Oregon State Senate

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Oregon State Senate


General Information
Type:   Upper house
Term limits:   None
2011 session start:   February 1, 2011
Website:   Official Senate Page
Leadership
Senate President:   Peter Courtney, (D)
Majority Leader:   Diane Rosenbaum (D)
Minority leader:   Ted Ferrioli, (R)
Structure
Members:  30
   Democratic Party (16)
Republican Party (14)
Length of term:   4 years
Authority:   Art IV, Section 6, Oregon Constitution
Salary:   $21,612/year + per diem
Elections
Last Election:  November 2, 2010 (16 seats)
Next election:  November 6, 2012 (14 seats)
Redistricting:  Oregon legislature has control

Contents

The Oregon State Senate is the upper house in the Oregon Legislature, the state legislature of Oregon. There are 30 state senators.

Each member represents an average of 127,702 residents, as of the 2010 Census.[1] After the 2000 Census, each member represented 114,047 residents.[2]

Oregon's senators serve without term limits for four-year terms.[3]

Article IV, Section 6, of the Oregon Constitution, states "A senatorial district shall consist of two representative districts".[4]

Sessions

Article IV of the Oregon Constitution establishes when the Oregon State Legislature, of which the Senate is a part, is to meet. Section 10 of Article IV states that the Legislature will meet in regular session once every two years. The section goes on to establish starting dates for these sessions, but these dates have been changed by law (as the section allows).

Section 10 of Article IV also requires the presiding officers of both legislative houses to convene an emergency session of the Legislature when a majority of the members of each house request an emergency session.

2011

See also: Dates of 2011 state legislative sessions

In 2011, the Senate was in session from February 1 through June 30. [5]

2010

See also: Dates of 2010 state legislative sessions

In 2010, the Senate did not hold a regular session. However, the Legislature was in special session from February 1st to February 25th.[6]

Elections

2012

See also: Oregon State Senate elections, 2012

Elections for the office of Oregon State Senate will be held in Oregon on November 6, 2012. A total of 14 seats will be up for election.

The signature filing deadline is March 6, 2012 and the primary date is May 15.

2010

See also: Oregon State Senate elections, 2010

Elections for the office of Oregon's State Senate were held in Oregon on November 2, 2010.

The signature-filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in these elections was March 9, 2010 (August 24 for independents). The primary election date is May 18, 2010.

In 2010, the candidates for state senate raised a total of $8,704,179 in campaign contributions. The top 10 donors were: [7]

Donor Amount
Oregon Senate Republican Leadership Fund $1,070,878
Oregon Democratic Party $933,967
Senate Democratic Leadership Fund $723,942
Oregon Education Association $250,846
Oregon Public Employees Local 503 $241,151
Oregon Health Care Association $192,361
Oregon Trial Lawyers Association $181,900
Doctors for Healthy Communities $110,995
Coalition for a Healthy Oregon $102,830
Douglas County Physicians $92,000

Qualifications

Article 4, Section 8 of the Oklahoma Constitution states:

  • No person shall be a Senator or Representative who at the time of election is not a citizen of the United States; nor anyone who has not been for one year next preceding the election an inhabitant of the district from which the Senator or Representative may be chosen. However, for purposes of the general election next following the operative date of an apportionment under section 6 of this Article, the person must have been an inhabitant of the district from January 1 of the year following the reapportionment to the date of the election.
  • Senators and Representatives shall be at least twenty one years of age.
  • No person shall be a Senator or Representative who has been convicted of a felony during:
    • The term of office of the person as a Senator or Representative; or
    • The period beginning on the date of the election at which the person was elected to the office of Senator or Representative and ending on the first day of the term of office to which the person was elected.
  • No person is eligible to be elected as a Senator or Representative if that person has been convicted of a felony and has not completed the sentence received for the conviction prior to the date that person would take office if elected. As used in this subsection, “sentence received for the conviction” includes a term of imprisonment, any period of probation or post-prison supervision and payment of a monetary obligation imposed as all or part of a sentence.
  • Notwithstanding sections 11 and 15, Article IV of this Constitution:
    • The office of a Senator or Representative convicted of a felony during the term to which the Senator or Representative was elected or appointed shall become vacant on the date the Senator or Representative is convicted.
    • A person elected to the office of Senator or Representative and convicted of a felony during the period beginning on the date of the election and ending on the first day of the term of office to which the person was elected shall be ineligible to take office and the office shall become vacant on the first day of the next term of office.
  • Subject to subsection (4) of this section, a person who is ineligible to be a Senator or Representative under subsection (3) of this section may:
    • Be a Senator or Representative after the expiration of the term of office during which the person is ineligible; and
    • Be a candidate for the office of Senator or Representative prior to the expiration of the term of office during which the person is ineligible.
  • No person shall be a Senator or Representative who at all times during the term of office of the person as a Senator or Representative is not an inhabitant of the district from which the Senator or Representative may be chosen or has been appointed to represent. A person shall not lose status as an inhabitant of a district if the person is absent from the district for purposes of business of the Legislative Assembly. Following the operative date of an apportionment under section 6 of this Article, until the expiration of the term of office of the person, a person may be an inhabitant of any district.

Vacancies

See also: How vacancies are filled in state legislatures
How Vacancies are filled in State Legislatures
NevadaMassachusettsColoradoNew MexicoWyomingArizonaMontanaCaliforniaOregonWashingtonIdahoTexasOklahomaKansasNebraskaSouth DakotaNorth DakotaMinnesotaIowaMissouriArkansasLouisianaMississippiAlabamaGeorgiaFloridaSouth CarolinaIllinoisWisconsinTennesseeNorth CarolinaIndianaOhioKentuckyPennsylvaniaNew JerseyNew YorkVermontVermontNew HampshireMaineWest VirginiaVirginiaMarylandMarylandConnecticutConnecticutDelawareDelawareRhode IslandRhode IslandMassachusettsNew HampshireMichiganMichiganAlaska

If there is a vacancy in the Senate, the Board of County Commissioners representing the vacant seat must select a replacement. This can only be done when the Senate is in session or the vacancy happens more than 61 days before the next scheduled general election[8]. The board must select a person the political party that last held the vacant seat. Three candidates who are members of the party that last controlled the seat must be considered by the board. A replacement must be selected within 30 days of the vacancy. Persons selected to fill a Senate seat serve until the next scheduled general election[9].

Senators

Salaries

See also: Comparison of state legislative salaries

As of 2011, members of the Oregon Legislature are paid $21,612/year during legislative sessions. Legislators receive $109/day per diem tied to the federal rate.[10]

The $21,612/year that Oregon legislators are paid as of 2011 is the same as they were paid during legislative sessions in 2010 and increase over the $18,408/year during in 2007. Per diem has increased from $99/day in 2007 to $116/day in 2010 and decreased to $109/day in 2011.[11][12]

The Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate receive twice as much salary as other legislators. These salaries have been determined by statute. [13]

When sworn in

See also: When state legislators assume office after a general election

Oregon legislators assume office the second Monday in January.

Partisan composition

See also: Partisan composition of state senates
Party As of August 2011
     Democratic Party 16
     Republican Party 14
Total 30


Leadership

The President of the Senate is the presiding officer of the body.[14][15]

Current leadership

Position Representative Party
President of the Senate Peter Courtney Democrat
State Senate President Pro Tempore Ginny Burdick Democrat
State Senate Majority Leader Diane Rosenbaum Democrat
State Senate Deputy Majority Leader Alan Bates Democrat
State Senate Majority Whip Mark Hass Democrat
State Senate Majority Whip Chris Edwards Democrat
State Senate Assistant Majority Leader Floyd Prozanski Democrat
State Senate Assistant Majority Leader Suzanne Bonamici Democrat
State Senate Minority Leader Ted Ferrioli Republican

List of current members

District Representative Party Residence
1 Jeff Kruse Republican Roseburg
2 Jason Atkinson Republican Central Point
3 Alan Bates Democrat Ashland
4 Floyd Prozanski Democrat Eugene
5 Joanne Verger Democrat Coos Bay
6 Lee Beyer Democrat Springfield
7 Chris Edwards Democrat Eugene
8 Frank Morse Republican Albany
9 Fred Girod Republican Molalla
10 Jackie Winters Republican Salem
11 Peter Courtney Democrat Salem
12 Brian Boquist Republican McMinnville
13 Larry George Republican Hillsboro
14 Mark Hass Democrat Beaverton
15 Bruce Starr Republican Hillsboro
16 Betsy Johnson Democrat Scappoose
17 Suzanne Bonamici Democrat Beaverton
18 Ginny Burdick Democrat Portland
19 Richard Devlin Democrat Tualatin
20 Alan Olsen Republican Canby
21 Diane Rosenbaum Democrat Portland
22 Chip Shields Democrat Portland
23 Jackie Dingfelder Democrat Portland
24 Rod Monroe Democrat Portland
25 Laurie Monnes Anderson Democrat Gresham
26 Chuck Thomsen Republican Mount Hood
27 Chris Telfer Republican Tumalo
28 Doug Whitsett Republican Klamath Falls
29 David Nelson Republican Pendleton
30 Ted Ferrioli Republican John Day

Senate Committees

The Oregon Senate has 10 standing committees:

External links

References

  1. ↑ Population in 2010 of the American states
  2. ↑ Population in 2000 of the American states
  3. ↑ List of state legislative term limits
  4. ↑ Oregon Constitution, Article 4, Section 4
  5. ↑ 2011 Legislative Sessions Calendar, NCSL
  6. ↑ 2010 session dates for Oregon Legislature
  7. ↑ Follow the Money: "Oregon Senate 2010 Campaign Contributions"
  8. ↑ OregonLaws "Oregon Election Law(Referenced Statute 171.051, (1) (a)-(c))
  9. ↑ OregonLaws "Oregon Election Law(Referenced Statute 171.051, (2)-(6))
  10. ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2011 Legislator Compensation Data"
  11. ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "2010 Legislator Compensation Data"
  12. ↑ Empire Center, "Legislative Salaries Per State as of 2007"
  13. ↑ "Oregon State Legislature: Frequently Asked Questions," 2011
  14. ↑ Oregon State Senate Leadership
  15. ↑ Oregon State Senate Democratic Leadership
v • d • e
Democrat majority Current members of the Oregon State Senate
Senate Majority Leader: Richard Devlin (D) • Senate Minority Leader: Ted Ferrioli (R)
Democratic (16) • Republican (14) • Oregon State Senate • Oregon House of Representatives
v • d • e
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