By State Representative Rob Nosse
The 2025 legislative session is in full swing. Last month I talked about my bills that are not focused on health care, Medicaid and behavioral health. While those are important topics, they are not likely to dominate the session the same way that transportation, the K-12 school budget and wildfires are likely to. I would also include housing and homelessness in there. With that introduction, here is a preview of the challenges that I think will dominate the session.
Let’s start with transportation. I recently attended an ODOT briefing, and it really hit home the challenges we have. Did you know ODOT manages 8,000 miles of roads and 2,770 bridges? (I didn’t.) That’s a massive portfolio, and it’s essential to keeping Oregon moving—literally. But the challenges are piling up. Declining fuel tax revenues due to fuel efficiency and more electric cars than ever, rising costs in terms of inflation for materials like concrete and steel and outdated funding structures mean we’re falling behind on maintenance and safety upgrades.
ODOT leaders explained how HB 2017, a major transportation funding package we passed back in 2017 (yes that number was chosen on purpose), laid the groundwork for important improvements like bridge repairs and expanded transit options. But those funds aren’t keeping up with the growing needs. Without new revenue we could be looking at more potholes, slower DMV services, longer road closures and layoffs for hundreds of employees as the agency is about to run out of the money it needs to keep people employed this summer. Those won’t be just minor inconveniences—they’re barriers to safety and economic growth.
Addressing these issues isn’t something ODOT can do alone. It’s going to take all of us—state leaders, local governments and communities—coming together to find sustainable funding solutions. That might mean rethinking how we fund transportation and focusing on projects that deliver the biggest impact in terms of maintenance and safety.
Wildfires are another pressing issue we cannot ignore. I know it did not seem bad here in the Willamette Valley, certainly not like Labor Day of 2020, but last summer was the state’s worst fire fighting season ever. It was so bad it pushed the Legislature into a special session in December to approve much-needed recovery funding just to cover the bills that we accrued. We literally did not have enough money on hand to pay the people who were fighting the fires. Here’s the thing—wildfires might not be just a seasonal problem anymore. They’re becoming a year-round threat. Just look at the recent fires in Los Angeles—an alarming reminder of how destructive fire can be.
We have to get ahead of this. That means investing in forest management strategies like thinning and controlled burns, expanding community education and modernizing our response systems. It also means ensuring local governments and emergency teams have the resources they need to act quickly and effectively. This isn’t just about bouncing back after a fire—it’s about building resilience and protecting our communities before disaster strikes.
Then there is the school system. Oregon’s tax structure was altered radically in the 1990s. Without going into all the details, the revised structure capped revenues that can be raised from the local property tax system and shifted the burden of funding the K-12 school system to the state. We limped along during the pandemic (well maybe we didn’t), but coming out of the pandemic parents, students and educational staff have rightfully pointed out that more investment beyond money to cover inflationary costs is needed to address academic challenges. We need more support systems for students and educators, which means employing more people and more costs.
I am also inclined to include housing, homelessness and addiction. There will be more efforts to make it easier to build housing and pay for the ongoing need for homeless shelters.
I know I said I don’t think healthcare will dominate the session, but I have space, so I am going to mention Medicaid. It’s a safety net for over 1.4 million Oregonians, covering nearly a third of the state’s population when it comes to health insurance. But here’s the thing—while Medicaid is a lifeline for so many, it’s also a system that leaves healthcare providers scrambling to cover costs—it does not always pay providers enough. That’s why I’ve introduced bills aimed at making Medicaid work better. There will also be proposals to make sure enough money is generated so we can pay providers and hospitals, offering better reimbursements, particularly for behavioral health providers.
I’d love to hear your thoughts—what’s important to you? What challenges do you think we need to tackle next? Your feedback makes this meaningful. Send an email to rep.robnosse@oregonlegislature.gov and let me know what is on your mind.
Oh and one final note, I have to say that I’m tickled pink that this column is reaching as far as The Dalles, as evidenced by my getting quoted (out of context) by the Senate Republican Leader in one of his press releases. I love that The Southeast Examiner has a broader audience than I expected. I am delighted to help grow its audience. Here is hoping the Senator will quote me again, though next time hopefully in context.
Bob Nosse is very out of tune with reality. In past columns he bragged that he sent millions of our tax dollars to theater groups. The reason the theater groups need the money it that they produce woke BS that few people want to see. All arts organizations should be like all other businesses in that they should produce a product that others want to use, without government grants.
He also stated that we need to send millions of our tax dollars to Lit Motors, an electric vehicle company founded in 2010. If a company that has been in business for 15 years cannot make a profit, it should not receive tax dollars as a reward for bad management.
Now he is saying that the state does not have enough tax revenues for maintaining our roads, in part because of the use of electric vehicles. Most likely his next move will be new taxes that will further hurt our economy. The solution is simple: remove all tax dollars going to failing arts groups and DEI and use the money for fixing our roads. And don’t give money to for-profit businesses like Lit Motors.
I appreciate a tangible presentation of issues by someone in the fray, Rob Nosse. Thank you SEE and Rob for being effectively communicative.
Here is a critique of one of the ideas raised. In the same way is it ineffectual to complain about pollution once is has flowed all the way to the mouth of the river, it is somewhat fruitless to merely discuss, paying firefighters, thinning and controlled burns, (all good mind you) without mentioning the lack of huge trees that shade and hold water on the landscape. The practice of clearcutting ought not be allowed to continue. It was established at the 101 year mark from the Golden Spike that left the railroads with ever other square mile between here and forever. The Southern Pacific Land Company was founded to sell that tree liquidated land a century after being granted that land. A Coincidence?
We need big trees to hold the water. All the burshcutting in the world will not change the fire prone connections. Thank you.