OBI Files Motion to Intervene in Recycling Program Lawsuit
On March 16, OBI, the Northwest Grocery Retail Association (NWGRA) and Food Northwest filed a motion in U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon to intervene in a lawsuit brought by the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors (NAW) against the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality challenging the constitutionality of the Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act. On Feb. 6, the court issued a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the RMA against NAW’s members until the court rules on the merits of the case at trial beginning July 13.
In issuing that injunction, the court determined that the RMA’s opaque regulatory scheme might violate the due process and dormant commerce clauses of the U.S. Constitution. Members of OBI, NWGRA and Food Northwest are in the same regulatory boat as NAW’s members, and as such have also moved for a preliminary injunction.
Preceding this legal action, these associations and others asked the DEQ to pause the program while the constitutional questions are settled, both to avoid confusion and additional legal action. DEQ declined. Thus, the associations have sought to intervene in the challenge, raising issues of transparency, exorbitant cost, supply chain impracticality and other due process and interstate commerce concerns.
Go here to read a joint statement from the organizations that have motioned to intervene along with the relevant pleadings.
Contested Primaries Follow Retirements, Difficult Votes
Primary candidates set: The end of the legislative session marks the unofficial beginning of campaign season. Following the March 10 filing deadline, we know who is running (and not running) for which offices and which offices will see contested primaries. We also have a better idea of which races will be competitive in November.
Key takeaways
- Tina Kotek is the heavy favorite to win the Democratic nomination for governor.
- Christine Drazan is the favorite to win the Republican nomination for governor, but she faces several formidable challengers, including 2010 GOP nominee Chris Dudley and Rep. Ed Diehl.
- Bureau of Labor and Industries Commissioner Christina Stephenson is heavily favored to win reelection. Sen. Dick Anderson, R-Newport, decided against challenging her after publicly floating a possible run late last month.
- 13 lawmakers (nine Republicans, four Democrats) will not be returning to their current posts, opting to retire or pursue other offices.
Lawmakers not returning: Below are the 13 lawmakers who have decided either to retire from their current posts or pursue other offices:
- Rep. Jami Cate, R-Lebanon (running for Senate)
- Rep. Ed Diehl, R-Scio (running for governor)
- Sen. Christine Drazan, R-Canby (running for governor)
- Sen. Jeff Golden, D-Ashland (retiring)
- Rep. Annessa Hartman, D-Gladstone (retiring)
- Sen. Cedric Hayden, R-Fall Creek (retiring)
- Rep. Jeff Helfrich, R-Hood River (running for Senate)
- Rep. Ken Helm, D-Beaverton (retiring)
- Rep. Rick Lewis, R-Silverton (retiring)
- Rep. John Lively, D-Springfield (retiring)
- Sen. Kim Thatcher, R-Keizer (retiring)
- Sen. Suzanne Weber, R-Tillamook (retiring)
- Rep. Boomer Wright, R-Reedsport (retiring)
OBI will keep you updated about significant developments throughout the primary election season. Election Day is May 19.
Register Now: Oregon Economic Summit on May 28
Join OBI for its first annual Oregon Economic Summit on May 28 at the Salem Convention Center. The event is a rebrand of our historical Annual Meeting event. Visit the event web page here to learn more and to register.
The theme of the inaugural summit is Changing Our Trajectory: Prioritizing Economic Growth and Private Sector Job Creation.
The program will begin at 3:30 p.m. A reception with political leaders will follow at 5 p.m.
OBI Accepting Nominations for Oregon Visionary Award
OBI is accepting nominations for its highest honor, the Oregon Visionary Award.
Honorees include individuals, companies and organizations that, through steadfast service to their communities, illuminate a path to shared prosperity built upon a thriving state economy with opportunity for all Oregonians. Awardees are those willing to set aside individual interests and politics to bring Oregonians together around a common set of values with a focus on practical solutions to the most difficult challenges of our time.
Recent Oregon Visionary Award recipients (click links for award videos) include NIC Industries and Daimler Truck North America, both recognized in 2025; and the Advanced Technology and Manufacturing Institute, Sports Bra founder Jenny Nguyen and the ZGF and Hoffman Skanska Joint Venture, which designed and built Portland International Airport’s new main terminal. The latter three were recognized in 2024.
The 2026 Oregon Visionary Award recipients will be honored at OBI’s annual Vision Oregon Event, which will take place in October at the Portland Art Museum.
Email Patti Winter (pattiwinter@Oregonbusinessindustry.com) to nominate a person, company or organization for the 2026 Oregon Visionary Award.
A Conversation with ATI Division President Trevor Giroux
In the latest episode, Oregon Business Matters talks with Trevor Giroux, president of ATI’s Specialty Alloys and Components Division in Millersburg. This might just be the coolest company in Oregon that few people know about. It produces metals that can withstand incredibly harsh conditions, and its products are used in a wide variety of products, from jet engines to MRI machines. Go here to listen.
In case you missed it, check out our recent interview with John Tapogna, former longtime president of economics research firm ECOnorthwest and newly installed president of the Oregon Business Council. John and host Angela Wilhelms discuss his new role and what he believes are the five major challenges facing the state: poor school performance, insufficient housing, wildfires, the state’s overreliance on the income tax and Oregon’s historic ambivalence about population growth. You can find a link to that interview here.
The Oregon Business Matters podcast can be found on major podcast platforms, including Apple, Spotify and YouTube. Links to all episodes can be found on OBI’s Oregon Business Matters website here.
Oregon Drops to 46th in National Competitiveness Ranking
Oregon drops: Oregon fell from 40th in 2023 to 46th in 2024, according to the Common Sense Institute’s (CSI) 2026 Free Enterprise Report. The state’s competitiveness rank has fallen 10 places since 2017, when Oregon ranked 36th, and 15 places since 2011, when the inaugural Free Enterprise Report appeared. Check out this year’s report here.
About the report: CSI ranks each state according to overall economic competitiveness and competitiveness in 10 subcategories: economic performance, education, energy, health care, housing, infrastructure, public safety, state budget, taxes & fees and workforce. Oregon is in the top half of states in only two of these areas and in the bottom half in the remaining nine.
Top 25 rankings: Oregon ranked among the top half of states in these areas in 2024:
- Infrastructure: 5th
- Energy: 19th
Bottom 25 rankings: Oregon ranked among the bottom half of states in these areas in 2024:
- Health care: 27th
- Economic performance: 31st
- Workforce: 35th
- Housing: 42nd
- State budget: 42nd
- Education: 46th
- Overall competitiveness: 46th
- Taxes & fees: 49th
- Public safety: 50th
Low ranking explained: Why has Oregon dropped to 46th? Among other things, the report notes, “Oregon’s competitiveness continues to suffer from high taxes, a strict regulatory environment, a persistent housing shortage, endemic homelessness, and public safety concerns.”
Policy and Rulemaking Updates
RMA rulemaking continues: On March 30, the Department of Environmental Quality will host its next meeting as part of its third rulemaking for Oregon’s Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act (RMA). DEQ is proceeding with rulemaking despite pending legal action challenging the constitutionality of the program (see news item above) and a related injunction against enforcement of the program for several businesses. DEQ has opted to plow forward with additional rulemaking despite several requests to pause while these legal issues are resolved. In addition to the possible constitutional problems with the RMA, its implementation has made Oregon a national outlier in the treatment of waste materials. Take garbage bags, for example. Oregon insists on treating garbage bags as “packaging” whereas every other state with a similar EPR program recognizes trash bags as a consumer product. This disparity imposes an extra cost on Oregon businesses and consumers, and DEQ’s response to this disparity – promising to provide a discount to businesses that sell garbage bags – is inadequate. Oregon’s EPR program is replete with similar examples. OBI will continue to seek improvements to this deeply flawed program while fighting the constitutional battle in court.
CPP listening sessions: The Department of Environmental Quality recently held listening sessions with stakeholder groups to discuss the upcoming Emissions-Intensive Trade-Exposed (EITE) Rulemaking under the Climate Protection Program (CPP). The rulemaking, expected to begin this summer, will set a carbon-intensity benchmark for 37 EITE businesses that are directly regulated under the CPP. The idea of the rulemaking is to regulate entities based on the energy efficiency of their production processes. The alternative would count total emissions from the combustion of natural gas and would prevent growth or increased production, since the CPP places a cap on greenhouse gas emissions that declines over time. Although the carbon-intensity benchmark rulemaking is a positive development that could allow EITE businesses to operate and grow under the CPP, it will be exceedingly complex. Another listening session will be held March 31, and OBI will submit a letter to DEQ outlining our recommendations for the rulemaking. See the rulemaking webpage for more information.
BOLI apprenticeship proposal: On March 12, the Bureau of Labor and Industries’ Oregon State Apprenticeship and Training Committee (OSATC) held its 2026 Q1 meeting. The committee heard from the apprenticeship and training division administrator about the staff policy proposal to modify apprenticeship standards. One element would impose a 50% cap on recognition for prior experience. A second, more worrisome element would allow apprentices to perform only tasks that qualify as work processes under apprenticeship standards. That means some apprentices would be sent home if sufficient work was not available, limiting their ability to accrue work hours, earn money and develop skills. Such restrictions would create significant training barriers. OSATC received many comments opposing the proposal yet voted to support it. For this change to go into effect, BOLI will need to adjust administrative rules. At this point, it is unclear when that process will begin, but OBI will provide updates when we learn more.
Governors back bridge: Gov. Tina Kotek and Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson reaffirmed their support for replacing the I-5 bridge despite dramatic increases in project cost estimates. The Interstate Bridge Replacement Program (IBRP) recently released estimates for replacing the bridge and overhauling interchanges within the 5-mile project area that are more than double previously released estimates as a result of inflation and rising construction costs. The total cost is now projected to be $13.5 billion to $15.2 billion, with a most likely cost of $14.4 billion. The previous project estimate was $5 billion to $7.5 billion, with a most likely cost of $6 billion. The IBRP recommends prioritizing replacement of the bridge first using the $5.5 billion in state and federal funding available now. Although the cost of the bridge itself is $5.9 billion, meaning additional funds would have to be raised, the IBRP says starting the project sooner will keep costs lower. For more information about the new cost estimates, visit the IBRP website.
Energy department comment period: The Oregon Department of Energy seeks quick input on its Transformational Integrated Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction (TIGHER) Project. This project will impose measures to achieve goals for greenhouse gas reduction initiated by former Gov. Kate Brown in Executive Order 20-04. According to ODOE: “The gap measures and scenarios were developed through consultation with state interagency partners, sectoral subject matter experts, and ODOE’s consultant and modeling expert, Sustainable Solutions Group, and are intended to be responsive to feedback received during Phase 1 of the TIGHER 2.0 project in 2025.” OBI, the Manufacturing Council of Oregon and a range of allied industry groups have asked ODOE to extend the response time as none of these groups were included as “sectoral subject matter experts” and were not notified of the process directly. The group letter can be found here.
Permitting reform implementation: Gov. Kotek’s economic development bill, HB 4084, passed with bipartisan support (as well as OBI’s) during this year’s legislative session. In addition to making needed updates to Oregon’s Enterprise Zone property tax incentive program, the governor’s proposal makes a number of permitting changes. Below are the dates and deliverables related to permitting changes:
- HB 4084 will take effect on June 5.
- The governor must appoint the new Joint Permitting Council (consisting primarily of state agency staff) no later than July 1.
- The council must produce readiness criteria for “fast track” permitting no later than Oct. 1.
- Each named agency must produce a catalog of permits no later than Oct. 3.
- The council must produce a report to the governor by Oct. 3 that identifies options for improvement, suggestions from permit applicants and opportunities to provide fee relief for delayed permits.
Nothing prevents any of these actions from occurring faster than the deadlines.
OBI will continue to research and recommend permitting improvements and advocate for those with the most significant impacts.
Notable News
PLA ruling: A controversial order by Gov. Tina Kotek requiring union labor on many state construction projects is unconstitutional, a Marion County judge found March 12 (Oregon Public Broadcasting).
Sports economic impact: A new study from a prominent Oregon advocacy group suggests that spectator sporting events generated $1.7 billion in economic output in 2024 (Portland Business Journal).
Manufacturing AI automation: Jeff Bezos is in early talks to raise $100 billion for a new fund that would buy up manufacturing companies and seek to use AI technology to accelerate their path to automation (The Wall Street Journal).
Providence health plan: Providence Health & Services is exploring the sale of its insurance arm, Providence Health Plan, as leaders look to strengthen the organization’s long-term financial footing (The Oregonian).
PacifiCorp power lines: PacifiCorp plans to sell some of its power lines and distribution assets in rural Oregon to electric cooperatives to shore up finances amid growing liabilities from 2020 wildfires (The Oregonian).
Portland homeless lawsuit: The owners of an apartment building in the Pearl District are suing the city of Portland and The Salvation Army, alleging the city-funded shelter next door has “substantially diminished” the building’s market value (The Oregonian).
PGE emissions: Another year has passed and Portland General Electric is no closer to meeting a looming greenhouse-gas emissions cap. The state’s largest electricity utility estimated 2025 emissions associated with its Oregon retail sales at 6,078,895 metric tons of carbon-dioxide equivalent, virtually unchanged from 6,084,099 metric tons in 2024 (Portland Business Journal).
Bend public transportation: Ridership on Cascades East Transit dropped sharply after the agency reinstated its $2 fare in February, but officials say the decline is expected — and driven more by changes in rider behavior than a loss of riders overall (The Bulletin).
Clark County taxpayers: Each year, Oregon collects more than $250 million in income taxes paid by people from Clark County who commute to jobs across the Columbia River. Clark County residents, in fact, pay more income taxes to Oregon than the residents of 31 of Oregon’s own 36 counties. Since the pandemic, though, the number of Oregon taxpayers who live in Clark County is down by about 8% (The Oregonian).
Oregon reading instruction: The results of Oregon’s flawed reading instruction are hard to overlook. Not only have statewide reading scores been slipping for years, but a research and advocacy nonprofit, the National Council on Teacher Quality, released a state-by-state report in 2014 that slammed Oregon’s teacher prep programs. The report called out Oregon schools and universities for failing to effectively educate budding elementary teachers in direct, phonics-based reading instruction, which the National Reading Panel, after synthesizing 40 years of research, concluded was the best method for teaching all children to read (Oregon Journalism Project).
Rep. Annessa Hartman: State Rep. Annessa Hartman, a Democrat from Gladstone who was diagnosed with stage 3 cervical cancer in November, has decided not to run for the Clackamas County Commission and plans to leave elected office when her term ends in January (The Oregonian).
Portland deli fire: The CEO of Elephants Delicatessen called on Portland leaders to do more to support small businesses a week after one of the chain’s locations burned down (Portland Business Journal).
Gene Derfler dies: Gene Derfler, a World War II veteran, Oregon state legislator, accomplished artist and longtime Salem resident, died early March 16 at Capital Manor. He was 101 (Salem Statesman Journal).
Renewable energy project: A Florida-based developer has proposed a battery storage project southwest of Portland that could boost the electrical grid’s reliability at a time when demand for more renewable energy is climbing. But local environmental advocates say its location, directly across from the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge, could impact wildlife, and they are calling for more transparency and public input (Oregon Public Broadcasting).
Preschool For All: The number of households paying Multnomah County’s Preschool for All tax appears on track to keep growing, despite concerns that Portland’s high tax rate is driving away wealthy residents subject to the tax (The Oregonian).
Fewer school days: Portland Public Schools students would lose three days of school this year under a tentative plan proposed by the district to its employees March 17 to help plug an unusual $14 million midyear budget gap (The Oregonian).
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.
- Partners Retirement Plan: Allows multiple employers to offer a 401(k) benefit to employees through a group structure while maintaining individual company design and control over the benefit – such as eligibility, employer match, and vesting.
- 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.
- 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.