Legislative Update, Week 11 - Active Transportation Summit

Wednesday and Thursday bring the Active Transportation Summit to the Conference Center.

As with years past, the event has a strong Portland flavor. Moreover, with the way things are going in the Legislature, the Thursday lobby day may be too little, too late.

Several of the BTA focus bills, or otherwise bills of interest, look stalled or dead:

House Bill 3320 would create a new residential speed limit of 20 mph.

House Bill 2500 looks to expand the "types of costs that qualify as approved transportation costs for purposes of State School Fund distributions."  These would include "Expenditures made to improve  safety for students traveling to school by means that are not provided by the school district and that:
(i) Include walking or using a bicycle, scooter, skateboard or similar device..."

ConnectOregon V reform -  House Bill 2310 to fund "ConnectOregon" has moved out of committee and picked up amendments to include bike/ped projects, but there has been no movement for a month now. Senate Bill 247 and House Bill 3348 looks to be dead.

Maybe insiders will have more to say, but on the surface it doesn't look like there's much interest in any of these. The Legislature is preoccupied with other matters, and there just doesn't seem to be much activity on transportation.

Hearings:

Didn't turn up any significant hearings for this next week.  (Have you seen any?)

More updates (and tedium at this point) after the jump.

Paying for the Roads

Active transport
and smoking
at ODOT HQ

• ConnectOregon V reform - House Bill 2310 to fund "ConnectOregon" has moved out of committee and picked up amendments to include bike/ped projects, but there has been no movement for a month now. Senate Bill 247 and House Bill 3348 looks to be dead.
• Studded tires.  House Bills 2277, 2278, and 2397 would add fees to offset the damage studded tires cause. Still no amendments or movement.  HB 2277 did have a work session last week, so perhaps there is some momentum behind it.   The other two bills are not moving at all.
• Tax on Carbon: House Bill 2792  "Imposes tax on each fuel supplier and utility based on amount of carbon in carbon-based fuel that is sold by fuel supplier to consumers in state or that is used to produce carbon-generated electricity supplied by utility to consumers in state."  "Sustainable" City of Salem opposes this bill.  No action.  Also:  SB 537, HB 2874, HB 2497.  No action on these.  They're all dead surely.
•  House Joint Resolution 9 -"Proposes amendment to Oregon Constitution to allow revenue from taxes on motor vehicle fuel and ownership, operation or use of motor vehicles to be used for transportation projects that will prevent or reduce pollution and congestion created by use of motor vehicles."  Big talk earlier this month, but now dead.  Mostly it was symbolic action, with no real intent to do anything.
• House Bill 2276 would increase the gas tax.  No action, surely dead.
• House Bill 2453 - "Requires persons operating certain high-mileage motor vehicles to pay per-mile road usage charge or flat annual road usage charge." There was a public hearing a couple of weeks ago, and two amendments mostly about privacy were adopted.  No action since - may be stalled.
• House Bill 2500 looks to expand the "types of costs that qualify as approved transportation costs for purposes of State School Fund distributions."  These would include "Expenditures made to improve  safety for students traveling to school by means that are not provided by the school district and that:
  (i) Include walking or using a bicycle, scooter, skateboard or similar device..."  No Movement and definitely looks stalled.
• Senate Bill 756 would allow "Department of Transportation to accept donations to State Parks and Recreation Department Fund for purpose of improving bicycle and pedestrian facilities. Permits registered owner of vehicle to make donation to fund when registration is renewed." Public hearing last week, no amendments adopted or other movement.   But the prevailing sentiment, again one that is counterfactual - seemed to be that people on bike needed to have "some skin in the game."  Stalled.
• Senate Bill 769 "Requires registration of bicycles. Imposes $10 registration fee. Creates offense of failure to register bicycle. Punishes by presumptive fine of $25. Provides exemptions. Creates offense of failure to ensure bicycle registration. Punishes by presumptive fine of $25. Provides exemptions. Creates offense of failure to report change of ownership or change of address to Department of Transportation. Punishes by presumptive fine of $25. Establishes Bicycle Transportation Improvement Fund. Continuously appropriates moneys in fund to Department of Transportation for bicycle related transportation improvement projects."  No action. Stalled.

Where's my cel phone?

Road Safety (and "Safety")

• Celphones, texting, and distracted driving - Senate Bill 9 filed by Senator Courtney would "increase the penalty [for using a cel phone while driving] from a Class D violation to a Class B violation, which means the maximum fine would increase from $250 to $1,000. The minimum fine would increase from $60 to $130."  The amendments are still baffling.  Hopefully folks will chime in with some clarification.  I have no idea what this bill really means.  It also looks stalled in committee. Senate Bill 294 would create an exception in existing law for taxi-cab drivers to use a hand-held celphone while driving. It passed the Senate and is in the House. No action.
• House Bill 2732 is a ban on headphone while on bike and allows mopeds on multi-use paths.  No action.
• Senate Bill 332 would establish a "Task  Force  on  Bicycle  Safety."  Senator Jackie Winters proposed this, and the bill as introduced is mostly procedural and otherwise content-free at the moment.  No action.  
• Senate Bill 741 would require persons "of any age to wear helmet when using bicycle, skateboard, scooter, in-line skates or roller skates when participating in organized exhibition, competition or contest." Senate Bill 742 would require kids "under 18 years of age to wear protective headgear while operating or riding on bicycle, riding on skateboard or scooter or using in-line skates or roller skates, on public or private land." These look stalled.
• House Bill 3320 would create a new residential speed limit of 20 mph.  No action.
• House Bill 2115 would broaden the definition of intoxicating substances for the purposes of DUI citations.   It has picked up amendments, and went to the floor, but it was re-routed back to committee last week.  It looks like death by procedural shuffling!
• HB 3047 would double the length of a motor vehicle license suspension from 10 to 20 years.  Hearing held, but no action or amendments yet. Passed the House 58-1, with Kim Thatcher (R-Keizer) the lone nay.  Now to the Senate.

Other Stuff

• House Bill 2338 "Creates Task Force on Extending the Westside Express Service Commuter Line to Salem."  I think this is dead.   Somewhere I read that because of the Oregon Passenger Rail study currently in process, it was felt this would have set in motion a redundant study. 

All of this year's legislative updates are tagged 2013 Legislative Session.  If you know of something of interest, please add it in the comments!