Senate committee hears support for extending Oregon offshore wind roadmap deadline in HB 3963

The Senate Committee on Holders opened a public hearing June 17 on House Bill 3963, which would extend from Sept. 1, 2025, to Jan. 1, 2027, the deadline for the Department of Land Conservation and Development to draft an offshore wind roadmap and would extend the sunset of the requirement to Jan. 2, 2027.

The roadmap was directed by House Bill 4080 (passed last year) and is intended to let the state evaluate current policies and prepare to participate in any future federal offshore wind permitting. Alexis Hammer, legislative and policy manager at the Department of Land Conservation and Development, told the committee the extension would allow “fuller conversations with the communities we are engaging in the development of the road map.”

“The best time to do planning is before things are urgent,” Hammer said, describing why DLCD requested more time after federal leasing slowed. Hammer told the committee that when HB 4080 passed the department expected federal leasing decisions in fall 2024; instead, most bidders withdrew and litigation and a federal postponement followed. Governor Kotek petitioned the U.S. Secretary of the Interior to postpone leasing, and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management delayed leasing actions, reducing urgency for the state roadmap.

Julia DeGraw, senior West Coast campaign manager for the National Wildlife Federation, said she represented 22 signatories who support the extension and noted the bill “does not require any additional funding, but it does allow more time for community and tribal engagement and other processes that take time and are invaluable to the success of the roadmap.” DeGraw also reported that written support had been submitted by unions including the Oregon Association of Electrical Workers and the International Union of Operating Engineers.

A representative from BlueGreen Alliance told the committee the extension would let more stakeholders engage and emphasized the roadmap was not a decision to build offshore wind. “This legislation is not guaranteeing that offshore wind will be built,” the witness said, framing the bill as preparatory work to protect communities and pursue local jobs and supply-chain opportunities should offshore development move forward.

Hammer also told the committee the Oregon Department of Energy is completing an Oregon energy strategy this November that could inform DLCD’s analysis. She said conversations with tribes, fisheries, industry, labor and environmental groups had been “productive” but that more time would benefit those engagements.

The committee closed the public hearing after oral testimony and transitioned to other agenda items. No committee vote on HB 3963 was taken during this meeting.

The extension sought by HB 3963 would change the statutory deadlines described to the dates stated above; under the bill the roadmap requirement’s sunset date would also shift to Jan. 2, 2027.