appropriating money; and declaring an emergency.
Sponsorship: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 14-6)
Status: (Passed) 2013-07-29 - Chapter 699, (2013 Laws): Effective date July 29, 2013. [HB3459 Detail]
Download: Oregon-2013-HB3459-Enrolled.html
77th OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2013 Regular Session
Enrolled
House Bill 3459
Sponsored by Representatives MCKEOWN, GOMBERG, FAGAN, SMITH,
THATCHER, Senator KNOPP; Representatives BARTON, GALLEGOS,
GORSEK, HOLVEY, KENNEMER, READ, REARDON, THOMPSON, UNGER, VEGA
PEDERSON, WHITSETT, WILLIAMSON, Senators HASS, ROBLAN
CHAPTER ................
AN ACT
Relating to the Office of Small Business Assistance; creating new
provisions; amending ORS 56.041; appropriating money; limiting
expenditures; and declaring an emergency.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1. { + Sections 2 to 5 of this 2013 Act are added to
and made a part of ORS chapter 56. + }
SECTION 2. { + As used in sections 2 to 5 of this 2013 Act:
(1) 'Small business' means a prospective, new or established
business with 100 or fewer employees that is or will be located
in Oregon.
(2) 'State agency' means an agency of the executive department,
as defined in ORS 174.112. + }
SECTION 3. { + (1) The Office of Small Business Assistance is
established within the Office of Secretary of State. The
Secretary of State shall employ and appoint personnel necessary
to perform the functions and duties of the Office of Small
Business Assistance.
(2) The Office of Small Business Assistance shall:
(a) Assist state agencies with regulatory authority over small
businesses to ensure that small businesses that are subject to
audit, on-site inspection, compliance monitoring or compliance
assistance efforts by state agencies, or that receive
enforcement-related communications from or have contacts with
state agencies with regulatory authority over small businesses,
are provided with the means to comment on these interactions with
state agencies.
(b) Work with state agencies for the purpose of facilitating
interactions between small businesses and state agencies,
including but not limited to obtaining timely responses to small
business inquiries and requests, and resolving issues that arise
in the administrative, regulatory and enforcement functions of
state agencies with respect to small businesses.
(c) Work with small businesses and state agencies to identify
and recommend efficient, responsive and nonretaliatory processes
for:
(A) Receiving concerns or complaints from small businesses
regarding interactions with state agencies;
(B) Participation of small businesses in general studies,
conferences, inquiries or meetings that would improve the
Enrolled House Bill 3459 (HB 3459-B) Page 1
functioning of state agencies with regulatory authority over
small businesses;
(C) Identifying causes of unnecessary delays, inconsistencies
in the administrative, regulatory and enforcement functions of
state agencies and inefficient uses of state resources; and
(D) Making recommendations for resolving issues and disputes
that arise in the context of interactions between state agencies
and small businesses.
(3) All state agencies shall cooperate with and assist the
Office of Small Business Assistance in the performance of its
duties and functions.
(4) Writings and information provided to, and communications
with, the Office of Small Business Assistance under subsection
(2) of this section are confidential and exempt from disclosure
under ORS 192.410 to 192.505, except as necessary to prepare the
report required under section 4 of this 2013 Act.
(5) The Secretary of State may adopt rules necessary to
implement the provisions of sections 2 to 5 of this 2013 Act. + }
SECTION 4. { + (1) In addition to the duties and
responsibilities described in section 3 of this 2013 Act, the
Office of Small Business Assistance may, except as provided in
subsection (2) of this section, conduct reviews and
investigations of complaints received from small businesses with
respect to interactions with state agencies.
(2) The office may not review and investigate a complaint under
this section if the office determines that:
(a) The complainant could reasonably be expected to use, or is
using, an alternative remedy or recourse for the complaint;
(b) The complaint relates to a matter outside the jurisdiction
of the office;
(c) The complaint was delayed too long to justify review and
investigation;
(d) The complainant does not have sufficient personal interest
in, or is not personally aggrieved or affected by the subject
matter of, the complaint;
(e) The complaint is trivial, frivolous, vexatious or not made
in good faith;
(f) The resources of the office are insufficient for adequate
review and investigation of the complaint;
(g) The review and investigation of other complaints take
precedence over the review and investigation of the complaint; or
(h) The complaint is the subject of pending litigation, a
pending contested case proceeding under ORS chapter 183 or an
agency action that could result in a contested case proceeding
under ORS chapter 183.
(3) The office shall notify a complainant as to whether the
office will review and investigate the complaint within 30 days
of receiving the complaint.
(4) If the office has undertaken a review and investigation of
the complaint:
(a) Upon the complainant's request, the office shall inform the
complainant of the status of the review and investigation; and
(b) Upon conclusion of the review and investigation, the office
shall:
(A) Inform the complainant of the office's conclusions and
recommendations; and
(B) Provide the complainant with a copy of the report prepared
under subsection (6) of this section.
(5) The office may make recommendations to a state agency for
resolution of a complaint made under this section and work with
Enrolled House Bill 3459 (HB 3459-B) Page 2
the agency to resolve the complaint. The office may also contact
and discuss a complaint with the administrative head of any state
agency, any state agency manager, the Governor or any member of
the public for the purpose of obtaining the cooperation and
assistance of a state agency with the complaint resolution
process.
(6)(a) Upon completing the review and investigation of a
complaint under this section, the office shall prepare a report
containing the office's conclusions and recommendations.
(b) Before finalizing, and providing copies of, the report
prepared under this subsection, the office shall provide the
state agency that is the subject of the report with a preliminary
report.
(c) Upon receipt of the preliminary report, the state agency
shall have not more than 15 days to comment on the report.
(d) If the state agency chooses to comment on the preliminary
report, the final report shall include a section that contains
the agency's comments.
(e) The office shall provide copies of the final report
prepared under this subsection to the Secretary of State. + }
SECTION 5. { + A person who makes a complaint or who
participates in a review and investigation of a complaint under
section 4 of this 2013 Act may not be subject to a penalty,
sanction or restriction in connection with the person's
employment or be denied any right, privilege or benefit because
of the complaint or because of any review and investigation of
the complaint. + }
SECTION 6. ORS 56.041 is amended to read:
56.041. (1) The Operating Account is established in the General
Fund of the State Treasury.
(2) The net amount accruing to the Secretary of State from all
fees, charges, interest, fines, penalties and miscellaneous
revenues from all sources relating to business registry
functions, and moneys received by the Secretary of State under
ORS chapters 79 and 194 and ORS 80.100 to 80.130, 87.246, 87.767
and 87.806 to 87.831 shall, after deduction of refunds, be paid
over to the State Treasurer and deposited at least monthly in the
Operating Account.
(3) Moneys deposited to the credit of the Operating Account are
continuously appropriated to the Secretary of State for the
expenses of carrying out the functions and duties of the
Secretary of State relating to business registry, and the
functions and duties of the Secretary of State under ORS chapters
79 and 194 and ORS 80.100 to 80.130, 87.246, 87.767 and 87.806 to
87.831 { + and sections 2 to 5 of this 2013 Act + }.
(4) At the end of each month, the Secretary of State shall
determine the number of business registry filings during the
month for which the Secretary of State collected the fees
described in ORS 56.140 (1) to (4). An amount equal to $20 for
each of those filings shall be deposited by the Secretary of
State in the Operating Account. The Secretary of State shall then
deposit all other moneys from the fees collected during the month
under ORS 56.140 (1) to (4) in the General Fund. Amounts
deposited to the General Fund under this subsection are available
for general governmental expenses.
SECTION 7. { + (1) Sections 1 to 5 of this 2013 Act and the
amendments to ORS 56.041 by section 6 of this 2013 Act become
operative on January 1, 2014.
(2) The Secretary of State may take any action before the
operative date specified in subsection (1) of this section that
Enrolled House Bill 3459 (HB 3459-B) Page 3
is necessary to enable the Secretary of State to exercise, on and
after the operative date specified in subsection (1) of this
section, all of the duties, functions and powers conferred on the
Secretary of State by sections 2 to 5 of this 2013 Act and the
amendments to ORS 56.041 by section 6 of this 2013 Act. + }
SECTION 8. { + Notwithstanding any other law limiting
expenditures, the amount of $248,162 is established for the
biennium beginning July 1, 2013, as the maximum limit for payment
of expenses for the Office of Small Business Assistance from
fees, moneys or other revenues, including Miscellaneous Receipts,
but excluding lottery funds and federal funds, collected or
received by the Secretary of State. + }
SECTION 9. { + This 2013 Act being necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health and safety, an emergency
is declared to exist, and this 2013 Act takes effect July 1,
2013. + }
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Passed by House June 24, 2013
.............................................................
Ramona J. Line, Chief Clerk of House
.............................................................
Tina Kotek, Speaker of House
Passed by Senate June 28, 2013
.............................................................
Peter Courtney, President of Senate
Enrolled House Bill 3459 (HB 3459-B) Page 4
Received by Governor:
......M.,............., 2013
Approved:
......M.,............., 2013
.............................................................
John Kitzhaber, Governor
Filed in Office of Secretary of State:
......M.,............., 2013
.............................................................
Kate Brown, Secretary of State
Enrolled House Bill 3459 (HB 3459-B) Page 5
