News Release

For Immediate Release

June 10, 2025

Contact: Patrick Sieng, Executive Director, 503-558-5815, patrick@oregontransit.com 

Transportation Reinvestment Package includes badly needed funding for Oregon transit service

The Oregon Transit Association and its members call on state lawmakers to immediately take up and pass critical legislation that will preserve transit access for tens of thousands of Oregonians.

SALEM – The Oregon Transit Association (OTA) strongly supports House Bill 2025, the Transportation Reinvestment Package.

HB 2025 contains critical funding for transit agencies across the state. Passing this important bill will save transit service that Oregonians depend on every day.

For months, the OTA has been calling on members of the Oregon Legislature to support transit as part of this transportation package. The bill released yesterday includes a phased 0.2% increase over five years in the employee payroll tax rate that supports transit through the Statewide Transportation Improvement Fund (STIF). While the increase is less than the OTA initially requested, this additional funding will help avoid deep cuts to service that urban and rural transit agencies throughout Oregon may be forced to make if the Legislature does not take any action.

Oregonians can show support for the transit funding proposal by submitting written testimony until 4 p.m. on Friday, June 13.

The value of transit

Communities across the state depend on transit. In parts of Oregon, students rely on public transportation to get to school. Many seniors and people with disabilities take the bus to the grocery store, the pharmacy, their doctor’s office and more. Roughly 1 in 4 Oregonians can’t or don’t drive. For them, transit is an essential service, getting them where they need to go.

Every Oregonian benefits from transit service, even those who don’t ride. Transit vehicles replace the equivalent of thousands of car trips each year, reducing traffic congestion and air pollution.

Transit also supports the economy. Every $1 invested in transit generates $5 for the local economy, according to research by the American Public Transportation Association.

Transit agencies employ thousands of people across Oregon, providing family-wage jobs. Streets, neighborhoods and cities with transit service are more attractive as places to live, work and do business. Transit-oriented development has transformed communities with affordable housing, retail and recreation.

What’s at stake

Rising costs have placed transit service at risk. Driven by inflation and other economic factors, the cost of providing transit service rose by about 50% from 2019 to 2024. The COVID-19 pandemic also prompted widespread changes in the way that people work, travel and use transit.

Since then, transit agencies have made progress in restoring service, rebuilding ridership and reallocating resources to meet demand. At this time, service cuts would be a devastating setback for transit agencies and the riders who depend on them.

If lawmakers do not take action and pass HB 2025 in this legislative session, transit agencies across Oregon will  be forced to cut service and leave tens of thousands of Oregonians stranded without the service they depend on — cutting people off from jobs and school, driving up transportation costs, and preventing many individuals from accessing health care and other vital services.

House Bill 2025 is a sensible compromise that will maintain and preserve Oregon’s transportation system, including funding that will prevent a disaster scenario for public transit. The OTA urges the members of the Legislature to pass the transportation package this legislative session.

###