House package bill would limit immigration status evidence and protect workers updating documents

Sponsors and advocates described House Bill 4,111 as a three‑part measure to strengthen anti‑discrimination protections for immigrant Oregonians: (1) make a witness’s immigration status inadmissible in civil proceedings unless essential to the claim, (2) bar employer retaliation against employees who lawfully update federal employment records, and (3) add immigration status (and perceived status) to Oregon’s anti‑profiling protections.

Willie Choatsen and other sponsors framed the bill as focused on state systems and actions fully within state control — workplace, courtroom, and community interactions — and said the measures are tested in other states and jurisdictions. Joe Morrison, an employment‑law attorney with experience drafting Washington’s rule limiting immigration evidence, described a Washington case that led to improved outcomes after adopting a similar rule.

Worker‑advocacy groups, the Oregon AFL‑CIO, Innovation Law Lab, the Oregon Law Center and Northwest Workers' Justice Project described fear among immigrant workers that immigration status can be used to intimidate or block access to civil remedies. Labor and business witnesses asked for technical clarifications on retaliation language and evidentiary exceptions; Oregon Business and Industry flagged employer compliance challenges under I‑9 rules and requested compromise language.

Committee members and sponsors said more work is planned next week to refine language and reconcile competing concerns. The public hearing closed with broad stakeholder support and requests for technical fixes and fiscal analysis where appropriate.