Thresholds for Lobbying in Oregon Lobby Law

I have spent two whole working days (16 hours) at the Oregon Legislature telling my legislators that I support some items they have yet to vote on. Am I a lobbyist?

In Oregon, a person is lobbying if that person influences or attempts to influence legislative action. Lobbying activity includes verbal and written communication with legislative officials to support or oppose the legislative action. It also includes soliciting the executive officials or other persons to seek to influence the legislative action. Lobbying also includes efforts to gain the goodwill of legislative officials.

Lobby Law requires lobbyists to register with OGEC. To determine when they have to register, you first need to know what type of lobbyist they are.

A professional lobbyist is one who is contracted to lobby on behalf of a client. They must register within three days of entering that contract.
A representative lobbyist is one who lobbies on behalf of their own employer, a grassroots group, or another association or entity. Representative lobbyists must register within three days of exceeding certain time or expenditure thresholds.

For a representative lobbyist, the registration threshold is met if either of the following occurs within a calendar quarter:

The representative lobbyist spends more than 24 hours engaged in lobbying activities.

The representative lobbyist spends more than $100 on lobbying activities.

Understanding and adhering to these registration requirements ensures compliance with Oregon law and promotes transparency in the legislative process. For further information, please refer to our Guide to Lobbying in Oregon or to our Lobbyist Registration Flowchart.

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