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Committee amends STEM investment bill, changes school admissions and assessment rules
Summary
House Bill 3,038 was amended to modify the STEM Investment Council, repeal a connected account, broaden grant recipients, adjust admissions at the Oregon School for the Deaf and change the grade level for a national assessment contract; multiple amendments were adopted and the bill was sent to the floor with a do-pass recommendation.
The Senate Education Committee on May 21 considered House Bill 3,038, a wide-ranging measure that modifies the STEM Investment Council, repeals the Connecting Education to Careers account, broadens who may receive certain STEM-related grants, adjusts emergency and recovery-school provisions and clarifies admissions for the Oregon School for the Deaf.
Committee staff summarized the bill and the slate of amendments (A5, A6, A8 among others). The A5 amendment required parental or guardian consent before admitting a student to the Oregon School for the Deaf and changed the grade level for certain nationally administered assessments from grade 10 to grade 11, with an operative date of July 1, 2027, for that change. The A6 amendment and A8 amendment resolved conflicts between this measure and related House Bill 3083 and removed a provision that had raised concern about for‑profit entities. Committee staff said the base bill and the amendments received no fiscal impact statements from the Legislative Fiscal Office and no revenue impact statements from the Legislative Revenue Office.
Committee members voted to adopt the A6 and A8 amendments in committee roll calls recorded in the transcript; both amendments were adopted. Following adoption of the amendments, a committee member moved to send House Bill 3,038 A, as amended, to the floor with a do-pass recommendation. The committee voted to forward the bill; the transcript records that at least one member (Senator Brown) indicated a no vote on the floor recommendation while others supported moving the bill.
In committee debate, a senator who opposed the final motion voiced concern that parts of the bill were “a little bit prescriptive,” mentioning specific quizzes and prescriptive approaches to curriculum. Supporters pointed to the bill’s changes to broaden grant-eligible entities and adjust program purposes, as well as clarifications about recovery-school status for approved public charter recovery schools.
The transcript identifies the measure as a committee bill and names the House bill authors and committee sponsors in committee colloquy; staff explained the bill makes emergency declarations and takes effect on passage for some provisions. With the committee’s votes, the measure will proceed to the Senate floor for further consideration.
