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To contact me, please click here: Rep.Farrah.Chaichi@oregonlegislature.gov
Americans tend to vote for leaders who promise better things ahead. Sadly, Trump lied on his campaign trail when he said he wanted peace, wanted to lower costs for people, and to make America great. It seems pretty clear at this point that he just wants money and power and will do anything to get it. That is not the type of person who should be in public service, or an elected leader.
I ran for office because I want Oregon to be great. I was born and raised here, and I love this State that I call home. In this newsletter, I want to tell you about real things that make our lives here in Oregon better. I will also talk more about what we have to do during this February’s Short Session to keep fighting for the Oregon we love.
 Representative Chaichi announcing LEAVA at a press conference on January 14th, 2026. (Oregon House Democrats/Youtube)
Well, 2026 isn’t off to a great start. The current President is kidnapping the Presidents of other countries, healthcare premiums are skyrocketing, and ICE has decided to start killing people in addition to their illegal tactics of abuse and detainment.
My Law Enforcement Visibility and Accountability Act (LEAVA), the “LEAVe us Alone” Act, could not come at a better time. I gave you all an introduction to this bill in my December Newsletter, and would like to reaffirm with you all here: this bill will save lives.
Throughout Oregon many people are living in fear and don’t know who to trust or who to turn to when it comes to law enforcement. When people are unable to differentiate between local law enforcement officers, federal agents, and bad actors on the streets, public safety is undermined. LEAVA, will establish a statewide policy that generally prohibits law enforcement officers from wearing masks or concealing who they work for, except for certain circumstances like medical accommodations.
Furthermore, we are going to bring into the public eye ANY contracts that local law enforcement agencies have with the Federal government to carry out surveillance, detainment, and deportation of immigrants and protestors. This terror being brought upon us by the current Administration is a direct threat to our freedom, our democracy, and the U.S. Constitution.
The harder that we make it for the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to operate in our cities and towns, the more safety our communities will feel. I have already found some incredible Co-Sponsors in the Oregon State Legislature who will help champion this bill across the finish line. Many of them were standing alongside me as I announced the bill at our joint press conference on January 14th, 2026!
 Photo Credit: The Oregonian
Oregon lawmakers always have to pass a budget at the end of a Long Session in June. We did that back on June 27th, 2025, with HB 5006. However, a few weeks later, when Congress signed the President’s massive tax-cuts-and-spending bill, the budget we had just approved basically went up in smoke. Because of how the federal tax cuts interact with Oregon’s tax code, the Big Ugly Bill will reduce income flowing into the state budget by $890 million over the next 2 years. Yes, you read that correctly, $890 MILLION…gone.
That $890 million shortfall this budget cycle, which will balloon to a $15 BILLION gap by 2035, is almost entirely caused by policy decisions that give huge tax breaks to the wealthiest individuals and corporations and defund programs everyday Oregonians rely on to survive. We saw what the Administration tried to do with the life-saving SNAP program back in November of 2025, and their new plan to rip away affordable childcare.
Republicans will be blowing up the media with their ancient talking points. Cut through their lies. One lie they love to tell is, “People can’t stand Oregon and are fleeing Oregon's taxes.” That doesn’t really hold up when the Portland Business Journal just dropped an interesting piece about MORE people moving to Oregon.
Another thing to realize is that if Congress had not passed the Big Ugly Bill, almost all of the money we are going to lose would have come to Oregon from the taxes people have ALREADY been paying for years.
The stakes have never been higher. Democrats CAN and SHOULD fight back!
Oregon Democrats can disconnect from the federal tax code in order to reclaim money that would otherwise be lost because of the federal changes. Or they could lay off state employees and slash services. Which would you prefer?
There is no one forcing us to automatically accept when Congress decides to change tax policy to give handouts to billionaires at the expense of regular people. Oregon has disconnected before and the House even voted to disconnect last year, with the bill stalling in the Senate. This disconnect discussion will be a top priority for me during this Short Session. We don’t have another option. And, we are already seeing special business interests hard at work pressuring Oregon legislators to keep the Trump tax giveaways. But we must protect our revenue to continue providing vital services to Oregonians.
Other states like Colorado, Rhode Island and Delaware are leading the way and have successfully disconnected from all or parts of harmful federal tax provisions. Several states don’t even connect automatically to federal tax code.
This is a test of our values. Will Oregon’s leaders stand with working families or bend to corporate interests? Read this great article in the Oregonian from the Oregon Revenue Coalition, a stakeholder advocacy group that consists of nonprofits, service providers, labor unions and advocacy groups working to protect Medicaid, SNAP, early learning programs, higher education, federal rental assistance, homeless service dollars, and other critical programs.
In late June of 2025, we wrapped up our Long Session with some disappointments, but frankly, with a lot of success stories. Remember, there are 90 State Legislators in Oregon (60 Representatives and 30 Senators). Each of us represents tens of thousands of people in our districts, and we balance their interests with our own ideas about the policies and priorities for the State of Oregon.
What this means in practice is that during the six-month Long Session (every odd-numbered year) and the two-month Short Session (every even-numbered year), all these legislators combine to introduce thousands of potential laws that will in some way affect the lives of Oregonians. In 2025 alone, there were over 4,000 bills introduced, with 1,433 getting a public hearing, and nearly 600 getting passed and signed by the Governor.
I bring this up now because a significant number of the laws that pass and get signed by the Governor actually don’t go into effect until January 1st of the following year. Because this is my January Newsletter, I want to briefly highlight some of the most important pieces of legislation that Oregon Democrats passed in 2025 which are now being implemented in 2026.
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New Laws to Lower Energy Costs
Utility rates have skyrocketed in recent years, leaving tens of thousands of Oregon families with the difficult decision to heat their homes or pay their rent, or worse, losing their service completely.
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House Bill (HB) 3546: It's been typical in Oregon for huge industrial users of electricity to be charged a lot less per kilowatt hour of electricity compared to regular households. This law stops massive energy users, like data centers and cryptocurrency processors, from shifting their costs (like infrastructure upgrades) to consumers like you.
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HB 3179: This law gives the Public Utility Commission (Oregon’s utility company regulator) the authority to extend the time between rate increases and most importantly, it prohibits them from increasing their rates between November 1 and March 31 - the winter months when heat becomes essential to survival. (I sponsored this bill!)
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HB 3792: Oregon has a critical program called the Low-Income Electric Bill Payment Assistance Fund. Oregon Democrats voted in 2025 to double the amount of assistance available from $20 million to $40 million. Oregon’s Department of Housing and Community Services will now have $20 million extra to distribute to vulnerable households struggling to pay their electricity bills.
New Laws to Make Life More Affordable
Oregon families are hard workers, but the current Administration has made it almost impossible to keep up with inflation. House and Senate Democrats spent the 2025 session fighting to bring down the cost of living for working class Oregonians.
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HB 3054: About 40 percent of people who own a manufactured home don’t own the land it sits on, leaving them vulnerable to the rent rising on spaces in manufactured home parks. This bill gives these homeowners relief by limiting the maximum allowable rent increase at mobile home parks and floating home marinas with more than 30 spaces to 6 percent a year beginning in 2026. The law also prohibits landlords from requiring interior inspections or cosmetic improvements as conditions of sale. (I sponsored this bill!)
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Senate Bill (SB) 951: This law closes a loophole in state code that has allowed for-profit investors to make management decisions for medical practices. Beginning in 2026, individuals who are not licensed medical providers will be prohibited from owning or controlling medical practices.
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HB 3064: This new law requires state-regulated health insurance plans - including individual, family, small business, OEBB, and PEBB plans - to cover health services relating to the treatment of perimenopause, menopause, and post-menopause. Oregonians on these plans can now feel better knowing they can access services like hormone therapy, antidepressants, medications to prevent osteoporosis and other treatments.
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HB 2586: This law expands access to affordable higher education opportunities for our future workforce. I was proud to vote to add asylum seekers to the types of immigrant students who are eligible for in-state tuition at Oregon public universities and Oregon Health and Science University.
New Laws to Protect Oregon Consumers
Oregon Democrats are proving that they fight for working families by protecting consumers, widening access to health care, and keeping people safe, even as the federal government prioritizes tax breaks for huge corporations and grows more hostile to everyday people.
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SB 605: Beginning in 2026, medical service providers, like hospitals and clinics, are prohibited from notifying consumer reporting agencies that you owe money for your care or how much. Medical debt will no longer appear on credit reports, so Oregonians can feel better that this unfair healthcare system we have won’t affect your ability to purchase a home or start a business or buy a car. (I sponsored this bill!)
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HBs 2008 and 3875: Tech companies and data brokers have made a multibillion-dollar business out of collecting and selling the information that is generated when people use the internet or carry their smartphones anywhere, or even drive their cars. These two laws are some of the strongest in the country and will prohibit profiling or selling information for targeted advertising to minors under 16 based on their personal data or precise geolocation. It also requires all automakers to comply with these state legal protections for consumer data. (I sponsored this bill!)
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HB 3167: The new Fan Fairness and Transparency Act prohibits the use of bots and deceptive resale methods in ticket sales. It requires ticket sellers to disclose the full ticket price, including all mandatory fees, bans the sale of tickets not yet possessed, and blocks misleading domain names or websites that mimic venues or events. Violators may face civil penalties under Oregon's Unlawful Trade Practices Act. (I sponsored this bill!)
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SB 599: With the current terror being brought by the President against our immigrant communities, I was proud to sponsor SB 599, which prohibits landlords from inquiring about or disclosing a tenant's or applicant's immigration or citizenship status. It requires landlords to accept more types of identification provided with applications, including social security cards, birth certificates, “green cards,” travel and immigration visas, taxpayer ID number cards from the IRS, passports, driver licenses, other government IDs, and reasonably verifiable nongovernment IDs. (I sponsored this bill!)
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HB 3521: Starting in 2026, landlords will have to return a security deposit if, within five days of signing a lease agreement, the potential tenant finds serious problems that make the home not habitable - like leaks, inadequate heat, unsafe water, or broken locks.
New Laws to Help Oregon Workers
For too long, working class families have had to bear the burden of runaway capitalism that pushes them further into debt and economic insecurity with fewer opportunities for financial freedom. The Democratic Party can and should be made up of leaders who represent and fight, unapologetically, for ordinary working people, not the wealthy.
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SB 916: This landmark piece of legislation gives 10 weeks of unemployment benefits for workers on strike. In the worker-employer relationship, the playing field is inherently unfair, especially when employers threaten retaliation or an end to employer-provided healthcare during contract negotiations. SB 916 levels the playing field for Oregon workers. (I sponsored this bill!)
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SB 426: We hear too often that workers in the construction industry are vulnerable to wage theft. Democrats fought in 2025 to hold project owners and direct contractors accountable for unpaid wages. In 2026, workers and subcontractors can now sue when they work on a project and don’t get paid. (I sponsored this bill!)
To see a full list of the laws that Oregon Democrats passed in the 2025 session go to the Senate Democratic Caucus Home Page and click on the link that says “2025 Legislative Accomplishments”.
 Photo Credit: TriMet
In July 2025, the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District (TriMet) announced a $300 million annual budget gap. Earlier this week, the organization released their next set of proposed service changes and cuts that would take effect Aug. 23, 2026.
In the last year, TriMet has reduced their spending by about $150 million. I have received a few updates from representatives of TriMet in recent months. They have told us the same thing that they have told you - that previous cuts came from reducing internal costs, reducing staff and pausing future bus service plans. However, the upcoming changes are still necessary to bring TriMet’s expenses in line with their revenues.
The publicly available information that we are seeing shows proposals that center on network efficiency, combining lines or reducing lines that run near others. They are trying to focus service dollars and infrastructure where it is needed and used most. TriMet will keep frequency on higher used lines, but some proposals do reduce how often buses arrive at times when fewer people are riding.
All of the proposals are described in detail, with before and after service maps, at trimet.org/servicecuts. It is an extensive package of proposals, with changes to 35 bus lines and the MAX Green Line. TriMet has asked for community input through a new online survey and/or at one of the more than a dozen open house events they are holding across the district this month. The survey closes January 31st, 2026.
From left to right: Anne Marie (Chief of Staff), Zack Surmacz (former Policy Advisor), Representative Chaichi
I met Zack working in campaign-land, while he was finishing school at Portland State University in their Masters of Public Policy program. He was super on top of any task that was asked of him, he was eager to take on any task that was requested of him, and was a great sounding board to talk through issues with. He was a natural top choice for being a legislative staffer and since joining our office he has been an incredible member of our team. His love for policy work and helping constituents made him a perfect fit for the role, as well as the levity he can bring while it can feel like things are really heavy. AND when things are really heavy he’s down to go to a hockey game and yell loudly. He’s brought a perfect balance to our team and we’re going to miss the hell out of him.
Community Resources
Please reach out to my office at any time for legislative or constituent matters. My staff and I are committed to serving the constituents of HD 35 and you can reach us at: Rep.FarrahChaichi@oregonlegislature.gov or 503.986.1435.
To keep up with my office, consider following me on Facebook or Instagram.
Thank you again for subscribing to my newsletter and for reading the frequent news and updates from our office. Please encourage your neighbors and friends in our district to subscribe to this newsletter, if they seem interested. I am honored and grateful for the opportunity to represent you in the Oregon State Legislature.
In Solidarity,
 Representative Farrah Chaichi
House District 35
Capitol Phone: 503-986-1435
Capitol Address: 900 Court St. NE, H-478, Salem, Oregon 97301
Email: Rep.Farrah.Chaichi@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/chaichi
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RepresentativeFarrahChaichi/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/FarrahChaichi
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