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Oregon Truck DISPATCH
www.ORtrucking.orgGOVERNMENT AFFAIRS
The 2015 legislative session was the strangest ever.
Having said that, someone reminded me the other day
that I always say that. Yes, every session is different—
primarily because there are different people involved.
However, this session was one for the history books.
The House Democrats began by saying that they wanted
to take care of some unfinished business before they
began the session in earnest. They trotted out the repeal
of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard sunset, class action
lawsuit reform and “Motor Voter” that will register
everyone in the state when they obtain or renew their
driver’s license. These bills were fast tracked with the
intent of passing them all within 30 days. In the midst of
this was the comedic tragedy surrounding former
Governor Kitzhaber and his “First Lady” Cylvia Hayes
that ended with the governor’s resignation.
Two things were important about this period of time.
First, the Democrats, with clear majorities in both houses,
could do whatever they wanted and did. Second, we had
a new governor, former Secretary of State, Kate Brown.
Unfortunately, Governor Brown did not have a normal
transition period. She was sworn in on February 18 and
was forced to hit the ground running. The Low Carbon
Fuel Standard sunset repeal bill was on her desk during
her first week in office followed shortly thereafter by class
action reform and “Motor Voter.” She signed all three as
she was trying to organize her office. However, the big
change, in terms of the session, was that Governor
Brown did not have the relationships with the legislature,
particularly leadership that Governor Kitzhaber enjoyed
in the past. This factor alone had a huge impact on how
the rest of the session unfolded.
After the first three big bills were passed, things settled
into a quiet rhythm. There were lots of hearings but few
bills were moving, particularly the big ones. Then, with
the first deadline to move bills out of the committee of
origin looming, the major bills and those that could be
used for something else were moved in a flurry to the
Rules and Ways and Means committees. Bills in these
committees would remain alive until the end of session.
Then they began systematically moving the bills they
wanted through the process. (
See “2015 Session Highlights”
on page 14 for a list of the important bills and their
outcomes.
) It was like a freight train and it was almost
impossible to stop.
The business community, working together, had some
successes. We turned back Labor Commissioner
Avakian’s “Cease and Desist” bill that would have allowed
him to temporarily shut down businesses for violations
of wage and hour and working conditions without any
due process. We also stopped a minimum wage increase,
flexible work scheduling, and the elimination of
independent contractors. However, we did not stop paid
sick leave, an intended mandatory retirement system for
private sector employees that aren’t covered by a
company plan, a prohibition on inquiring about a
prospective employee’s criminal convictions, and the
repeal of the sunset of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard.
Clearly, one of the biggest disappointments was the
failure of the transportation funding package and with it,
the repeal of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard. Serious
discussions on this topic occurred very late in the session.
The talks were also conducted in an unusual way. The
“Gang of Eight” legislators were sequestered in Governor
The 2015 Session
OF THE
Oregon Legislature
By Bob Russell, OTA Government Affairs