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Here are some highlights and important updates from last week and helpful community information for you!
- Shelly
CALL TO ACTION: Stop the Diesel Ban
On January 1, Oregon's diesel ban went into effect, but with President Trump's executive order promising to rescind EV mandates, the future remains uncertain, causing chaos and confusion among Oregonians and Oregon businesses.
For months now, I have been calling for a delay to these rules and now we have a chance to make it happen. Even if President Trump's executive order goes into effect, litigation will surely tie it up in the courts for months, if not years. Oregonians need certainty now.
This upcoming Thursday, January 30, the House Committee on Climate, Energy, and Environment is holding a public hearing on HB 3119, my bill to delay the Advanced Clean Truck rules. We need an army of working Oregonians to make their voices heard.
Whether you're a truck driver, someone who depends on heavy-duty pickups to make a living, enjoys an RV lifestyle, appreciates the necessity of diesel vehicles like tow trucks and cement mixers, or an everyday Oregonian who doesn't want to see their cost of living continue to increase because of unnecessary regulations, your voice is needed NOW! Will you sign up to testify before the committee?
Here are the details:
When: Thursday, January 30th, at 8 AM
Where: Oregon State Capitol, Hearing Room F
How: Sign up to testify by clicking here, and finding the "Register to Testify" button under the 'Public Hearing' section. If you can't spare a few minutes to give live testimony, no worries, you can submit written testimony. Instructions how to submit written testimony, go here.
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You can watch my interview with KPTV News on Trump's executive order and the impacts in Oregon here.
Advanced Clean Trucks in the Transportation Committee
On Tuesday, the Joint Transportation Committee asked industry experts to talk about the impact of the Advanced Clean Trucks rule. The testimony was striking. The bureaucratic jargon that comes from DEQ to whistle past the graveyard about the impact of these rules is disingenuous.
I was particularly impressed with the testimony of Sean Waters, VP of Product Integrity at Daimler Trucks North America, and Jordan Papé, CEO of Pape Kenworth and Pacific Clean Fuels. As people who sell trucks and have to deal with the real-world consequences of these regulations, no one understands them better. If you have a hard time following along with these regulations (I live it as a business owner and a legislator, and I still get confused), I would recommend you watch their entire 10-minute testimony here.
Here are a few of the biggest takeaways from their testimony:
- DEQ confirmed that there is only ONE charger in Oregon that can charge semi-trucks.
- It would require Oregon to build 55 commercial grade chargers per week, starting 3 weeks ago until 2035, for the commercial truck industry to be able to comply with the ACT rules. That's just for semi-trucks, not including pickups and other medium and heavy duty EVs.
- Manufacturers are already limiting the sale of new clean diesel engines. A 2010 engine is more than 90% cleaner than a pre-2010 engine. The ACT rule, in practice, is actually limiting the number of these new, cleaner trucks to be sold in Oregon.
- NOx emissions from diesel engines have declined 99.8% since the first NOx emission standards were introduced in the 1980's.
- A heavy-duty battery electric truck costs about twice as much as a diesel truck but can only go about half the distance of that diesel truck. Those battery-powered trucks can only carry about 75% of the load. This will drive up the cost of everyday essentials we all need.
- 100 heavy-duty battery electric trucks consume about as much power as all the homes in the city of Eugene. If the entire Class 8 fleet (the heaviest heavy-duty trucks) in the United States converted to battery electric, we would need the same amount of power as Bonneville Power Administration’s 31 dams and 1 nuclear power plant to create enough power to charge them all.
- We would need to build a Bonneville Power Administration every year for the next ten years to power a transition to electric trucks that the ACT regulations demand.
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Lawsuit alleges mishandling of funds at state education agency
A former Oregon Department of Education employee hired to manage the implementation of a 2023 law that makes it harder for school districts to consign high-needs students to less than a full day in school says the agency has mishandled some of the $3.1 million in state funding tied to the new rules. In a lawsuit filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court Wednesday, Allison Watkins says she repeatedly tried to alert her supervisors that “the funds … were being mismanaged,” because she and her team — who were tasked with helping school districts comply with the new law, set by Senate Bill 819 — were being diverted to other unrelated projects.
Oregon Department of Education accused of mismanaging $3M, wrongful termination in whistleblower lawsuit
The Oregon Department of Education is facing a lawsuit from a whistleblower, claiming the state agency mismanaged over $3 million and wrongfully terminated her after she raised concerns over the funds. The lawsuit — which was first reported by The Oregonian — was filed in Multnomah County circuit court January 15 and seeks $780,000 in damages with whistleblower and discrimination claims.
High school construction costs in Portland are headed off the charts. Why?
Portland was planning to spend well over $400 million apiece to build three high schools, Greene told fellow school board members and superintendents from around the country. Did that price tag raise any eyebrows?
Legislature to take up transportation funding issues
Rep. Shelly Boshart Davis, Gorsek's Republican counterpart on the committee, said she wants to see less spending on things like bike lanes, climate resilience and equity programs. "Are roads plowed? Are they safe? Are the potholes fixed? Are we able to get cars and trucks through, and a lack of congestion?" she told Axios. "I guarantee you, that is what people want, and that is where the money should be spent."
Oregon lawmakers are objecting to the federal plan to eliminate invasive barred owls. Now, they're calling on DOGE for aid
In a letter to DOGE, the three Republicans and Democrat cited a nonprofit's estimation that the federal plan will cost around $1.35 billion over the next three decades. "I think it's a complete waste of our taxpayer dollars," said Diehl. "We have 22 species. They're in the same environment. One is thriving; one isn't thriving. I don't see the point for us, and they're very similar. I don't see the point in us spending over a billion dollars in an attempt to save this animal. It just doesn't make any sense to me."
Diehl said his district, Mill City in House District 17, is in the heart of spotted owl territory. He added that the spotted owl is used as "the excuse to shut down logging in Oregon and lock out millions of acres of forest land across the Pacific Northwest."
Task Force Report Notes Consequences of Portland-Area Tax Hikes
Over the past decade and a half, the report notes, lawmakers and voters have enacted at least 20 major tax measures that affect households and businesses in Portland. As OBI’s own research has shown, Portland now has the second highest marginal income tax rate in the nation. And between 2019 and 2023, local taxes on Portland businesses have increased 82%.
Tax foes say those who can leave Portland do
That calculus changed in 2020, when Multnomah County lost population for the first time since 1987, before Portland could sustain itself with jobs at Nike and Intel. The exodus led to a debate over why people were leaving. Business groups and real estate experts said taxes levied on high earners to pay for universal preschool and homeless services were to blame. The Oregon Center for Public Policy, a left-leaning think tank, said that was bunk (“They Left,” WW, Feb 1, 2023).
HB 3103: Sets timber levels (so we don't burn like California)
Oregon House Bill (HB3103) has been introduce that Directs the State Forester to establish sustainable harvest levels for harvesting timber on state forestland and develop a timber inventory model to inform sustainable harvest levels...
...The Bill Sponsors are State Representative Mark Owens (R), Cyrus Javadi (R), and State Senator Suzanne Weber (R).
Oregon officials on federal memo to comply with immigration policy
On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice sent federal prosecutors a memo to investigate state and local officials who interfere with the enforcement of President Trump’s new immigration laws. Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield called this a politicization of the DOJ.
Portland Public Schools starts plans to cut $40 million for next school year
“Due to rising costs, limited funding and declining enrollment, we are facing $40 million in reductions,” PPS Superintendent Kimberlee Armstrong told reporters at a press conference on Wednesday. Officials gathered to share their first draft of proposed cuts for the 2025-26 school year.
NATIONAL HUMAN TRAFFICKING PREVENTION MONTH
January is Human Trafficking Prevention Month. Human trafficking is modern-day slavery - it exploits victims through force, fraud, or coercion in both sex and labor. It’s everywhere, often hidden in plain sight. With more than 27.6 million adults and children who are subjected to human trafficking around the world, we can all do our part to raise awareness and look for signs of human trafficking in our communities.
In Oregon, the number of victims identified through the National Human Trafficking Hotline more than doubled between 2015 and 2021, rising from 64 to 160. According to recent data, Portland is second to only Las Vegas in the number of children in forced prostitution nationwide. Several counties in Oregon are experiencing a new form of forced labor nicknamed “narco-trafficking,” which amounts to forced labor in drug production and distribution.
There has been a 230% increase in the number of illicit massage parlors in Oregon in 5 years, which is almost THREE TIMES the national average rate of increase. (27% annual growth rate vs 9% annual national growth rate).
Oregon constitution has a very broad “free expression" clause which permits a thriving sex industry in Portland. Oregon is also vulnerable to human and labor trafficking due to its geography that includes large swaths of rural agricultural and forestry area that provide for labor trafficking of foreign born workers, and its proximity to shipping waterways and to the Canadian border which provides access for international traffickers.
Oregon needs to do more to combat human trafficking. The Oregon Department of Justice only has 1.5 positions dedicated to investigating human trafficking in our state. We need to invest in data collection, collaborate across jurisdictions to share information, investigate, and prosecute traffickers. Global agencies including the UN and the US State Department recognize prosecution as the #1 deterrent of human traffickers.
To get help, report a tip, find services, and learn about your options, reach out to the National Human Trafficking Hotline:
- Call: 1-888-373-7888
- Text: "BeFree" to 233733
- Live Chat: HumanTraffickingHotline.org
NATIONAL SCHOOL CHOICE WEEK
Jan. 26 – Feb. 1, 2025
This week is National School Choice Week! Oregon's kids deserve to have a good, quality education, regardless of the zip code they live in. Nearly 70% of Oregonians support expanding school choice. Families know what is best for their children. We should put parents in the driver's seat to choose the best education for their kids.
Great teachers change lives, and Oregon has a lot of them! Our kids deserve to have a great teacher that best fits their learning style and will help them thrive.
House Republicans have legislation to bring school choice to Oregon, improve access to charter schools, grow career and technical education opportunities, and expand open enrollment so that families can chose the education that best serves their students.
THANK YOU, OREGON FIREFIGHTERS!
This week, I met with Oregon State Fire Marshal Chief Mariana Ruiz-Temple and Deputy Travis Medema to cover a bunch of topics. Top of mind is how our firefighters are doing in LA. Grateful for them, and THANK YOU to all those deployed to California fighting catastrophic fires. Thank you for your service, and praying for a safe return.
[L to R] OSFM Chief Mariana Ruiz-Temple, Rep. Shelly Boshart Davis, and OSFM Deputy Chief Travis Medema
APPRECIATION FOR OREGON'S BLUE COLLAR WORKERS
I am honored to be presented with this award from the Oregon Concrete and Aggregate Producers Association.
But you know who doesn’t get an appreciation for their contributions to our community and society in general?
The concrete guys
The rock crushers
The truck drivers
The pavers
I could go on…
The farmers
The ranchers
The fishermen
The equipment operators
The builders
The loggers
The glaziers
So while I’m honored to be recognized, the appreciation should go to the guys and gals whose hard work goes unrecognized and unappreciated - even sometimes downplayed and looked down on in this state - you are the backbone of society.
Rich Angstrom-OCAPA and Rep. Shelly Boshart Davis
 MEET OUR NEW INTERN!
We are excited to introduce Tayla, our new intern! Tayla joins us from Corban University pursuing a leadership and management business degree. With her fresh perspective and eagerness to contribute, we're confident she'll bring a lot of value to the team.
FROM OUR FRIENDS AT THE ALBANY POLICE DEPARTMENT:
January 22, 2025:
Last night we had the honor of recognizing these two brave girls, Gracelynn & Lillian for their courage and quick thinking during a recent home burglary.
Over the holidays, they were all gathered at grandma & grandpa's house, which happens to be right next door. The girls ran home to grab something real quick and came face to face with a burglar in their home. Thinking on their feet, one yelled that they had a very big dog and they quickly ran back to grandma & grandpa's house.
They alerted their parents who called 911 and then made excellent witnesses when we arrived. We promptly arrested the burglar who is still being held in jail.
FROM OUR FRIENDS AT THE MID-WILLAMETTE FAMILY YMCA:
Join the YMCA Spring Youth Basketball Program!
We're on a mission to empower our youth through the game of basketball! Our program focuses on skill development, teamwork, leadership, and, most importantly, having fun! Open to girls and boys ages 4 to 13, this 8-week program includes practices twice a week and six games throughout the season. We provide basketballs and jerseys— just bring your shoes and athletic wear!
17 Season Dates: March 17 - May 10
Cost: $110/Members, $120/Non-Members
Sign up now and help your young athlete shine.
For more information, visit the website.
Preschools: A Place for Your Littles!
Is your child aging into preschool? It's never too early to plan for their future! Start the new year by giving your little one the gift of growth, discovery, and fun at our YMCA Preschools.
Flexible Options: Choose from full-day or part-day programs to suit your family's schedule.
Whole-Child Focus: We balance academic learning with social-emotional development for a well-rounded start.
Fun & Discovery: From hands-on activities to making new friends, every day is an adventure!
Spots are limited-sign up now! Contact us here to get started. We can't wait to welcome your family to our YMCA community.
FROM OUR FRIENDS AT THE BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF ALBANY:
Calling all high school hoopers!
Come join us for Basketball Open Gyms Wednesday's from 3pm-5pm! Whether you're looking to work on your game or just have some fun, we've got the court ready for you.
During the 2025 legislative session my office will continue to keep you updated and informed - and is always at your service. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to myself and staff if you have any community event announcements, legislative questions, or concerns.
Talk soon,
Capitol Phone: 503-986-1415
Capitol Address: 900 Court St NE, H-389, Salem, OR 97301
Email: Rep.ShellyBoshartDavis@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: http://www.oregonlegislature.gov/boshartdavis
Replies to this message are sent to an unmonitored mailbox.
To contact me, please click here: Rep.ShellyBoshartDavis@oregonlegislature.gov
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