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• June Interim Legislative Days

• Climate Executive Orders

• Clean Energy

• Greenhouse Gas Mitigations

• Natural and Working Lands

• Public Health

• Clean Buildings

• Transportation

• Oregon Climate Lawsuits

• Climate Migration and Environmental Justice

• 2027 Legislative session

• Data Centers

  
  

The 2026 short legislative session (Feb. 2–Mar. 6) adjourned Sine Die having navigated a ~$750M budget shortfall driven by federal funding cuts from the Trump administration's One Big Beautiful Bill. Climate advocates in Oregon called it a 'defend and deliver' moment that ultimately 'left climate behind' — but state-level executive and regulatory action continued robustly through June. This report covers the 2026 session outcomes, June 2026 Legislative Days, Governor Kotek's executive orders, active litigation, and looks ahead to 2027.

JUNE 2026 INTERIM LEGISLATIVE DAYS

The Oregon Legislative Assembly held June 2026 Interim Legislative Days (June 16–18) in Salem. Interim committees heard informational presentations and agency reports on topics expected to shape the 2027 long session. Climate-relevant hearings included:

• Senate Interim Committee on Energy & Environment: Received the Department of Environmental Quality ( DEQ) update on the Climate Protection Program (CPP) rulemaking and the status of the April 2026 Oregon Business & Industry lawsuit. Also heard Oregon Department of Energy (ODOE) briefings on grid reliability impacts from rising data center demand.

• Oregon Climate Action Commission (OCAC): May 15 virtual meeting (preceding June Days) featured an expert panel on climate-related transportation issues; input on DEQ's new Environmental Justice mapping tool (per HB 4077); and presentation of the 2026 update to Oregon's consumption-based emissions inventory. The EJ mapping tool is designed to identify communities 'unrepresented in government processes and harmed by environmental and health hazards.'

• Joint Committee on Transportation: Reviewed ODOT's performance benchmarks and early concepts for the 2027 Transportation Package, emphasizing safety, climate impact, and infrastructure maintenance scoring aligned with 2026's SB 1542 (Measure What We Drive — did not pass).

• House Interim Committee on Climate, Energy & Environment: Received briefing on Governor Kotek's Data Center Advisory Committee recommendations timeline (due October 2026) and early findings on siting criteria.

GOVERNOR KOTEK'S CLIMATE EXECUTIVE ORDERS

Governor Kotek issued major climate executive orders in late 2025 that continue to drive agency work through the 2026 interim. Together they form Oregon's primary climate governance framework as federal protections erode.

EO 25-26 — Natural & Working Lands (Oct. 23, 2025)

Directs Oregon's 14 natural resource agencies to accelerate climate-resilient strategies on public and working lands. Key mandates:

• Protect or restore 10% more of Oregon's most climate-resilient lands and waters within 10 years (the '10 by 10' directive).

• Streamline programs to help farmers, foresters, and fishers adopt climate-friendly practices.

• State Resilience Officer to develop the Plan for a Resilient Oregon (PRO) addressing wildfire and flooding.

• Expand forest treatments and prescribed burns; improve air quality alerts during fire season.

  
  

EO 25-29 — Clean Energy & Carbon Pollution Reduction (Nov. 19, 2025)

Directs agencies to implement the Oregon Energy Strategy's five least-cost pathways — electrification, energy efficiency, clean electricity, low-carbon fuels, and resilience — with a focus on grid reliability and affordability.

• Agencies to streamline siting, permitting, and interconnection for clean energy projects.

• Explores public-private partnerships for enhanced geothermal, offshore wind, and energy storage.

• Mandates transparency through coordinated climate tracking and reporting.

CLEAN ENERGY

2026 Session Results

POWER Act (HB 3546, 2025): Signed into law Aug. 2025. Requires Oregon PUC to create a separate rate class for data centers and large energy users (>20 MW). In May 2026, PUC finalized rules for Portland General Electric — the first utility in Oregon to implement POWER Act rules. New data centers can only connect to PGE's grid when sufficient emissions-free power is available. PacifiCorp proceeding underway; decision expected November 2026.

GREENHOUSE GAS MITIGATION (GHG)

Climate Protection Program (CPP)

Oregon's flagship cap-and-invest program — arising from EO 20-04 and restarted in 2025 after a 2023 Court of Appeals ruling on procedural flaws — is again under legal challenge. The program aims to reduce GHG emissions 50% by 2035 and 90% by 2050 (from 2017–19 baseline) by capping carbon from transportation fuels, natural gas, and propane and requiring compliance instruments.

Status: A coalition of 28+ groups — led by Oregon Business & Industry (OBI), NW Natural, Oregon Farm Bureau, Oregon Forest Industries Council, and labor unions — filed a petition for review on April 16, 2026 in the Oregon Court of Appeals. They argue the program 'oversteps the Environmental Quality Commission's limited authority under Oregon law'.

Environmental and community groups moved to intervene in defense of the CPP. Oregon Environmental Council, Climate Solutions, Verde, and Oregon Just Transition Alliance publicly opposed the suit, noting that over 10,000 Oregonians participated in the public rulemaking and that one-third of Oregon counties are already under state drought emergencies.

Oregon is two years behind its own GHG schedule. If the CPP is invalidated, the state would have no operational mechanism to meet its statutory goals. Ruling timeline: unknown; both sides have requested expedited proceedings.

Make Polluters Pay / Climate Resilience Superfund (SB 1541)

This bill would have required out-of-state oil and gas corporations to pay into a fund compensating Oregon for climate damage. It achieved a historic milestone — passing out of committee for the first time ever — but died in the Joint Ways & Means Committee due to budget politics. Two states (New York, Vermont) have passed similar legislation. Expect a stronger 2027 push from the Make Polluters Pay coalition.

NATURAL & WORKING LANDS

EO 25-26 (see above) sets the overarching framework. Key agency actions underway:

• Oregon Department of Land Conservation & Development (DLCD) released the 2026 Land Use Legislation Report and is finalizing rules implementing the Climate-Friendly and Equitable Communities (CFEC) standards — transportation and land-use rules that allow communities to reduce car dependence and GHG emissions.

• 1.25% for Wildlife (HB 4134) — SIGNED: Increases the transient lodging tax by 1.25%, generating ~$38M/year for non-game species conservation. $27.4M/year supports ODFW's State Wildlife Action Plan and Oregon Nearshore Strategy. Called a 'historic win for conservation.'

• Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB): Full 2025–2027 budget protected in the HB 5204 rebalance, including Oregon Aquatic Habitat Program grant funds. Department of Forestry also protected, preserving the Private Forest Accord Adaptive Management Program.

• SB 1545 (Corner Crossings) — SIGNED: Protects members of the public accessing public lands via corner crossings from trespass claims, while protecting landowners.

• Wildfire: HB 4077 (wildfire/climate adaptation) — SIGNED. Governor's Plan for a Resilient Oregon (PRO) framework is now in development under the State Resilience Officer. Oregon counties already facing highest-risk wildfire season; drought affects one-third of Oregon counties.

PUBLIC HEALTH

Climate change has direct, documented health consequences for Oregonians. Multiple state actions address heat, air quality, and community resilience:

• Oregon Health Authority (OHA): Continued implementation of climate-health programs tracking heat-related illness, wildfire smoke exposure, and heat island effects in urban low-income neighborhoods. OHA received updates at June Legislative Days on OHA-climate program integration.

• Heat & Workers: Oregon OSHA heat protection standards — directed by EO 20-04 — remain in effect, protecting outdoor and agricultural workers during extreme heat events.

• Environmental Justice Council: Developing a statewide EJ mapping tool (per HB 4077) to identify communities harmed by environmental and health hazards, for use by state agencies in prioritizing programs. Previewed at the May 15 OCAC meeting.

• Air Quality & Wildfire Smoke: EO 25-26 directs improved air quality alert systems during fire season. Oregon consistently faces weeks of hazardous air quality from wildfires. Smoke disproportionately harms outdoor workers, children, elderly, and people with lung disease.

• Housing & Climate Resilience: Interim committees heard a presentation on Housing Stabilization: Climate and Health Resilience in Housing, addressing manufactured housing’s vulnerability to floods, heat, and wildfire — an environmental justice priority area.

CLEAN BUILDINGS

Upgrade & Save (proposed financing tool for 2026, did not advance): Would have allowed households and small businesses to finance energy efficiency upgrades and electrification with no upfront cost, repaid through utility bills. Widely supported; died in budget crunch. A top priority for the 2027 session.

• Oregon's State Energy Strategy (released 2025) identifies building electrification as one of five least-cost pathways. EO 25-29 directs agencies to implement these pathways, including reducing building emissions through codes, incentives, and financing tools.

• Oregon Building Codes Division is expected to present updated energy code proposals during fall 2026 interim Legislative Days, with potential 2027 legislation to set appliance and building efficiency standards that go beyond federal baselines (which have been rolled back by the Trump administration).

• Community Energy Project and Columbia Riverkeeper, representing low-income communities, advocated at the PUC for a data center surcharge funding energy efficiency upgrades for low-income households — secured in the PGE POWER Act rulemaking.

TRANSPORTATION

Oregon is already two years behind its GHG schedule, and the transportation sector is Oregon's largest source of emissions. The 2026 session fell short on transportation climate action:

ODOT is facing a major structural funding crisis — with the FORGE Act and transportation revenue options stalled. The Joint Committee on Transportation is beginning to lay groundwork for a comprehensive 2027 Transportation Package. Climate Solutions and OEC are advocating that any package include climate performance metrics and transit investment, not just road maintenance.

• Climate-Friendly and Equitable Communities (CFEC) rules: DLCD has finalized rules requiring larger Oregon cities to allow more housing near transit and reduce minimum parking requirements, reducing vehicle miles traveled over time.

STATUS OF ACTIVE OREGON CLIMATE LAWSUITS

CLIMATE MIGRATION & ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE

Oregon is increasingly a climate destination state — receiving internal climate migrants from drought-stricken California, wildfire-ravaged Southwest communities, and coastal areas facing sea-level rise. At the same time, Oregon's own communities face climate-driven displacement from wildfire, flooding, and extreme heat.

Climate Migration

• DLCD is examining how Oregon's land use planning system accommodates in-migration from other climate-stressed regions — a topic expected to receive formal interim committee attention in fall 2026 and potential 2027 legislation.

• Rural Oregon communities in eastern and southern Oregon face out-migration pressure as drought and heat reduce agricultural viability. OEC's Water and Rural Partnerships program is tracking these dynamics alongside EO 25-26 implementation.

• Oregon's Cascadia Subduction Zone risk intersects with climate resilience planning — a climate-displacement event from earthquake-triggered flooding or wildfire could displace hundreds of thousands. The State Resilience Officer is charged with developing the Plan for a Resilient Oregon (PRO).

• FEMA risk mapping updates and the end of federal NFIP flood insurance subsidies are creating affordability crises for coastal Oregon homeowners — a slow-burn climate migration driver.

  
  

Environmental Justice (EJ)

• Oregon Just Transition Alliance (OJTA), Verde, and PCUN are tracking federal rollbacks of environmental justice programs under the Trump administration — including the dismantling of EPA EJ offices — and calling for stronger Oregon state EJ protections.

• The Oregon Environmental Justice Council is developing a statewide EJ mapping tool (per HB 4077) to identify communities disproportionately burdened by environmental harms. Tool was previewed at the May 15 OCAC meeting; finalization expected 2026–27.

• The CPP's Community Climate Investments — community-based grants flowing from large polluters' compliance costs — are a key environmental justice mechanism at risk if the current OBI lawsuit succeeds.

• SNAP/Food Security: OEC tracked the federal 'One Big Beautiful Bill's' Medicaid and SNAP cuts as climate justice issues — food insecurity and health care access are direct climate vulnerability amplifiers for low-income Oregonians.

• Immigrant communities: EO 25-26 and state climate programs are being explicitly connected to immigrant farmworker vulnerability — extreme heat, wildfire smoke, and pesticide exposure — by coalition partners including PCUN.

LOOKING AHEAD: 2027 LEGISLATIVE SESSION (LONG SESSION)

The 2027 long session (up to 160 days) is Oregon's primary opportunity to advance major climate legislation. Based on interim activity, advocacy positions, and Governor Kotek's executive order framework, here are the priority climate bills likely to be in the works:

High-Priority Climate Bills Expected in 2027

• Make Polluters Pay / Climate Resilience Superfund (SB 1541 relaunch): Strongest momentum in years; national movement growing. Expect a better-funded coalition and stronger legislative strategy.

• Upgrade & Save (Energy Efficiency Financing): Broad support; died only due to 2026 budget crisis. Expected to be a top priority as federal IRA incentives continue to be clawed back.

• Measure What We Drive (transportation scoring): Held over from 2026. Likely to be part of a comprehensive Transportation Package.

• Clean Buildings / Appliance Efficiency Standards: To replace rolled-back federal standards; agencies developing proposals for 2027 introduction.

• Data Center Siting & Water Rules: The Governor's Data Center Advisory Committee reports to Kotek by October 2026. Recommendations are expected to become legislation in 2027 covering siting criteria, water use limits, and greenhouse gas requirements for new facilities.

• Grid Modernization & Transmission: EO 25-29 directs agencies to bring 2027 proposals for grid expansion, interconnection reform, and expanded storage capacity.

• Transportation Package (FORGE Act successor): Full biennial transportation investment package with climate performance requirements. Urgently needed given ODOT's structural funding crisis.

• Distributed Power Plants / Virtual Power Plant Act: SB 1582 relaunch — policy framework for community energy resources.

• Environmental Justice Act: Possible codification of the EJ mapping tool and agency EJ obligations into statute, strengthening what EO and HB 4077 began.

• Natural and Working Lands Funding: Potential bonding measure or dedicated fund to implement EO 25-26's '10 by 10' conservation goal.

  
  

⚠️  Budget warning: Ways & Means co-chairs have already signaled that the 2027–29 and 2029–31 biennia will face even larger structural deficits due to federal funding losses and Oregon's tax kicker mechanism. Climate bills requiring new appropriations face a difficult fiscal environment.

SPECIAL FOCUS: DATA CENTERS & OREGON'S ENERGY FUTURE

Governor Kotek's Data Center Advisory Committee (established January 20, 2026) is one of the most consequential climate-energy policy developments of the Oregon interim. Oregon is ranked in the top five states nationally for data centers — including Amazon's second-largest data center hub in the world in Hillsboro. Data centers now represent one of the primary drivers of Oregon's rapidly rising electricity rates, with PGE bills up nearly 50% over five years, and grid reliability under increasing stress from AI-driven demand growth.

Committee Structure: Co-chaired by Margaret Hoffmann (Northwest Power and Conservation Council; former energy adviser to Governors Kitzhaber and Brown) and Michael Jung (ICF Climate Center). Members include Umatilla County Commissioner Dan Dorran — whose county has experienced 554% demand growth at Umatilla Electric Cooperative from Amazon data centers — and energy law expert Greg Dotson (University of Oregon). The committee holds at least one public meeting per month through October 2026, with policy recommendations due to the Governor by October 2026.

POWER Act Implementation (May 2026 Milestone): The Oregon PUC issued a landmark order in May 2026 requiring Portland General Electric to create a new rate class for data centers (and cryptocurrency miners) using more than 20 MW — ensuring these facilities pay the full cost of grid infrastructure they require, rather than spreading costs across all ratepayers. Key provisions include:

• Data centers pay their own infrastructure and capacity costs — ending cross-subsidization by households and small businesses.

• New data centers can only connect to PGE's grid when sufficient emissions-free electricity is available — directly linking data center growth to Oregon's 100% clean electricity goal (2040).

• 10- to 30-year contract terms (based on facility size) and deposit requirements for new connections.

• A modest surcharge on data centers over 100 MW funds energy efficiency upgrades for low-income households.

• PacifiCorp (Pacific Power) rulemaking under POWER Act proceeding at PUC now; decision expected November 2026.

Water & Environmental Justice Concerns: Data centers are also major water users for cooling. Verde and other environmental justice groups presented 'Water Justice Principles' to the Advisory Committee in March 2026, warning that data center water withdrawals in eastern Oregon — already under drought stress — threaten rural communities and Indigenous water rights. The Advisory Committee is expected to address water siting criteria in its October recommendations.

Recent Data Center News

Land-use advocates sue over data center tax breaks in Washington County - Oregonlive.com

2027 Legislation Likely: Climate Solutions and OEC have stated publicly that translating the Advisory Committee's recommendations into law is 'a big focus in the 2027 legislative session.' Likely elements include: statutory siting criteria for data centers near vulnerable farmland, wetlands, or aquifers; mandatory community benefits agreements for large facilities; GHG and clean energy requirements as a condition of state permitting; and water use reporting and limits. Oregon's POWER Act is already being cited as a national model — at least 18 other states have introduced similar legislation in 2026.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED:  What is your passion related to Climate Emergency ?  You can help. Volunteers are needed.  The short legislative session begins in January of 2026. Many State Agency Boards and Commissions meet regularly year-round and need monitoring.  If any area of climate or natural resources is of interest to you, please contact Peggy Lynch, Natural Resources Coordinator, or Claudia Keith Climate Emergency at peggylynchor@gmail.com Or climatepolicy@lwvor.org.  Training will be offered.

• Clean Energy Buildings

• Natural and Working lands, specifically Agriculture 

•  Transportation and ODOT state agency

•  Climate Related Lawsuits/Our Children’s TrustDA

•  Public Health Climate Adaptation (OHA)

•  Regional Solutions / Infrastructure (with NR team)

•  State Procurement Practices (DAS: Dept. of Admin. Services)

•  CE Portfolio State Agency and Commission Budgets

•  Oregon Treasury: ESG investing/Fossil Fuel divestment

• Environmental Justice

• Climate Migration

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Interested in reading additional reports? Please see our Governance, Revenue, Natural Resources, and Social Policy report section