Agenda for legislative session includes Dreamers, Knight Campus

UO leaders will ask state lawmakers to put Oregon’s commitment to Dreamers into state law and approve additional funding for the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact during the upcoming 2018 legislative session.

The Legislature will gavel its annual session to order Monday, Feb. 5. Lawmakers will have just 35 days to make adjustments to the state’s budget and grapple with policies on everything from climate change to the state’s unfunded liability in the Public Employee Retirement System.

One bill the UO is supporting is Senate Bill 1563, which reaffirms Oregon’s commitment to Dreamers by codifying in state law that undocumented students are eligible for in-state tuition benefits and may receive need-based financial aid. “Dreamers” is the name given to immigrants illegally brought to the country as children who are seeking permission to remain.

“In a world of ambiguities, there is no uncertainty about the importance of ensuring educational opportunity for Dreamers,” said UO president and professor of law Michael H. Schill. “Morality dictates that these young people, many of whom were brought here as babies or toddlers by their parents, must be allowed to remain in the United States and Oregon to learn, work and make a life for themselves. Protecting Dreamers and ensuring they have their chance to receive an excellent education at the UO or another state institution of higher education is a central part of our legislative agenda in February.”

The Legislature also will consider a capital construction package that includes $40 million in bonds to complete funding for the Knight Campus. In December, Gov. Kate Brown asked the Legislature to consider bonding authority for three capital construction projects at Oregon’s public universities: the Knight Campus, an academic building at Oregon State University-Cascades in Bend, and a fieldhouse at Eastern Oregon University.

Each of the projects will incorporate cross-laminated timber or other Oregon wood products in their design and construction. That will help demonstrate the viability and new applications of cross-laminated timber, a product developed by researchers and faculty members at the TallWood Design Institute, a joint program between the UO and OSU.

“This capital package is a dual investment, benefiting universities and students as well as creating construction and manufacturing jobs in rural communities,” said Michael Harwood, UO associate vice president and university architect for capital planning and facilities management. “Many of Oregon’s rural counties have struggled to bounce back from the recession. Investments like these will help bolster local economies.”

In addition to advocating for the capital construction package, the UO will focus on protecting the $70 million of increased investment in the Public University Support Fund and lottery-funded scholarships for the 2017-19 biennium.

“Although it wasn’t as much as we had hoped for, lawmakers stepped up and increased funding for public universities,” said Libby Batlan, associate vice president for state and community affairs. “The increase allowed the UO to reduce our resident undergraduate tuition increase to 6.5 percent for the 2017-18 academic year.”

UO will track all legislation relevant to its academic and business operations throughout the session.