April 11, 2025

Oregon State Bar Hosts President’s Legislative Reception in Salem

In February, the Oregon State Bar (OSB) Board of Governors (BOG) returned to Salem to hold board meetings. In conjunction with the legislative session, the BOG hosted the 2025 President’s Legislative Reception at the Salem Convention Center. The reception provides an opportunity for legal practitioners, judges, legislators, and bar leadership to discuss many of the issues that are affecting the practice of law and the judiciary. During the reception, Myah Kehoe, 2025 OSB President, spoke about the important role the bar plays in access to justice and highlighted the bar’s support of the judiciary budget as well as the bar’s legislative priorities, including a funding request to support civil legal aid through the bar’s Legal Services Program. Oregon Supreme Court Chief Justice Meagan A. Flynn also addressed the group to discuss the Oregon Judicial Department’s priorities this session, including judicial compensation, court facility security, and court staffing.

From left: OSB President Myah Kehoe, Judge Ramón A. Pagán, OSB Board of Governors Member Elizabeth Inayoshi, Representative Shannon Isadore, and Judge Ulanda Watkins

From left: Chief Justice Meagan Flynn, Senator Floyd Prozanski, and Immediate Past OSB President David Rosen

From left: Representative Tom Andersen, OSB President-Elect Tomás Hernandez, and OSB General Counsel Ankur Doshi

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Bar Leadership Testifies in Support of Oregon Judicial Department Budget

On February 27, the Joint Ways and Means Subcommittee on Public Safety culminated a week of hearings on the Oregon Judicial Department proposed budget with a day of public testimony in support of the agency’s budget priorities. 2025 OSB President Myah Kehoe testified in person on behalf of the bar with general support for the agency’s general budget bill, HB 5012. Kehoe’s testimony can be viewed here.

Also testifying in support was Ed Harnden, Co-Managing Partner of Barran Liebman LLP and cofounder of the Oregon Campaign for Court Funding (OCCF). For many sessions, the OCCF has united a group of business and nonprofit leaders as well as OSB leaders together to highlight the importance of a fully funded court system to Oregon’s business and nonprofit communities. Harnden’s testimony on behalf of the OCCF can be viewed here.

Keren Farkas, the bar’s Chief Access to Justice Officer and Director of the Legal Services Program, provided testimony in support of the bar’s Policy Option Package 130 to fund civil legal aid and immigration legal services. The bar is responsible for fiscal and regulatory oversight of state-funded civil and immigration legal aid programs. The OSB’s role is to ensure that state resources are strategically allocated, efficiently administered, and that legal services are delivered effectively and equitably.

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Ways and Means Co-Chairs Publish 2025–2027 Co-Chair Budget Framework

Under Oregon’s Constitution, the legislature must pass a balanced budget every two years. On March 19, the co-chairs of the Joint Ways and Means Committee released their 2025–2027 Co-Chair Budget Framework. This proposed framework takes into account the current services provided by the state, the current economic and revenue forecasts, and unique needs in certain policy areas. This budget also takes into consideration the Governor’s Recommended Budget, released in December.

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First Legislative Deadlines Pass

April 9 was the final day for most legislative committees to pass bills that are still in their chamber of origin. Bills remaining in those committees after the deadline are very unlikely to move forward this session.

If you are interested in a particular bill, go to the Oregon Legislative Information System (OLIS), click on “Bills” on the right-hand side, and enter the bill number. Those bills that did not receive a work session will not be moving forward this session. There are exceptions to this rule. For example, if a bill is currently in the Rules Committee, the Ways and Means Committee, or one of the Revenue Committees, the deadline does not apply.

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