By Emily Bowes
Policy Strategist
Sierra Club Oregon
The Final Month of Oregon’s 2025 Legislative Session
We’ve entered the final stretch of the 2025 Oregon legislative session and it’s been one for the record books. This year saw more bills introduced than any session in state history and at the same time lawmakers are grappling with major budget shortages and hard decisions about where to invest limited resources. It’s been stressful for all involved but Sierra Club Oregon has been fighting every step of the way to protect and advance climate progress. We’ve worked to defend proven programs that build community resilience and stop harmful policies designed to pull Oregon in a regressive, polluter-friendly direction. But the work isn’t over yet. As the session winds down, we urgently need your support to help push key bills across the finish line or block the ones that threaten our future.
What you can do to take action today is contact your legislator and let them know where you stand on the bills below. You can find your state representative and senator by visiting here.
Here’s where we stand and what’s at stake:
Keep Oregon Nuclear Free Lobby Day Success!
On April 20th, we joined forces with Physicians for Social Responsibility, Columbia Riverkeeper, 350PDX, Rogue Climate, and Oregon Rural Action to host a powerful Keep Oregon Nuclear Free Lobby Day at the Capitol. Our goal was to spread awareness to the dangers of nuclear energy development in Oregon. More than 30 volunteers from across the state came together to oppose HB 2410, a dangerous bill that would allow Umatilla County to sidestep Oregon’s long-standing nuclear energy protections. Together, we made our message loud and clear which was to stop the advancement of this dangerous precedent setting bill through the legislative process. To give all our participants the best possible tools we held a training with experienced organizers and lobbyists for participants to learn from Capitol insiders. Participants and advocates got to use these skills in 20+ meetings with legislators and staff and their constituents from across the state. But to make sure our message extended outside the Capitol as well, we held a rally on the Capitol steps, featuring climate justice advocates, indigenous leaders, and Umatilla residents who are most impacted by the policies included in HB 2410.
Media coverage helped amplify our concerns statewide so make sure to check out the coverage at the following sources:
- Oregon Capital Chronicle: Coverage of the May 19 rally and the bills threatening Umatilla County
- KOIN 6 News: Footage of the lobby day in Salem
- Public News Service: Environmental and community leaders unite to defend Oregon’s moratorium
- KBOO Radio | Locus Focus: Sierra Club Oregon Policy Strategist, Emily Bowes, discusses the consequences of considering nuclear energy in Oregon
Thanks to your advocacy, HB 2410 has not moved forward out of the Joint Committee on Ways and Means yet but we’ll continue to work with our partners to ensure Oregon’s nuclear protections remain intact.
Energy & Affordability Package: Funding What Works
As Oregon’s legislative session wraps up, we’re fighting to secure funding and pass smart policy to make our homes more resilient, energy more affordable, and our communities. On more resilient from climate change. On May 7th Sierra Club Oregon participated in the Building Resilience Lobby Day and held several meetings with key legislators to try and push these important policies forward.
May 7th Buildling Resilience Lobby Day, photo by Emily Bowes
Pictured: Senator Gorsek, Emily Bowes and volunteers
Here are the top priorities and current status of each:
HB 3546 “Power Act”
What it does: HB 3546 would create a new utility rate category for large energy users like data centers and cryptocurrency facilities to ensure they are charged fairly for their massive energy consumption. The bill also increases transparency by requiring these facilities to report key energy usage and emissions data.
Why it matters: Oregon’s clean energy goals are at risk if the largest power users aren’t held accountable. Right now, everyday Oregonians are footing the bill while these energy intensive industries grow unchecked. The POWER Act promotes energy justice, grid reliability, and climate accountability by making sure the biggest users pay their fair share and operate transparently.
Status of the Bill: The POWER Act has just passed its third senate reading with the vote count 18-12. The third house reading is scheduled for June 5th.
HB 3081 “One Stop Shop 2.0”
What it does: Builds on Oregon’s existing “One Stop Shop” platform by offering live, local help to connect people with home upgrade rebates and trusted contractors.
Why it matters: Makes it easier for every Oregonian regardless of income or ability to access life-changing upgrades like heat pumps and insulation that lower bills and protect against wildfire smoke and extreme heat.
Status of the Bill: Joint Committee on Ways and Means
SB 88 “Get the Junk Out of Rates”
What it does: Stops utilities from charging ratepayers for unnecessary corporate expenses like lobbyists, marketing, and trade association fees.
Why it matters: Working families are already paying enough. This bill cuts “junk fees” from your utility bill and delivers real savings.
Status of the Bill: Senate Committee on Rules
HB 3170 “Community Resilience Hubs”: $10M
What it does: Funds local hubs that provide relief during wildfires, heat waves, and winter storms.
Why it matters: With climate disasters on the rise, these hubs offer emergency supplies, shelter, and training but demand far exceeds current funding.
Status of the Bill: Joint Committee on Ways and Means
Full Funding for Climate Resilience Programs
We need to reinvest in proven programs that provide heating, cooling, and housing upgrades to low-income and frontline communities. These programs are already helping thousands of Oregonians stay housed, safe, and healthy but the initial funding has run out. The need is still huge. With the state budget being slashed in several directions it is more important than ever that we advocate for funding sources for vetted programs such as these remain.
Rental Home Heat Pump Program : $30M
What it does: Offers rebates to install heat pumps in rental properties, making homes more energy-efficient and comfortable.
Why it matters: Renters get lower bills and better air quality. Landlords get help covering upgrade costs. It’s a proven success already copied by other states.
Community Heat Pump Deployment : $15M
What it does: Delivers grants through Tribes and community partners to help income-qualified households install efficient heat pumps.
Why it matters: Keeps people warm in winter, cool in summer, and safe during climate disasters especially in rural and under-resourced communities.
Transportation Package: Where are the Climate Protections?
Oregon legislators continue to release Transportation Framework that prioritizes fossil fuel industry interests over climate, equity, and community needs.
At the last minute, lawmakers introduced a “cap and pave” proposal that would dismantle the state’s Climate Protection Program and redirect funds meant for clean air and emissions reductions into expanding highways and other polluting infrastructures. This shift was made without input from environmental advocates, Tribes, or frontline communities directly impacted by these choices.
This proposal is especially concerning to Sierra Club Oregon and should be for all Oregonians because it moves the state in the opposite direction of a just energy transition. Instead of investing in public transit, electrification, and other forms of transportation that would reduce emissions and improve access in underserved and transportation limited communities, the package doubles down on technology that increases climate vulnerability.
What’s in the package that’s worth celebrating:
- Public transit funding: The Statewide Transportation Improvement Fund (STIF) payroll tax would increase from 0.1% to 0.18%, helping maintain and expand transit service across the state.
- Support for active transportation: The bicycle excise tax would increase to provide dedicated funding for local bike and pedestrian paths, reducing emissions and improving public health.
- Wildlife and salmon protection: A new tire pollution fee would fund wildlife crossings and salmon habitat restoration, addressing long-ignored ecological impacts of transportation infrastructure.
- Focus on maintenance over expansion: The framework prioritizes “operations, maintenance, and preservation” (90%) with only 10% directed toward new projects, helping avoid unnecessary highway sprawl.
But here’s why we’re concerned and you should be too:
- Underfunded transit: The proposed 0.08% increase falls far short of what’s needed. Without a phased increase to 0.4%, TriMet warns of a 15% service cut as early as 2027, with more cuts to follow threatening essential service for riders across the region.
- Equity concerns: Inadequate transit funding disproportionately affects rural, elderly, low-income, and disabled communities who rely on public transportation the most.
- Weak climate commitments: Transportation is Oregon’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, yet the package contains no dedicated funding for significant emissions reductions or zero-emission vehicle infrastructure.
- No strategy to reduce VMT (Vehicle Miles Traveled): A climate-smart transportation future requires reducing car dependency not reinforcing it.
- Unclear language around “maintenance”: Without strong guardrails, road-widening projects could be misclassified as “maintenance,” undermining efforts to limit sprawl and pollution.
- The “Cap and Pave” problem: A last-minute proposal would eliminate the Climate Protection Program and replace it with a new cap-and-trade system designed to generate revenue primarily for roads. This would shift Oregon away from its current, equity-focused approach to climate policy and could lead to weaker emissions limits and reduced environmental justice funding.
Because transportation is Oregon’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, weakening climate protections and diverting funds to more road building delays the urgent work needed to address climate change, environmental justice, and public health. This is not the climate leadership we need and is in fact a climate rollback. We’re calling on lawmakers to reject this polluter-first approach and instead pass a transportation package that truly reflects Oregon’s values such as clean air, safe streets, sidewalks, and bikepaths, and other climate-smart infrastructure that serves everyone.
Bad Forest Bill: Regressive Timber Policy Stopping in its Tracks
HB 3103 would dramatically change how Oregon manages its state forests by prioritizing logging over all other values like clean water, wildlife habitat, recreation, and climate resilience. The bill requires the State Forester to set timber harvest targets that would become legally binding, regardless of changing environmental conditions, scientific updates, or community input. It would also open new avenues for timber industry lawsuits against the state, pressuring agencies to cut more trees or face legal consequences. This is regressive policy because it undermines science-based forest management by locking in rigid logging quotas while also threatening public forests that provide drinking water, carbon storage, and wildlife habitat. Not only that but it would also increase legal and financial risks to the state by inviting more industry lawsuits and contradicts Oregon’s climate goals by promoting industrial logging over ecosystem protection.
Instead of forcing state forests to produce maximum timber output, Oregon should be investing in climate-smart forest management that balances ecological health, wildfire resilience, and public benefit. Currently, HB 3103 is stalled out in the Joint Committee on Ways and Means but that does not mean we should release pressure on legislators to oppose this concerning policy. Sierra Club Oregon and our partners are continuously reminding decision makers that this is not a bill that deserves our limited funding and instead invest in more progressive policies.
Make Your Voice Heard
As the session enters its final days, your voice can make all the difference. Whether it’s supporting climate-smart investments or opposing harmful rollbacks, now is the time to speak up. Find your legislator and contact them today. Let them know where you stand on these critical bills and help ensure Oregon moves forward, not backward, on climate, equity, and community resilience.