The Oregon Legislative Assembly (formerly the Oregon Territorial Legislature) is Oregon's legislative body, consisting of a 30-member Senate and a 60-member House of Representatives. Each Senate district is split into two House districts. House members are elected to two-year terms, where Senators are elected to four-year terms, and the legislature is considered a citizen's assembly, where most members have jobs apart from their elected position. Until 2012, the assembly met in odd-numbered years -- they now meet annually, where even-numbered years host 35-day sessions, compared to 160-day sessions in odd-numbered years. From 1848 until 1858, the Oregon territory was governed by the Oregon Territorial Legislature, which was composed of a lower chamber -- the House of Representatives -- and an upper chamber -- a 9-member Council. It was dissolved upon Oregon's admission to statehood in 1859, when the Oregon Legislative Assembly was created. 

There are a great deal of materials held by SCARC that discuss the Oregon Legislature and lawmaking in general:

• Members of the Legislature of the State of Oregon, 1860-1949 (David Duniway, Oregon State Archives)
• Legislative Perspectives: A 150-Year History of the Oregon Legislatures from 1843 to 1993 (Douglas Heider)
• The Oregon Legislature; a pamphlet describing legislative procedure and commenting on the legislative branch of state government; with House and Senate rules, and sections of the State Constitution affecting legislative organization and procedure (Charles Childs)
• Oregon Votes: 1858-1972, election returns, by county, from statehood to 1972 for U.S. President, Governor, U.S. Senator, and U.S. Representative (Burton W. Onstine, Oregon Historical Society)
• History of the Bench and Bar of Oregon (Montagu Colmer and Charles Erskine Scott Wood, 1910)
• The Organic and Other General Laws of Oregon, Together with the National Constitution and Other Public Acts and Statutes of the United States, 1845-1864 (Matthew P. Deady)
• Address of Frederick V. Holman, President of the Oregon Bar Association: Some Instances of Unsatisfactory Results Under Initiative Amendments of the Oregon Constitution (1910)
• The Operation of the Initiative, Referendum and Recall in Oregon (James D. Barnett)

SCARC also holds a series of rare books relevant to specific sessions of the Oregon Territorial Legislature and the Oregon Legislative Assembly:

Oregon Territorial Legislature, 5th Legislative Assembly

The Statutes of Oregon: Enacted and Continued in Force by the Legislative Assembly, at the session commencing 5th December, 1853 (Oregon Territory Legislative Assembly)

 

1859 Special Session

Journal of the Senate of the Legislative Assembly of the State of Oregon 1859 Extra Session Thereof (Oregon Legislative Assembly Senate)

Journal of the Senate of the Legislative Assembly of the State of Oregon 1859 Extra Session Thereof (Oregon Legislative Assembly Senate)

 

1862 Special Session

Journal of the Proceedings of the House of the Legislative Assembly of Oregon (Oregon Legislative Assembly House of Representatives)

 

The 30th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1917-1918)

Report of the Consolidation Commission of the State of Oregon to the Thirtieth Legislative Assembly (Oregon Consolidation Commission)

Final Report of the Consolidation Commission to the Governor and the Thirtieth Legislative Assembly (Oregon Consolidation Commission)

 

The 35th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1929-1930)

Report of the Joint Commission on Administrative Reorganization: Thirty-Fifth Legislative Assembly of the State of Oregon 

 

The 36th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1931-1932)

State Cabinet Form of Government: Constitutional Amendment: Transcript of Evidence and Material (Joint Assembly on Administrative Reorganization)

 

The 38th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1935-1936)

Outline of the Government of Oregon: Summary of Constitution and Statutes (James Duff Barnett)

Directory of Federal Agencies and Departments in Oregon, 1936

 

The 39th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1937-1938)

Joint Report on Governmental and Administrative Reorganization (Commission on Government and Administrative Reorganization, 1937)

Joint Report on Governmental and Administrative Reorganization (Oregon Commission on Governmental and Administrative Reorganization)

Legislative Procedure in Oregon (Charles Childs)

Directory of Federal Agencies and Departments in Oregon, 1937

 

The 40th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1939-1940)

Directory of Federal Agencies and Departments in Oregon, 1939

Directory of Federal Agencies and Departments in Oregon, 1940

 

The 41st Oregon Legislative Assembly (1941-1942)

Directory of Federal Agencies and Departments in Oregon, 1941

 

The 43rd Oregon Legislative Assembly (1945-1946)

Our Daily Life: Oregon Civil Government, 1946 (Clarence M. Cooke)

 

The 54th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1967-1968)

Oregon Legisletter (League of Women Voters)

 

The 55th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1969-1970)

Oregon State Government for the 1970's (Project 70's Task Force, Office of the Governor)

 

The 57th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1973-1974)

Oregon's Legislature and the Legislative Process (Legislative Administration Committee)

Family Laws of Oregon as Amended in 1973 (Marriage and Family Council)

The Freshman Legislator, Problem and Opportunities: A Handbook on the Oregon Legislature (Lawrence C. Pierce)

Oregon Consumer Legislation Report, 1973-1979 (Oregon Consumer Services Division)

 

The 58th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1975-1976)

Oregon's Legislature and the Legislative Process (Legislative Administration Committee)

Oregon Consumer Legislation Report, 1973-1979 (Oregon Consumer Services Division)

 

The 59th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1977 - 1978)

Oregon's Legislature and the Legislative Process (Legislative Administration Committee)

Oregon Consumer Legislation Report, 1973-1979 (Oregon Consumer Services Division)

 

The 60th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1979 - 1980)

Oregon's Legislature and the Legislative Process (Legislative Administration Committee)

Oregon Consumer Legislation Report, 1973-1979 (Oregon Consumer Services Division)

 

The 61st Oregon Legislative Assembly (1981 - 1982)

Oregon's Legislature and the Legislative Process (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 62nd Oregon Legislative Assembly (1983-1984)

Oregon's Legislature and the Legislative Process (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 63rd Oregon Legislative Assembly (1985-1986)

Oregon's Legislature and the Legislative Process (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 64th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1987-1988)

Oregon's Legislature and the Legislative Process (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 65th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1989-1990)

Oregon's Legislature and the Legislative Process (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 66th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1991-1992)

Oregon's Legislature and the Legislative Process (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 67th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1993-1994)

Oregon Legislative Guide (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 68th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1995-1996)

Oregon Legislative Guide (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 69th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1997-1998)

Oregon Legislative Guide (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 70th Oregon Legislative Assembly (1999-2000)

Oregon Legislative Guide (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 71st Oregon Legislative Assembly (2001-2002)

Oregon Legislative Guide (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 72nd Oregon Legislative Assembly (2003-2004)

Oregon Legislative Guide (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 73rd Oregon Legislative Assembly (2005-2006)

Oregon Legislative Guide (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 74th Oregon Legislative Assembly (2007-2008)

Oregon Legislative Guide (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 75th Oregon Legislative Assembly (2009-2010)

Oregon Legislative Guide (Legislative Administration Committee)

 

The 76th Oregon Legislative Assembly (2011-2012)

Oregon Legislative Guide (Legislative Administration Committee)