All eyes are on Salem as impacts of the legislature’s failure to pass a bill last week continue to ripple out across Oregon.
Emotional and indignant city leaders, frustrated advocates, sullen labor union leaders — these are just some of the groups directing pressure toward Oregon Governor Tina Kotek in hopes she will call a special session to pass transportation funding legislation.
At a meeting of the Portland City Council Transportation and Infrastructure Committee this morning, a staffer from the Office of Government Relations grew emotional when they recounted how the session ended. Government Relations Manager Evyn Mitchell said, “We were heartbroken,” when Democratic party leaders unveiled a last-ditch effort to pass a three-cent gas tax with a bill (HB 3402) that would have directed zero funding to cities.
“It was disgusting to think that we would be left behind… we were shocked. I don’t want to be overly emotional, but it was pretty appalling,” Mitchell continued.
At the outset of the meeting, an Oregon Department of Transportation bridge inspector and engineering union representative named Kyle Lewis urged committee members to persuade Governor Kotek to come back to the negotiating table.
“[The Association of Engineering Employees Oregon] believe the best and easiest solution for everyone is a special session before the damage is done,” Lewis said.
And Zachary Lauritzen, executive director of the nonprofit Oregon Walks wrote in a member newsletter Sunday that, “The legislature must return to the table to address these problems.”
In response to the legislative failure, the T & I Committee rushed a resolution onto their agenda calling for the City of Portland to launch a public process that will find, and then implement, a new local transportation funding mechanism.
City Councilor Mitch Green passed an amendment to the resolution that made it clear the City of Portland remains for help from the state. “City Council urges the Governor to call a special session as soon as possible,” reads the resolution. “To pass a comprehensive statewide transportation funding package to avoid further reductions to PBOT operations and maintenance budget, as well as those in other communities statewide.”
During the T & I meeting, PBOT Director Millicent Williams added to the urgency by telling councilors that, “If we are not successful in identifying ways to address the budget shortfall,” she will begin issuing layoff notices to 50 employees starting Monday, July 14th.
There’s still no word from the Governor’s office about if — or when — a special session might be called. Obviously it’s not a move she’d make unless she could guarantee something would pass.
One theory for why the bill failed is because moderate Democrats from purple districts were afraid of voting for a large tax increase and there was not enough time (between when the bill was introduced to when votes were expected) for party leaders to convince them otherwise. If Governor Kotek is doing that work now, she could very likely get something through the House; but it’s hard to see a path forward in the Senate.
Democrats need all 18 of their members in the Senate to support a bill for it to move forward. Then there’s the issue of quorum. In order to pass a law, the Oregon Senate needs two-thirds of its members present. So even if they got Senator Mark Meek back into the yes column, they would still need need at least two Republicans to show up in order to make a deal. We learned how hard that will be on Wednesday when Senator Floyd Prozanski shared in his constituent newsletter that Democrats had secured a “yes” from a Senate Republican, only to see that person frightened off by a “taunt” Meek posted on X that they’d “cut a deal” with Democrats.
It’s difficult to see a path forward for Kotek, but it’s even more difficult to see a path forward for Oregon if she doesn’t take the first step.
UPDATE, 2:00 pm: Governor Kotek just released a statement saying that layoffs have begun and serious consequences to the state’s transportation system are “imminent.” The statement linked to a detailed FAQ on ODOT’s financial situation that looks to dispel popular narratives about the agency’s budget.