A Look at Legislative Committee Days, Impacts on State Budget from Federal HR-1

EDITOR’S NOTE: Civic leader, writer, storyteller, rural community leader LaNicia Duke is taking a deep dive into the happenings in Salem. Here she looks the impacts Federal legislation is having on Oregon government budgets. Legislative Days – “Leg Days” are happening this week, and there’s a lot at stake for many programs.

By LaNicia Duke

I’m excited to share some information I know many of you will find helpful as we continue navigating what’s happening in our state Capitol and within the Oregon Legislature.

Legislative Committee Days will take place Monday, November 17th through Wednesday, November 19th, 2025. These meetings happen outside of the formal legislative session and are known as interim committee hearings. They’re open for the public to watch online, although only invited speakers will be able to testify.

Because of major changes stemming from H.R. 1—also referred to as the “big, beautiful budget bill”—Oregon’s government is now facing a significant budget crisis. Signed into federal law on July 4, 2025, Title VII of H.R. 1 is the section that deals with federal taxes. Since Oregon uses a “rolling reconnect” policy, the state automatically ties its definition of taxable income to the federal definition for both personal and corporate income taxes. In practical terms, any changes Title VII makes to federal taxable income directly and immediately affect Oregon taxpayers and Oregon’s revenue.

As a result, state agencies have been asked to present contingency plans that include 5% reductions in their operating budgets—specifically within programs funded by the General Fund and Lottery Funds. The 2025–27 Legislatively Adopted Budget (LAB) is no longer balanced with projected revenue for the biennium.

There will be a lot to unpack over the next several weeks as we approach the start of the 2026 short session. In this article, I provide the link for each subcommittee meeting agenda and the reduction options document for each agency so you can watch next week’s hearings and review the proposed budget cuts—including how each reduction could impact its respective agency.

The Joint Ways and Means Committee is responsible for crafting and overseeing the state budget. Here are the subcommittee meetings scheduled for the upcoming hearings:

11/17/2025:

Joint Interim Committee On Ways and Means Subcommittee on Human Services

Reduction options will be presented for: Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS); Office of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman (OLTCO); Commission for the Blind; Oregon Health Authority; Oregon Medical Board (OMB); Psychiatric Security Review Board (PSRB).

Joint Interim Committee On Ways and Means Subcommittee On General Government

Reduction options will be presented for: Department of Administrative Services (DAS); Board of Accountancy (BAC); Board of Tax Practitioners (BTP); Construction Contractors Board (CCB); Department of Revenue (DOR); Employment Relations Board; Office of the Governor; Legislative Assembly; Legislative Administrator; Legislative Council; Legislative Commission on Indian Services (LCIS); Legislative Equity Office (LEO); Legislative Fiscal Office (LFO); Legislative Policy and Research Office (LPRO); Legislative Revenue Office (LRO); Oregon Advocacy Commissions Office (OACO); Oregon Government Ethics Commission (OGEC); Oregon State Treasury; Public Employees Retirement System (PERS).