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| Date: From: Subject: | 5/30/2003 3:52:34 PM Home School Legal Defense Association Oregon--House Passes Revisions to Homeschool Law |
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---------------------------------------------------------------------- From the HSLDA E-lert Service... ---------------------------------------------------------------------- May 30, 2003 Dear HSLDA Members and Friends, Great news! The Oregon Senate voted 34-25 in favor of Senate Bill 761 yesterday after some debate on the bill. Many homeschoolers were able to attend the session and showing their support with "Home Education Freedom Works" stickers. For all of you who called and urged your state senator to pass Senate Bill 761, your efforts helped bring about this positive vote for homeschool freedom. Senate Bill 761 now moves back to the Oregon Senate to concur with the amendment made by the House. The Senate is expected to concur with the amendment. The amendment is intended to address habitually truant students. Once the bill passes the Senate, it will go to the Governor for him to either sign it into law or veto it. Since the Governor has urged various legislators to vote "no" on Senate Bill 761 and has threatened to veto this legislation, he needs to hear from homeschoolers. This bill has come too far to be defeated by the Governor's veto. REQUESTED ACTION We urge you to write Governor Kulongoski and ask him to sign Senate Bill 761 into law. Simply write a short letter with the bill number clearly visible and end the letter with your address and signature. You may have each of your children write a letter, sending them in separate envelopes. Write Governor Kulongoski at: The Honorable Ted Kulongoski Governor of Oregon 160 State Capitol 900 Court Street Salem, Oregon 97301-4047 REASONS WE SUPPORT THIS LEGISLATION Senate Bill 761 would make the following changes in the current law: - expand the educational options for homeschoolers by providing that a child may be educated by the parent or legal guardian or "at the direction of" a parent or legal guardian, thereby permitting parents or guardians to appoint someone else to conduct some or all of the instruction; - repeal the requirement that parents notify the public school officials of their decision to homeschool; - repeal the testing requirements of the homeschool law, except for students participating in interscholastic activities at a public school; and - remove the requirement that the education service district or school district determine that a child under 18 is being homeschooled in order to get a driver's license. BACKGROUND Oregon first enacted a homeschool law in 1985, approximately 18 years ago. Since that time, numerous efforts have been made to enact amendments providing more freedom to parents. The most recent change in the law occurred in 1999 when significant progress was made in reducing state oversight of homeschooling. Senate Bill 761 represents a continuation of legislative efforts to gain more freedom for parents. If Senate Bill 761 is enacted, Oregon will join a growing majority of states requiring no standardized testing of homeschooled students. Further, public school officials will have no record of children being homeschooled, because parents will not be required to even notify public school officials of their decision to conduct home instruction. Oregon has the potential through this legislation to go from a state with a good homeschool law to a state with a great homeschool law. Let's work hard together to get this done this year. To see more information on this and other bills HSLDA is monitoring in Oregon, visit our website at: http://www.hslda.org/hs/state/OR/default.asp Sincerely, Dewitt T. Black, III HSLDA Senior Counsel {{JoinAd}} ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of: Home School Legal Defense Association P.O. 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