HB4159 Oregon Government Ethics Commission Membership and Privileges
Summary
Oregon Governor signed HB4159 into law, effective January 1, 2027. The Act requires that at least one member appointed to the Oregon Government Ethics Commission (OGEC) must have local government experience. It also provides that attorney-client privilege is not waived when communications are made to the commission for purposes of providing information regarding complaints alleging violations of government ethics laws or public meetings laws.
What changed
HB4159 enacts two key changes to Oregon government ethics law. First, it mandates that the Governor appoint at least one member to the Oregon Government Ethics Commission who has local government experience, ensuring the commission includes perspectives from local governance. Second, the Act provides explicit protection for attorney-client privilege, clarifying that such privilege is not waived when a communication is made to the commission in connection with complaints about government ethics or public meetings law violations.
Affected parties include state and local government agencies, legal professionals advising clients on ethics matters, and individuals filing complaints with the OGEC. Government agencies should review appointment and nomination procedures for OGEC positions. Legal professionals and their clients benefit from clearer privilege protections when interacting with the commission, which may increase voluntary cooperation and complaints.
What to do next
- Review current OGEC appointment procedures to ensure compliance with new composition requirements
- Update internal policies regarding communications with OGEC to account for new privilege protections
- Monitor OGEC guidance on implementing the new requirements
Archived snapshot
Apr 14, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
ChangeBridge / Oregon / HB4159 Effective Date HB4159 House Bill Effective Date 2026-04-13
Relating to the Oregon Government Ethics Commission.
The Act says that one person put on the OGEC must have a certain background. The Act protects certain protected words during investigations by the OGEC. (Flesch Readability Score: 63.4). [Digest: The Act says that the Governor has to put a person with a certain background on the OGEC. The Act protects certain protected words during investigations by the OGEC. (Flesch Readability Score: 60.8).] [Provides that the Governor shall appoint one member of the Oregon Government Ethics Commission who has local government experience.] Provides that at least one member who is appointed to the Oregon Government Ethics Commission must have local government experience. Provides that attorney-client privilege is not waived when a communication is made to the commission for purposes of providing information regarding a complaint alleging a violation of government ethics laws or public meetings laws.
Bill Details
State Oregon
Session 2026 Legislative Measures
Chamber House
Official Source olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2026R1/Meas...
LegiScan View on LegiScan
Sponsors
Rules
Action History
2026-04-13 H Chapter 124, (2026 Laws): Effective date January 1, 2027. 2026-04-07 H Governor signed. 2026-03-10 S President signed. 2026-03-10 H Speaker signed. 2026-03-06 H House concurred in Senate amendments and repassed bill. Ayes, 37; Nays, 15--Boice, Boshart Davis, Breese-Iverson, Bunch, Cate, Edwards, Elmer, Harbick, Helfrich, Lewis, McIntire, Osborne, Reschke, Scharf, Skarlatos; Excused, 5--Hartman, Javadi, Levy B, Owens, Valderrama; Excused for Business of the House, 3--Nelson, Nosse, Wright. 2026-03-05 S Third reading. Carried by Golden. Passed. Ayes, 28; Excused, 2--Drazan, Hayden. 2026-03-04 S Carried over to 03-05 by unanimous consent. 2026-03-03 S Second reading. 2026-03-02 S Recommendation: Do pass with amendments. (Printed A-Eng.) 2026-03-02 S Work Session held. 2026-02-27 S Public Hearing held. 2026-02-25 S Referred to Rules. 2026-02-25 S First reading. Referred to President's desk. 2026-02-24 H Third reading. Carried by Sosa. Passed. Ayes, 49; Nays, 2--Owens, Yunker; Excused, 7--Boshart Davis, Chaichi, Hartman, Osborne, Reschke, Scharf, Valderrama; Excused for Business of the House, 2--Diehl, Harbick. 2026-02-23 H Second reading. 2026-02-20 H Recommendation: Do pass. 2026-02-19 H Work Session held. 2026-02-17 H Public Hearing held. 2026-02-05 H Referred to Rules. 2026-02-05 H First reading. Referred to Speaker's desk.
Votes
2026-02-19 House Committee Do Pass Yea: 7 Nay: 0 2026-02-24 House Third Reading Yea: 49 Nay: 2 2026-03-02 Senate Committee Do pass with amendments. (Printed A-Eng.) Yea: 5 Nay: 0 2026-03-05 Senate Third Reading Yea: 28 Nay: 0 2026-03-06 House Third Reading in Concurrence Yea: 37 Nay: 15
Committee Referrals
2026-02-05 H Rules 2026-02-25 S Rules
Amendments
2026-02-27 Senate Committee On Rules Amendment #-1 2026-03-02 Senate Committee On Rules Amendment #-1 Adopted
Bill Text Versions
0000-00-00 Introduced 0000-00-00 Introduced 0000-00-00 Engrossed 0000-00-00 Enrolled Legislative data powered by LegiScan (CC BY 4.0)
Named provisions
Related changes
Get daily alerts for Oregon Legislative Events
Daily digest delivered to your inbox.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
About this page
Every important government, regulator, and court update from around the world. One place. Real-time. Free. Our mission
Source document text, dates, docket IDs, and authority are extracted directly from OR Legislature.
The summary, classification, recommended actions, deadlines, and penalty information are AI-generated from the original text and may contain errors. Always verify against the source document.
Classification
Who this affects
Taxonomy
Browse Categories
Get alerts for this source
We'll email you when Oregon Legislative Events publishes new changes.
Subscribed!
Optional. Filters your digest to exactly the updates that matter to you.