Oregon Democrats’ ambitious transportation funding bill appears to be dead, a stinging defeat for the majority party on its most pressing goal of the 2025 session.
According to four sources within the Legislature, Democrats acknowledged Friday morning they do not have the votes to pass House Bill 2025. The sweeping bill would have hiked an array of taxes and fees in order to generate billions for much-needed road projects.
But the bill was opposed by almost every Republican, and generated crucial opposition among some key Democrats. It’s now expected to be sent back to committee rather than receive a vote in the House.
The question now becomes what the Legislature might do to raise a fraction of the money they’d initially sought. Without an influx of roughly $350 million, the Oregon Department of Transportation has said it will eliminate nearly 850 positions.
An amendment posted Friday morning to a separate bill, HB 3402, would institute a three-cent increase to the state’s existing 40-cent-per-gallon gas tax in order to find some new funding for road projects — modest compared to the 12- and 15-cent increases that had been considered. It would also hike some registration and titling fees.
That amendment appears to put all of that money toward ODOT, rather than splitting the new revenues with cities and counties as is typical for transportation revenue.
A revenue analysis sent to lawmakers Friday suggested the proposed amendment would raise around $315 million in the upcoming budget cycle, and $2 billion over the next decade.
The apparent demise of HB 2025 leaves plenty of questions for the future of road funding in Oregon — questions that will have to wait until after session.
The bill included funding increases for transit agencies that have struggled with rising costs and lower ridership. It would have set aside hundreds of millions each biennium to help cover the costs of two unfinished highway megaprojects— one on Interstate 5 through Portland’s Rose Quarter and another to bolster the Abernethy Bridge on Interstate 205. And it would have set the state on a path toward more sustainably funding road projects, requiring drivers of electric vehicles to pay for miles they drive.
News of the transportation bill’s demise gave a somber air to Democratic lawmakers on Friday morning. Republicans, who nearly all opposed the bill, were chipper.
Democrats dominate both of Oregon’s legislative chambers this year with three-fifths supermajorities — exactly enough seats to pass new taxes on their own. But some in the party balked at OKing steep new taxes on their constituents.
The opposition led to a scramble earlier this week, when Democratic leaders moved HB 2025 back to committee in order to scale back its ambitions. But even the revamped bill met headwinds.
In the Senate, Democratic state Sen. Mark Meek was stalwartly opposed to the bill. And while at least one House Republican signaled some support, it wasn’t ultimately clear HB 2025 could have cleared that chamber, either.
Lawmakers have been working since last year to figure out a way to sustainably inject funding into road maintenance at the state and local level. They say that existing revenue streams, such as the gas tax, have failed to rise with inflation – and are likely to dwindle as electric vehicles become more prominent.
Meanwhile, cities and counties warn that many of their roads are falling deeper and deeper into disrepair.
