As a small clutch of Oregon lawmakers meet behind closed doors to negotiate a still-secret bill to fund road and bridge upkeep, some of those left on the outside aren鈥檛 pleased.
House Republicans have bristled in recent weeks after learning that two of their members went rogue. State Reps. Kevin Mannix, R-Salem, and Jeff Helfrich, R-Hood River, quietly agreed to work with Democrats on a deal that could prove crucial to the chances of the transportation bill.
Under that arrangement, Mannix and Helfrich aren鈥檛 discussing any aspects of a possible deal with their party 鈥� and initially didn鈥檛 even acknowledge to colleagues the meetings were occurring.
The development is unusual in Salem, where party leaders typically have insight into sensitive negotiations their members are involved in. State Rep. Shelly Boshart Davis, R-Albany, the go-to House Republican on transportation matters, isn鈥檛 included in the talks. House Minority Leader Christine Drazan, R-Canby, said she鈥檚 not in the loop.
That has created bruised feelings. According to three GOP sources, there was brief talk of excluding Helfrich and Mannix from party caucus meetings altogether. That ultimately went nowhere.
It also hasn鈥檛 helped party relations in the House, where Drazan is now accusing Speaker Julie Fahey, D-Eugene, of hypocrisy and desperation.
鈥淲hat she has done is absolutely despicable and this is a betrayal of what she said were her own values,鈥� Drazan told OPB Wednesday, arguing that the closed meetings go against Fahey鈥檚 pledge to craft the bill in public. 鈥淭his is the kind of leadership that should be beneath every single speaker of the House for the State of Oregon.鈥�
The drama underscores the stakes behind what could be a centerpiece of the 2025 session.
Democrats last month unveiled to raise roughly a dozen new and existing taxes and fees they said are necessary to give the state, cities and counties enough to complete basic road maintenance. At around $1 billion a year, that package would also fully fund two highway megaprojects that have seen costs soar.
But Republicans have pushed back, calling on Democrats to find opportunities for savings and fund the Oregon Department of Transportation from existing money, rather than levying a massive tax hike.
On April 30, House Republicans they said would steer more than $700 million to road upkeep without raising a cent in new taxes. Much of the plan centered on yanking state funding from things like public transportation, biking and walking infrastructure and electric vehicle subsidies. (The Oregonian/OregonLive that one aspect of the proposal was vastly overinflated.)
Mannix and Helfrich weren鈥檛 present at a press conference announcing the idea. Drazan now says they were picked off in secret by Fahey.
鈥淪he has handpicked, kind of separated out some folks from the caucus, and has dangled candy in front of them,鈥� she said.
Mannix and Helfrich declined to comment earlier this week on what they were looking for from the negotiations.
Fahey didn鈥檛 grant an interview on the matter. Instead, the speaker鈥檚 office released a statement Thursday that suggested Democrats had tapped Helfrich and Mannix because they could keep an open mind.
鈥淭he Speaker鈥檚 approach has always been to welcome to the table any legislator, regardless of party, who is willing to roll up their sleeves and get to work,鈥� Jill Bakken, a spokesperson for Fahey, wrote. 鈥淪he鈥檚 grateful that there are many Republican legislators in Oregon who have been clear that they want to solve problems and be partners in governing this state, rather than just obstructing or proposing unrealistic cuts to critical programs.鈥�
On the Senate side of the building, state Sen. Bruce Starr has been one of the lawmakers hashing out a bill. The Dundee Republican is a vice chair of the Joint Transportation Committee and his party鈥檚 leading voice on the issue in the Senate.
The political math behind a transportation package is an open question in Salem. Democrats technically have the three-fifths supermajorities in each chamber necessary to pass new taxes on their own, but there is no guarantee that the party will vote in lockstep on a bill that would hike costs for constituents.
Democrats may also need Republican votes in the House. State Rep. H貌a Nguy峄卬, D-Portland, has been absent this session as she undergoes treatment for cancer. A second Democratic seat is currently vacant after former Rep. Courtney Neron Misslin, D-Wilsonville, was appointed to the Senate.
Democrats will likely ensure the seat is filled before a House vote on the transportation bill. Even so, bringing at least two Republicans on board may be necessary.
Leading Democrats have said all along they would look for bipartisan support behind a bill they argue is crucial for the health of the state鈥檚 roads.
鈥淪ome Democrats are ready to vote right now and do a supermajority,鈥� Sen. Chris Gorsek, a Gresham Democrat helping craft the bill, told OPB last month. 鈥淚 would prefer it to be bipartisan. It鈥檚 hard to be in the minority party, and there鈥檚 some concern on that side that we haven鈥檛 listened to them.鈥�
The path to a transportation bill began last year. It included public listening sessions in a dozen cities around the state and a series of informational hearings earlier this year.
But lawmakers have yet to hold a single hearing on a concrete proposal for generating the billions of dollars Democrats say they need. Drazan argued Wednesday that runs counter to pledges to build the proposal in the open.
鈥淣ow we鈥檙e at the 11th hour, in May, in the middle of the legislative session, and they鈥檙e so desperate they鈥檙e going to go into a dark room,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his is why people hate politics.鈥�
The delayed emergence of a transportation bill is, in part, due to an unexpected hiccup. State economists recently discovered an error in a study that determined heavy trucks were paying more than their share in road costs compared to the gas tax paid by lighter vehicles. Since correcting that imbalance will be a piece of any package, lawmakers needed to wait for the study to be fixed.
But it鈥檚 clear the timeline is running longer than expected. The Joint Transportation Committee had run out of time to take up a proposal by the Legislature鈥檚 May 23 deadline.
So on Wednesday, Fahey and Senate President Rob Wagner created an entirely new committee to handle the transportation package, a development by The Oregonian/OregonLive. The new body, the Joint Transportation Reinvestment Committee, contains the same members as the old committee 鈥� including Mannix and Helfrich 鈥� but doesn鈥檛 need to abide by legislative deadlines.
鈥淥ur plan is to do a transportation package this session,鈥� Fahey told reporters Monday. 鈥淲e are on track to do that.鈥�
