A Homeschool Freedom Bill was submitted by OCEANetwork for the 2025 Oregon legislative session. This post provides background and info about the bill. We will also add any updates here, as needed.
OCEANetwork mission is to serve the Lord Jesus Christ by equipping families to biblically disciple the next generation through home education, and by protecting and advancing private home education freedoms in Oregon for all.
Here are 4 key things we believe:
- We believe that parents have the right and the responsibility to teach and train their children as they see fit.
- We believe that parents are the most qualified to educate their children well.
- We believe that independent homeschooling is the best educational model for families academically, socially, and spiritually.
- We believe that children do not belong to the state. The Lord has entrusted them to parents and will equip them for the task of raising and educating them well.
2025 Oregon Homeschool Freedom Bill
In an effort to repeal the unwarranted regulations currently imposed on Oregon private homeschoolers, OCEANetwork submitted a Homeschool Freedom Bill for the 2025 legislative session (HB 2187). You can read HB 2178 here and monitor its progress here. The Chief Sponsor for the bill is E. Werner Reschke, currently serving in the Oregon House of Representatives. (You cans a list of other sponsors provided in the bill.)
The purpose of the bill is to eliminate requirements for
- Notifying the state (at the ESD level) of intent to homeschool a student,
- Testing homeschooled students and reporting the results to the state, and
- Executing Privately Developed Plans (like public school IEPs) for homeschooled students with special needs and reporting the results to the state.
The core Legislative Concept of the Homeschool Freedom Bill is “ORS 339.035 is repealed.”
The parent would still be required to educate students according to ORS 339.030 (1) (e) (“Children being educated in the children’s home by a parent or legal guardian”).
A private teacher would still be required to educate students according to ORS 339.030 (1) (d) (“Children being taught for a period equivalent to that required of children attending public schools by a private teacher the courses of study usually taught in kindergarten through grade 12 in the public school”).
Why Submit an Oregon Homeschool Freedom Bill?
OCEANetwork is committed to protecting and expanding homeschool freedom in Oregon.
- We believe that government oversight of homeschooling puts an unnecessary burden on homeschool families, with data showing that it does nothing to improve the safety nor the academic, social, or emotional well-being of students. (Read Five Unfounded Assumptions Embodied in Homeschool Regulations from Homeschooling Backgrounder.)
- Notifications are unnecessary, and standardized testing is unbiblical, ineffective, and unfair. (Read more in our article, Why Exempt Homeschoolers from Standardized Testing.)
- We believe that removing these regulations and expanding homeschool freedoms in Oregon will more accurately reflect the truth that the responsibility to raise up and educate children belongs to the parents, not the state. (https://oceanetwork.org/our-children-belong-to-god/)
Now that the bill is sponsored and submitted, our next focus with the Homeschool Freedom Bill is to:
- Spread awareness of the bill among Oregon homeschoolers.
- Push to get a hearing for the bill in the House Committee On Education.
Getting a hearing for the bill in Committee will go far in educating both legislators and homeschoolers about the need and reasoning for homeschool freedom. YOU CAN HELP! We will soon be issuing a call to action for Oregon homeschoolers to contact the committee to request this hearing. (Sign up for emails so you don’t miss it!)
It’s vital that homeschool parents join us in the effort to educate officials, organizations, and individual families about these issues. Share our articles and information about the bill with other parents and make sure to respond to our call to action (to write the Committee) when we issue it.
The Lord’s purposes will prevail, friends. Advocating for homeschool freedom and continuing to educate legislators about it is important and we must remain faithful. We’ve seen God bring about miraculous results, in His good timing, by using the vigilant efforts of freedom-loving homeschoolers. Note that even if the bill doesn’t pass this year, we plan to submit a Homeschool Freedom Bill as frequently as we can in future years until it passes, trusting the Lord with the results
Don’t forget to join the OCEANetwork email newsletter to stay up to date on alerts and information! If you have questions, please contact OCEANetwork here so we can forward it on to our Freedom Watch Team.
Rally for Homeschool Freedom – Join Us for Apple Pie Day!
Apple Pie Day is a critical event for homeschool freedoms in Oregon. Join us on March 6th, 2025 at the Capitol. We’ll gather with homeschoolers from across the state to rally for homeschool freedom!
Deliver info packets and pies to legislators Enjoy a performance by a homeschool teen choir Homeschool freedom rally with guest speaker NEW: Join us afterward at nearby Fruitland Community Church for a special Homeschool Encouragement event and FREE pizza dinner and pie!