Legislative
Chair: Doug Pickles, Lewis Seed Co.
Seed Civil Penalty Rules Advisory Committee: The Oregon Department of Agriculture established a seed civil penalty rules advisory committee (RAC) to review and update Oregon administrative rules (OAR) 603-056-0460 – 603-056-0490 relating to civil penalties for seed law violations. Through this process, new and amended rules have been drafted and have been filed with the Secretary of State. Due to Covid-19, there will not be a public hearing for this rule. The last day for public comment is July 25, 2020.
Comments can be directed to esavory@oda.state.or.us or 503-986-4570 or to rules coordinator Amy Bingham at abingham@oda.state.or.us.
If you would like a copy of the updated rules draft, please reach out and we will forward you a copy.
Session Update: A special session of the Oregon Legislature had been hinted at since the end of February when the short session came to a halt due to quorum issues that killed all but three bills. Governor Brown called for the special session on June 24, 2020, to address two topics – police accountability and the Covid-19 pandemic. Read here for session reports.
The Governor also indicated a follow up session later in the summer to rebalance the state budget because of the recent economic forecasts due to lost revenue and decreased economic activity for at least the next 18 months. Governor Brown also asked all state agencies to reduce budgets by 8.5% and these cuts are both from lottery and general funds.
2020 OSA Advocacy Day – February 12, 2020: About 15 members from OSA and staff members from Pac/West spent the day meeting with legislators or staffers with the primary goal of educating the legislature about OSA and its role in the seed industry, as well as its role in Oregon’s economy. We broke into three different groups and attended meetings with members of the House and Senate Ag committees as well as each participant’s district legislator. It was another successful day, and we are starting to be recognized in the Capitol.
I would encourage you all to participate when we have our Advocacy Day in 2021 as it will be a long session with much activity, and it is important that the association and its members stay active and engaged to what is happening in the legislature. Pac/West and the Board continues to monitor and track bills that may affect the seed industry.
OSA members Phill Lindgren, Dustin Withee and Brenda Landis meet with Rep. Greg Barreto (left) and OSA lobbyist Lorne Bulling (right) for advocacy day at the Capitol on February 12.
