SW 340 Advocacy for Policy Change: State/Local Laws & Regulations

Oregon Bills and Laws

Your Government (Oregonian Website)
Easy to search resource for recent (2009-present) bills.
Oregon State Bills
Access to Oregon bills from 1995-present
Oregon Laws
Bills passed by the House and Senate each legislative session from 1999-present
Oregon Voters' Pamphlets
Collection of digitized voters' pamphlets -- Special elections (1913 to present), Primary elections (2004 to present)
General elections, Marion County (1904 to present). Pamphlets include text of measures, explanatory statements, and arguments for and against as well as biographical information on candidates running for office.

Oregon Statutes and Rules

Oregon Revised Statutes (ORSs)

Statutes are laws passed by the legislature. The Office of the Legislative Counsel edits, publishes, sells and distributes the Oregon Revised Statutes.

Oregon Administrative Rules (OARs)

State agencies are authorized by the legislature to adopt administrative rules. The Oregon Attorney General's Administrative Law Manual defines "rule" to include "directives, standards, regulations or statements of general applicability that implement, interpret or prescribe law or policy or describe the agency's procedure or practice requirements."

from: http://www.ous.edu/dept/cont-div/policyorsoar

Research Tip

Having trouble searching the Oregon.gov website? Try searching Google with your keywords, and include the following: oregon site:.gov

For example: mandatory minimum sentences Oregon site:.gov

This will retrieve results from Oregon agency and other government websites.

Portland City Government

Oregon Counties and Cities

County Codes and Regulations

County codes are available online for most Oregon Counties (but not all). Use the Oregon Blue Book to find county sites, then look for code. For other information, go to the department/agency working in your topic area: Child & Family Services, Health & Human Services, Juvenile Department, Disability & Aging, Veterans Services, Parole & Probation, etc.

City Codes and Regulations

Many cities now have their ordinances (or codes) on their websites, which you can often search through a table of chapters or sections. Use the Oregon Blue Book directory of city government websites to find municipal code and other important information about city municipal government.

Interested in Other States?

For bills and laws from other states, use Google or the USA.gov search to find their legislative website. Open States also tracks recent bills across all states.

Open States