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County hears overview of 2026 legislative session; transit, housing preservation and CORE 3 noted
Summary
County staff and lobbyists briefed commissioners on the 2026 Oregon legislative session outcomes, including transportation timing, funding for affordable housing preservation, transit administration changes, county fair support, behavioral health workforce credentialing, and unresolved community corrections funding.
Northwest Policy Advocates and the county’s lobbyist provided Deschutes County commissioners with a wide‑ranging summary of the 2026 Oregon legislative session and its likely local impacts.
Doug Riggs, the county lobbyist, described the session as "packed, painful and productive," noting volatile revenue forecasts and legislative tradeoffs that shaped outcomes. He highlighted several items of interest to Central Oregon:
• Transportation: legislative vehicle work cleared a date change measure for a transportation ballot item; voters will decide timing in May, and the outcome will shape 2027 options. Riggs noted the session made allowances to ease administration: for example, some Connect Oregon and Safe Routes funds were used to stabilize ODOT budgets in the short session.
• Transit funding and administration: the legislature enabled an intergovernmental agency to qualify as the "qualified entity" for regional transit funding, which can reduce administrative overhead for tri‑county transit and may help Cascades East Transit access funds.
• Housing preservation: the legislature allocated funds to preserve existing affordable housing, and the session included a $100 million line in the package for creation and preservation (details to be finalized); representatives of local organizations such as NeighborImpact will apply for preservation grants.
• Behavioral health and workforce: bills passed to improve credentialing for behavioral health workers and refined background‑check requirements for certain roles.
• CORE 3 / emergency response: Spartacus House Bill 4121 and related work folded CORE 3 elements into state emergency management policy; committed capital support remains subject to future appropriations, but some initial construction elements were authorized for the CORE 3 site.
Riggs also described disappointments: community corrections funding was not advanced as counties requested, and he urged ongoing advocacy. He noted several one‑time and bond allocations for local projects (Terrebonne sewer/water, Umpqua Cascades health center) and cautioned commissioners to keep watching Medicaid funding and revenue forecasts.
County staff thanked the county’s legislative delegation and said they will coordinate follow‑up briefings and a work session on hotel/motel tax (TLT) changes later in April.
Next steps: staff will continue tracking implementation details, assist local partners applying for targeted grants, and coordinate with local legislators on unresolved county priorities for the 2027 session.
