OTA Dispatch Issue 2 2019

5 www.ortrucking.org Issue 2 | 2019 ADVOCATING, EDUCATING, AND PROMOTING THE TRUCKING INDUSTRY EVENTS UPCOMING EVENTS believe that some company “will fill the gap.” That’s how they responded to my question. Apparently, Oregon based businesses going extinct is not a concern. These, of course, are not the only business issues this session. Efforts to ban pre-2007 diesel engines are underway as I write this column, but we have been able to offer meaningful amendments to that bill. A number of labor law issues are also moving forward so the total cost of this legislative session remains to be seen. With a total cost of $18 billion for the biennium pre-session, legislators are looking to add an additional $5.7 billion to the price tag! So how do we address this as an industry? Traditional efforts to influence the election cycle are not working currently. We have not been a big campaign contributor and the effects of that are patently obvious this session. Do we need a bigger TruckPAC? Yes! We may need to use these dollars to refer bad legislation out to Oregon voters. We need a more effective way to voice the very real business consequences of these utopian ideals. But we also need to build an effective legal war chest. Cap and Trade legislation, for example, is clearly a revenue raising bill requiring a 3/5ths vote but leadership is ignoring that fact and moving forward to gain a simple majority approval vote. Can we sue over that? Yes! And we should be prepared to do that if and when they pass this bill. We need to build a legal fund. And we need to do that today! We are not alone in this fight. The transportation lobby comprised of AAA, Associated General Contractors, Oregon Concrete & Aggregate Producers Association along with OTA stand ready for this fight. Other business interests will likely join us. But we need to be the ones to draw the line in the sand. Along with protecting Oregon’s Highway Trust Fund, we need to be ready for this battle. This is your industry and we are on the front lines to protect it. Help us help you.