Gov. Tina Kotek praises 'bipartisan success' of legislative session for action taken on housing, drug crisis
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Gov. Tina Kotek is proud of the "bipartisan success" of the Oregon legislature’s recent short session that ended March 7, a few days ahead of deadline.
In a Thursday press conference debriefing the session, the governor commended state lawmakers, adding that "when it came to the top of mind issues for Oregonians, legislators came together and they got the work done."
Two of the biggest issues that went before Oregon lawmakers this session were boosting available housing and solving the drug epidemic.
During the session, the Oregon legislature passed a slimmed-down version of Gov. Kotek’s emergency housing production package, investing a total of $376 million towards housing production after the governor originally requested $500 million.
The housing package was the only legislation introduced by the governor during this session. It comes as Oregon falls behind on 140,000 housing units and needs to build 440,000 units in the next 20 years to keep up with demand, according to the governor’s office.
"The work is not done. It never is, but I am pleased with the solid start to the work ahead of us," the governor said. "Here's the bottom line: We just have to make it easier for communities to build housing in their locations. And now, because of the bills, Oregon will have more tools to meet the urgent demand for all types of housing in all parts of the state."
The Oregon Senate also passed House Bill 4002 to re-criminalize hard drugs. The new bill would essentially give people the choice between being charged and treatment when they are caught carrying drugs like fentanyl and meth. Treatment would include completing a behavioral health screening and participating in a “deflection program” in order to sidestep fines.
Hard drugs were first decriminalized after voters approved Measure 110 back in 2020, but the rollout has been widely criticized.
The bill was sent to Gov. Kotek’s desk, where she will elect to sign it or veto it within 30 days. She has publicly stated that she intends to sign the bill within that deadline.
"The legislators' work this session is but one step in making sure we helping Oregonians suffering from addiction while also ensuring community safety," Kotek said.
However, many local advocates have expressed concern of potential racial disparities with recriminalization as well as the impact on an already-burdened public defender shortage statewide.
"I share the concerns of many Oregonians that the projected despaired impacts to Black, indigenous, and people of color in Oregon because of the changes, and they were outlined by the Criminal Justice Commission in the requested Racial Equity Impact statement," Kotek said.
In a recent appearance on KOIN 6 News’ political program, Eye on Northwest Politics, Gov. Kotek discussed her decision to declare states of emergency during her term – specifically the 90-day fentanyl state of emergency that was declared in January 2024.
“This is about outcomes. This is not performative politics,” Kotek said during the conversation. “We have too many people dying on the streets. We have too many businesses impacted by people using outside. We need to do it differently and that’s what the emergency is about.”