Sex Offender Classification and Relief

Enabling Legislation: ORS 163A and OARs 859-400-0001 - 859-400-0045

For a fact sheet concerning notification, please click here.

ORS 163A was signed into law in 2013.  In part, it mandates that all adults who have successfully asserted the Guilty Except for Insanity defense (GEI) and who are required to register as sex a offender be classified based on risk to the public.  The deadline for all GEI clients to be designated with their level of risk is December, 2018.  Between August 2015 and December 2018, the PSRB will complete the classifications for all registrants. Each registrant will be designated with a 1, 2 or 3 level, 3 being the highest risk of reoffending. Prior to submitting the classification to the Oregon State Police Sex Offender Unit, all registrants will be mailed their classification and will have an opportunity to submit written objections to the assessment score. Registrants who do not keep their address updated through the Oregon State Police Sex Offender Registry are at risk of not receiving their classification paperwork. If risk mitigation information from the registrant cannot be gathered to complete an assessment, the registrant may be classified at a higher risk.

The classification system does not apply to those youth who are adjudicated responsible except for insanity (REI). 

Depending on the risk of the registrant, information about the registrant may be available to law enforcement and the general public. This could include the registrant's name being posted on a public website, notification of family members who reside with the registrant, notification of neighbors, schools, churches or establishments where persons are at risk of being victimized.

Relief and Reclassification of Sex Offenders:

ORS 163A also designated the PSRB as the relief authority for those GEI sex offenders who would like to request relief from the obligation to register as a sex offender or to request that they be reclassified to a lower risk level. Registrants will be able to apply for relief or reclassification at the PSRB beginning in January 2019. Please see the Relief and Reclassification section on this page below.

For Juveniles

Juvenile Sex Offender Registration and Relief Procedures:

Effective April 2016, if a youth is convicted or found Responsible Except for Insanity (REI) of a sex crime, they will NOT register as a sex offender while under PSRB or OYA supervision. Six months prior to the End of Jurisdiction (EOJ) of a PSRB youth, the PSRB will notify the juvenile court that jurisdiction will end in six months. Or, in the case of an early discharge, the Board will be notifying the court no later than 3 days after the early discharge hearing. The court will then appoint a defense counsel and set a “sex offender relief from registration hearing.” The PSRB will receive notice of this hearing and will notify the Assistant Attorney General who represents the State at PSRB hearings, the PSRB defense counsel and the youth’s mental health provider as well as upload the entire PSRB exhibit file to the court at least 45 days prior to the scheduled relief hearing. Victims should be notified by the District Attorney in the county of the hearing. At this hearing, the court will look at the evidence presented by the youth and the State to determine if sex offender registration will be required or whether relief from registration is granted to the youth.

This new law was passed using two bills – one during the 2015 session and one during the 2016 session. The statutory authority is ORS 163A.030. As of this writing, 2016 Oregon Laws are not published so do not refer to the 2015 version of ORS 163A.030 online as it is not current law. The enrolled bill language has the correct law and can be found at the Oregon Legislature website by clicking here 2015 HB 2320, 2016 HB 4074 - section 2.

Relief and Reclassification

Enabling Legislation: Chapter 163A.120-150—Reclassification and Relief from Reporting

In 2013, the Oregon legislature passed House Bill 2549, requiring the Psychiatric Security Review Board to classify those under its jurisdiction who had committed sex offenses, and to establish a Sex Offender Reclassification/Relief Program to allow those with sex offenses in their history to move to a lower classification registration level or—in the case of those classified at the lowest risk level—to be relieved of the obligation to report.

Between 2014 and 2018, Board staff reviewed the cases of everyone who was—or had ever been—under the Board and who had one or more sex offenses in his/her past: approximately 230 individuals. Based on objective criteria, Board staff assigned each of these individuals a dangerousness level of one, two, or three, with three representing those individuals classified at the highest risk of recidivism, based on factors such as age at first release, type of offense, victim characteristics, and other factors.

Those classified originally by the PSRB as level 1 sex offenders may apply for relief from the obligation to report as sex offenders beginning five years after ending supervision for their sex offenses. Anyone originally classified as a level 2 sex offender, but who was reclassified from level 2 to level 1, may apply for relief five years after successful reclassification from level 1 to level 2.

Anyone the Board originally classified as a level 2 or level 3 sex offender may apply to be reclassified as a level 1 or level 2 sex offender, respectively. Applications for reclassification may be submitted after the person in question has been out from under supervision for at least ten years. Those classified at level 3 may be reclassified only to level 2 and will remain there. On the other hand, an offender who began as a level two sex offender could be reclassified to level one and, five years after that, petition for relief from registration altogether.

Request for Reclassification or Relief from the Obligation to Register:

Anyone wishing to petition for reclassification or relief under this program must fill out the reclassification/relief application in full. Please be aware that petitioners must submit the results of a recent forensic mental health assessment to assist the Board in rendering its decision. The attorney general will represent the State in sex offender reclassification and relief hearings, unless the district attorney for the county in which the offense took place (or, in the case of an offense adjudicated under another United States court, the Oregon county in which the petitioner resides) elects to do so. In considering whether to grant a reclassification/relief petition, the Board will consider whether the individual successfully demonstrated, by clear and convincing evidence, that she or he: 1) is statistically unlikely to reoffend and; 2) does not pose a threat to public safety.

To aid in its decision, the Board will consider factors surrounding the offense(s) such as: the nature of and degree of violence involved; the age and number of victims; the petitioner’s age at the time of the offense; the length of time since the offense that requires reporting and the time period during which the person has not reoffended; the petitioner’s performance on supervision for the relevant offense; whether the petitioner has participated in or successfully completed a court-approved sex offender treatment program or any other rehabilitative programs; stability in employment and housing; the petitioner’s community and personal support system; any of the petitioner’s other criminal and relevant non-criminal behavior, both before and after the offense; and any other factors relevant to answering the questions of likelihood to reoffend and public safety threat.

Relief Application and Instructions (.pdf)

Reclassification Application and Instructions (.pdf)

If you have any questions about the sex offender reclassification and relief process, please contact the Sex Offender Reclassification and Relief Program Manager at 503-229-5596 or via email at psrb@psrb.oregon.gov

PSRB Sex Offender Reclassification/Relief Program Administrative Rules