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Sine die is 3/8 -now just around the corner. Very few policy only bills passed this session. The deadline for 2nd chamber for most policy bills was 2/26. A number of Climate bills with fiscals are in JWM or Rules, the League is not clear if any of these bills will move. (please see last week’s LR for how to advocate for those bills) and refer to the League's recent ALERT. 

Priority Bills

SB 1541A - Make Polluters Pay - Climate Superfund Cost Recovery Program. New SMS, Senate Energy and Environment, PH 2/5 and work session 2/10, -2 amendment, moved 2/12 to Joint Ways and Means (JWM). LWVOR submitted testimony.  Creates the Climate Superfund Cost Recovery Program to assess financial impacts of greenhouse gas emissions and recover costs from responsible entities. Multiple state agencies are involved including, Department of Land Conservation and Development, DLCD, Department of Environmental Quality, DEQ, Oregon Health Authority, OHA, and Land Conservation and Development Commission. LCDC, the oversight body is Environmental Quality Commission (EQC).  The League has joined the Make Polluters Pay Campaign. This climate legislation is a national effort covered today by the New York Times, reporting that a number of other states are in the process of passing and/or implementing similar legislation. Please see the League’s Action Alert. 

SB 1526A - FORGE: Fund for Oregon Resilience, Growth, and Energy - New SMS, work session was 2/9, Senate Energy and Environment (SEE) moved the bill to JWM, League testimony. Creates financing tools, including a revolving loan fund, to provide more affordable, accessible long-term financing for clean energy and resilience infrastructure projects in Oregon. This is modeled on a number of other states’ legislation, some as "green" banking nonprofits.
Please see the Action Alert. 

Other Bills the League is following: 

• HB 4046A Nuclear Study Bill, work session was 2/12, moved to JWM 2/17, unanimously as amended. New SMS, directs the Oregon Department of Energy, subject to the availability of funding, to conduct a study on nuclear energy, including advanced nuclear reactors. The -2 amendment, a substantial rewrite of the original bill negotiated with opponents, seemed to satisfy committee members that the study could be unbiased as to nuclear energy issues. 



• HB 4031A: new SMS, 2/27 on its way to the governor. Exempts a renewable energy facility from needing a site certificate from the Energy Facility Siting Council if the facility qualifies for certain federal renewable energy tax credits and construction is scheduled to begin on or before December 31, 2028.



• SB 1597 A in H Rules PH 2/27. Sen chamber vote 2/23 17,12. Makes a power provider disclose the costs to store the waste made from making any electric power. New SMS



Bill that died in Policy Committee

SB 1582, Community-Based Power: Distributed Power Plants, SEE Senate E&E Committee PH Notes

Senate Energy and Environment 

2/23/26

The committee held public hearings and work sessions on the following bills, and voted to move all three to the Senate floor with a do pass recommendation.

• HB 4031 A (expedited site review for renewable energy projects) -- 5-0

• HB 4025 (winter rate increases for non-gas, non-electric public utilities) -- 5.0

• HB 4029 A (consumer protection for solar installation customers) -- 4-1 (Robinson, concerned about restraint of competition)

Chair Sollman postponed the WS for HB 4102 (third-party contracting for environmental permitting) to Wednesday 2/25. With a vote of 17-12

2/25/26

The committee voted 3-1-1 (Pham nay, Brock Smith excused) to move HB 4102 to the Senate floor with a do-pass recommendation.

Sen. Golden: This bill has been more of a "voyage" than he imagined it would be. Senate E&E has focused mainly on Sen. Pham's proposed -2 amendment dealing with labor rights and good governance. He would have preferred to move the bill with the one-sentence -3 amendment requested by Rep. Dobson: “Before contracting with a third party to provide services pursuant to this section, the department shall consider the third party’s potential or actual conflicts of interest with the applicant, permittee or regulated entity.” However, time limitations of the short session make amending the bill at this point problematic. "Very likely we will be privatizing some of the permit process and other processes going forward" -- we would prefer that staff working for the taxpayers would do this work but we recognize that we have delays that we need to address. He wants to state on the record "triple underscored" the committee's intent that when DEQ hires a third party for permit processing, they will commit to be very vigilant in their research about conflicts of interest. 

Sen. Robinson: Supports the bill as a "bandaid" measure to expedite permitting whereas the larger need is to "reform DEQ." 

Sen. Pham: Regretful "no" as she believes the bill as introduced lacks adequate guardrails vs. conflicts of interest and fails to address important labor issues. 

Chair Sollman: House passed the original bill unanimously and she doesn't want to take the chance of killing the measure by sending it back amended. 

News

Regulators to Hold Public Hearing on Large Increase for Cascade Home Gas Bills and What to Expect at Cascade Gas’s Public Hearing | Latest News | News | Oregon CUB   -   Citizens Utility Board

Eugene groups propose climate tax to mirror Portland’s - OPB

How Oregon is building back smarter after wildfire • Oregon Capital Chronicle

Oregon Adopts New Building Codes to Reduce Energy Costs and Increase Energy Efficiency in Newly Constructed Homes – CleanTechnica

Oregon’s New Building Codes Are a Win for Home Energy Resilience - Oregon Environmental Council

Oregon lawmakers seek to shine a light on balcony solar, but safety issues linger - OPB

Oregon DOE Feb Press Releases – a number of updates…

Oregon State Treasurer Steiner Joins 15 Other State Fiscal Officers in Warning That Immigration Enforcement Operations Threaten Economic Stability and State Revenues

February 5, 2026Oregon State Treasurer Elizabeth Steiner MD joined fifteen other state fiscal officers in a joint letter to President Donald Trump expressing …

Oregon Treasury & Oregon Divest 

Building on Oregon Treasury’s 2025 Progress toward Net Zero Emissions - Part 1 (Divest Oregon ORG) 

New 2025 Treasury : Climate-Positive Investing : Invested for Oregon Report Tracking Net zero climate positive investment strategies.

Oregon pension shows climate progress, private markets drive emissions | Private Equity Stakeholder Project.org

Climate Lawsuits and Our Children’s Trust

Columbia Law - Sabin Climate Center Blog – Feb 2026 updates

There are a number of active federal lawsuits. Columbia University Law ( CUL) Climate Litigation Jan 30 Updates . Another source: CLU  - Sabin Climate DB lists 97 lawsuits, (active and dismissed) mentioning Oregon.

Our Children’s Trust - In the News:

February 19, 2026 - E&E News  Enviros, health groups are first to sue over Trump’s big climate rollback

February 18, 2026 - The Guardian  Environmental groups sue Trump’s EPA over repeal of landmark climate finding

February 18, 2026 - The New York Times E.P.A Faces First Lawsuit Over Its Killing of Major Climate Rule

February 18, 2026 - Climate in the Courts Environment and Public Health Groups, and Youth, Sue Over Trump Administration’s Elimination of Climate Protections

February 18, 2026 - Inside Climate News Healthcare Professionals, Scientists and Children Sue the EPA for Backtracking on Greenhouse Gas Regulation

February 18, 2026 - Bloomberg Law Endangerment Finding Rollback Draws First Legal Challenges (1)

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.

· 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

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