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HB 4118
This proposal did not become law. HB 4118 would have mandated the Oregon Department of Human Services to replace SNAP benefits stolen via electronic fraud, would have required biennial reporting on TANF and WIC program underutilization, grants the Oregon Health Authority civil penalty authority for WIC rule violations, and would have directed a Hunger Task Force to study food waste and food deserts with a 2028 sunset. The measure would have imposed new administrative obligations on state agencies, would have created a statutory pathway for SNAP fraud victims to recover benefits, and generates data collection requirements that might have informed future policy but carries no direct revenue impact.
Generated explanation · Introduced · Analyzed 8/19/2026 · Open official Introduced text
This proposal did not become law.
Generated analysis of Introduced text; it does not establish that the bill applies to you. Read the full decision brief.
No upcoming event is verified in the available records.
Plain-language analysis
Generated analysis, not an official summary or legal advice. Confirm with linked Oregon documents.
This proposal did not become law. The generated effects below describe what it would have required if enacted.
HB 4118 would have mandated the Oregon Department of Human Services to replace SNAP benefits stolen via electronic fraud, would have required biennial reporting on TANF and WIC program underutilization, grants the Oregon Health Authority civil penalty authority for WIC rule violations, and would have directed a Hunger Task Force to study food waste and food deserts with a 2028 sunset. The measure would have imposed new administrative obligations on state agencies, would have created a statutory pathway for SNAP fraud victims to recover benefits, and generates data collection requirements that might have informed future policy but carries no direct revenue impact.
Basis: Bill text · Sources: Introduced; Revenue Impact Statement INTRO
Official sources do not state why this measure was proposed.
Sponsor testimony, staff summaries, committee materials, or statutory findings may explain it.
Inferred from cited text; not a stated purpose.
The measure appears designed to address gaps in SNAP fraud recovery and increase transparency around public nutrition program participation. This is inferred from the creation of a replacement benefit mechanism for electronic theft alongside mandates for biennial reporting on TANF and WIC underutilization rates and outreach strategies.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Introduced
Potential effect if enacted: Gain a statutory right to replacement benefits if stolen via electronic fraud, subject to agency rulemaking.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
Potential effect if enacted: Face new administrative duties to process replacement claims, draft implementing rules, and compile biennial underutilization reports.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
Potential effect if enacted: Become subject to potential civil penalties for violating state rules governing the program.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
Would have been studied by the Hunger Task Force regarding food waste volumes and disproportionate impacts of future standards or incentives.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
Potential effect if enacted: Receive mandated reports on program gaps, food waste, and food deserts to guide potential future legislation.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
DHS would have had to develop a rulemaking process for SNAP replacement claims, requiring staff time and fraud verification protocols.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
The biennial reporting requirements would have standardized how TANF and WIC participation gaps are measured but do not mandate immediate enrollment increases.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
Potential effect if enacted: OHA gains explicit civil penalty authority for WIC vendor noncompliance, shifting enforcement leverage.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
The Hunger Task Force studies would have produced data by September 2027, with no binding policy changes until after the January 2028 sunset.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
Potential effect if enacted: Administrative costs are not quantified, though the Legislative Revenue Office confirms no direct revenue impact.
Basis: Official analysis · Source: Revenue Impact Statement INTRO
SNAP recipients and state agencies
DHS would have established a streamlined, automated verification process for electronic theft claims, fully restoring SNAP benefits within days and significantly reducing household food insecurity during fraud investigations. Comprehensive task force data would have led to targeted state incentives that successfully redirect surplus grocery and farm food to high-need areas before the 2028 sunset.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Introduced
State agencies, WIC vendors, and program participants
Potential effect if enacted: DHS faces a surge in unverifiable or fraudulent replacement claims, straining customer service capacity and delaying legitimate benefit restoration. WIC vendors withdraw from the program due to fear of disproportionate civil penalties, reducing nutrition access for eligible families. Task force recommendations are delayed or deprioritized, leaving food waste and desert data unutilized until after the statutory sunset.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Introduced
The text would have legally permitted DHS to establish claim procedures for SNAP replacement benefits and OHA to assess civil penalties for WIC rule violations. Weak enforcement or misclassification could have leaded to agencies denying legitimate claims due to overly strict verification standards, or vendors facing penalties for minor administrative errors rather than substantive program violations. Duty creep risk exists if task force data on food waste or deserts is used to impose restrictive operational mandates on grocery stores or farms without corresponding legislative authorization or funding.
Sources · Introduced
Potential effect if enacted: The measure trades immediate administrative burden and potential claim verification challenges for faster SNAP fraud recovery, standardized program transparency, and actionable data on food access gaps.
Faster benefit restoration for fraud victims would have reduced household financial instability.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
Biennial reporting would have created standardized metrics to identify and address program participation gaps.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
Potential effect if enacted: Task force studies generate baseline data on food waste and desert geography to inform future policy.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
Potential effect if enacted: Unquantified administrative costs for rulemaking, reporting, and task force operations.
Basis: Official analysis · Source: Revenue Impact Statement INTRO
New civil penalty authority might have detered WIC vendor participation if compliance costs outweigh program benefits.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
Mandated sunset dates might have delayed implementation of study recommendations or leave policy gaps unaddressed.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Introduced
Model self-rating: high. Analysis is grounded exclusively in the provided introduced bill text and official revenue impact statement. No external assumptions or legislative history were used. This is the model’s assessment of its own analysis, not independent verification or human review.
5 records currently loaded
Records available in the current snapshot.
Earliest loaded signal
Introduced bill text posted
Posted Jan 28, 2026, 3:25 PM PST
Not a qualifying replacement
The introduced bill remains the only adopted text; no qualifying adopted replacement is shown.
AI assessment dated 2026-09-29. This classification is separate from enactment and legal effect.
Evidence snapshot: 2026-09-29. Later legislative records are not automatically reassessed.
Policy purpose: broadly retained.
Reviewer: /root/review_recent_a · 2026-09-29
Not a qualifying replacement
The introduced bill remains the only adopted text; no qualifying adopted replacement is shown.
Policy purpose: broadly retained.
“SECTION 1. Section 2 of this 2026 Act is added to and made a part of ORS 411.806 to 6 411.845. 7 SECTION 2. (1) As used in this section, “electronic theft” means gaining unauthorized 8 access to data stored on a recipient’s electronic benefits transfer card by means of card 9 skimming,”
Introduced
“SECTION 1. Section 2 of this 2026 Act is added to and made a part of ORS 411.806 to 6 411.845. 7 SECTION 2. (1) As used in this section, “electronic theft” means gaining unauthorized 8 access to data stored on a recipient’s electronic benefits transfer card by means of card 9 skimming,”
Introduced
Reviewer: /root/review_recent_b · 2026-09-29
Not a qualifying replacement
Only the introduced food-policy package is documented.
Policy purpose: broadly retained.
“SECTION 1. Section 2 of this 2026 Act is added to and made a part of ORS 411.806 to 6 411.845. 7 SECTION 2. (1) As used in this section, “electronic theft” means gaining unauthorized 8 access to data stored on a recip”
Introduced
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No deeper official pre-number history was found.
Chief sponsors: Representative Andrea Valderrama
Regular sponsors: Representative Sue Rieke Smith, Representative Mark Gamba
Records already listed in Activity are not repeated here.
Official origin records are incomplete; missing facts are not inferred.
5 events
Full timeline
5 entries shown.
In committee upon adjournment.
Referred to Early Childhood and Human Services with subsequent referral to Ways and Means.
First reading. Referred to Speaker's desk.
“Requires the Department of Human Services to provide replacement supplemental nutrition assistance benefits if a recipient's benefits are stolen through electronic theft.”
Confirm with the official record.
Supplemental, source-linked analysis from project researchers and community contributors. It is separate from Oregon's official record.