Unable to set default date for Date Picker item using Auto Row Processing

Question

Okay, I have searched through the forum for an answer, and have not found a thing to account for my problem.
First, does anyone know if using Auto Row Processing has problems updating an item/field in a record where the Source is defined as Database Column if the 'Display As' is defined as 'Date Picker (MM/DD/YYYY)'?
I ask this only because I found out the hard way that Auto Row Processing does NOT fetch the value for an item where the field is defined as TIMESTAMP in the database.
My problem is as follows: I have a form that will CREATE a new record, allowing the user to select dates from Date Pickers, text from Select Lists, and entering in text into a Textarea item. The information is saved using a standard (created through the Auto Row Processing wizared) CREATE page level button. After the record is created the user is able to go into it and update the information. At that time, or later, they will click on one of two buttons, 'ACCEPT' or 'DECLINE'. These are Item level buttons, which set the REQUEST value to 'APPLY' (Accept) and 'UPDATE' (Decline). The Accept button executes a Process that changes the Status Code from 'Initiated' to 'Accepted', and sets the Declined_Accepted_Date to SYSDATE, then another Process SAVEs the record. The Declined button runs a Process that changes the Status Code from 'Initiated' to 'Declined', and sets the Declined_Accepted_Date to SYSDATE, then another Process SAVEs the record.
However, even though the Status Code field is updated in the database record in both Accepted and Declined processing, the Declined_Accepted_Date field remains NULL in the database record (by looking at the records via SQL Developer). WHY??? I looked at the Session State values for both the Status Code and the Declined_Accepted_Date fields and saw that the fields (items) had the expected values after the process that SAVEs the record.
The following is the code from the Accept button Page Process Source/Process:
BEGIN
:P205_STATUS_CD := 'A';
:P205_REF_DECLINE_ACCEPT_DT := SYSDATE;
END;
As can be seen, the Status Code and Declined_Accepted_Date items are set one right after the other.
As an aside, just what is the difference between Temporary Session State vs Permanent Session State? And what is the sequence of events to differentiate the two?

Answer 1

Here's yet another thing that I just looked into, further information...
One other difference between the date field I am having problems with (Accepted_Declined_Date), and other dates (with Date Pickers) in the record is that the Accepted_Declined_Date never gets displayed until after it is set with a default date when the Accept and Decline buttons are pressed.
One of the other dates that works, the Received Date, is able to write a default date to the record that is never typed into the box or selected from the calendar. That date is placed into the box via a Post Calculation Computation in the Source, which I set up as: NVL(:P205_REF_RECEIVED_DT,TO_CHAR(SYSDATE,'MM/DD/YYYY'))
However, I do remember actually trying this also with the Accepted_Declined_Date, and setting the Post Calculation Computation did not work for the Accept_Decline_Date. Could this be because the Accept_Decline_Date is never rendered until the Status Code is set to Declined (in other words, there is no need to display the date and allow the user to change it until the record is actually declined)???
The control of the displaying (rendering) of the date is set via the Conditions / Condition Type: Value of Item in Expression 1 = Expression 2
Expression 1 = P205_STATUS_CD and Expression 2 = L
Does this shed any light???