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Dear OSCC Members & Colleagues –
This upcoming week marks an important deadline for the 2025 legislature - legislators must have all of their bills filed for introduction by Tuesday.
We are getting closer to knowing the total landscape of bills that will be considered this session. To date, there is a total universe of 2,925 pieces of legislation. We are expecting one more big wave of bills this week. After Tuesday, individual legislators will be limited to five additional “priority” bills.
As we enter the sixth week of session, it still isn’t abundantly clear what legislative priorities Senate President Rob Wagner and House Speaker Julie Fahey have decided to push. We do anticipate heavy discussion around the Governor’s priorities – housing, mental health services, and K-12 education funding – and around a statewide transportation package to address a multi-billion dollar ODOT shortfall for road and highway maintenance.
There are significant ongoing concerns over the federal funds that Oregon will receive as a result of recent Trump administration action. We know, for instance, agencies are being asked to present “cuts” budgets to budget writers in the range of 5% to 10% in anticipation that federal funds may dry up.
Another interesting development this session …we know that budget writers appear to be more heavily deferential to the Governor’s Recommended Budget this session than in the past. This appears to be a nod to the fact that there is little expectation of discretionary spending and that leadership will coalesce behind Governor’s Kotek’s priorities.
Also, in 2023 and past sessions, legislators were commissioned to put together different policy “packages,” with a heavy focus on working together to gain bipartisan support on big policy initiatives. That has not happened in 2025. Instead, committees are slowly advancing bills that committee chairs are prioritizing.
Worth noting: Wednesday will be the release of the state’s quarterly revenue forecast. This will be a very important forecast, as it will lay the groundwork for the legislature’s 2025 budget blueprint.
There are several bills that OSCC members need to be aware of this week:
Liability Waivers. (House Bill 3140). HB 3140 restores liability waivers for Oregon companies that engage in outdoor sporting, recreation, health and fitness. It would put Oregon businesses back on equal footing with surrounding western states.
Recent state court rulings have effectively nullified Oregon liability waivers. Stories abound of liability insurance carriers dropping Oregon companies engaged in sports and recreation. For those able to obtain liability insurance, the premiums are dramatically higher. OSCC testified in SUPPORT of this bill.
OSCC was very proud to support this important bill alongside the Bend Chamber, Eugene Area Chamber and Salem Area Chamber.
HB 3140 will have its first potential committee vote in the House Economic Development, Small Business and Trade Committee on Monday, February 24th at 8:00am.
Transient Room Tax Increase. (House Bill 2977) HB 2977 would increase the state’s TRT tax from 1.5% to 2.5% and dedicate the tax increase to the ‘Recovering Oregon’s Wildlife Fund.’
Although several tourism organizations have weighed in to oppose this legislation, no local Chamber of Commerce has weighed in.
HB 2977 will have its first public hearing in the House Agriculture Committee on Monday, February 24th, at 8:00am. Chambers are encouraged to submit their comments on the bill.
If there is enough local chamber interest, OSCC will weigh in on this bill.
CAT Tax Exemptions. (Senate Bill 707; Senate Bill 125) As discussed on our Friday OSCC call, OSCC believes we need to address the remaining industry-specific difficulties with the CAT tax before we are going to credibly have the opportunity to successfully seek an increase in the CAT Tax exemption from $1 million to $5 million.
The two remaining industries that are being hamstrung by the CAT tax are pharmacies and Medicaid service providers. SB 707 exempts prescription drug sales from the CAT tax. Unfortunately, pharmacies pay the CAT tax from their wholesalers, and since drugs are paid at contracted rates with insurance companies, the pharmacies are not able to collect the CAT tax from their own customers. SB 125 addresses the fact that Medicaid medical service providers are reimbursed at ‘below cost’ rates and are still subject to the CAT tax.
OSCC will testify and support both bills, and we encourage local chambers to do the same.
Both SB 707 and SB 125 will have their first public hearings in the Senate Finance and Revenue Committee on Monday, February 24th, at 8:30am. You can submit your support for SB 707 here; and you can submit support for SB 125 here.
Workplace Marijuana Accommodation. (Senate Bill 176 ) OSCC is very concerned about SB 176, which would force Oregon employers to accommodate medical marijuana use among its workers in Sections 34-35 of the bill.
There is a major problem with this approach – it runs squarely against federal law. Congress spoke through the Controlled Substances Act, which specifically makes the use of marijuana a federal crime and has, in the words of the Oregon Supreme Court in Emerald Steel Fabricators v. BOLI, “imposed a blanket federal prohibition on the use of marijuana without regard to state permission.”
Senate Bill 176 puts Oregon law on a collision course with Federal law, and puts Oregon employers at the exact point of impact. It would be almost impossible for employers to reconcile SB 176 with their obligations to maintain safe workplaces that do not endanger other employees, the public or their customers.
OSCC will OPPOSE SB 176 unless Sections 33-35 are stripped out of the legislation.
SB 176 will have its first public hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday, February 24th at 3:00pm. You can register to testify on the bill here, or you can submit your testimony here.
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