Below is a brief summary of the bills Environment Oregon supported during the 2007 legislative session. To see the text of bills you can go to the state Legislature's web site and look up the bill numbers mentioned on this page.
Oregon’s Energy Future
Oregon has the resources to be a national leader in using renewable,
homegrown energy (like wind, solar and biomass), and energy
conservation, to take control of our energy future and cut our
dependence on fossil fuels, which is causing global warming and rising
energy prices. Environment Oregon supports legislation to:
• Establish a Renewable Energy Standard requiring utilities to generate 25 percent of their electricity from new renewable energy sources by 2025.
Victory! The Governor signed SB 838 into law on June 6.
• Set energy-efficiency standards for 6 home and commercial appliances (in addition to the 11 established in the 2005 session).
Victory! SB 375 has passed both chambers and is waiting to be signed by the Governor.
• Set energy-conservation and green building standards for public buildings.
Victory! HB 2620 requires that 1.5% of funds for new public buildings be used to install solar technology. It has been signed by the Governor.
Loss: HB 2876 requires that state agencies reduce energy consumption 20% by 2015 and SB 576 requires that new state buildings meet high green-building design standards (similar to LEED Gold). Both bills passed their first committees but were allowed to die with no action in the Ways and Means committee.
• Expand tax credits for businesses and homeowners to invest in renewable energy systems.
Victory! HB 3201 contains increases in tax credits for businesses and individuals to invest in renewable energy. It has passed the Legislature and is waiting to be signed into law by the Governor.
• Extend the public purpose charge that funds the popular and effective Energy Trust of Oregon to 2025 to help Oregonians install clean energy systems.
Victory! An extension of the public purpose charge through 2025, as well as authorization for utilities to contribute more than the mandatory 3% for energy conservation investments, was included in SB 838, the Renewable Energy Standard (see above for status).
Click here to learn more about our work on Oregon's Energy Future.
Curb Global Warming
Scientists agree that global warming is already affecting Oregon’s coastline and snowpack, with impacts on irrigation, salmon migration, and hydropower. Environment Oregon supports legislation to:
• Set state goals to cut global warming pollution to 10 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 and develop a regulatory program to meet those goals.
Partial victory: HB 3543 sets state goals for cutting global warming pollution; HB 3545 establishes a “cap and trade” program for global warming pollution; both had hearings in the House Energy & the Environment committee but only HB 3543 was passed. HB 3543 has passed both chambers of the Legislature and is waiting to be signed into law by the Governor.
Click here to learn more about our work on global warming.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Oregon’s Bottle Bill has set a national standard for effective recycling programs. But Oregon’s programs have not been updated in decades, and new waste management challenges have emerged. Environment Oregon supports legislation to:• Establish a program to require manufacturers to take back and recycle the large and growing waste stream of electronic products, which contain toxic materials.
Victory! HB 2626 passed was signed by the Governor on June 7.
• Update the Bottle Bill to include products like plastic water bottles, which has been 5 cents since the Bottle Bill was passed more than 30 years ago.
Victory! SB 707 was signed by the Governor on June 7.
Click here to learn more about our work on recycling.
Protect Oregon’s Farm and Forest Lands
Measure 37 has had damaging consequences for Oregon, including efforts by timber companies to develop subdivisions on forest lands and proposals for development that would damage neighbors’ property value. Environment Oregon supports legislation to:
• Reform Measure 37 to protect Oregon’s farm and forest lands.
Headed to the Voters: HB 3540 passed the House and the Senate, referring a Measure 37 reform package to voters for a November special election.
Click here to learn more about our work to protect Oregon's farms and forests.
Protect the Oregon Coast
Despite bipartisan support for keeping the West Coast off-limits to oil and gas drilling, energy companies are pressing Congress for permission to drill. Environment Oregon supports legislation to:
• Renew the moratorium on oil and gas drilling in state waters.
Victory! The Governor signed SB 790 into law on June 22.
Click here to learn more about our work to protect Oregon's coast.
Save the Metolius
The Metolius River and its basin are one of Oregon's natural wonders: the spring-fed river springs forth from the side of a hill to become one of Oregon's clearest rivers and a world-class fly-fishing destinations. Unfortunately, two destination resorts -- with more than 3,000 homes and 3 golf courses -- are planned for the basin.
• Protect the Metolius by making it off-limits to new destination resorts.
Loss: SB 30 has passed the Senate but died without a hearing in the House.
Clean Air and Water
The Willamette River is so polluted that major stretches are unsafe for fishing and swimming. Air pollution in parts of Oregon exceeds health standards for pollutants that exacerbate asthma, lung disease, and cancer. Environment Oregon supports legislation to:
• Provide for Oregonians’ right to know about toxic pollution by funding expanded water quality monitoring, and develop a plan for requiring water pollution permits to meet water quality standards.
Victory! SB 737 requires DEQ to conduct a statewide study on toxic discharges into waterways, and dischargers of toxic pollution to develop and implement pollution prevention plans. The Governor signed the bill into law on June 28.
• Restore critical funding for the Department of Environmental Quality, whose resources have been reduced to such a level that basic implementation of the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act is threatened.
Victory! The DEQ budget includes substantial increases in funding to restore critical program levels. It has passed both the House and the Senate.
• Reduce air pollution by increasing air pollution permit fees to fund adequate oversight and enforcement.
Victory! The Governor signed SB 107 into law on June 20.
Click here to learn more about our work on clean water issues.
Defending Oregon's Environment
We devote most of our time and resources to passing good bills that address critical problems facing Oregonians and our environment. But powerful special interest have their own agendas, and sometimes we have to work to stop anti-environmental legislation from passing.
Columbia River Water Grab
Victory! We worked with Water Watch to stop a bill, HB 3525, that would have repealed protections for endangered salmon and required that 500,000 acre feet of water (enough water to cover 500,000 acres one foot deep) be taken out of the Columbia River every summer.
Polluter Pork
Victory! We stopped the renewal of a decades-old subsidy that gives polluters tax credits for complying with Oregon's environmental laws. The tax credits waste taxpayer dollars that could be use for good environmental programs or encouraging companies to do more than just comply with the law. The subsidy is set to expire this year, but a coalition of polluting companies made a push late in the session to renew. Testimony from Environment Oregon played a key role in stopping the bill, HB 3500.
To see the text of bills mentioned above, you can go to the state Legislature's web site and look up the bill numbers mentioned on this page. If the bill number starts with "SB," then click on "Senate Bill" and type the number into the box. If the bill number starts with "HB," then click on "House Bill" and type the number into the box.