State Rep. Paul Evans, D-Monmouth, left, is taking his party leaders to task over a proposal to create bill limits.
Kristyna Wentz-Graff / OPB
A push to cap the number of bills Oregon lawmakers could introduce in future legislative sessions is prompting one House Democrat to go rogue.
State Rep. Paul Evans, D-Monmouth, resigned from his role as an assistant House majority leader last Friday. That was the day after a hearing on House Bill 4002, a proposal from House Speaker Julie Fahey and other top Democrats that would limit lawmakers to introducing 25 bills in odd years.
Lawmakers currently have no limit on the number of bills they can author during odd-year “long” legislative sessions, and Evans is among the Capitol’s most prolific. He introduced more than 300 bills in last year’s session, and says he doesn’t hesitate to put forward ideas brought to him by constituents.
Evans spoke passionately alongside a handful of Republican lawmakers against HB 4002 in last week’s hearing. He said Thursday he was moved to take stronger action when Fahey signaled she would proceed with the proposal.
“No idea should be excluded. Everybody should have a voice,” he told OPB. “This is a core value to me that I thought for a long time that we all shared in this building.”
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Evans said he planned to take his protest a step further on Thursday by proposing long shot changes to the House’s chamber rules that reflect his disagreement — and contain a swipe at Fahey, the powerful speaker.
One of Evans’ proposed amendments would almost certainly doom the bill limits Fahey and others are proposing — at least in the House. The proposal would require a two-thirds supermajority vote before the House could impose such limits. That would mean finding support from Republicans, many of whom strenuously oppose capping lawmaker bills.
Another idea from Evans would block executive branch officials like Gov. Tina Kotek from introducing House bills on their own. They would instead be required to get buy-in from at least one lawmaker to do so. The proposed rule change would also apply to the judiciary branch.
Evans said that proposal was one way to reduce the number of bills introduced. Under HB 4002, the governor’s office and state agencies could propose a maximum of 200 bills during long sessions.
“I’m trying to fix the problem that the speaker has identified,” he told OPB Thursday morning. “I’m trying to showcase to my colleagues there are many other ways to achieve the same outcome.”
Evans’ final proposal is more oriented toward Fahey. It would limit House speakers to serving no more than three two-year terms. Fahey has served as speaker for almost two years.
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Evans acknowledged Thursday morning his proposals were unlikely to move forward — and suggested he could even lose his role as a committee chair for putting them forward.
“I will likely lose this fight,” he said. “I will likely lose some status and probably a gavel by the time it’s done.”
The idea of capping the number of bills lawmakers can file is not new. Now-Attorney General Dan Rayfield signaled support for the idea as speaker years ago. But the matter has taken on new prominence as the number of bills introduced in long sessions continues to rise.
Legislative attorneys, who are responsible for drafting the bills, have said they are straining under the workload. Fahey said earlier this week that the crush of bills also makes it hard to track what’s happening in the Capitol.
“I feel very strongly that bill limits will help us improve public engagement,” she told reporters on Tuesday. “There are too many bills. There are too many amendments. It’s too difficult for the public and the media to track what is happening in the long session because the agendas are so packed.”
