There’s only a little more than a week before Oregon’s short legislative session ends. But despite the timeframe, it’s been packed with political drama and a big agenda. KLCC’s Love Cross spoke with OPB politics reporter Dirk VanderHart to break it all down.
Love Cross: Let's start with the budget. It may be one of the most important items this session, as the state has a pretty big gap to fill. Lawmakers need to find about $650 million to close that budget deficit. Why is this gap so large?
Dirk VanderHart: I think there are a couple of reasons. One is that just in general, state services are growing more expensive. So when it comes to social services or healthcare, Oregon is simply having to pay more for that stuff. But a major reason has to do with President Donald Trump. Last year he pushed his so-called "Big Beautiful Bill" through Congress, and that has had some major impact on the state's budget. The bill is actually expected to slash how much money the state takes in via taxes by almost $900 million in just this budget. That's because when the federal government slashes taxes, as Trump did, some of those tax cuts inevitably make their way into state taxes. So as you say, lawmakers have been working feverishly to close a pretty big general fund gap.
Cross: So how are they hoping to address it?
VanderHart: I think there are two basic strategies here. The first is that the legislature is going to enact some budget cuts. Governor Tina Kotek actually said this week she expected roughly 1% cuts to be split by state agencies. She said that is probably not going to impact services Oregonians rely on. So, that is part of the equation. The other thing that majority Democrats are aiming to do is to claw back some of that money that is expected to be lost to Trump's tax cut bill. A bill that's been making its way through the legislature this session would ensure some of the tax cuts included in that bill would no longer impact Oregon taxes. Now, that has been pretty controversial among Republicans and among business groups. They say it's virtually a tax hike on folks. Democrats say it's necessary to balance the budget.
Cross: There's also around a $300 million hole in the state's transportation budget — and this one is tricky, because a tax to fill that hole was supposed to go to a vote in November, but Democrats don't want to wait that long. They've been trying to push that vote to May. Republicans disagree. Tell us how this tension has played out in the legislature so far.
VanderHart: Yeah, it's been tense. Backing up, this has been just a really big soap opera in Salem. Last year, Democrats passed this bill that raised gas taxes, raised some DMV fees, but people who opposed it quickly collected enough signatures to put it before voters to approve or reject in November. Now, as you say, Love, Democrats are hoping to move the vote to May, and this has been by far, I would say, the biggest political fight of the session. Democrats say they just want to get clarity sooner than later on how much money the state can count on for roads. Republicans say that's not true. They say Democrats just want to move the gas tax vote away from November because it's likely to be very unpopular with voters, and Democrats have more to lose in that election. This bill has passed the Senate, I think, this week. It's currently in the House.
Cross: Another big item is immigration. There have been several bills proposed to push back against the federal government's crackdown on immigrants and the tactics they've used to do so. Can you run us through a few of those bills and where they stand?
Vanderhart: These bills would do things like bar law enforcement officers, including federal agents, from wearing masks in most cases. It would make clear people can sue the federal government if their rights are violated by immigration officers. It would ensure Oregonians’ personal information isn't going to these data brokers that share it with the federal government. I could go on. There is a lot being proposed this session, and they are all in various states of passage or some have passed one chamber — they're all over the map.
Cross: And what would it look like if they did pass?
VanderHart: That has been a big question, honestly. There is real debate for many of these provisions about whether they would stand up in court. I think the question is, to what extent can states control the behavior of federal authorities? For instance, in proposals like barring mask use. So I think there is a lot of speculation that if we do pass some of these policies, at least some will be tested in court. And you know, that has given heartburn to Republicans who say, do we really want to foot the bill for these, these kinds of challenges?
Cross: Is there anything else you're watching closely as the session comes to an end?
VanderHart: Yeah, there is just no shortage of interesting things on tap. This is only a 5-week session, and they are doing a lot. So there's a debate over whether Oregon should spend hundreds of millions of dollars to renovate Portland's Moda Center — that's designed to ensure the Trail Blazers remain in Oregon long term. There's a push to reform the estate tax that Oregon levies when wealthier people die. That has been a long time, very fiery debate here in the capitol. There are likely changes coming to a system of campaign finance limits that are set to go into effect next year. So that is a big battle. I could keep going. There is a lot moving in this building these days.
Cross: Lots to keep track of there, Dirk. We sure appreciate the update. Thank you.
VanderHart: My pleasure.
Dirk Vanderhart covers politics for OPB. The short legislative session is scheduled to end by March 8.
