The 78th Legislature
See scorecards from previous years.
Big Wins, Tough Losses, and Lots Left to Do
For the first time, OLCV has developed a scorecard for the whole two years between legislative elections. Scores are derived from votes taken in both the long session, which happens in odd-numbered years, and the short session, which happens in even-numbered years. Our goal, and a core part of our mission, is to hold legislators accountable. By skipping short sessions, which started in 2008 and were approved by voters in 2010, we were missing our chance to tell the whole story. Now, when you go to vote in 2016, you will have all of the information you need to determine if your legislators matched your values when it comes to Oregon’s natural legacy.
The 78th Legislature was sworn in January 2015, in the midst of an emerging scandal that would lead to a brand new governor and a session-long struggle to protect a big environmental win. You can read more about the 2015 session here.
That same group of legislators came back to the Capitol to take care of unfinished business and deal with emerging problems in 2016. It was considered by just about everyone to be among the toughest, most partisan sessions in recent history. You can read about the 2016 session here.
In summary, across both sessions, OLCV and our allies in the environmental community experienced both highs and lows. Three landmark victories – the continuation of the Clean Fuels Program, the passage (finally) of the Toxic-Free Kids Act, and the launch of the Clean Electricity and Coal Transition Plan – were counterbalanced by rollbacks on land use and wildlife during the 2016 session. Also, many good bills – despite the support of the majority of legislators – were stopped in their tracks because of an unwillingness to overcome special interest opposition. Big wins, tough losses, and lots left to do…
Dive into the 2015-2016 Environmental Scorecard:
Find your legislator:
Need to look up your legislator? Enter your address here to find out who represents you.
2015's Notable Leaders
Scores only told part of the story in 2015. We gave these awards to the legislators who voted the right way AND took a leadership role when it came to protecting our environment during the long session.
 Rep. Peter BuckleyEnvironmental Champion of the Year |
 Sen. Chris EdwardsDynamic Duo |
 Rep. Jessica Vega PedersonDynamic Duo |
 Rep. Alissa Keny-GuyerPerseverance Award |  Speaker Tina KotekDefender of the Year |
 Rep. Ann LiningerRising Star |
 Rep. Ken HelmRising Star |
 Rep. Dan RayfieldRising Star |  Rep. Tobias ReadInnovator of the Year |  Sen. Michael DembrowInnovator of the Year |
Explore the bills:
SB 478 – Toxic-Free Kids Act
SB 5511 – Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Budget
SB 1547 – Coal Transition and Clean Electricity Plan
HB 4040 – No Judicial Review of Wolf Delisting
SB 247 – Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Fee Increase
SB 263 – Materials Management Policy Package
SB 245 – Materials Management Fee Increase
HB 2734 – Brownfields Clean-Up
The 2015 Bill Graveyard
The Scorecard shows how legislators voted on bills that made it to the House or Senate floor. But many other bills – good and bad – never make it out of committee. Others fail on the floor, while still others are sent back to committee before all legislators can be held accountable by a vote. We highlight the best of the best and worst of the worst in our Bill Graveyard.