The Senate Committee on Labor and Business held an informational hearing March 18 on Senate Bill 1138, which would establish a Home and Community Based Services Workforce Standards Board to set industrywide standards for wages, benefits, training and staffing across multiple care settings.

Proponents, including Melissa Unger of SEIU Local 503 and David Madland of the Center for American Progress Action Fund, said the board would give workers, employers and consumers a forum to set standards, address turnover and improve job quality. Unger told the committee, "Caregivers face poverty wages, burnout, and extreme turnover, threatening quality care as demand rises," and argued the board is a tool to bring affected parties together to set standards and career pathways.

Bill summary and proposed changes: Committee witnesses described an amended structure under discussion. The amendment under development would set board membership at six employer representatives, six employee representatives, two consumer representatives and three government representatives; require members to have relevant expertise; require a market‑based study before any standards are adopted; and ensure that any board decision with state fiscal implications is subject to legislative funding and approval before implementation. Proponents said the amendment will also specify that no standard can be enforced until 90 days after final legislative action and that the board’s first standards would not be established before 2028.

Supporters cited experience in other states. David Madland noted workforce standards boards have been used in states such as California, Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, New York and Nevada, and said they can raise wages and reduce turnover. "This policy is working in 6 states and 3 cities," he told the committee, adding that boards can address multiple, interrelated issues at once and include affected workers and employers in standard‑setting.

Opponents from provider groups said the bill could increase costs, duplicate existing oversight and harm access to care if the state does not fund standards. Phil Bentley of the Oregon Health Care Association said Oregon already has strong regulatory systems and recent market studies show substantial underfunding; he warned that "this board is also mandated to make new policies for 6 to 8 different care settings" and argued the bill could accelerate closures and raise costs without guaranteed funding. Amanda Dalton of the Oregon Resource Association and Jessica Adamson of Catholic Community Services said providers face chronic underfunding; Adamson urged the legislature to fund rate increases through Ways and Means rather than create additional regulatory bodies.

Other bill mechanics discussed included enforcement (proposed to be handled by state agencies such as the Department of Human Services rather than the board itself), a requirement for biennial reporting to the legislature, and the creation of public meetings and hearings for any market study and standard‑setting process.

Next steps: Proponents said they are actively drafting amendments and plan to share those changes with the committee. The hearing was informational; no committee vote occurred on March 18.