The Oregon Legislature approved a $9.7 million increase in funding for the Oregon Opportunity Grant at this year’s special legislative session. The OOG is Oregon’s only need-based grant.
The amount will restore the previous year’s cut to the OOG and maintain the program for the next year. The first $4.7 million will go into restoring the cuts that the legislature made at the 2009 session.
In 2009, the Legislature also approved $9.7 million in total funding for the OOG, which was down $11.8 million, or 10.8 percent, over the amount approved for the prior biennium, according to the Legislative Fiscal Office.
Emily McLain, legislative director for the Oregon Student Association, said the increase in funding is a huge victory for students and the OSA, which had been lobbying the legislature since the beginning of this year’s session.
McLain said that in 2009, students who were eligible to receive the OOG received a cut of $120 per term for full-time students and $60 for part-time students.
In 2009, there were 99,507 students eligible for the OOG, but only 43,164 received the award, according to the OSA Commission.
“We’ve seen a higher number of applicants for the OOG and the $9.7 million hasn’t been enough,” McLain said. “It’s very difficult for some students who see their funding cut in the middle of the year.”
McLain said the OSA lobbied for $110 million for the OOG in 2009, but that was not possible during the recession.
In addition to the $9.7 million, the legislature also fixed the language of the program so that more part-time students can qualify for the fund, according to ASPSU Vice President Ed Hallman.
“OOG can prioritize students who are full time over those who are part time, so the legislature changed it so that the two are treated more equally,” Hallman said.
Rep. Mary Nolan said that coming down to the legislatures is an effective way to communicate with their state legislatures.
The OSA recently organized a day of action on Feb. 12, at the steps of the state capitol. Nearly 200 students from various institutions in the state attended around 30 meetings with their legislatures on the same day.
Other beneficial legislation
Another key bill passed was the Job Applicant Fairness Act, which prohibits employers from using a credit check as a tool to assess potential employees.
The act is beneficial to students because they often have a difficult time in establishing good credit ratings after graduation and thus are more vulnerable to job discrimination, according to Nolan.
“The argument in support of JAFA is that someone shouldn’t be punished when they’re looking for a promotion or a new job just because they have bad credit,” Nolan said, “There isn’t a good correlation between a bad credit rating and job qualification or performance of a potential employee.”