SALEM, Ore. — The Oregon Senate on April 24 advanced a slate of bills addressing housing permitting timelines, federal vacancy procedure, organ transport, local lumber grading, language access for ballot materials and other topics, and unanimously adopted a resolution memorializing victims of the Cambodian genocide.

The session produced recorded final actions on multiple measures. Lawmakers debated several bills at length — most prominently Senate Bill 9 74, aimed at shortening review timelines for housing projects inside urban growth boundaries — and approved a number of measures on third reading and final passage.

Senate Bill 9 74, which backers say will reduce permitting delays for housing inside urban growth boundaries, passed the Senate after extended debate about local capacity to meet the shortened deadlines. "Let me be clear: this only applies to inside the urban growth boundary," Senator Anderson said on the floor, arguing the bill clarifies what qualifies as a land use decision and sets time limits for engineering and planning reviews. Supporters said the bill is intended to cut multi-year approval timelines down to about a year in many cases; some senators raised concerns about unfunded workload impacts for smaller municipalities and said follow-up conversations would continue on implementation.

The chamber also approved Senate Bill 9 52 A to create a process for filling a U.S. Senate vacancy. Senator Gelser Blueen described the bill’s core requirement: "It allows or requires the governor within 30 days of the vacancy to appoint a person into that role as U.S. senator." The bill requires an appointee be of the same party as the vacating senator and that the appointee stand for election at the next appropriate election. Opponents argued the appointment option circumvents the will of voters and gives an appointed incumbent an advantage in the subsequent election.

Lawmakers cleared several additional bills that received debate or committee review:

- Senate Bill 11 61, authorizing the Oregon Health Authority to license organ-transport vehicles and drivers and permitting lights-and-sirens use for organ transport; supporters said faster, prioritized transport can be lifesaving. "A donated heart, kidney, or liver must reach its recipient swiftly and safely," Senator Patterson said. The bill sets training, insurance and safety requirements for such vehicles.

- Senate Bill 10 61, creating an annual lumber-grading program through OSU Extension to support small sawmills and allow limited self-graded lumber use for single-family and duplex construction; proponents said it helps local timber markets.

- Senate Bill 10 14, allowing recognized statewide political parties or assemblies that submit statements for the voters' pamphlet to also provide translations in the state’s most commonly spoken languages at their expense, to expand language access for political materials.

- Senate Bill 11 48, prohibiting employers and disability insurers from forcing workers to exhaust other paid-leave or benefit programs before being eligible for short-term disability benefits, a change sponsors said reduces administrative barriers to receiving benefits.

The Senate also adopted House Concurrent Resolution 17, recognizing and honoring Cambodian Americans in Oregon and remembering victims of the Cambodian genocide. The resolution was carried as a special order and passed on final reading.

Votes at a glance

- House Concurrent Resolution 17 (recognition/memorial): adopted (final passage recorded as "29 ayes").
- Senate Bill 9 52 A (U.S. Senate vacancy appointments): passed (declared passed on final reading; objections and named dissenters recorded during roll call; text requires a gubernatorial appointment within 30 days and party alignment of appointee).
- Senate Bill 9 74 A (land-use timelines for housing inside urban growth boundaries): passed (final roll call recorded as "29 ayes").
- Senate Bill 10 61 A (lumber grading/OSU extension program): passed (final roll call recorded as "27 ayes").
- Senate Bill 11 61 A (organ-transport vehicles licensing): passed (final roll call recorded as "29 ayes").
- Senate Bill 10 14 (translations of party statements for voters' pamphlet): passed (final roll call recorded as "27 ayes").
- Senate Bill 11 48 A (short-term disability eligibility/insurer practices): passed (final roll call recorded as "26 ayes").
- House Bill 33 85 (public record fees tied to county clerk statutory fee): passed (final roll call recorded as "28 ayes").
- House Bill 33 86 (deputy county clerks authorized to solemnize marriage): passed (final roll call recorded as "29 ayes").

What lawmakers said

Supporters of the housing-timeline bill said the measure would reduce needless delays that stretch housing production from months into years and that ongoing discussions with local governments and stakeholders aim to address capacity concerns. Opponents cautioned about the risk of imposing de facto unfunded workload increases on smaller planning departments.

On SB 9 52 A, supporters said allowing a temporary appointment would preserve constituent services and the state’s access to federal assistance while a special election is organized; opponents said even a short appointment gives the governor an electoral advantage and argued for prompt special elections instead.

Process and next steps

Most of the bills passed on third reading and final passage in the Senate and will proceed to enrollment and transmittal as required under legislative process. Several sponsors noted ongoing work between stakeholders and the House on implementation details and potential technical amendments.

The Senate returned several other house bills to the calendar without debate and closed its session until the next scheduled floor day.