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Home My WebLink AboutAgenda Item - 2026-03-03 - Number 08.2 - 2026 Legislative Session Update 8.2 E os� COUNCIL REPORT v A. o OREGO� Subject: 2026 Legislative Session Update Meeting Date: March 3, 2026 Staff Member: Madison Thesing, Deputy City Manager Report Date: February 23, 2026 Department: City Manager's Office Action Required Advisory Board/Commission Recommendation El Motion ❑ Approval ❑ Public Hearing ❑ Denial El Ordinance ❑ None Forwarded ❑ Resolution ❑X Not Applicable ❑X Information Only Comments: El Council Direction ❑ Consent Agenda Staff Recommendation: No Council action, informational only Recommended Language for Motion: No Council action, informational only Project/ Issue Relates To: Intergovernmental Relations Policy, Legislative Agenda Issue before Council (Highlight Policy Question): ❑Council Goals/Priorities ❑Adopted Master Plan(s) ❑X Not Applicable BACKGROUND The Oregon Legislator convened for the 2026 Legislative Session beginning February 2 and scheduled to end on March 8. Limited bills were introduced due to the nature of the 35-day "short session". The main priorities are the State's budget gap, transportation funding, and various bills that were reworked and reintroduced from last session. To guide the City's advocacy during the session, staff prepares legislative priorities at the beginning of every long session (2025) for City Council's consideration that are grounded in the City Council's goals and City-adopted Master Plans. The priorities are intended to uphold the City's long-term goals, while responding to the current policy and political context of the incoming session. These priorities carry into the subsequent short session (2026). Respect. Excellence. Trust. Service w 503-635-0215 380 A AVENUE PO BOX 369 LAKE OSWEGO, OR 97034 WWW.LAKEOSWEGO.CITY Page 2 The legislative agenda (Attachment 1) guides the City's involvement and position on legislative actions in the context of what is happening during the session. Staff will take a position (support, oppose, or neutral) on bills as directed by the adopted legislative agenda. DISCUSSION The 2026 session has officially passed the halfway point of session. With the nature of short session, the legislature is working quickly through key deadlines. On February 16, all bills had to be voted out of their policy committee or were effectively dead. By February 20, policy bills needed to be scheduled for a vote in the second chamber's policy committee to continue their journey. Top Bills • HB 4177 - Clarifies public meeting laws, specifically communication between governing body members that are excluded from public meetings requirements o Bill a part of League of Oregon Cities effort to clarify many of the recent Oregon Government Ethics Commission rulings (Ethics Bill Package, Attachment 2) • HB 4007— Requires children under 16 to must wear helmets when riding powered micromobility device - bikes, e-bikes, e-scooters and some other vehicles. • HB 4008— Establishes the Transit Funding Task Force • SB 1599— Moves vote on the transportation ballot measure to May 2026 election Legislative Funding Request Sponsored by Representative Nguyen, the City has requested $4M for the South Shore Fire Station Project in legislative funding through the Joint Committee on Ways and Means Capital Construction Subcommittee. No update at the time of the Council Report. ATTACHMENTS 1. City of Lake Oswego 2025-26 Legislative Priorities 2. League of Oregon Cities' Ethics Bill Package Respect. Excellence. Trust. Service 503-635-0215 380 A AVENUE PO BOX 369 LAKE OSWEGO, OR 97034 WWW.LAKEOSWEGO.CITY ATTACHMENT 1 2,‘,4,E o,. ° 2025 -26 Legislative Agenda oREGO� Legislative Principles • Preserve Home Rule Authority—The City of Lake Oswego aims to preserve home rule authority and local decision-making. Local control allows the City to act on behalf of the interests of the community based on context, needs, and objectives. Additionally, the City opposes efforts that pre- empt or limit local government authority. • Avoid Unfunded Mandates—The City of Lake Oswego opposes unfunded mandates and state-issued requirements that do not have dedicated funding or resources. • Leverage Regional and State Partnership—The City of Lake Oswego aims to leverage partnerships and coordination with outside agencies to achieve community goals. These partnerships support streamlined service delivery, fiscal responsibility, and a thoughtful approach to public services that cross jurisdiction boundaries without duplication or waste of resources. 2025-26 Priorities • Comprehensive Transportation Funding Package o Transportation funding should be multi-facet to sustainability fund infrastructure, which includes ongoing maintenance and completion of high-priority projects. o All revenue channel should be considered, including transitioning to a road user fee. o Transportation packages should address multimodal needs and promote local decision- making on needs. o Funding should address local multi-modal transit needs, such as inter-city transit, bike lane, and sidewalk connection. • Restore Recreational Immunity o Restore recreational immunity for City-owned property allowing for recreational purposes. o Lift the temporary fix for a long-term solution. • Pause on Additional Housing Policies and Regulations o Allow cities to focus on the implementation and evaluation of existing, previously passed housing legislation (HB 2001, HB 2003, SB 1537, & Climate-Friendly and Equitable Communities). o Any legislative introduced for "housing development and acceleration" should be limited to refining past policies and legislation for successful implementation. o Block/Oppose any legislation that will create new housing guidelines, policies, or processes. • Comprehensive Funding for Essential Infrastructure Projects o Develop funding for infrastructure projects that serve regional needs and population growth. o Expand funding opportunities and incentives for local governments to implement and progress adopted Master Plans (Transportation, Parks, Water, Climate Action, etc.). Staff Contact: Madison Thesing, Deputy City Manager mthesing@lakeoswego.city ATTACHMENT 2 i LOC OREGON MMC PUBLIC PORTS OREGON SCHOOLBOAION DS Metropolitan ASSOC ATON Mayors' League of Oregon Cities * an. ■ Consortium AOC //�� OR EGONCOUNTIES S D A„ O Special Districts EST MGAssociation of Oregon Support Reasonable Ethics Reform this Session We support the intent of Oregon's public meetings laws and the work of the Oregon Government Ethics Commission (OGEC)to ensure transparency in government decision-making and to prevent the misuse of public office for personal gain. However, recent legislation, rulemaking, and agency opinions have unintentionally limited the ability of local elected officials and governments to conduct routine business, organize meeting logistics, gather information, and support volunteers.These constraints have created uncertainty and fear among public officials and made public service a less attractive option. Immediate action is needed to refocus Oregon's ethics framework on its core purpose: addressing true misconduct while allowing local governments to function effectively and transparently. We appreciate Representative Nathan Sosa's leadership in convening stakeholders to advance a practical path forward.We urge support for the three bills emerging from this interim workgroup: • HB 4177-Public Meetings Law&Serial Communications Clean Up Ensures that substantive deliberation by a quorum occurs in public while allowing individual officials to seek information, discuss procedural matters, and communicate with constituents and the media without penalty. • HB 4159-Oregon Government Ethics Commission Membership Requires the Governor's appointee to the OGEC to represent the local government perspective, ensuring more balanced oversight of the public officials under the commission's jurisdiction. • HB 4161 -Reasonable Food & Beverage Accommodation Clarifies a recent agency opinion that providing food and beverages to public officials is a "prohibited use of office."This bill recognizes that providing local officials-who are often volunteers-with sustenance during long public meetings facilitates productivity and is not unethical. Together, these bills address unintended consequences of prior policies and represent an important step toward restoring clarity, practicality, and fairness in Oregon's ethics laws.While additional work is needed to ensure Oregon has fair, practical framework, we strongly encourage passage of these bills this session. Contact: Scott Winkels, League of Oregon Cities, swinkels@orcities.org