As ordered by Gov. Tina Kotek, the Oregon State Legislature will meet in special session starting August 29 “to take up legislation to pay for basic road maintenance and operations at the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), as well as address funding needs for local governments and transit districts,” according to a news release issued by her office.

In an Action Alert NFIB Oregon will send to its members, it points out the governor’s plan has been reported to include:

— Increasing the state’s 40-cent gas tax to 46 cents. The state would receive 50% of the increase, counties would get 30% and cities would receive 20%.

— A $42 increase to vehicle registration fees, which now range from $126 to $156 depending on a car’s age and miles per gallon.

— A $30 additional fee for electric vehicles, which now cost $316 to register for two years.

— A $139 increase to the state’s title fee, which now ranges from $101 to $116 for gas cars or $192 for electric vehicles.

— Doubling the current employee payroll tax for transit from 0.1% to 0.2%.

During the 2025 regular legislative session, NFIB members voted overwhelmingly (93% of respondents) to oppose similar tax and fee increases.

For small businesses, the cost pressures of transportation fuel far outweigh challenges relating to transportation infrastructure. The proposed gas tax increase would add to that pressure significantly, not to mention the various other tax and fee hikes, including the proposed doubling of the current statewide transit tax on employee wages. Those are dollars I have to withhold from my employees’ paychecks, whether they use transit or not.

There is broad agreement across the political spectrum that transportation is a legitimate purpose for spending taxpayer dollars, but I am deeply concerned about throwing more money at a state agency that has been plagued by financial mismanagement and has neglected to deliver on promises the legislature made to Oregonians the last time they asked us to pay more for transportation. We have not seen a good return on that investment. ODOT needs to earn back our trust.

NFIB is calling on its member to use their Action Alert, available here, to make their voice heard on this issue.