Friends:

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I’m pleased to report that both Senate Bill 933 and Senate Bill 934 cleared their first hurdle this morning!

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Both bills were sponsored by Senator Kathleen Taylor, with significant support from her legislative aide, Alex Blosser, who worked diligently to guide them through the process. Senator Frederick acknowledged their efforts during the hearing.

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SB 933: Progress and Challenges

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Unfortunately, SB 933 received what I believe is an excessively large fiscal impact statement: .

This bill will now be sent to the Education Subcommittee of the Joint Ways and Means Committee, where it will need strong support to move forward. There is no way to appeal or revise a fiscal impact statement, so advocacy is crucial.

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The next step is to ask the co-chairs of the Ways and Means Committee to schedule a public hearing for the bill.

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Key Amendments and Votes

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The committee adopted the “Dash 3” amendments, which were designed to remove difficult-to-obtain data requests, thereby reducing the time and cost of providing information.

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• Voting in favor: Senator Frederick, Senator Gelser Blouin, and Senator Sollman
• Voting against: Senator Robinson (concerned about the scope of data collection, including racial data)
• Not present: Senator Weber
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During the discussion, Senators Frederick and Gelser Blouin responded to Senator Robinson that Black and Brown students continue to face disadvantages in our public school system.

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If racially disaggregated data did show these students are receiving TAG services at equitable rates and achieving similar learning gains, ?that would be great news. Current data shows disparities in both areas.

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For reference, here is the original bill: . Due to its length and extensive amendments, I want to highlight the most critical section:

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Key Provision – Section (2)(O), Page 3:
The Department must report annual achievement test score gains in mathematics and language arts for students who took the statewide summative assessments in both the previous and current school years. This data must be disaggregated by:

• Subject matter and grade
• Proficiency level
• Demographics (including gender identity, racial/ethnic identity, economic disadvantage, and eligibility for special education)
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This provision would greatly enhance our ability to track student progress across Oregon. If you have any questions about this section or others, please reach out to me.

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SB 934: Key Update

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The committee also adopted the “Dash 1” amendment for SB 934, removing the requirement that districts must “provide screenings as needed throughout the school year.”

• This change was made in response to OEA’s opposition, which argued that parents might refer their children for screening over and over, and districts would then have to screen them multiple times a year.
• The TAG identification process and parents’ appeal rights remain unchanged. Administrative rules ensuring that identification teams are trained and follow clear criteria will not be affected.

Votes:

• In favor: Senator Frederick, Senator Gelser Blouin, Senator Richardson, and Senator Weber (who joined the committee later)
• Against: Senator Sollman

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SB 934 now moves to the Senate Chamber, where every senator present must vote. If it passes, it will proceed to the House Education Committee, where the entire process will repeat.

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The Road Ahead: HB 3420

The easiest part of the process is over—the hardest part is still ahead. We urgently need to request a public hearing for HB 3420, which would provide PERMANENT, CATEGORICAL funding for TAG programs and services.

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HB 3420 Overview:

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The most important committee at this stage is the House Education Committee, chaired by Representative Courtney Neron. Below is a list of key legislative committee members.

Thank you for your continued support!

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Margaret

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SB 934:

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SECTION 1. ORS 343.407 is amended to read:

343.407. School districts shall identify talented and gifted [students] children enrolled in public

schools under rules adopted by the State Board of Education. The rules must require school districts

to:

(1) Allow any person who knows the child to recommend

that a child be screened for identification as a talented and gifted child;

(2) Provide a screening of a child recommended under subsection (1) of this section;

(3) Accept recommendations under subsection (1) of this section throughout the school year.

(4) Directly inform parents of the process to recommend that a child

be screened for identification as a talented and gifted child; and

(5) Provide information on the school district’s website about the process to recommend that a

child be screened for identification as a talented and gifted child.

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House committee on Education

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Joint Subcommittee on Ways and Means: Education subcommittee

?Joint Committe on Ways and Means

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