For this 35-day short session, which began Feb. 5 and ended March 10, The Intertwine Alliance had three priorities:
1. Keep Oregon's trails open! SB 1576 is a general civil fix-it bill with an amendment that includes language to provide an emergency fix to Oregon’s recreational immunity statute.
Recent state court rulings have effectively nullified both recreational immunity provisions and the enforceability of liability waivers, impacting the accessibility of trails around the region and across the state. Trails are critical for climate resilience, the health of our communities, transportation justice and so much more.
Please join us in calling for reform that keeps our trails open and accessible to all. Learn more and get action alerts at Protect Oregon Recreation.
The Intertwine Alliance joined 70 other partners in The Oregon Trails Coalition to advocate for this bill at Trails Day at the Capitol on Feb 12. A public hearing was held that same day. The written testimony we submitted is at right.
STATUS: The bill was passed on March 5. It sunsets in January 2026, so we will immediately begin pursuing a permanent fix in the 2025 legislative session.
2. Pass the Wildlife Package, House Bill 4148. This bill creates a new coexistence program within the Department of Fish and Wildlife to reduce conflicts between people and wildlife. It also includes important provisions to support wildlife corridors and to address invasive species and wildlife diseases. Public testimony we submitted is at right.
STATUS: The bill stalled in the Joint Committee on Ways and Means, and then was partially funded in a "Christmas tree bill" dump at end of session. The wildlife disease and invasive species components were funded. Bill advocates are already at work on getting the other important pieces through in next year's session.
3. Amend the Housing Bill, Senate Bill 1537. The Intertwine Alliance joins many of our partners and friends in looking for an amendment to remove or significantly reduce Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) expansion in this bill. We applaud Gov. Kotek for prioritizing the housing crisis, and overall we support this bill and the many good elements of it. But bypassing our land-use laws is not necessary or effective to achieve the goals.
STATUS: The bill passed with an amendment reducing the UGB expansion by one-third and without any changes to natural resource infrastructure.
OTHER ITEMS THIS LEGISLATIVE SESSION
Other bills we tracked included:
Electric Micromobiity Vehicle Task Force, House Bill 4067. This bill sets up a task force to explore e-micromobility vehicle usage on public lands and mixed-use trails and update laws based on climate, usage, safety and equity goals. We support this concept and asked that the proposed task force composition be expanded to include representation of parks districts/parks departments and recreational trail users.
STATUS: The bill was amended to add a local parks & recreation seat. But it died in Ways & Means.