In 2026-27, the Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC) will develop an analysis and recommendations on the public postsecondary system in Oregon, as assigned by the Oregon Legislature in House Bill 4124 (2026). This legislation requires the HECC to study the condition of the public higher education system and develop recommendations to the Legislature on the design, implementation, and operation of a sustainable system for Oregon by April 1, 2027.
House Bill 4124, approved with bipartisan support in 2026, aims to address fiscal pressures and changing dynamics faced by postsecondary institutions in Oregon by launching a systemwide analysis to meet student, economic, and community needs. Partners can learn more about the general legislative intent of the bill in its introductory clauses.
The work of developing the House Bill 4124 study will be a major focus of the HECC in 2026-27. We are committed to keeping our partners informed on this important process. On this web page, members of the public can find key information on the process and timeline of this significant study.
Responsibility of the HECC
House Bill 4124 directs the HECC to conduct a study of the condition of Oregon’s postsecondary education system and to develop detailed recommendations for the design, implementation and operation of a viable and improved institutional framework for public higher education in Oregon. The HECC is charged with ensuring that its recommendations:
- support access to postsecondary education institutions for students across geographic location, including rural communities and other underserved populations;
- fuel regional and statewide economic development and employment opportunities; and
- improve the financial viability of each postsecondary education institution in Oregon and the postsecondary education system as a whole, including by addressing projected enrollment, increased personnel costs, changes in federal law or priorities, sector-specific inflationary costs or other related factors.
The study must:
- evaluate the distinct objectives and missions of each category of postsecondary institution in consideration of several key variables identified in the bill; and
- identify opportunities for collaboration, restructuring, or integration in the postsecondary system.
The study may also make recommendations on several other topics identified in the bill.
The HECC is required to consult with faculty, staff, students, and other public institution partners in the development of the report. The HECC must provide a preliminary report to the Legislature by October 1, 2026, and submit a final report by April 1, 2027.
HECC Process for Implementation of House Bill 4124
The HECC has enlisted the support of Oregon Consensus to conduct an initial assessment to guide a transparent, inclusive, and collaborative process for this important project. This assessment was completed in May 2026 and is detailed below.
By summer 2026, HECC intends to engage a contractor (or contractors) that will conduct the bulk of the project, including outreach, communications, data-gathering, analysis, and recommendations. In addition, we expect to establish a project leadership table. Learn more about these steps below.
While the Commission will take final responsibility for the contents of interim and final reports to the Legislature that meet the requirements of HB 4124, we intend for our public process to build shared understanding amongst Oregon’s diverse education constituencies about challenges and opportunities facing higher education.
The HECC engaged the support of Oregon Consensus to help the agency in developing a transparent, inclusive, and collaborative process for this statewide project. This assessment was completed on May 15, 2026 and is available below:
Oregon Consensus (OC) conducted a high-level scoping assessment through interviews over several months with groups who interact with the postsecondary system, asking for input on the foundational principles for the project, how to see success, challenges, best ways to engage, and more. Their report provides the collective responses of thirteen focus groups and 31 individual interviews, with a total of 87 participants across a broad spectrum of interests. Recommendations, detailed in the full assessment document, include:
- Framing the project in terms of long-term system resiliency, with a focus not only on the practical and urgent needs of today, but also on a longer horizon with an aspirational and holistic system view.
- Several recommendations related to working with a trusted, visible and engaged consultant;
- Building common foundational principles together, with a focus on ensuring that student and community needs should be the primary ‘north star.’
- Specific recommendations on the structure for collaboration, including development of a House Bill 4124 advisory group (including specifications on its membership structure), ad-hoc design groups to develop ideas on specific components of the system, a student voices group, a postsecondary institution finance and academic administrators group, regular legislative briefings, regional community forums across the state, and use of other forums and engagement channels.
By summer 2026, HECC intends to engage a contractor (or contractors), and will implement Oregon Consensus’s recommendations to establish the collaborative structure for this analysis.
The Oregon Consensus interview process invited feedback on an initial set of foundational principles developed by HECC to serve as anchors for the work. The following refined draft reflects additional thinking from interviewees, which the Advisory Group can further refine and work with to guide their deliberations over the next year.
DRAFT Principles
- We will center student success needs. Recognizing diversity of needs and access to multiple pathways, educational quality, affordability, and connecting to careers are north stars.
- We recognize that economic development and postsecondary education are interdependent and should be viewed together.
- We will care for and support the diverse and valuable contributions of existing institutions.
- We recognize that “one size does not fit all.” Solutions need to account for Oregon’s unique context and diverse array of institutional offerings across the postsecondary education system.
- We will learn from others. We will be informed by a broad, national perspective on the challenges faced in higher education and potential models to follow (and to avoid).
- We will be inclusive of many needs and perspectives. Faculty, staff, students, governing boards, unions, institutional administrators, legislators and Tribes should have meaningful opportunities to learn together and help shape the recommendations.
- We will communicate with transparency and accuracy. Communication about the project should be consistent and shared through multiple channels to a broad audience.
- We will be informed by usable, timely, and accurate information. The study should rely on quantitative and qualitative data that are digestible and verifiable.
- We will engage in shared learning through multiple sources of knowledge. Empirical and evidence-based data can come from research as well as lived experience shared through storytelling and other forms of expression. The process should make room for multiple sources and transmittals.
- We will look for solutions that are comprehensive and seek long-term economic and cultural vitality for Oregon and its communities.
- We will take an integrative, collaborative approach that attempts to develop areas of clear alignment amongst multiple parties, while recognizing that the HECC is the lead entity responsible for final recommendations to the Legislature within a specified timeline and scope.
By summer 2026, HECC intends to engage a contractor (or contractors) that will conduct the bulk of the project, including outreach, communications, data-gathering, analysis, and recommendations. In addition, we expect to establish a project leadership table that includes representatives of interested parties and will be facilitated by an external entity. This group will receive regular updates on the project, advise HECC staff on guiding the consultant(s) work, and attempt to forge areas of alignment with—and acknowledge areas of deviation from—the consultants’ perspectives and recommendations.
How to Engage
There will be considerable opportunities for partners to engage through advisory structures that are being established, regional forums, and other means. The assessment work by Oregon Consensus is informing the HECC’s next steps for an advisory structure and the process for engagement. Updates on HB 4124 will be presented at upcoming Commission meetings. The results of this assessment—and future updates on HB 4124— will be presented at upcoming Commission meetings.
Public testimony is welcomed at all public meetings of the HECC.