Committee advances bill allowing trained, non-veterinarians to verify cattle pregnancies through 2030

The Committee on Agriculture, Land Use, Natural Resources and Water on Feb. 25 advanced Senate Bill 15 39, which permits trained individuals who do not hold veterinary licenses to perform cattle pregnancy verification for a limited period.

Legislative counsel Heidi Elliott told members the bill uses a double-amend structure to make the temporary change explicit. "Section 1 is how it's going to look from 01/01/2027 to December 31, 2030," Elliott said, and the draft shows a future reversion in Section 2 that would take effect on Jan. 1, 2031. She explained the drafting reflects constitutional disclosure requirements under Article 4, Section 22 and walked members through the statutory citation shown in the draft.

Committee staff summarized the policy change: the bill "permits trained individuals without a veterinary license to perform cattle pregnancy verification services through 01/01/2031," and authorizes the Oregon Veterinary Medical Examining Board to adopt rules governing when unlicensed individuals may perform such services. Staff also noted the measure has minimal fiscal impact and no sub referral.

A motion to move the bill to the floor with a "do pass" recommendation was made and carried. Rep. Mara Marsh said she would vote no, citing concerns expressed by a large-animal veterinarian in her district and that veterinarian's organization: "I have a large animal veterinarian in my community who remains quite concerned about this," Marsh said. The chair announced the motion carried and that the bill will be sent to the House.

The committee did not record a unified, fully specified roll-call tally in the transcript; the chair announced the bill passed the committee and will go forward to the next stage.

The bill now goes to the House floor; the committee record notes the Oregon Veterinary Medical Examining Board would be authorized to adopt rules if the temporary authorization is enacted.