Oregon Legislative Assembly

Oregon Legislative Assembly
Oregon Legislative Assembly
Coat of arms or logo
Type
Type Bicameral
Houses Senate
House of Representatives
Leadership
President of the Senate Peter Courtney, (D)
since January 14, 2003
Co-Speaker of the House Bruce Hanna, (R)
since January 10, 2011
Co-Speaker of the House Arnie Roblan, (D)
since January 10, 2011
Members 90
Political groups Democratic Party
Republican Party
Elections
Last election November 2, 2010
Meeting place
Oregon_State_Capitol_1.jpg
Oregon State Capitol, Salem
Website
http://www.leg.state.or.us/

The Oregon Legislative Assembly is the state legislature for the U.S. state of Oregon. The Legislative Assembly is bicameral, consisting of an upper and lower house: the Senate, whose 30 members are elected to serve four-year terms; and the House of Representatives, with 60 members elected to two-year terms. There are no term limits for either house in the Legislative Assembly.

Each Senate district is composed of exactly two House districts: Senate District 1 contains House Districts 1 and 2, SD 2 contains HD 3 and HD 4, and so on. (Maps of Senate districts can be found in the Oregon State Senate article.)

The legislature is termed as a "citizens' assembly" (meaning that most legislators have other jobs.) Its regular sessions occur in odd-numbered years, beginning on the second Monday in January.

Contents

Bills

Bills may be introduced in either house, and must flow through a committee before being voted upon. Bills calling for increased revenue must be introduced in the House of Representatives.[1]

Sessions

Until 1882, the legislature met on the first Monday in December.[2]

A legislative resolution referred to voters in the Nov. 2010 general election amended the state's constitution and changed the schedule of regular sessions from bi-annual to annual.[3] Senate Joint Resolution 41 was voted on as state Ballot Measure 71, which passed statewide by a margin of more than 2 to 1.[4]

With limited exceptions, the constitutional changes enacted through Measure 71 limit the length of legislative sessions beginning in odd-numbered years to 160 calendar days, and sessions beginning in even-numbered years to 35 calendar days. The changes took effect with the 2011 session.

The first 35 regular sessions (i.e. until 1929) lasted 50 days or less. Since 1949 no session has been shorter than 100 days. The longest session was the 72nd regular session, at 227 days, ending August 27, 2003. Most recent sessions have ended in June or July.

The Governor of Oregon was the only person who could call the assembly into special sessions until 1976, when voters approved a constitutional amendment allowing the legislature to call itself into session.[5] In either case, special sessions are permitted only "in the event of an emergency." Voters narrowly defeated a constitutional amendment in 1990 that would have established annual sessions.[6]

In 1982 a special session lasted 37 days, and the governor called the assembly into special session five times in 2002, for a total of 52 days. The 2006 special session was the shortest in Oregon's history: five pieces of legislation were passed in only six hours. The legislative body may also call itself into special session "in the event of an emergency," although it has never done so.

When the legislature is not in session, legislators serve on interim committees and task forces that study issues likely to be faced during the next regular session. The legislature's regular sessions were every two years until 2009.

The legislative session in 2010 that referred Measure 71 to voters was a special session approved during the 2009 session by a majority of legislators, who were hoping to eventually win approval of a change to regular annual sessions.

See also

References

  1. ^ "How an idea becomes a law". Oregon State Capitol.
  2. ^ Horner, John B. (1919). Oregon: her history, her great men, her literature. Portland, Ore.: The J.K. Gill Co.. p. 228. ISBN 9781148231044. http://www.archive.org/stream/oregonherhistor00horngoog#page/n0/mode/2up. 
  3. ^ State of Oregon. [<http://www.leg.state.or.us/10ss1/measpdf/sjr1.dir/sjr0041.en.pdf> "<Oregon State Legislature>"]. State of Oregon. <http://www.leg.state.or.us/10ss1/measpdf/sjr1.dir/sjr0041.en.pdf>. Retrieved July 2, 2011. 
  4. ^ State of Oregon. [<http://www.sos.state.or.us/elections/doc/history/nov22010/results/m71.pdf> "<Oregon Secretary of State Elections Division>"]. State of Oregon. <http://www.sos.state.or.us/elections/doc/history/nov22010/results/m71.pdf>. Retrieved July 2, 2011. 
  5. ^ "Who calls special session?". The Register-Guard (Eugene, Ore.). February 3, 2008. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wV9WAAAAIBAJ&sjid=b_ADAAAAIBAJ&dq=who%20calls%20special%20session&pg=3267%2C641091. 
  6. ^ Sinks, James (February 24, 2008). "Successes for region in special session, but some legislators are unimpressed". The Bulletin (Bend, Ore.). 

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • 74th Oregon Legislative Assembly — Renovations of the Capitol Building during the session Legislative body Oregon Leg …   Wikipedia

  • Seventy-third Oregon Legislative Assembly — Infobox Legislative Session name = 73rd Oregon Legislative Assembly imagesize = 250px caption = Interior of the rotunda at the Capitol Building body = Oregon Legislative Assembly country = United States state = Oregon meeting place = Oregon State …   Wikipedia

  • Seventy-fourth Oregon Legislative Assembly — Infobox Legislative Session name = 74th Oregon Legislative Assembly imagesize = 250px caption = Renovations of the Capitol Building during the session body = Oregon Legislative Assembly country = United States state = Oregon meeting place =… …   Wikipedia

  • Seventy-fifth Oregon Legislative Assembly — The seventy fifth Oregon Legislative Assembly will convene in January 2009 for its biennial regular session. All of the 60 seats in the House of Representatives and half of the 30 seats in the State Senate are up for election in 2008; the general …   Wikipedia

  • Thirty-fifth Oregon Legislative Assembly — The Oregon Legislative Assembly for its 35th regular session from January 14, 1929 to March 4, 1929. There were no special sessions between 1921 and 1933. [http://bluebook.state.or.us/state/legis/legis18a.htm] House of Representatives Oregon… …   Wikipedia

  • Legislative assembly (disambiguation) — Legislative assembly may refer to:*Legislative assemblies, found in some parts of the Commonwealth *Oregon Legislative Assembly (USA) *North Dakota Legislative Assembly (USA) *Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico *Australian Capital Territory… …   Wikipedia

  • Oregon legislative elections, 2010 — The 2010 elections for the Oregon Legislative Assembly determined the composition of both houses for the 76th Oregon Legislative Assembly. The Republican and Democratic primary elections were on May 18, 2010, and the general election was held on… …   Wikipedia

  • Oregon legislative elections, 2008 — Elections for the Oregon Legislative Assembly took place in 2008. The Republican and Democratic primary elections were on May 20, 2008, and the general election was held on November 4, 2008. Fifteen of the Oregon State Senate s thirty seats were… …   Wikipedia

  • Oregon Legislative Counsel — The Office of the Oregon Legislative Counsel is a government agency in the U.S. state of Oregon. The office was established in 1953, primarily to offer legal services to the members and committees of the Oregon Legislative Assembly.[1] The office …   Wikipedia

  • legislative assembly — noun persons who make or amend or repeal laws • Syn: ↑legislature, ↑legislative body, ↑general assembly, ↑law makers • Derivationally related forms: ↑legislate (for: ↑legislature) …   Useful english dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”