Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek warned that hundreds of state workers face layoffs after lawmakers ended their yearly legislative session without raising the gasoline tax.
Kotek, a Democrat, suggested she might summon lawmakers back to Salem for a special session to boost transportation funding after this year’s proposals devolved into a messy fight that split Democrats and drew Republican threats of a ballot initiative.
“Lawmakers, your work is not done,” Kotek said in a press conference Saturday after the Legislature adjourned.
A special session would mark a coda to an acrimonious process that began more than a year ago with field hearings about the state’s transportation needs. The Oregon Department of Transportation faces a $300 million budget gap, Kotek said.
