SALEM — Don’t be intimidated. These people work for you. Your tax dollars pay their salaries.

A day or two at the Oregon State Capitol in Salem can be an enlightening experience, especially for the visitor who makes advance arrangements with his or her legislator.

“One of the things I love about this place is how accessible it is,” said Rep. Jason Conger, R-Bend.

Indeed, there are no security checks in Oregon’s governmental center. Citizens can walk in off Court Street to offer testimony at hearings. And the doors to legislators’ offices — including those of Conger, state Sen. Chris Telfer and state Rep. Gene Whisnant, who represent Central Oregon constituencies — are open to drop-ins every weekday when the Legislature is in session.

Through June, 30 senators and 60 representatives are tackling issues ranging from tax reform, education and redistricting to whether the border collie should be designated the official state dog.

Early this month, I called Telfer’s office and made arrangements with her chief of staff — the senator’s daughter, Tiffany Telfer — to visit the Capitol.

Anyone can do this. I received no special treatment as a member of the news media. The Telfers set up a building tour, welcomed me to their office to discuss subjects of importance to me, introduced me to other lawmakers, and gave me an inside look at the legislative process.

They will do the same for any constituent, regardless of whether they are Republicans (like all three Central Oregon legislators) or Democrats.

The Oregon Capitol

Erected in 1938, Oregon’s Capitol was built in the modern Greek style. Its predecessor, which was built in 1876 and which mimicked the U.S. Capitol in its traditional architecture, was destroyed by fire in 1935.

The modern four-story structure, faced in white marble and topped with a gold-plated bronze statue of a pioneer, seems reflective of Oregon’s independent spirit. The spacious rotunda, displaying a bronze replica of the state seal on its floor just inside the front entrance, is lined with polished rose travertine. Grand staircases of gray and black marble lead east to the Senate chambers and west to the House of Representatives, behind which extend legislative office wings added in 1977.

The Capitol’s main entrance faces north on Court Street, beyond which extends State Capitol State Park, green and mall-like. Rhododendrons and cherry trees, just coming into bloom, line the pedestrian walks of the park, brought to life by a trio of fountains. Set into the walkways are stone plaques honoring each of Oregon’s 36 counties. On the east side of the Capitol, flags from all 50 states form a circle.

Entering up the main steps of the Capitol, visitors are greeted by a pair of monumental marble sculptures by artist Leo Friedlander: “The Covered Wagon” and “Lewis and Clark Led by Sacajawea.” Five additional intaglio relief works are carved into the building’s exterior; these were done by Ulric Ellerhusen, who also crafted the Capitol’s distinctive tower ornament, properly called the “Oregon Pioneer” but known here as “Gold Man.”

A spiral staircase that climbs to Gold Man is unsafe in rainy weather, so I was unable to visit the icon face to face. But Sen. Jason Atkinson, R-Central Point, a former gubernatorial candidate and a serious art and history buff, told me all about the sculpture.

“The pioneer man faces west at the end of the Oregon Trail,” Atkinson said. “He has an ax in one hand, to claim the Willamette Valley, and a covered-wagon tarp over his other hand for shelter. In the early 1980s, he was regilded, thanks to donations from schoolchildren. A few years ago, after he rotated a little during a big earthquake, a support beam was added.

“Unfortunately, that support was not placed in the most flattering position.” Indeed, it might be defined as a rump stake.

As I stood with Atkinson in the heart of the rotunda, he pointed directly overhead into the Capitol dome, explaining that the 33 stars painted at its center symbolize Oregon’s admittance (in 1859) as the 33rd state of the Union.

The walls surrounding the rotunda carry Depression-era murals by Frank H. Schwarz and Barry Faulkner, illustrating Capt. Robert Gray’s arrival at the mouth of the Columbia River in 1792; Lewis and Clark on the Columbia in 1805; pioneer statesman John McLoughlin greeting male and female immigrants in 1836; and the first Oregon Trail wagon-train migration in 1843.

“Every day when I arrive at the Capitol, I walk through this rotunda and up the stairs to my offices,” Atkinson said. “It reminds me that it is an honor for me to serve this state, and it’s temporary.”

Centrally located off the rotunda, next to a gift shop, is an information desk where free tours of the building may be scheduled. These tours begin in the rotunda, extend to a first-floor galleria of displays on historic legislation, and carry to the Governor’s Office and Senate and House chambers on the upper floors.

House and Senate

Democrats hold a 16-14 majority in the 30-member Senate. The 60-member House of Representatives is equally divided between “Ds and Rs,” as legislators call themselves.

I attended sessions in both chambers. Both lasted less than an hour.

The House and Senate are similar in appearance, but not identical.

Seemingly more spacious, perhaps because it has half as many members, the Senate is furnished in black walnut, and its carpeting features salmon and wheat-sheaf motifs, paying homage to two of Oregon’s important industries. A wall-sized mural on the front wall depicts the delivery of news of Oregon’s statehood to Salem in 1859; the names of 158 men and women prominent in Oregon history are inscribed on friezes high on the walls.

The House is furnished in golden oak, and its carpets are designed with Douglas fir motifs. Its mural recalls the convocation of Oregon pioneers at Champoeg in 1843 that led to the establishment of the first provisional government.

“There are very different rules in the House and the Senate,” Atkinson warned. “Personal relationships seem to be much more important in the Senate. The House is the raucous caucus.”

With a mischievous smile, Sen. Telfer agreed. “They’re rogue in the House,” she said. “They make speeches. They’re always running for re-election. Those of us in the Senate are not.” State senators are elected for four-year terms, representatives for just two years.

Both chambers have galleries that overlook the floor on three sides, accommodating more than 150 citizens.

Everyone can see the two pairs of electronic reader boards on facing sides of the chambers, one of them with a roll-call list of legislators in attendance, the other displaying basic text about the issue being discussed on the floor.

Sessions in both chambers begin with a presentation of colors, recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance and an invocation; during my visits, this was a prayer led by a Methodist minister in the Senate, a Native American flute performance and chant in the House. “Sometimes it’s just a story,” Telfer said.

The most important bill introduced in the Senate on the day of my visit was SB 514A, which would allow the parents of children with chronic medical conditions to obtain insurance benefits. The bill passed, 23-7, but Telfer spoke in opposition.

“I like the bill in principle,” she later told me, “but I have a concern about cost shift, so I want to see it go back to committee to be reworked.

“This bill now goes to the House, and our ‘no’ votes send a signal that there may be some elements to be reconsidered.”

A potentially explosive bill, HB 2721, passed the House by a 59-0 vote and now will be considered by the Senate. The bill would take away from parents the right to claim “spiritual treatment” as a defense for withholding medical treatment from their children younger than 18.

“It’s a dicey issue,” admitted Conger, who nevertheless supported it. “There are some constitutional questions involved.”

The legislative process

“The bulk of our work is done in committee,” Conger told me as he explained the process by which a bill becomes a law.

A bill is drafted by the nonpartisan Legislative Council, Conger said. After delivery to the chief clerk of the House or Senate, it is scheduled for a first reading and entered into the public record.

It is then referred to committee — legislators typically serve on two to four committees — by the offices of Senate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem, or House Co-speakers Bruce Hanna, R-Roseburg and Arnie Roblan, D-Coos Bay.

Committee chairs then decide when to schedule work sessions or public hearings on proposed bills. No bill can go to a legislative chamber for a vote until it passes out of committee.

“At least twice already this year, I’ve seen unscheduled public testimony affect the course of a bill,” said Conger, who is serving his first term in the House. “I just find that amazing.”

Either House or Senate can choose to send a bill back to committee for amendment. Both chambers must pass legislation with a simple majority vote before sending it to Gov. John Kitzhaber for his signature. Should he veto the bill, legislators can override the veto with a 60 percent majority vote.

“Understanding the process makes a big difference,” Conger said. “It’s a steep learning curve, but there’s a rhythm to our work that makes it much more predictable than it first appears.”

Contributing to the process are special-interest lobbyists who may be seen sitting en masse on benches outside the public hearing rooms on the first floor of the building. Legislators refer to the broad corridor connecting the House and Senate wings as “the gauntlet.” When they don’t want to be assailed by the lobbyists, they cross through the building behind the galleries rather than on the main floor.

Governor’s mansion

Salem visitors may also be able to visit the main floor of Mahonia Hall, the official home of the governor since 1987. Beginning next month, the Salem branch of the American Association of University Women will offer Wednesday afternoon tours by reservation (to arrange, contact rhollemon@comcast.net).

Currently, the Tudor-style mansion is the residence of Kitzhaber and his life partner, Cylvia Hayes. Built in 1924 by Ellis Lawrence, founder of the University of Oregon School of Architecture, the 10,000-square-foot home is located at the west end of Lincoln Street South, at Ray Street.

I know Hayes from her work with 3EStrategies, a Bend-based firm that focuses on green building, clean energy and sustainable economic practices. She invited me to visit her at the house and walked me through its meet-and-greet parlors and its family-only areas. Then we sat and talked about her suggestions for Salem visitors.

“No matter what your partisanship, you should get to know your elected official,” she said emphatically. “And it’s not just for you — the officials need to know who they are representing.

“Democrats and Republicans are in agreement on 80 percent of the issues. We need to get past partisanship.”

Hayes recommended that political neophytes consider visiting the Capitol with a group — as on April 7, when the Oregon Conservation Network hosts its annual Environmental Lobby Day, or in early May, on the Rural Development Institute’s Rural Oregon Day.

“There are a lot of those kinds of events,” Hayes said. “Being part of a group of peers is a really nice introduction to government.”

Hayes also noted that the Oregon state government website (www.leg.state.or.us) has a link whereby anyone can request e-mail notification of committee meetings and hearings.

Lodging and dining

The finest downtown hotel is The Grand Hotel in Salem, just a few blocks from the Capitol. Opened in 2005 on the site of the historic Marion Hotel, it couples a convention facility with Bentley’s Grill and Lounge, one of the city’s most popular dining and drinking establishments.

I stayed at the Century House of Salem, a new bed-and-breakfast inn just seven blocks in the other direction. Owner Jean Brougher bends over backward to make guests feel at home. She serves a marvelous breakfast and provides a key to a private entrance through a backyard garden.

I grilled my friends in Salem about their favorite places to wine and dine. The first name on everyone’s list was the DaVinci Ristorante, an atmospheric Northern Italian restaurant on High Street, near the historic Elsinore Theatre.

But this one block, between State and Ferry streets, is the city’s “restaurant row.” Legislators and their staffs also flock to La Capitale, a French brasserie; Andaluz, a Spanish tapas bar; and Jonathan’s, a traditional seafood and steak house.

Wild Pear, a couple of blocks distant, is a wildly popular lunch establishment with fresh, tasty soups and salads. More serious drinkers are drawn to Magoo’s Sports Bar and to the basement bar at Venti’s.