Oregon Senate approves technical changes to paid-leave laws, passes two bills

The Oregon State Senate on floor session passed two bills making administrative and technical changes to Oregon’s paid-leave laws, approving Senate Bill 69 A and Senate Bill 858 A on third reading.

The measures, both described on the floor as technical and administrative fixes, passed by constitutional majorities and were declared passed by the presiding officer. Senate Bill 69 A was described as aligning administrative authority between Paid Leave Oregon and the Oregon Family Leave Act and creating a limited exception for certain airline flight crew covered by federal hours-of-service rules. Senate Bill 858 A was described as closing an administrative gap that prevented authorized agents from pursuing paid-leave claims on behalf of deceased or incapacitated claimants.

Senate Bill 69 A, sponsored on the floor by Senator Bonham, was presented as making “administrative and technical modifications” to Paid Leave Oregon (ORS chapter 657B) and the Oregon Family Leave Act to reduce overlap and to move some administrative functions to the Bureau of Labor and Industries. The sponsor said the bill “creates an exception to OFLA eligibility requirements for employees based in Oregon who are subject to the federal regulations as airline flight crew employees and meet the hour of service requirements under specified federal regulations.” The measure was stated to take effect “on the 90th day following adjournment sine die.”

Senate Bill 858 A, sponsored by Senator Taylor, was described as addressing a specific procedural gap: when an individual dies or becomes incapacitated before filing a claim or before a final decision, families and representatives could be unable to access potential benefits. The sponsor said SB 858 allows an authorized agent to act on behalf of those individuals, permits certain disclosures of Paid Leave Oregon information to an authorized agent, clarifies that employees receiving unemployment benefits are not eligible for paid leave, and makes other technical clarifications to contributions and program administration as managed by the Employment Department.

Both measures were presented without extended floor debate. A motion earlier in the session to suspend the constitutional requirement that bills be read section by section on final passage for these measures was made and carried. The clerk recorded roll-call votes; each bill was declared passed after receiving the constitutionally required majority. The tally announced on the floor for each measure was 24 ayes.

The Senate also introduced a list of bills on first reading during the same session; the clerk read bill numbers and brief captions for multiple measures (for example, bills relating to small modular reactor facilities, beverage containers, livestock brands and losses, and other topics). Those first-reading items were listed on the record but were not debated in detail on the floor and therefore are described in this account only by bill number and caption as read on the record (details not specified in the transcript).

A separate notice from the governor recorded on the floor also informed senators that the governor had withdrawn the nomination of Alyssa Nelson to the State Board of Licensed Social Workers.

Votes at a glance: Senate Bill 69 A — passed (constitutional majority; tally announced on the floor: 24 ayes). Senate Bill 858 A — passed (constitutional majority; tally announced on the floor: 24 ayes).

Procedural next steps for both measures were not detailed in the transcript beyond the clerk’s statements that each bill had been declared passed.