Morgan Allen of the Coalition of Oregon School Administrators told the House Committee on Early Childhood and Human Services that House Bill 3059 is intended to bridge information and coordination gaps between residential-service operators (group homes) and school districts that must enroll and serve students with significant needs.

"What we're hoping to do with this bill ... is bring a stakeholder group together and try to get human service and education folks talking about how can the folks who operate residential facilities and the school districts who are responsible for educating those students ... work together to collaborate and share information that really centers the educational needs," Morgan Allen said. Allen said the bill does not change placement or operational authority for residential facilities; instead, it requests recommendations on barriers, information sharing and fiscal lead agency.

Allen told the committee that because many students placed in residential facilities arrive with little notice and have substantial special-education and social-emotional needs, smaller and mid-sized districts sometimes lack staff or the preparation time to provide immediate services. The bill would convene stakeholders and identify whether one agency (the Department of Education or Department of Human Services) should be designated to lead work and clarify fiscal impacts.

Allen said early feedback suggested the Department of Education might be the better lead for amendments, and the bill’s sponsor and the chair of the House Education Committee expect the measure to be sent to that committee for further consideration. Committee members on the Early Childhood and Human Services Committee were invited to save questions for the House Education Committee where crossover members will continue the discussion.

No committee vote was taken; the public hearing record was closed and the bill will be forwarded to the House Education Committee for a hearing and fiscal review.