Oregon businesses, governments want lawmakers to shield them from coronavirus lawsuits

A broad array of business and local government groups is calling on Oregon lawmakers to grant them coronavirus-related liability protections in the special session scheduled to begin Wednesday.

Gov. Kate Brown called the special session to pass police accountability bills after nationwide demonstrations against law enforcement killing Black people.

Democratic leaders and the governor also want lawmakers to vote on coronavirus response policies and a grab bag of other legislation that appeals to rural Republicans or failed to pass in the short 2020 session when Republicans walked out of the Capitol. House Speaker Tina Kotek has said the session will likely take at least two days.

Oregon’s largest business lobbying group and associations that represent city and county governments and schools say they urgently need a new state law as well to shield them from lawsuits related to coronavirus. The only liability protection included in bill proposals released late Friday would apply narrowly to governments and businesses such as motels that provide “isolation shelter” to people during the public health emergency.

“If an entity is acting under orders of the governor or if they are following the guidelines issued to safely guide their operations, then they should have certainty during the COVID-19 emergency situation that they will not be sued,” the roughly four-dozen state and national associations and lobbying groups wrote in a letter to lawmakers. “Entities need to know they have protection from lawsuits if they are following state mandated safety guidelines.”

Specifically, the proposed bill would bar courts from awarding damages against businesses, governments and people who are complying with the state’s coronavirus emergency orders and regulations, “unless the damages result from the person or entity’s gross negligence or from the person or entity’s reckless, wanton or intentional misconduct.”

Liability protections during the pandemic have generated controversy nationally, as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell insisted they be part of the next federal stimulus and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi refused. Support or opposition to the legal shield policy does not always follow party lines. In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo inserted liability protections for nursing homes into the state’s budget.

In Oregon, few lawsuits have been filed related to coronavirus. At least two were filed by relatives of residents of a now-closed Southeast Portland nursing home who died after contracting coronavirus. State inspectors found the facility was not following guidelines including infection control mandates.

A large portion of coronavirus-related deaths in Oregon have occurred among nursing home residents, following a national trend. The powerful long-term care facility lobbying group, the Oregon Health Care Association, was not among the groups that signed onto the letter seeking liability protections in the special session. But it has joined other health care groups in recent months to lobby for lawsuit protections.

“Without action from Gov. Brown and the Oregon Legislature, these providers will almost certainly pay the price for carrying out the state’s executive orders, putting providers, facilities and the state at great risk once this crisis subsides,” the groups wrote on a website dedicated to their cause. “Join Oregonians across the state and urge Gov. Kate Brown and state lawmakers to take action now to Protect Oregon Providers!

Rosie Ward, a spokeswoman for the long-term care group, did not say specifically why it was not listed with other supporters on the recent letter to state leaders. “We have one priority in any upcoming Oregon legislative session and that is making sure that frontline healthcare workers have the resources and supports they need to keep people healthy and safe and combat this horrible virus,” Ward wrote in an email to The Oregonian/OregonLive.

House Minority Leader Rep. Christine Drazan, R-Canby, said she supports the liability protections businesses and local governments want.

“For those that are following those rules and meeting those guidelines, there should be a safe harbor for them from frivolous lawsuits,” Drazan said in an interview late Friday afternoon. “I think that it’s possible to … also ensure that if there is a need for someone to sue, if someone has acted in bad faith, then that’s also still available.”

Drazan said there’s still time for Democratic leaders to support the change. As to whether House Republicans will show up and provide the quorum Democrats need to conduct business on the House floor without a broad liability protection bill, Drazan said her caucus members need to review the bills Democrat leaders have selected. “I’m not really sure how this is gonna turn out,” Drazan said.