Oregon Revised Statutes
As used in this chapter: “Candidate” means an individual whose name is or is expected to be printed on the official ballot. “City office” means the office of mayor, city auditor, city councillor or municipal judge of a city having a population of 50,000 or more according to the most recent determination made under ORS 190.510 to 190.610. “County clerk” me…
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of State and a county may enter into an intergovernmental agreement as provided in ORS 190.003 to 190.130 under which the Secretary of State and the county clerk of the county may jointly produce a voters’ pamphlet for any election as provided under this chapter or any other law relating to production…
The Secretary of State by rule shall prescribe the size, format and method of distribution of any state voters’ pamphlet, subject to the limits described in this chapter.
The Secretary of State by rule shall adopt an electronic filing system to allow estimates, portraits, statements or arguments to be filed electronically using the Internet. The Secretary of State may adopt rules to administer this section. Note: 251.014 was enacted into law by the Legislative Assembly but was not added to or made a part of ORS chapter 251 …
The Secretary of State shall pay fees received under this chapter into the General Fund.
If a special election or special primary election is held under ORS 188.120 for the purpose of filling a vacancy in election or office of United States Senator or Representative in Congress, or for nominating a candidate of each major political party to fill the vacancy, the Secretary of State shall prepare a voters’ pamphlet for each election. A voters’ pa…
The Secretary of State shall prepare and have printed in the voters’ pamphlet for the state primary election, the general election and any special election described in ORS 251.022 a statement containing, if applicable: Requirements for a citizen to qualify as an elector. When an elector is required to register or update a registration. In the voters’ pam…
Statements and arguments submitted for inclusion in a voters’ pamphlet by a candidate, political party or assembly of electors, or a person supporting or opposing a measure shall consist only of words or numbers. The Secretary of State shall specify on any instructions for filing a statement, argument or other material in the voters’ pamphlet that the state…
Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, the Secretary of State may not print the name or title of a person or the name of an organization in an argument supporting or opposing any measure or a statement of any candidate, political party or assembly of electors filed for inclusion in the voters’ pamphlet, if the name or title of the person or th…
The Secretary of State shall reject any statement, argument, translation or other matter offered for filing and publishing in a voters’ pamphlet that: Contains any obscene, profane or defamatory language; Incites or advocates hatred, abuse or violence toward any person or group; or Contains any language which may not legally be circulated through the mail…
Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this subsection, not sooner than the 120th day and not later than the 68th day before the primary election, a candidate or agent on behalf of the candidate for nomination or election at the primary election to the office of President or Vice President of the United States, United States Senator, Representative in Congre…
A candidate or agent on behalf of the candidate for nomination or election to any county or city office, or to an elected office of a metropolitan service district organized under ORS chapter 268, may file a portrait or statement for inclusion in the state voters’ pamphlet under ORS 251.065 if a county voters’ pamphlet described in ORS 251.305 to 251.435 is …
The Secretary of State shall include in each voters’ pamphlet, in which material of a candidate for nomination or election to an office of a metropolitan service district organized under ORS chapter 268 is printed as provided in ORS 251.065, 251.067 and 251.285, a map of the service district which illustrates the boundaries of each subdistrict. The map shall…
A candidate may not submit for inclusion in the voters’ pamphlet a portrait that was taken more than four years before the date the portrait is filed with the Secretary of State. A portrait submitted for inclusion in the voters’ pamphlet shall: Be a conventional photograph with a plain background; Show the face or the head, neck and shoulders of the candi…
The candidate’s statement shall begin with a summary of the following: Occupation, educational and occupational background, and prior governmental experience.
If a candidate files a portrait and statement under ORS 251.065 for inclusion in the voters’ pamphlet, the Secretary of State shall review the portrait and statement to ensure that the portrait complies with the requirements of ORS 251.075 and that the statement complies with the requirements of ORS 251.049 and 251.085. Review by the Secretary of State unde…
For space in the voters’ pamphlet: Each candidate for nomination or election to the office of President or Vice President of the United States shall, at the time materials are filed under ORS 251.065, pay a fee of $3,500 to the Secretary of State or may submit a petition in a form prescribed by the secretary containing the signatures of 500 active electors …
Not sooner than the 120th day and not later than the 70th day before the general election, the party officers as designated in the organizational documents of any statewide political party or assembly of electors having nominated candidates may file with the Secretary of State a statement of arguments for the success of its principles and election of its can…
In a section of the voters’ pamphlet that provides general information, the Secretary of State shall include a disclaimer in boldfaced type in substantially the following form: ______________________________________________________________________________ Information provided in statements or arguments submitted by a candidate, a political party, an assemb…
Material filed for inclusion in the voters’ pamphlet may be withdrawn on or before the deadline for filing material under ORS 251.065. A person who paid a fee for filing material for inclusion in a voters’ pamphlet may receive a refund from the Secretary of State if the request for a refund is received by the secretary on or before the deadline for filing m…
Notwithstanding ORS 192.311 to 192.478 relating to public records, materials filed by a political party, assembly of electors or candidate for inclusion in a voters’ pamphlet and arguments supporting or opposing a measure filed by any person for inclusion in a voters’ pamphlet are exempt from public inspection until the fourth business day after the final da…
Material submitted for inclusion in any voters’ pamphlet shall not be admitted as evidence in any suit or action against the Secretary of State to restrain or enjoin the publication of the voters’ pamphlet.
The Secretary of State shall prepare: A list of the names of candidates for nomination or election at the primary election to the offices of President or Vice President of the United States, United States Senator, Representative in Congress, any state office other than justice of the peace and any county or city office or elected office of a metropolitan se…
The Secretary of State shall create and make publicly available a list of: The five most commonly spoken languages in the state, other than English; and The 10 most commonly spoken languages in each county, other than English. The lists created under subsection (1) of this section must: Be based on the best available data, which may include the most rece…
The translation of a state voters’ pamphlet or county voters’ pamphlet required under ORS 251.167 shall be made in the manner described in this section. For each state voters’ pamphlet and county voters’ pamphlet mailed to residents of a county, the Secretary of State shall have the following portions of the voters’ pamphlet professionally translated into e…
The Translation Advisory Council is established. The council shall consist of five at-large members and at least one translator member for each of the 10 most commonly spoken languages in this state, other than English, and for each language in each county that the Secretary of State reasonably anticipates a voters’ pamphlet at the next election will be requ…
Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, not later than the 20th day before a primary election, general election or special election for which a voters’ pamphlet has been prepared, the Secretary of State shall cause the voters’ pamphlet to be mailed to each post-office mailing address in Oregon, and shall use any additional means of distribution…
The Secretary of State shall have printed in the voters’ pamphlet for a general election or any special election a copy of the title and text of each state measure to be submitted to the people at the election for which the pamphlet was prepared. The pamphlet must include the procedures for filing a complaint under ORS 260.345. Each measure shall be printed …
The text of a proposed amendment to the Oregon Constitution shall be printed in the voters’ pamphlet to indicate by the use of brackets and italic type the words that would be deleted from, and by boldfaced type the words that would be added to, the existing provision.
As used in this section, “proponents” means: With respect to any state measure initiated or referred by petition, the chief petitioners; or With respect to a measure referred by the Legislative Assembly, the President of the Senate, who shall appoint a Senator, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, who shall appoint a Representative. For each s…
Not later than the 99th day before a special election held on the date of a primary election or any general election at which any state measure is to be submitted to the people, the committee appointed under ORS 251.205 shall prepare and electronically file with the Secretary of State, an impartial, simple and understandable statement explaining the measure.…
The Legislative Counsel Committee shall prepare an impartial, simple and understandable statement of not more than 500 words explaining each state measure. The statement shall be filed electronically with the Secretary of State not later than the last day for filing a statement prepared under ORS 251.215. If an explanatory statement is not filed by a commit…
If an explanatory statement is not filed by a committee under ORS 251.215 or by the Legislative Counsel Committee under ORS 251.225, the measure shall be printed in the voters’ pamphlet without the explanatory statement.
Any person dissatisfied with an explanatory statement for which suggestions were offered at the Secretary of State’s hearing under ORS 251.215 may petition the Supreme Court seeking a different statement and stating the reasons the statement filed with the court is insufficient or unclear. If the petition is filed and served as required in subsection (2) of …
For any measure referred to the electors by the Legislative Assembly, an argument prepared by the Legislative Assembly in support of the measure may be printed in the voters’ pamphlet. The size and length of an argument under this section shall be determined as specified in ORS 251.255. A joint committee consisting of one Senator, to be appointed by the Pre…
Not sooner than the 120th day and not later than the 70th day before a general election or the 68th day before a special election held on the date of any primary election at which a state measure is to be voted upon, any person may file with the Secretary of State an argument supporting or opposing the measure. A person filing an argument under this section…
Not later than three business days following the deadline for filing an argument supporting or opposing a state measure under ORS 251.255, the Secretary of State shall review each argument to determine whether the person filing the argument made an error in: Identifying the measure number to which the argument relates; or Designating that the argument supp…
The Secretary of State shall include in the voters’ pamphlet on the page of the printed argument on a measure the name of the person who submitted the argument, the name of the organization the person represents, if any, and whether the argument supports or opposes the measure.
If a community college district measure relating to bonding, a county measure or a measure of a metropolitan service district organized under ORS chapter 268, and the ballot title, explanatory statement and arguments relating to the measure, are to be included by the Secretary of State in the state voters’ pamphlet as provided in ORS 251.067, the requirement…
The Secretary of State, pursuant to ORS 193.310 to 193.360, may supplement the special or general election voters’ pamphlet by causing to have broadcast by radio or television, material specified in this section at times the secretary determines suitable during the four weeks immediately preceding the election at which state measures are to be submitted to t…
The county clerk of any county may prepare, print and distribute a county voters’ pamphlet for any election.
If a county produces a county voters’ pamphlet, the county voters’ pamphlet shall include, when applicable, at least the following information: Requirements for a citizen to qualify as an elector. Requirements for registration and updates of registration. Elector instructions, including the right of an elector to request a second ballot if the first ballo…
The Secretary of State by rule shall adopt a schedule and procedures for preparing, printing and distributing county voters’ pamphlets. The schedule and procedures shall include but not be limited to deadlines for filing material for the voters’ pamphlet, and except as otherwise provided by law, the format of material to be submitted and the size and other r…
As used in this section, “district” has the meaning given that term in ORS 255.012. Any candidate for nomination or election to county, city or special district office within the county, or an agent of the candidate, may file with the county clerk of a county that prepares a county voters’ pamphlet a portrait of the candidate and a typewritten statement of …
Not later than the date specified by the Secretary of State, in a county that prepares a county voters’ pamphlet, the governing body for any electoral district that has referred a measure to the voters shall submit an impartial, simple and understandable statement explaining the measure and its effect.
Not later than the date specified by the Secretary of State by rule, in a county that prepares a county voters’ pamphlet, any person may file with the county clerk a typewritten argument supporting or opposing any measure to be submitted to the voters on the ballot. The county clerk may not accept any arguments that are not accompanied by the fee established…
Any county clerk preparing, printing and distributing a county voters’ pamphlet may apportion the cost of preparing, printing and distributing the county voters’ pamphlet as a cost of the election according to the formula established by the Secretary of State for the allocation of election costs. The apportioned election costs shall be reduced for each elect…
ORS 251.365 does not apply to any special district for which the county clerk is required to hold elections if the special district demonstrates to the satisfaction of the county clerk that the special district is unable to pay the apportioned expenses of the voters’ pamphlet as determined under ORS 251.365. If the special district is unable to pay, the expe…
As used in ORS 251.345 to 251.375, “electoral district” means the county or a city, or district as defined in ORS 255.012 located within the county.
Statements and arguments submitted for inclusion in a county voters’ pamphlet by a candidate, political party or assembly of electors, or a person supporting or opposing a measure shall consist only of words or numbers. The county clerk shall specify on any instructions for filing a statement, argument or other material in the voters’ pamphlet that the stat…
Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, the county clerk may not print the name or title of a person or the name of an organization in an argument supporting or opposing any measure or a statement of any candidate, filed for inclusion in a county voters’ pamphlet, if the name or title of the person or the name of the organization is cited as su…
The county clerk shall reject any statement, argument or other matter offered for filing and printing in a county voters’ pamphlet which: Contains any obscene, profane or defamatory language; Incites or advocates hatred, abuse or violence toward any person or group; or Contains any language which may not legally be circulated through the mails. Nothing i…
The candidate’s statement in a county voters’ pamphlet shall begin with a summary of the following: Occupation, educational and occupational background, and prior governmental experience.
Notwithstanding ORS 192.311 to 192.478 relating to public records, materials filed by a candidate for inclusion in a county voters’ pamphlet and arguments supporting or opposing a measure filed by any person for inclusion in a county voters’ pamphlet are exempt from public inspection until the fourth business day after the final date for filing the materials…
Material submitted for inclusion in any state or county voters’ pamphlet shall not be admitted as evidence in any suit or action against the county clerk to restrain or enjoin the publication of the voters’ pamphlet.
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