Subcommittee backs LFO budget and new horse-welfare measures for Oregon Racing Commission

May 22 — The Transportation and Economic Development Subcommittee voted to move House Bill 5,035, the Oregon Racing Commission budget bill, to the full Ways and Means Committee with a do-pass recommendation after adopting the Legislative Fiscal Office’s budget recommendation and a dash-3 amendment.

The Legislative Fiscal Office recommended an other-funds budget of $7,662,147 with 14 positions (10.39 FTE) for the 2025–27 biennium and proposed several reductions and fee changes to address a current-service-level shortfall. LFO staff explained the recommendation includes a package reducing other-fund expenditure limitation to raise the agency’s ending fund balance to an estimated roughly three months of operating expenses and assumes enactment of related policy bills that raise licensing and civil penalty…