Long before a child learns to sound out words in a classroom or carry home a backpack filled with schoolwork, another chapter quietly begins around kitchen tables, bedtime routines, and storybooks shared between parents and children. Oregon has now decided that chapter deserves lasting support, approving legislation that permanently secures one of the state’s most far-reaching early literacy initiatives for generations of young readers still to come.
Governor Tina Kotek has signed legislation establishing permanent state support for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, ending years of uncertainty that accompanied periodic funding decisions and placing the program firmly within Oregon’s long-term commitment to early childhood education. The new law ensures that children across every corner of the state, from Portland neighborhoods to the rural communities of Southern Oregon, will continue receiving free books during the years when language, curiosity, and lifelong reading habits begin to take shape.
Rather than extending another temporary appropriation, lawmakers chose to weave the program into Oregon law itself. That distinction carries lasting significance. The monthly arrival of children’s books will no longer depend upon repeated legislative approval during future budget cycles. Instead, the program becomes a permanent part of Oregon’s early learning framework, creating stability for families while reinforcing the state’s broader effort to strengthen literacy from the earliest stages of childhood.
The decision arrives at a time when reading proficiency has become one of Oregon’s most closely watched education challenges. Much of that conversation has centered on what happens inside schools, yet educators have increasingly recognized that many of the foundations for successful reading are established years before a child enters a kindergarten classroom. Vocabulary development, language recognition, listening skills, and a familiarity with books often begin at home, making early access to reading materials an important part of preparing children for school.
That understanding forms the heart of Oregon’s investment.
Every child in Oregon from birth through age five remains eligible to enroll regardless of family income, community size, or school district boundaries. Once enrolled, children receive a carefully selected, age-appropriate book delivered directly to their home each month at no cost to their family. Over time, those individual deliveries gradually become a personal library, giving children regular opportunities to discover new stories while encouraging parents and caregivers to make reading part of everyday family life.
For many Oregon families, particularly those living in rural communities, the program offers something that reaches beyond convenience. In areas where bookstores may be hours away or library visits require significant travel, a book arriving in the mailbox provides dependable access to reading materials that every child can enjoy without financial or geographic barriers.
That statewide reach is especially meaningful throughout Southern Oregon. Families living in Josephine, Jackson, Douglas, Curry, Klamath and neighboring counties participate under exactly the same program available in Oregon’s largest metropolitan areas. Geography no longer determines whether a child can begin building a home library before taking their first steps into a classroom.
The program itself has experienced remarkable growth over the past several years. Legislative investments approved in previous sessions helped expand enrollment county by county until every ZIP code in Oregon became eligible. Local organizations partnered with state agencies to connect families with enrollment opportunities while helping distribute information throughout their communities.
Today, more than 75,000 Oregon children are participating, representing more than one-third of the state’s children under the age of five. Since statewide expansion began, more than 4.3 million books have found their way into Oregon homes, transforming mailboxes into monthly deliveries of stories, language, imagination, and early learning.
The newly enacted law also provides a more durable financial structure designed to preserve that momentum. Oregon will continue operating the program through a partnership involving the State of Oregon, The Dollywood Foundation, and community organizations throughout the state. The legislation establishes a dedicated account supporting the program while maintaining a shared funding model that combines state investment with private and local participation, creating long-term stability without placing the entire financial responsibility on taxpayers.
The legislation also reflects an uncommon point of agreement inside the Oregon Capitol. Although education policy frequently produces vigorous debate, lawmakers from both political parties ultimately supported permanently securing the program, recognizing that expanding access to books for preschool-aged children carries benefits that extend well beyond any single legislative session.
Administration of the program will continue through the Oregon Department of Early Learning and Care, while the Oregon Secretary of State’s office will perform its constitutional responsibility of enrolling and publishing the legislation as part of Oregon’s official laws.
For thousands of Oregon families, however, the most visible result will not be found in the pages of the state’s legal code. It will arrive in a familiar mailbox, addressed to a young child waiting to discover the next story. One book at a time, Oregon has chosen to make early literacy not simply an educational initiative, but a permanent promise that the opportunity to begin a lifelong relationship with reading should reach every child, no matter where that journey begins.