Bill Text: OR SB914 | 2011 | Regular Session | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Relating to elections; appropriating money; declaring an emergency.

Spectrum: Committee Bill

Status: (Failed) 2011-06-30 - In committee upon adjournment. [SB914 Detail]

Download: Oregon-2011-SB914-Introduced.html

---

     76th OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2011 Regular Session

NOTE:  Matter within  { +  braces and plus signs + } in an
amended section is new. Matter within  { -  braces and minus
signs - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within
 { +  braces and plus signs + } .

LC 3567

                         Senate Bill 914

Sponsored by COMMITTEE ON RULES

                             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.

  Creates Citizens' Initiative Review Commission to oversee
review of state initiative measures by citizen panels. Directs
panels to review state initiative measures and prepare statements
to be included in voters' pamphlet.
  Specifies procedures for appointment of commission, panels and
moderators of panels. Sets terms of office.
  Declares emergency, effective on passage.

                        A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to elections; creating new provisions; amending ORS
  251.185; appropriating money; and declaring an emergency.
  Whereas the people support the initiative process as a means
for Oregon citizens to propose laws and enact or reject laws at
an election independent of the Legislative Assembly; and
  Whereas informed public discussion and exercise of the
initiative power will be enhanced by review of each statewide
measure by an independent panel of Oregon voters, reporting to
the electorate in the voters' pamphlet; and
  Whereas provisional Citizens Statements in 2010, as approved by
the Seventy-fifth Legislative Assembly, have been valuable to
Oregon voters; now, therefore,
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
  SECTION 1.  { + Sections 2 to 8 of this 2011 Act are added to
and made a part of ORS chapter 250. + }
  SECTION 2.  { + (1) The Citizens' Initiative Review Commission
is established within the executive branch of state government,
consisting of 11 members. The members shall be appointed in the
following manner:
  (a) The Governor shall appoint three members who have at some
time been selected by the four appointed members of an
explanatory statement committee under ORS 251.205 (5) to prepare
an explanatory statement, as follows:
  (A) One member recommended by the leadership of the Democratic
party in the Senate and one member recommended by the leadership
of the Republican party in the Senate.
  (B) Except as provided in subparagraph (C) of this paragraph,
one member recommended by the leadership of the political party
with the largest representation in the Senate that is not the
same party as the Governor.

  (C) If more than two political parties are represented in the
Senate, one member recommended by the leadership of a third
political party with the largest representation in the Senate.
  (b) Four former moderators shall be appointed as members as
described in section 6 of this 2011 Act.
  (c) Four electors who have served on a citizen panel shall be
appointed as members as described in section 6 of this 2011 Act.
  (2) The term of office of a member of the commission is four
years, with the terms of no more than six members expiring every
two years. Vacancies shall be filled by the Governor for the
unexpired term, consistent with subsection (1) of this section.
  (3) The commission shall:
  (a) Ensure that the citizen panels are convened to review
initiated measures in a fair and impartial manner.
  (b) Adopt rules necessary to carry out the commission's duties
under sections 2 to 8 of this 2011 Act. + }
  SECTION 3.  { + Notwithstanding section 2 of this 2011 Act, the
first Citizens' Initiative Review Commission shall consist of
seven members to be appointed and serve as follows:
  (1) The Governor shall appoint three members who have at some
time been selected by the four appointed members of an
explanatory statement committee under ORS 251.205 (5) to prepare
an explanatory statement, as follows:
  (a) One member recommended by the leadership of the Democratic
party in the Senate and one member recommended by the leadership
of the Republican party in the Senate.
  (b) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this subsection, one
member recommended by the leadership of the political party with
the largest representation in the Senate that is not the same
party as the Governor.
  (c) If more than two political parties are represented in the
Senate, one member recommended by the leadership of a third
political party with the largest representation in the Senate.
  (2) The three members appointed by the Governor under
subsection (1) of this section shall appoint:
  (a) Two members from among persons who have served as a
moderator for a citizen panel, one to serve for a term of two
years and one to serve for a term of four years; and
  (b) Two members from among electors who have served on a
citizen panel, one to serve for a term of two years and one to
serve for a term of four years.
  (3) The Governor shall determine at random which two members
appointed under subsection (1) of this section shall serve a term
of four years and which member shall serve a term of two years.
  (4) In the event that a member's position cannot be filled
under this section, the Governor may appoint one or more persons
who have experience conducting citizen review panels to be
members of the initial commission for a two-year term. + }
  SECTION 4.  { + (1) Except as otherwise provided in this
section, the Citizens' Initiative Review Commission may accept
contributions of moneys and assistance from the United States
Government or its agencies or from any other source, public or
private, and agree to conditions placed on the moneys not
inconsistent with the duties of the commission. All moneys
received by the commission under this subsection shall be
deposited into the Citizens' Initiative Review Fund established
under section 8 of this 2011 Act to be used for the purposes of
carrying out the duties, functions and powers of the commission.
  (2) The commission may not receive contributions of moneys or
assistance from:
  (a) A political committee, as defined in ORS 260.005;
  (b) For-profit corporate treasuries;
  (c) Union treasuries; or
  (d) Any other source the commission determines might be used to
transfer moneys from a political committee, for-profit corporate
treasury or union treasury to the commission.
  (3) The commission may enter into contracts and hire any staff
the commission deems necessary.
  (4) The commission may appoint an executive director to serve
at the pleasure of the commission. + }
  SECTION 5.  { + (1) The Citizens' Initiative Review Commission
shall select one or more state measures proposed by initiative
petition to be voted on at a general election and convene a
separate citizen panel to review each selected measure.
  (2) In selecting a measure to be reviewed by a citizen panel,
the commission shall consider the following criteria:
  (a) The fiscal impact of a measure.
  (b) Whether the measure amends the Oregon Constitution.
  (c) The availability of funds to conduct reviews.
  (d) Any other criteria established by the commission by rule.
  (3) Each citizen panel shall evaluate and write statements for
the measure considered by the panel.
  (4)(a) The commission shall select citizens for each panel from
a representative sample of anonymous electors, using survey
sampling methods that, to the extent practicable, give every
elector a similar chance of being selected. Each citizen panel
shall consist of not fewer than 18 and not more than 24 electors.
  (b) The commission shall ensure, to the extent practicable and
legally permissible, that the demographic makeup of each panel
fairly reflects the population of the electorate of this state as
a whole, with respect to the following characteristics,
prioritized in the following order:
  (A) The location of the elector's residence.
  (B) The elector's party affiliation, if any.
  (C) The elector's voting history.
  (D) The elector's age.
  (c) In addition to the criteria described in paragraph (b) of
this subsection, the commission may also consider:
  (A) The elector's gender.
  (B) The elector's ethnicity.
  (C) Any other criteria.
  (5) The commission shall:
  (a) Compensate each elector for each day served on a panel in
an amount calculated using the average weekly wage as defined in
ORS 656.211;
  (b) Reimburse each elector who serves on a panel for travel
expenses in accordance with reimbursement policies determined by
the commission by rule; and
  (c) Provide for any and all other costs required to convene and
conduct a citizen panel and for any costs associated with
printing the statements in the voters' pamphlet.
  (6)(a) Each panel shall meet to review the measure on five
consecutive days for a total of not less than 25 hours unless
otherwise provided by commission rule.
  (b) Each panel shall conduct public hearings at which the panel
shall receive testimony or other information from both proponents
and opponents of the measure. Unless otherwise determined by a
majority of the panelists, equal time shall be allotted to
proponents and opponents of a measure.
  (c) The chief petitioners of the measure shall select two
persons to provide information in favor of the measure to the
citizen panel. If the chief petitioners fail to timely select two
persons to appear before the panel, the commission may designate
two persons who support the measure to provide information in
favor of the measure.
  (d) The commission, by rule, may specify additional criteria
regarding the public hearings.
  (7) The commission shall provide each panel with any complaints
regarding the panel not later than the fourth day the panel
convenes.
  (8) The commission shall, by rule, establish qualifications for
moderators for each citizen panel. A moderator must have
experience in mediation and shall complete a training course
established by the commission.
  (9) The commission shall contract with two moderators for each
panel and shall compensate each moderator for service. + }
  SECTION 6.  { + (1) Not later than February 1 of an
odd-numbered year, each person who served as a moderator for a
citizen panel that evaluated a measure voted on at the most
recent general election shall:
  (a) Convene to evaluate procedures related to the citizen
panels and submit a written report to the Citizens' Initiative
Review Commission summarizing the evaluation, along with any
recommendations; and
  (b) Appoint two moderators from among the moderators convened
for the evaluation to be members of the commission.
  (2) Not later than February 1 of an odd-numbered year, two
electors from each citizen panel shall:
  (a) Convene to evaluate procedures related to the citizen
panels and submit a written report to the commission summarizing
the evaluation, along with any recommendations; and
  (b) Appoint two electors from among the former panelists
convened for the evaluation to be members of the commission.
  (3) Each year in which an evaluation is conducted by moderators
and panelists under this section, the commission shall review the
evaluations and make any findings and recommendations.  The
commission shall make all evaluations, findings and
recommendations made under this section available to the
public. + }
  SECTION 7.  { + (1) Not later than the date set by the
Secretary of State by rule, each citizen panel shall prepare and
file with the secretary any of the following statements of not
more than 250 words each:
  (a) A statement in favor of the measure.
  (b) A statement opposed to the measure.
  (c) A statement that 'No panelist took this position.' if a
panel is unanimous in either supporting or opposing a measure.
  (d) A statement of key findings that summarizes the citizen
panel's findings in an impartial manner and may include a tally
of how many panelists agreed with the key findings.
  (e) A statement of additional policy considerations that
describes the subject matter of or any fiscal considerations
related to the measure. A statement submitted under this
paragraph must be supported by at least three-quarters of the
panelists.
  (2) The secretary shall prescribe the size and manner of
placement of the statements submitted by a citizen panel to be
printed in the voters' pamphlet, except that the statements shall
be clearly differentiated from other arguments or statements in
the voters' pamphlet and may include, but are not limited to, the
use of unique formatting and informative symbols.
  (3) The secretary shall provide with any citizen panel
statement a description of not more than 150 words of the citizen
panel process described in sections 2 to 8 of this 2011 Act and
the following explanation:

________________________________________________________________

  The opinions expressed in this statement are those of the
members of a citizen panel and were developed through the citizen
review process. They are NOT official opinions or positions
endorsed by the State of Oregon or any government agency. A
citizen panel is not a judge of the constitutionality or legality
of any ballot measure, and any statements about such matters are
not binding on a court of law.

________________________________________________________________

  (4) The secretary, by rule, shall set a date by which
statements must be filed under this section. The date may not be
sooner than the 70th day before the date of the election. + }
  SECTION 8.  { + The Citizens' Initiative Review Fund is
established in the State Treasury, separate and distinct from the
General Fund. Interest earned by the Citizens' Initiative Review
Fund shall be credited to the fund. All moneys in the fund are
continuously appropriated to the Citizens' Initiative Review
Commission to carry out the duties, functions and powers of the
commission. + }
  SECTION 9. ORS 251.185 is amended to read:
  251.185. (1) The Secretary of State shall have printed in the
voters' pamphlet for a general election or any special election a
copy of the title and text of each state measure to be submitted
to the people at the election for which the pamphlet was
prepared.  The pamphlet must include the procedures for filing a
complaint under ORS 260.345. Each measure shall be printed in the
pamphlet with:
  (a) The number and ballot title of the measure;
  (b) The financial estimates and any statement prepared for the
measure under ORS 250.125;
  (c) The explanatory statement prepared for the measure;
 { - and - }
  (d) Arguments relating to the measure and filed with the
Secretary of State  { - . - }  { + ; and + }
   { +  (e) Any statement submitted for the measure by a citizen
panel under section 7 of this 2011 Act. + }
  (2) A county measure or measure of a metropolitan service
district organized under ORS chapter 268, and ballot title,
explanatory statement and arguments relating to the measure,
filed by the county or metropolitan service district under ORS
251.285 shall be included in the voters' pamphlet described in
subsection (1) of this section if required under ORS 251.067.
  SECTION 9.  { + This 2011 Act being necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health and safety, an emergency
is declared to exist, and this 2011 Act takes effect on its
passage. + }
                         ----------