The long list of ideas of how Oregon government could spend its dollars on education got an addition on Wednesday: more computer science courses.

Senate Bill 541 would require Oregon schools to teach computer science in all grades.

Jill Hubbard, an associate professor at OSU-Cascades in computer science, was before a state legislative committee and highlighted the stark differences in access to computer education. Only 6% of high school students took beginning computer science courses. It was an even lower percentage for girls. There were some 44,000 Hispanic or Latino high school students in Oregon and only about 2,000 are taking those courses. There was a big difference, as well, between urban and rural students. Urban schools offered twice as many courses as rural schools. Hubbard’s numbers are from the Oregon Department of Education for 2021-22.

“Algorithms play a huge role in determining who qualifies for home loans now, gains admission to college, secures employment and many other things,” Hubbard said. “Every student needs to move beyond becoming a user — and I use that word intentionally — a user of technology, to really understand how it works. And how to leverage it both personally and how to make society better with it.”

Thirty states require high schools to offer computer science. Eight states require students take it as a requirement of graduation.

The Oregon bill doesn’t mean young students would be set up in front of a computer or tablet. At young ages, students would learn skills to help them use computers in the future.

The bill comes with $20 million attached, so it is not an unfunded mandate. But it’s not clear from Wednesday’s hearing how far that will stretch or if that cost may torpedo the bill in what legislators say is a lean budget year. Many schools also would have to make changes, and we can’t speak to the disruption and barriers involved.

We would like to see more Oregon students have more opportunities in computer science. We can’t say this bill has got everything right. Legislators need to hear from K-12 schools and from Oregonians on what they should do. How many other good things could the Legislature do with $20 million? Lots. Which should win?

The bill’s chief sponsor is state Sen. Janeen Sollman, D-Hillsboro.