Kotek signs $300 million emergency transportation package; GOP sharply critical
(Update: Adding Republican lawmaker's reaction to bill signing)
SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) — Gov. Tina Kotek has signed House Bill 3991, the state's emergency transportation bill.
According to the governor’s office, the legislation fills a $300 million funding gap and prevents major cuts to the Oregon Department of Transportation.
“This bill will help us keep state highways and local roads safe and open to traffic while preserving transit service and halting the pending layoffs of essential transportation staff,” Kotek said in a statement, thanking lawmakers and a broad coalition of stakeholders.
Kotek signed the bill more than a month after lawmakers approved it on Sept. 29th.
With the new law being signed, Oregon drivers will pay an estimated $66 more in gas taxes and registration fees to fund the package.
News release:
Senate Republican Leader Starr Responds to Governor Kotek Signing $4.3B Transportation Tax Hike into Law
SALEM, Ore. – Senate Republican Leader Bruce Starr (R–Dundee) released the following statement Monday after Governor Tina Kotek signed House Bill 3991:
“After delaying for more than a month to keep Oregonians from weighing in on this historic tax increase, Governor Kotek finally signed her $4.3 billion transportation tax hike into law. First, she ignored Republican legislators who were ready to craft a bipartisan package focused on preserving maintenance, operations, and frontline jobs within ODOT. Then, she ignored thousands of Oregonians who pleaded with her not to add more financial burden to their already expensive everyday lives. And finally, she ignored members of her own party who warned that her delay tactics undermine public trust and violate the basic values of democracy and good governance.
At every turn, she chose to protect a broken status quo that raises costs on struggling families while failing to fix the structural problems that created this crisis. But Oregonians will not be silenced, and their voices will not be ignored. They will have the opportunity to weigh in, hold their leaders accountable, and demand a transportation system that works for the people who pay for it.”
