Oregon

Oregon Department of Administrative Services (DAS) in partnership with Governor Tina Kotek’s administration established an Office of Strategic Initiatives and Enterprise Accountability (SIEA) in February 2023. SIEA was charged with implementing Oregon Agency Expectations, which is based on measures of operational excellence such as strategic planning, employee engagement, and competitive hiring practices. Each measure was outlined in a letter from Governor Kotek. Long term this will result in monitoring and evaluation of progress towards operational excellence and process improvement across all state agencies.

A 2017 Oregon law instituted a Chief Data Officer responsible for the state’s centralized data strategy, including an enterprise open data platform. The Chief Data Officer is charged with creating open data standards, providing privacy guidance for state agencies, identifying opportunities for data sharing, and designing stakeholder engagement strategies, including an advisory committee. In 2021, the program was funded to grow from six to twelve staff members and procured a geospatial data-sharing and management platform. The Chief Data Officer also released Oregon’s first data strategy in 2020 and data strategy website in February 2021. The state continues working toward the actions identified in the data strategy’s biennial action plan. Work includes listening sessions with a diverse range of organizations with the intent of seeking input on the Oregon Data Literacy Framework and implementation, additional resources to support open data and transparency within state agencies and hiring of critical roles related to data equity.

Published in February 2021, Oregon’s statewide 2021-2023 data strategy and data strategy website identify high-level principles and practices for how the state will effectively and ethically use data, including collection, use, design, community engagement, and transparency. The state continues working toward the actions identified in the data strategy’s biennial action plan pursuant to a 2017 law.

Codified by state statute in 2017, Oregon’s Open Data Program allows state agencies to inventory, prioritize, and publish open datasets to improve transparency and internal data sharing among state agencies and government partners. Oregon’s Open Data Program Resources links contain information on the state’s Open Data Standard, webinars held by the Chief Data Officer, and external tools and resources.

A 2017 Oregon law requires the Chief Data Officer to create an enterprise memorandum of understanding to facilitate data sharing across state agencies. To support this approach, the Chief Data Officer has convened integrated data users and leaders from across the state. The State Longitudinal Data System, launched in 2018, brings together education and workforce data. The Trauma-Informed Pilot Project identifies areas of inequities for increased funding. To further advance this data integration across the state, a 2021 state law created a “system of care advisory council” responsible for integrating appropriate data to help determine holistic care and support needs within health, education, public safety, and other program services. The System of Care Council has produced an initial version of a system of care dashboard to identify youth served within Oregon’s systems of care.

In 2021, the Oregon Office of Workforce Investments used a tiered evidence framework from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) to both define and prioritize evidence, as well as allocate funds through its AmeriCorps Oregon State Grant Program. Criteria from the CNCS assigned preference to evidence-based interventions assessed as ‘Moderate’ or ‘Strong’. To do this, the grant assigned points within the Evidence Base section (up to 20), with Evidence Tier allotted 12 points and Evidence Quality 8 points. The RFP prioritized evidence by stating that “all applicants must propose program designs that are either evidence-based or evidence-informed. Applicants assessed as lower than the Preliminary evidence tier (i.e., Pre-Preliminary) must provide adequate responses to the Evidence Quality review criteria in order to be considered for funding.” Applicants were encouraged to consider interventions through the AmeriCorps Mandatory Supplemental Guidance that further defined evidence tiers.

A 2003 Oregon law provides a definition of evidence-based program as a program that “incorporates significant and relevant practices based on scientifically based research; and is cost effective” and states that the Oregon Department of Corrections, the Oregon Youth Authority, the Oregon Youth Development Division, and “the part of the Oregon Health Authority that deals with mental health and addiction issues” shall (1) spend at least 75% of state moneys that the agency receives for programs on evidence-based programs; (2) perform cost-benefit analyses; and (3) compile a biennial program inventory with results from funded programs. As of 2022, the Oregon Youth Authority spent 88% of General Fund ($59.6 million) and 91% of total funds ($88.5 million) subject to Oregon’s Senate Bill 267 (SB267) on evidence-based programming. In a 2022 report to the legislature, the Oregon Department of Education Youth Development Division indicated that 94% ($2,420,087) of reported expenditures support local programs that have met evidence-based practice criteria.

As part of the implementation of the 2003 Oregon law on evidence-based health, youth, and corrections programs, Oregon Health Authority (OHA) maintains an ongoing inventory of approved evidence-based practices in behavioral health, including culturally relevant services. OHA has also established the Health Evidence Review Commission to continually review and update an ongoing inventory of evidence-based practices at work within OHA. The commission vets medical evidence to identify new and valuable practices and maintains a publicly available list of practices in a wide range of clinical and treatment areas.

The Governor’s 2022 State of the State address highlighted the value of data-driven policy-making centered on equity and racial justice to inform how the Governor’s investments would help build a stronger, more equitable future for all residents. For example, the Governor’s Racial Justice Council provided community feedback through the Council’s membership and prioritization of evidence-based processes for the development of the Governor’s Recommended Budget, which was delivered to the Legislature as part of the 2023 legislative session. Budget and Legislative Concepts Instructions for the 2023-25 budget incorporated a racial equity toolkit (Appendix B).

Budget Instructions for agencies focus on requirements for agencies to focus on long-term outcomes, program performance, and key performance measures for agencies.

A 2003 Oregon law provides a definition of evidence-based program as a program that “incorporates significant and relevant practices based on scientifically based research; and is cost effective” and states that the Oregon Department of Corrections, the Oregon Youth Authority, the Oregon Youth Development Division, and “the part of the Oregon Health Authority that deals with mental health and addiction issues” shall (1) spend at least 75% of state moneys that the agency receives for programs on evidence-based programs; (2) perform cost-benefit analyses; and (3) compile a biennial program inventory with results from funded programs.

A 2018 Oregon statute requires agencies to submit key performance measure data to the Legislative Fiscal Office on a regular basis, in addition to sharing reports publicly to indicate Oregon’s progress toward identified measures. Oregon also has a Key Performance Measures system in which agencies report regular progress on identified measures to the legislature and the Governor’s Office. With the development of Oregon’s Racial Justice Council, the state is in the process of establishing a centralized vision for racial justice and equity that includes guidance for agencies on identifying strategic objectives and measures to support racial equity and in evaluating services from a community-focused standpoint, as released as part of Oregon’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Action Plan in August 2021. Progress of the vision in terms of budget accomplishment and legislative support are summarized in a Racial Justice Council April 2022 presentation.

One of the Oregon Agency Expectations is requiring all state agencies to have a Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity (DEI) Plan, each plan requires meaningful community engagement. The previous administration established a road map, the DEI Action Plan, for agencies so they would have a resource to lean on. When SIEA surveyed agencies in April 2023, 52% of agencies had a DEI plan in place. Like Governor Kotek outlined in her letter of agency expectations, Oregon state agencies were required to submit their DEI plans or an outline for a future plan by June 1, 2023. The goal is for all state agencies to have DEI plans adopted and established by June 2024.

The Oregon Governor’s Office published a series of strategic initiatives directly related to the current biennium (2021-2023), and specifically helping Oregon “build back better” after the COVID-19 pandemic. These strategic initiatives include a 10-point action plan for economic recovery, informed in partnership with the Governor’s Racial Justice Council, as well as a strategic direction for guiding Oregon’s recovery from COVID-19 within a framework of racial equity and social justice. The 10-point action plan includes concrete priorities and critical investments related to fostering economic growth and recovery in a post-pandemic Oregon. Although tracking outcomes and progress is a decentralized process managed by agencies, the Office of SIEA is tracking agency strategic plans and DEI plans and often these plans are intertwined. Progress Report on Oregon Agency Expectations published June 1, 2023 reports on the status of agency strategic plans and DEI plans. Additionally, the Racial Justice Council worked with communities to establish Future Ready Oregon, a $200 million dollar package that invests in job training with a focus on health care, technology and manufacturing, and construction.