Oregon Lawmakers Fail to Pass Transport Bill Causing 600 ODOT Layoffs and Road Closure Fears
Governor Tina Kotek signals possible special legislative session to address critical funding gap and prevent further transportation setbacks
Six hundred employees of the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) stand to lose their jobs because lawmakers failed to pass legislation that would allocate billions of dollars for critical upgrades and maintenance to the state’s transportation network.
ODOT Is Facing a Shortfall of $354 Million As a Bill To Raise Tax on Gas By 3 Cents Also Failed
ODOT is facing a shortfall of $354 million and has confirmed that apart from laying off 600 employees, it could be forced to cut a total of 1,000 employee positions if lawmakers fail to pass the legislation.
The failure of lawmakers to pass House Bill 2025 could result in dire circumstances for ODOT which was relying on the $11.6 billion for road and bridge maintenance and upgrades that the legislation would have provided.
As the legislative session was drawing to a close, lawmakers made a last-ditch attempt to salvage the situation by introducing House Bill 3402 to raise taxes on gas by three cents per gallon.
However, voting on the legislation failed to attract sufficient support as Republicans dug in their heels against the attempt by their Democrat colleagues.
Democrat lawmakers painted a grim picture of ODOT’s future with annual shortfalls of $227 million for road paving, and $205 million for maintenance and operations.
Lack of sufficient funding can lead to the closure of maintenance stations. Significantly reduce the level of service during winter months, and result in fewer purchases necessary for transport network maintenance and upgrades.
With 40% of Oregon roads in poor condition, the immediate future without funding is bleak – a $360 million annual shortfall for the Bridge Replacement Program. This could force ODOT to introduce weight restrictions and the rerouting of trucks from certain networks.
Instead of replacing pavements every 20 years, this will have to be rescheduled to a 50-year program.
Governor Hints At Special Session to Resolve the Issue
The transportation network crisis facing Oregon following the failure of lawmakers to reach an agreement attracted an almost immediate reaction from Governor Tina Kotek.
Referring to the matter as ‘unfinished business,’ the Governor could recall lawmakers to a special session to ensure that funds are allocated to ODOT.
She has the power to do so, in terms of state law, and exercised that right last year to address funding for the record-breaking wildfire season.
At a press conference yesterday (Saturday), the governor said she did not care what vacation plans lawmakers had made or how exhausted they were, the critical shortfall of funds for the transportation network had to be solved.