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To contact me, please click here: Rep.AnnaScharf@oregonlegislature.gov

Dear Friends,

I hope you are having a great summer and getting the chance to enjoy the sunshine. My schedule during the Legislative Session is busy, but my schedule is even busier during the summer when the farm is in full swing because I work to juggle life on the farm and legislative issues. The farm is 6+ days a week and legislative work is filled with important tours, legislative days, task force meetings, etc. However, it is all work that I enjoy, and I am blessed to be able to work with my family and honored to continue working on behalf of HD 23.

This update has several “hot topic” updates as well as a glimpse into some of my day to day “adventurers”.

As always, please reach out to my office with concerns or questions at any time. My office is always available to help. Thank you for your continued support.

Sincerely,

Anna Scharf
State Representative - HD 23

GOVERNOR ANNOUNCES SPECIAL SESSION TO INCREASE TAXES TO FUND TRANSPORTATION

Governor Tina Kotek announced a special session to begin on August 29th to address the failure of the supermajority in passing a transportation package during the regular session. Democrats unsuccessfully attempted to pass one of the largest tax hikes in Oregon’s history and were resistant to address the real problems of accountability and priorities within State agencies. 

On August 7^th she released the draft bill and proposal brief which you can see here.

Here’s what the governor is proposing:

1. A six-cent increase to the gas tax. It is currently $0.40 so this would be a 15% increase = $0.46. HOWEVER, SECTIO 6 on Pg.10 of the proposed bill also states that:
   
   (A) On or after September 1 of each odd-numbered year, the department shall adopt rules that adjust the fee rates per mile set forth in ORS 825.476 and the fuel tax rates set forth in ORS 319.020 (1)(b) and 319.530 (1) as necessary so that neither the heavy vehicle class nor the light vehicle class has an equity ratio that is greater than 1.049.(B) Adjustments made pursuant to this paragraph shall maintain revenue neutrality to the extent possible.
   (C) Adjustments to the fuel tax rates shall be rounded to the nearest 0.1 cents per gallon.
   
   In plain English this means that ODOT, NOT the Legislature will adjust the fees per mile paid by trucks every year ( trucks do not pay the fuel tax on diesel) AND ODOT will adjust the gas tax as necessary yearly to keep the weight mile and the gas tax in balance. This is the constitutional job of the Legislature NOT a state agency run by people hired by the Governor. 
   
   
2. An increase in car registration fees by $42.
3. An additional $30 registration fee for electric vehicles and vehicles that get high fuel mileage. Current registration fees are $126 to $316 for an all electric vehicle.
4. Increasing vehicle titling fees by $139. Title fees are currently $101 to $192.
5. Double the 0.1% payroll tax (implemented in 2017) for the State Transportation Improvement Fund. The payroll tax is paid by the employee not the employer so this will hurt minimum wage workers and middle-income households hard.

We wouldn't be facing a special session if Democrat leadership had come to the table during the 2025 Legislative Session and considered alternative avenues for funding rather than the proposed $15 BILLION tax increase. If you remember, House Republicans offered an alternative plan to fund ODOT by refocusing existing revenue instead of adding billions of dollars in new taxes on struggling Oregonians. In addition to looking for efficiencies and cutting unnecessary expenses. The majority party would not even give it a hearing. 

House Republican Leader Christine Drazan wrote an op-ed in The Oregonian proposing a solution without a special session which includes no-new-taxes to funding transportation and preventing Governor Kotek’s ODOT layoffs.

According to the legislature’s nonpartisan fiscal office, ODOT needs $5 million a month to avoid layoffs. House Republicans’ plan to allocate $35 million, plus additional maintenance costs as identified by the agency, would sustain ODOT’s critical operations until the short legislative session begins next year. It would also protect the agency from paying additional expenses associated with layoffs, including paying out unused vacation time, severance pay and unemployment fees.

Couple of the other interesting things contained in the Governor’s Legislative proposal is a repeal of the tolling program….sort of. The provisions to establish a toll program are removed, but other provisions related to tolling, specifically the I-5 interstate bridge remain intact in statute.

Also, there is a section which provides a 13% increase, to 10.5M per year, to maintain, operate and improve 25 rest areas across the state. That’s $420K per rest area PER YEAR. What is going into these rest areas that warrants almost a half a million dollars annually?     

ODOT PROVIDES UPDATE ON CONSEQUENCES OF BUDGET SHORTFALL

Recently, the Oregon Transportation Commission held a meeting to discuss the consequences of ODOT’s failure to manage its budget, which include:

• 483 layoffs effective September 15.
• 449 vacant positions eliminated.
• Service reductions in road maintenance, vegetation management, litter and graffiti removal.

The failure of ODOT to maintain safe roads and prevent layoffs starts with Governor Kotek, who declined to engage in the agency’s mismanagement of its budget until it was beyond recovery.

So, a special session is set to begin August 29^th and run through Labor Day weekend and into the following week (there is no set end date for a Special Session) to raise your taxes and fund ODOT. Of course, I am in opposition to this and feel we can do better by Oregonians. The #1 job of the legislature is fiduciary responsibility. This proposed bill is anything but that.

GOVERNOR PAUSES AGRITOURISM RULEMAKING

The governor has directed the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) to pause moving forward on a set of new rules they proposed that make it harder for small farms to operate. The changes in rules being discussed at the time include limiting the types of “promotional events” a farm could host including weddings, non-farm related events and musical events unless they featured a farm product or had and agricultural educational component. The proposed rules also include limiting farms to hosting up to 17 farm-to-table events per year without an additional agritourism permit and only allowing farms to sell farm-made products.  Farm stands have long been a part of Oregon agriculture. The changes being discussed by the DLCD workgroup worried small farms due to the loss of income. For now, the rulemaking is paused and may be taken back up by the Legislature or DLCD at another time.  However, the one takeaway from all of this is that there is a place in Oregon for all forms of agriculture. Small, medium, and large farms all matter to the Oregon ag economy. We must find a way to support ALL farmers regardless of size and help them ALL rather than continue passing legislation that favors one over the other and/or harms them all.

DMV SCAM *ALERT*

Recently, several people have been reporting receiving text messages from people posing as DMV and ODOT officials regarding unpaid toll balances and traffic violations - THIS IS A SCAM. ODOT does not have a toll program. Oregon DMV will never ask you for personal information such as your driver’s license number, Social Security number, or date of birth through an unsolicited text or email. Visit ODOT's bulletin for more information and how to report it.

Initiative Petitions 2025

Initiative petitions are designed to empower citizens to directly propose and enact new laws or amendments to the state Constitution, bypassing the legislative process. Anyone can start an initiative petition by going through the process with the Secretary of State beginning with a chief petitioner, followed by 1,000 signatures. After the Elections Division certifies the signatures, a ballot title is drafted by the Attorney General, Dan Rayfield. Once the ballot title is approved, the chief petitioner then begins gathering the required amount of signatures for the petition to be placed on the ballot. Generally, it's about 117,000 valid signatures in order to place the petition on the ballot for the next general election cycle.  There are a lot of petitions circulating and you might be asked to sign onto them.  The petitions vary from repealing legislation related to waterway fee changes, labor law changes, allowing cannabis lounges, environmental rights, etc. You can see a full list of petitions by clicking here.

START CARDS

If you are a licensed well driller or anyone with a drilling license in Oregon, you will be receiving this letter or you may have already received this letter. A constituent received this letter July 31st, but the fee increases started July 17th. See the problem?? “Had I not been a part of the legislative process this year, I would have not found out until I went to file a Start card (permit to drill) on the 17th... AFTER I would have already had multiple contracts and bids signed at the lower price,” said the constituent who is a licensed well driller. If you are a contractor...imagine beginning to build a house, you have a signed contract with stated set costs such as county or city building permit costs. Then you go to the county/city to actually pull the permits and it has increased exponentially...who is on the hook for that...your customer or you? This is the same concept. Well drillers also pay an additional $300 recording fee when the well is finished (not shown in this letter). Therefore, a new or deepening well fee in Oregon has increased to $690 per well. None of these increased costs lend to building affordable housing.

KOTEK ISSUES VETO LIST

Life on the Farm

Summer is super busy on the farm and sometimes even scary. We are harvesting grass, wheat, clover, peas, fresh market corn, canola, hazelnuts and wine grapes this year. On the last day harvesting wheat in the field by our main farm and my house, I rode the combine with my husband. Sometimes that is the only way I get to see him. Two days later the same field caught fire. Fortunately, we have amazing neighbors who rushed to help with their water trucks (Shout out to the following neighbors– Domes, McKee, Fast, Eichler and Wilfong) as well as our own firetruck and the Amity Fire district. It was contained to less than 10 acres.  Unfortunately, one of the things that stopped the fire was our vineyard, so an outside row of pinot noir grapes was lost. 

Behind the Scenes at PDX

Ben Deumling, President of Zena Forest Products in HD 23, put out an invitation to take a behind the scenes tour of PDX and I could not resist! I love to travel but, like many people, I only pass through the airport and never realize all that is going into the PDX remodel. Here is a little of what I learned: 

• There are 54 living trees in the airport and a total of 5,000 live plants which get sunlight from the 49 skylights.
• The mass laminate timber in the ceiling was done by Freres Engineered Wood in Lyons. There are over 800,000 board feet in the project which is about 30 acres of mature trees. 
• There is carpet, travertine and wood floor in the airport. The white oak wood flooring came from Zena Forest Products as did the massive wood benches in the stadium seating area where people can wait for friends and family to arrive at PDX. 
• The $2.15B project had zero public funding and was paid for by the airlines that fly in and out of Portland.

The one thing that really struck me though was how quiet it was for a space that had so many people bustling about. Standing up on the mezzanine level looking down into the TSA lines and across the open area to the 120-foot wide and 20 foot tall ever changing video screens, it was like being outside in a park watching a short film. 

So, the next time you pass through PDX I encourage you to stop for a moment and take in some of the amazement and beauty of the remodeled airport terminal. The next upcoming public tours are September 17 and October 15 from 10am-11am. To register click here

Amity Pancake Feed

Taking Sunday off on the farm also allows for time to enjoy the Amity Volunteer firefighter annual pancake feed. Amity Fire District has over 40 volunteer firefighters and they, along with the board and community members, put on a wonderful breakfast in the park. They raised over $4K which will go to support their Christmas giving campaign and other community support activities throughout the year.

Yamhill County Fair

Dallas Days

It would not be summer without the fun of Dallas Days. This year it was an Alice in Wonderland theme. Tea parties at the Senior Center, vendor booths galore, live music, a white rabbit scavenger hunt and of course the parade. The theme was seen all over the town. I snuck away from the farm long enough to enjoy the parade with my parents and make a quick run through town to see all the amazing vendor booths and downtown activities. 

Amity School District Build

Amity School District recently completed their $30M middle school project. I was able to break away from the farm and attend the open house and ribbon cutting.  The Middle School Principal, Mrs. Mary Matocha said it best during the ceremony, “This is a promise to our kids built by the hearts and hands of the community.”  There were 61 direct contractors that worked on the project and all but 16 were local. They contributed a total of 94,000 labor hours and the dedication shows in the beauty of the new and remodeled facilities. From the staff to the school board, many of whom are alumni themselves, their input into the success of this project will also serve future Amity Warrior students well into the future.   

Polk County Fair

Attending the Polk County Fair has been a tradition for our family for over 25 years. I spent 10 years on the fair board and enjoyed being a part of many changes over the years. Even with as small as the fair is, there is something for everyone and it a very affordable family centered event. 

I was able to go to the fair on Thursday and see all the sights as well as attend the rodeo. The rodeo was packed and it was so wonderful visiting with so many friends, neighbors and constituents of HD 23.

School begins in less than one month! Are you ready?! How's that back to school shopping list coming along? Below is some information for the public school districts in HD 23.

The 2025-2026 school year begins on Sept. 2nd for the Dallas School District for grades 6th and 9th, all other grades begin on Sept. 3rd.  Congratulations to new School Board members, Deena Loughary and Tyler Ferrari! Thank you for stepping up and taking on this important role in our community.

Here is a link to the school supply list for grades K-5, 6th-8th, and 9th-12th. The 2025-2026 school year begins on Sept. 2nd for the Dayton School District for grades 6th and 9th, all other grades begin on Sept. 3rd.

The first day of school begins on Sept. 2nd for all grades in Amity School District except for kindergarten which begins on Sept. 8th.  Don’t forget middle school students you have a new campus! You can see a full list of events in the Amity School District by clicking here. All student handbook information can be read here.

Click here to find the Perrydale School District calendar with the first day of school beginning on Sept. 2nd and Kindergarten beginning on Sept. 4th. Perrydale offers an extensive list of available resources which you can find here.

View a list of announcements for the Falls City School District by clicking here, including an announcement for joining the Falls City High School volleyball team on Aug. 11th at 5:30pm. Here is a link to the K-8th grade schedule and a link for the High School schedule.

The Newberg School District has a vast amount of information posted on their website, including the Newberg High School new student registration day on August 28th. Here you will find a full school year calendar with important dates for the district.

Capitol Phone: 503-986-1423
Capitol Address: 900 Court St NE, H-387, Salem, OR 97301
Email: Rep.AnnaScharf@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/scharf