Republicans unveil their transportation proposal

SALEM, Ore. (KATU) — Ahead of Friday’s work session, where Oregon lawmakers will finalize a transportation bill, House and Senate Republicans released their “no new tax” proposal.

House and Senate Republicans each released their own respective series of amendments to the Governor’s existing proposal.

The plan from Senate Republicans would roll back climate-related mandates, cancel executive orders made by Governor Tina Kotek, and redirect hundreds of millions of dollars towards basic road maintenance instead of raising taxes.

“There’s not a single one of us in either Republican caucus that don’t believe in the service that we’re talking about. But it’s a false dichotomy that somehow this was the only choice. The only choice was to raise taxes. That’s absolutely not true,” said Senate Minority Leader Daniel Bonham (R-The Dalles).

It repeals Governor Kotek’s executive order, which required all Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) construction projects to use special union rules. Republicans argue this makes major projects up to 20% more expensive.

The plan would also repeal mandates on electric vehicle sales, which Republicans argue are unrealistic goals and are increasing costs for consumers.

Along with the accountability measures included in Governor Kotek’s bill, Senate Republicans propose that ODOT and the Department of Justice restructure the $1.8 billion ADA curb ramp settlement.

In 2016, disability advocates sued ODOT, arguing that thousands of Oregon roads and highways did not meet ADA requirements for accessible curb ramps. ODOT agreed to settle the lawsuit in 2017, agreeing to fix or replace tens of thousands of curb ramps across the state.

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The original estimate of the cost was approximately $18 million. The project is now estimated to cost around $1.8 billion.

ODOT is using flexible federal funds to pay for it, which Republicans argue could go towards road maintenance and operations.

The Senate Republicans’ proposal would end or scale back Governor Kotek’s Climate Protection Program. The program is designed to cut greenhouse emissions by putting a statewide cap on emissions to force reductions.

Republicans said that instead of spending money on climate-related projects, these funds can be directed towards road maintenance.

“The state has spent money on things that are not core government functions, and yet they’re telling you in order to get the core government function. The only answer is more revenue. We reject that wholeheartedly,” said Bonham.

The plan would move funds away from other programs Republicans consider “extra”, such as the Bicycle and Pedestrian Program, the passenger rail fund, and the Climate Reduction Office.

“This legislation doesn’t mandate a change in use. The legislation gives them the authority to be able to prioritize within all of the resources available to them,” said House Minority Leader Christine Drazan (R-Canby). “Right now, those dollars have been set aside and actually, they’re more safe and more protected than everything else that we actually need to get done on our roads. And I think that’s a broken system.”

The proposal also calls for the Oregon DMV to cease the sale of Oregonians’ personal data.

All together, Senate Republicans said the proposal identifies more than $500 million that could be shifted into road maintenance without creating new taxes.

The proposal from House Republicans is similar, but much more vague.

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The one-page document proposes the reappropriation of funding streams currently limited by state statute.

These funding streams include the vehicle privilege tax, the state’s payroll tax, and the Transportation Operating Fund.

The proposal from House Republicans would amend the state statute to allow ODOT to draw from these funding streams, which would impact other projects and services, such as public transit.

In all, the House Republican proposal would redirect $473.5 million in existing funds towards road maintenance and operations.

Republicans acknowledged that Democrats had not previously entertained either proposal.

“They’ve been aware of what we want and where we would be willing to find common ground,” said Bonham. “It’s just been a lack of willingness to engage.”

On the other hand, Democrats said that the proposal is not a serious attempt to make Oregon roads safer.

A spokesperson for House Speaker Julie Fahey stated that the Republican proposal would leave families driving on pothole-ridden roads and unsafe bridges, and would worsen emergency response times.

“It would mean compounding the real danger Oregonians experience in emergencies by increasing emergency response time on dangerous roads. It would mean hotter, faster-spreading wildfires as brush isn’t cleared and mitigation efforts go unstaffed. Oregonians deserve better than a plan that puts our safety, economy, and future at greater risk,” said Speaker Fahey’s spokesperson in a statement.

Democrats have a majority on the Transportation Committee. Lawmakers will consider adding amendments to the Governor’s transportation proposal during a work session before voting on a final bill.

If the committee approves that final bill, it will advance to a vote on the House Floor. Republicans are refusing to suspend legislative rules, which means the earliest the bill could receive a vote on the House Floor would be on Sunday.

The two proposals were scheduled to be discussed during a public hearing and a work session on the bill on Friday afternoon.

The public hearing is being delayed due to a failure to achieve quorum in the Oregon House. KATU is working to learn more about why the House is unable to achieve a quorum.