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Legislative Session Passes Key Deadline for Bill Movement

Important Deadline Passes: The 2025 legislative session cleared the first-chamber deadline on April 9. This is the deadline for measures to be moved out of policy committees in the chambers in which they were introduced. The deadline does not apply to bills in certain committees, however, including rules, revenue and joint committees. With the passage of the April 9 deadline, many bills have now died – though resurrection is possible thanks to the large population of “study” bills into which legislative concepts with related content can be stuffed.

Bill Blowout: A record number of bills were introduced in 2025 – more than 3,400 – making this year’s first-chamber deadline particularly welcome. Tracking so many proposals has been difficult for the public, and managing them has strained legislative staff. Legislative committees have scheduled an unusually large number of hearings, limiting time – and even opportunities – for public testimony. A smaller population of viable bills will ease the burden on the public and on legislative staff and allow the OBI policy team to focus on significant priorities.

Helpful and Harmful Bills: As is always the case, many bills that would hamper innovation and slow economic growth have been introduced during the 2025 session. So, too, have bills that would increase the state’s economic competitiveness and boost private-sector job creation. Many of the latter group echo recommendations in OBI’s Oregon Competitiveness Agenda. OBI and other stakeholders have worked throughout the session to support bills that would increase competitiveness and oppose those that would erode it. Below are a handful of bills in each category that remain viable and on which OBI will continue to engage.

Erode Competitiveness:

  • SB 916 – Unemployment insurance for striking workers. Jeopardizes the integrity of Oregon’s unemployment insurance program by forcing employers to subsidize voluntary strike activities. The measure threatens the financial stability of public employers, including cities, counties and school districts, and is likely to increase the frequency of labor strikes.
  • SB 426 – Extended liability for wage theft claims. Threatens law-abiding homeowners, commercial property owners and contractors with liability for wage theft claims, even in situations where the property owner or business owner had no knowledge the wage theft occurred. This would make innocent parties liable for others’ bad actions.
  • HB 2548, HB 3838 – Labor standards boards. Establish unelected boards with broad power to regulate wages, workplace requirements and other policies exclusive to specific industries. The measures threaten to upend industries, including agriculture and long-term care, that already face significant economic headwinds. They also create inequalities among industries.
  • SB 174 – Regulating insurance under the Unlawful Trade Practices Act. Places insurance, an already heavily regulated industry, under Oregon’s Unlawful Trade Practices Act unnecessarily. The bill threatens to further increase already significant insurance rate growth at a time when inflation and the cost of living are top of mind for Oregonians and Oregon businesses.

Increase Competitiveness:

  • HB 2692 – Rulemaking best practices. Proposes consistent standards and best practices related to agency rulemaking, including a requirement for true economic and fiscal impacts, allowing for better representation in rulemaking processes and requiring proper and appropriate notice about proposed and enacted rules.
  • HB 3382 – Oregon Rulemaking Information System. Establishes the Oregon Rulemaking Information System, similar to the Oregon Legislative Information System, to create a centralized, comprehensive and easy-to-navigate information tool. This would allow stakeholders, the public, the media and anyone else interested to find clear and consistent information about Oregon’s expansive rulemaking activities.
  • HB 2112 – Estate tax reform. Increases the exemption level for Oregon’s estate tax, providing relief from one of the most burdensome and costly estate tax structures in the country. This relief would help families and small businesses across Oregon.
  • SB 960 – Combatting retail theft. Continues and expands funding for the Organized Retail Theft Grant program to support local governments and law enforcement on the frontlines of addressing this criminal activity. This would prevent lost sales and tax revenue while making stores safer for workers and customers.
  • HB 2039 – Corporate activity tax relief. Increases the exempt amount and filing threshold for the corporate activity tax, limiting the burden of the tax on small and emerging businesses.

Learn more: Go here to see the 2025 legislative session calendar and here to learn more about OBI’s Oregon Competitiveness Agenda.

OBI Releases Lists of Legislative Job-Killers and Job-Creators

OBI today released lists of “Job Killers” and “Job Creators,” calling attention to some of the most significant legislative proposals still under consideration in Salem. The lists include proposals related to labor and employment law, taxes and regulations, environmental mandates, and government efficiency. The lists represent legislation still alive in the 2025 session.

Fortunately, hundreds of job-killing bills failed to advance by an internal deadline (see above item). Unfortunately, several job-creating bills also failed to advance. Due to the number of bills remaining alive this session, including a large number of placeholder “study” bills, OBI expects to make several additions to the lists before lawmakers adjourn in June.

“There is no reason Oregon shouldn’t be one of the best places to live, play, work and do business,” said Angela Wilhelms, OBI’s president and CEO. “Yet policymakers continue to enact laws and regulations that erode Oregon’s competitive position, and they continue to ignore ideas that will help businesses thrive. Those businesses – small and large, across a wide array of sectors – are the engine that drives Oregon’s economic health, whether that’s individual wages and incomes, taxes for government services, or philanthropy to support communities. Let’s stop digging the hole deeper and start climbing the ladder out.”

Go here to see the Job Killers list and here to see the Job Creators list.

Oregon Trade Summit Pivoting to Virtual Platform

Given this month’s dramatic and fast-moving tariff developments, OBI has decided to present the April 28 Oregon Trade Summit as a webinar rather than as an in-person event. Though making the summit an online event will preclude the originally scheduled networking reception, it will allow access regardless of location and allows for no-cost registration. To register, follow the link below.

The Oregon Trade Summit presentations will include:

The webinar will take place from 2-4:30 p.m. and allow time for questions from the audience.

Go here to register.

April 22 Webinar: Recycling Modernization Act Overview

Join experts from Circular Action Alliance on April 22 for a webinar on Oregon’s Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act. The law uses an extended producer responsibility model that requires packaging producers to help fund related recycling efforts. Producers were required to join a producer responsibility organization (PRO) and complete reporting by March 31 in preparation for the program’s launch on July 1. For companies that missed the reporting deadline, it’s important to know that it’s not too late. The initial deadline has passed, but CAA is providing a grace period for late reporters, which will end on April 30.

More about Oregon’s program: The Legislature passed the Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act (SB 582) in 2021. Producers of covered products (packaging, paper and food servicewear) must register with an approved producer responsibility organization, report data on their supply of covered products and pay membership fees. The PRO helps fund recycling conducted by local governments as well as system improvements.

Oregon’s PRO: Circular Action Alliance is the only PRO with an approved program plan in Oregon. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality approved CAA’s plan on Feb. 21, 2025.

Webinar details: The webinar, which will run from 10 – 11 a.m., will include an overview of Oregon’s program, an implementation update and, of course, plenty of time for questions.

Learn more: OBI has added a Recycling Modernization Act Resources page to its website here. The page contains basic information about the program and links to helpful sites. It also will be updated as important developments occur.

Go here to register.

Study: Oregon Schools Need New Approach, More Accountability

Funding and Performance: On April 8, the Common Sense Institute Oregon released a report examining recent trends in state education funding and performance. Key findings include:

  • Per-pupil spending in public K-12 schools has nearly doubled over the past 20 years, approaching $18,000 in 2022-23.
  • Standardized student test scores have declined even as spending has soared.
  • After peaking at 581,700 in 2018-19, K-12 enrollment has dropped by more than 34,000.
  • Between 2013 and 2023, the number of teachers in state schools grew by 18% while the number of administrators grew by 32.5%.

Recommendations: Because increased funding alone has not improved student outcomes, the state should align spending with evidence-based practices and enhanced accountability. Separately, a recent OBI analysis here shows that Oregon already spends as much per student as the nation’s most effective states, even accounting for differences in the cost of living.

Learn more: Read the CSI Oregon study here and check out an in-depth report commissioned by the OBI Research and Education Foundation here to learn more about Oregon school funding.

Study: Oregon’s Outlier Estate Tax is a Growing Burden

Oregon’s Estate Tax: On March 31, the Common Sense Institute Oregon released a study on Oregon’s estate tax, which has the nation’s lowest exemption threshold and third highest tax rate.

Key Findings: In addition to having the lowest threshold in the nation – $1 million – Oregon’s estate tax is not indexed to inflation. As a result, it applies to a growing number of estates and collects more and more money. Notable study findings include:

  • The number of deaths subject to the estate tax will double over coming 25 years, from 5% today to 12% by 2050.
  • Estate tax receipts have grown from $101.1 million in FY 2012 to $339 million in FY 2024.
  • Since the estate tax exemption was set at $1 million in 2002, the value of the median home has risen by 211% and consumer prices have increased by 80%.
  • If the estate tax exemption had been indexed to inflation in 2002, it would now be roughly $1.8 million – 80% higher than it is today.

Demographic Impacts: Oregon’s estate tax provides an incentive for older people to leave the state. As a result, the cumulative impact on Oregon will be an estimated $6.3 billion in GDP by 2035.

Learn more: Read the report here and check out OBI’s Oregon Competitiveness Agenda here. The agenda calls for adjustments to the state estate tax, and OBI has supported several proposals during the 2025 legislative session that would make significant improvements.

Fifteen Students to Compete in Eugene Civics Bee April 17

Fifteen middle-schoolers have been chosen to participate in the Eugene Civics Bee, one of two local bees that will select participants in the state-level Oregon Civics Bee, which will take place in Salem this spring.

The Oregon Civics Bee is organized by Oregon Business and Industry in partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. Beginning in late 2024, 6th, 7th and 8th graders from across the state entered the competition by submitting essays explaining how they would use civics principles to address problems they identified in their communities. The writers of the best essays, as determined by a panel of judges, were invited to participate in the two regional bees.

Five students will advance to the Oregon Civics Bee from the Eugene Civics Bee, which will take place on April 17 at 2 p.m. at the University of Oregon’s Ford Alumni Center. They will join the top five middle-schoolers from the Tigard Civics Bee, which took place March 8.

The Oregon Civics Bee will take place on May 28 at 2 p.m. at Willamette University. Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read will moderate, as he did at the inaugural Oregon Civics Bee in 2024, won by Thomas Morgan of Keizer.

Go here to learn more about the Oregon Civics Bee.

Register for Unemployment Insurance System Webinar

Join experts from the Oregon Employment Department April 23 to learn about the state’s unemployment insurance system. The webinar will cover the following topics and include plenty of time for questions:

  • Overview of Oregon’s unemployment insurance system
  • How rates are set
  • How to respond to an unemployment claim using the Oregon Employment Department’s Frances system.

The webinar will run from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Go here to register.

Legislative and Rulemaking Updates

Labor Board Bills: While many bills died at the April 9 first-chamber deadline, both HB 2548, which would create an Agricultural Workforce Labor Standards Board, and HB 3838, which would create a Home and Community-Based Services Workforce Standards Board, remain alive. On deadline day, both bills were referred to the House Committee on Rules, which is exempt from the deadline. OBI had heard that HB 2548 was unlikely to survive the deadline, but it did. OBI expects more amendments to be drafted and negotiations to continue.

Climate Superfund Bills: On April 9, a public hearing was held on SB 1187, which would hold fossil-fuel companies liable for climate change-related damage and create a “superfund” to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. OBI testified in opposition to the bill, noting that Oregon already has many climate programs and that the addition of a new one would raise costs for businesses and individuals. The bill did not receive a work session and is effectively dead. Another climate superfund bill, SB 682, died after it failed to receive a public hearing and work session.

Wildfire Kicker Bill: Oregonians are expected to see an estimated $1.7 billion kicker when they file their 2025 taxes in early 2026. The refund “kicks” when biennial revenue exceeds expectations by more than 2%. However, on April 7, the Senate Committee on Finance and Revenue held a hearing on SB 1177, which would redirect most of that projected kicker into a new Oregon Wildfire Mitigation and Adaption Fund. OBI submitted testimony in opposition to the bill. The kicker helps mitigate Oregon’s high individual income-tax rates and limits the growth of Oregon’s budget.

Tax Disconnect Bill: On April 9, the Senate Committee on Finance and Revenue held a hearing on HB 2092A, which would suspend for the 2025 tax year Oregon’s rolling connection to the federal tax code. An OBI-led coalition testified in opposition and submitted a letter to the committee describing the bill’s problems. Connection to the federal code aligns many state definitions with those found in the federal tax code and simplifies compliance for Oregonians. If enacted, the bill could force Oregon taxpayers to keep separate books to determine their state tax liability and further erode the state’s tax competitiveness.

AI Commission Concept: On April 11, HB 3592 had its first public hearing in the Joint Committee on Information Management and Technology. The bill would create Oregon Commission on Artificial Intelligence, which would be a central resource for monitoring the use of AI technologies and systems in Oregon and reporting on their long-term policy implications. There was no testimony in opposition to the bill’s concept, and a broad group of stakeholders voiced support, including consumer advocates, representatives from the technology sector, law enforcement and first responders, academia, labor unions, and the Department of Justice. Most highlighted both the opportunities and risks associated with AI, emphasizing the need for a thoughtful, well-informed framework to guide oversight. They called for an incremental approach that balances innovation with accountability. While the bill faced no outright opposition, several of those who testified offered suggestions for improvement. As the legislative session continues, further discussion and potential amendments are expected.

Economic Development Bills: As expected, HB 2277 (CHIPS) and HB 2322 (FISH) moved out of the House Committee on Economic Development, Small Business and Trade and will now go to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means to be considered among myriad funding bills. CHIPS authorizes companies who were eligible for but did not receive (or apply for) federal CHIPS funds to access Oregon’s CHIPS Fund. This allows more companies to access important incentives to help advance the semiconductor industry. Importantly, the FISH bill would create a path for other industries to access important incentive funds as well, something OBI has been advocating for. Likewise, HB 2417 moved out of committee and into Ways and Means. Initially a placeholder bill, HB 2417 was amended to provide $6 million for grants for research centers through the Centers for Innovative Excellence program within Business Oregon. Such centers support “innovation within an emerging or established sector of importance to the state’s economy.” Similarly, HB 2418 was amended to provide $3 million in matching grants for federal Small Business Innovation Research grants. This program is also run by Business Oregon.

Industrial Use Bill: As predicted, HB 3062 has died without receiving a work session. Though the bill itself cannot be revived this session, OBI will remain vigilant in case proponents try to insert anti-industry concepts into bills that remain alive. The bill would have established an onerous set of requirements on any new industrial use, defined as manufacturing, warehousing and distribution, auto repair, food processing, waste and recycling, and so on. The requirements would have applied to new “industrial” uses near a “sensitive use,” including residential areas, parks, schools, hospitals and residential care.

Food Waste Bill: HB 3018 would impose an excessive composting mandate on restaurants, grocery stores, hospitals and food processers and require labeling provisions that are inconsistent with those imposed by the federal government and other states. It also would require significant spending on kitchens, waste collection systems and employee training that ultimately would raise costs for consumers. A late-breaking amendment alleviated some concerns, but not enough to eliminate opposition from industry groups and most of the legislators on the committee in which it was under consideration. Nevertheless, a trio of courtesy “yes” votes helped move the bill to the Joint Committee on Ways and Mean, where it remains alive.

Pesticide Bil Dies: HB 2679 would have reclassified neonicotinoid pesticides as restricted-use pesticides, which are subject to more stringent and costly regulation. Proponents of the bill were unwilling to accept an amendment that would have restricted sales to licensed dealers, and the bill has died.

Sustainable Aviation Fuel: OBI collaborated with several member companies on a bill to study sustainable aviation fuel and incentives to increase production capacity in Oregon. HB 3088 will receive a hearing in the Joint Committee on Transportation on April 15. Because the committee is exempt from the first committee deadline that passed on April 9, this bill remains alive and is intended to tee up future legislation to incentivize production and increase capacity of sustainable fuel.

EV Parking Bill: HB 2961 would require EV charging capability in a certain amount of parking in new commercial and multifamily residential facilities. The bill’s scope has been substantially narrowed, reducing the worst impacts. It now applies only to larger projects (multifamily and mixed-use with more than 10 units) within the Portland metro area. However, OBI remains opposed given the impacts on affected projects and the resulting increase in costs. The House Committee on Climate, Energy and Environment approved the bill on a party-line vote.

Notable News

ODOT Rulemaking Ruling: The Oregon Supreme Court ruled on April 10 against the Oregon Department of Transportation and in favor of the Oregon-Columbia Chapter of the Associated General Contractors of America in a dispute over a rule ODOT imposed in 2023, requiring union labor on eight projects around the state. The dispute stemmed from 2021 legislation requiring what are called community workforce agreements, or CWAs, on certain infrastructure projects (Willamette Week).

Climate Order: President Donald Trump’s newest executive order takes aim at climate change laws and policies adopted by states and local jurisdictions and could put an array of Oregon programs at risk (The Oregonian).

Tariffs and Manufacturing: Widespread tariffs could obstruct Oregon’s economy and deal a blow to the state’s manufacturing sector – similar to how import taxes affected the state during the first Trump administration (Oregon Public Broadcasting).

Tax Burden: Despite Oregon’s notoriously high taxes, the state ranked towards the middle of the pack nationally when it comes to its tax burden on residents. Hawaii was No. 1 according to WalletHub’s latest Tax Burden by State study where state and local taxes as a share of personal income was 13.92%. Oregon ranked 20th with a rate of 9.06% and Washington ranked No. 28 with taxes at 8.61% or personal income (Portland Business Journal).

Oregon Medicaid Rate: The Oregon Health Authority is touting its success at keeping people enrolled in Medicaid, the free government health insurance program, after program extensions granted during the pandemic ceased. Between April 1, 2023, and Feb. 28, 2025, Oregon had to re-determine eligibility for all Oregonians enrolled in Medicaid coverage. In the end, more than 80% of Medicaid members kept their full benefits, according to final data from the state (Oregon Public Broadcasting).

Health System Merger: A community review board convened by the Oregon Health Authority to review Oregon Health & Science University’s proposed acquisition of Legacy Health voted unanimously to reject the transaction (Willamette Week).

Homelessness Tax: The Portland metro homeless services tax that has brought in more than $1 billion since voters first approved it in 2020 could be on the ballot again this fall for possible renewal and revision (The Oregonian).

Portland Bank Lease: Oregon’s largest credit union will soon move into a 17,000-square-foot space in downtown Portland. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek cast the lease as a sign of a rebound in the fortunes of Portland’s downtown (The Oregonian).

School Accountability: Details are solidifying on a sweeping effort under consideration by the Legislature to commit each Oregon school district to meet measurable academic growth targets in hopes of improving stalled learning among the state’s 545,000 public school students (The Oregonian).

Shopping Security: Half of the 600 Portland-area voters polled by The Oregonian/OregonLive last month reported that they see more security guards where they shop than they did a year ago. A hefty 85% of local residents say they feel safer around security guards or neutral about them (The Oregonian).

Beaverton Schools: The Beaverton Education Association is flexing its political muscles as upcoming school board elections approach, and the impact could radically reshape policy, personnel and budget decisions over the next four years in Oregon’s third largest school district (The Oregonian).

Central Oregon Resort: A Deschutes County Circuit Court judge recently dealt a blow to plans for the much-contested Thornburgh resort in Central Oregon. In a March 31 opinion, Judge Raymond Crutchley shot down a petition brought by the developer against state regulators over access to groundwater in the Deschutes Basin (Oregon Public Broadcasting).

Multnomah County Economy: Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson and Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards are introducing a proposal to “kick-start” the county’s economy. The Multnomah County Board members unveiled their plan on April 4, which requests $100,000 to create an Economic Development Landscape Analysis and Report to help the county develop an economic strategy (KOIN).

Check Out OBI’s Member Benefits

OBI offers members a range of programs that can save money or help small businesses offer benefits normally available only to much larger companies. Benefit programs include:

  • HealthChoice: Helps businesses with fewer than 100 employees offer comprehensive health-care benefits through our partnership with Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon.
  • CompSAFE: Helps eligible companies enjoy workers’ compensation discounts through SAIF Corporation.
  • Fuel Program: Helps members save fuel costs through our partnership with Ed Staub & Sons.
  • ODP Business Solutions: Helps OBI members save money on office furniture, supplies and other services.
  • LegalPLUS: OBI members receive 15 minutes of free legal consulting per month from Innova Legal Advisors.

Go here to learn about all of OBI’s member benefits.