OR: Gov. Tina Kotek pitches gas tax hike, DMV fee increases to avert transportation layoffs, maintain services

Gov. Tina Kotek on Thursday released some additional details of the transportation funding plan that lawmakers are expected to take up in a special session over Labor Day weekend.

To secure more funding for public transit, road maintenance and highway infrastructure across the state, Kotek is proposing that lawmakers raise the state’s 40 cents per gallon gas tax by 6 cents, increase car registration fees by $42, hike title fees by $139 and double the state’s 0.1% payroll tax for transit. Drivers of electric vehicles or highly-fuel efficient cars would also pay a $30 registration surcharge.

Most of the new revenue would be split evenly between local governments and the Oregon Department of Transportation, which initiated a wave of layoffs last month to address a $350 million shortfall.

The new details of the plan arrive about six weeks after lawmakers ended this year’s legislative session without passing any transportation funding proposal, one of their top priorities. In late July, Kotek announced that she would call lawmakers back to Salem for a special session to begin Aug. 29 to take up a new plan and avoid hundreds of layoffs at the state transportation agency.

Last month, Kotek postponed all layoffs at the agency until mid-September in anticipation of lawmakers passing the funding package. She said current layoffs and another round of layoffs in January will move forward if lawmakers don’t pass her package during the special session.

The funding plan would provide just enough money to allow the state transportation agency to pay its bills and help local governments and public transit providers maintain their current service levels, Kotek said. Its proposed tax and fee hikes are lower than those included in comprehensive funding plans that Democrats proposed during the five-month session that would have boosted transportation services statewide.

Kotek’s plan also includes provisions to increase legislative oversight of the Oregon Department of Transportation, gradually shift electric vehicle drivers to a pay-per-mile driven system and address the overpayment by trucking companies for their share of wear and tear on state roads.

Other accountability measures outlined in the proposal include a required performance audit of the state transportation agency by the Secretary of State’s Office and the formation of a committee that would oversee the agency’s major projects. The proposal would also grant Kotek the ability to directly hire or fire the agency’s director, a responsibility currently held by the Oregon Transportation Commission.

Although Democrats hold enough seats in each chamber to push through any tax-raising proposal along party lines, they need a handful of Republicans across both chambers to attend the special session to provide the two-thirds quorum necessary for a vote.

In an effort to gain the support of some hesitant Democrats, particularly Sen. Mark Meek of Gladstone, Kotek’s proposal would repeal some statutes in current law related to tolling. The road funding system, which was once envisioned as a significant revenue source for Portland-area freeway projects, has received significant pushback from lawmakers of both parties.

Some Republicans have criticized Kotek for proposing tax and fee hikes, saying her plan will hurt Oregonians while not doing enough to control spending at the Oregon Department of Transportation.

But Kotek said she is confident that enough lawmakers from both parties will show up and vote for the funding package. “I am confident that lawmakers will step up this month to avert these layoffs and I appreciate their partnership in getting to the other side of this crisis,” she said in a statement.

The session is expected to end Monday, Sept. 1. Top Democrats have said they plan to schedule multiple public hearings on the proposal prior to the special session, but they had not announced any additional details as of Thursday morning.