Oregon Governor Tina Kotek announced July 22 that she’ll use her power under the Oregon Constitution to call a special session of the Oregon Legislature — to take up legislation to pay for basic road maintenance at the state and local level and to bolster funding for public transit districts. The session will begin Aug. 29.
The announcement refers to a “transportation system emergency” and that’s not an exaggeration. Road maintenance in Oregon is funded largely by a 40 cent a gallon gas tax. The tax doesn’t rise with inflation, but road maintenance costs do. Earlier this year Oregon lawmakers spent months working out a transportation package. But they couldn’t find the necessary three-fifths supermajority support for the proposal they came up. That proposal combined a 10 cent gas tax increase with a vehicle transfer tax of 2% on new vehicle sales and 1% on used vehicles, plus an increase in the payroll tax that funds transit.
The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) on July 7 announced the layoff of 483 workers effective July 31, including workers who plow snow, maintain highways, and respond to traffic incidents. Kotek directed ODOT to postpone the start date of layoffs for an additional 45 days to give the legislature a further chance to shore up transportation funding.
SEIU Local 503 represents about 1,700 workers at ODOT including about 300 of those set to be laid off. In a July 22 press conference, Local 503 executive director Melissa Unger said she’s hopeful that lawmakers can succeed in passing a funding package.
