By State Senator Suzanne Weber
This week, we covered several important bills moving through the Legislature that directly impact our communities. Listen in on SoundCloud or watch on YouTube (links below) as we discuss the following bills:
• SB 1504 – allowing faster, alternative epinephrine options in schools, inspired by a local high school student
• SB 1561A – helping families rebuild after tragedy without years of permitting delays
• HB 4112 – restoring stable funding for Outdoor School • HB 4148 – giving local communities more flexibility to use Transient Lodging Tax dollars for essential services
• SB 1524 – supporting fairgrounds and local economic activity through horse racing
• The latest on SB 1599 and the effort to move the gas tax referral to a low-turnout May election
It isn’t done yet; we still need to make it through the House, but I am so proud of the work we have accomplished to make sure no family suffers the way this one did when they tried to rebuild their home while grieving the loss of their daughter and grandchildren.
My colleagues in the Senate unanimously voted to pass my bill to help families rebuild after disaster strikes.
This bill ensures families who lose their homes to wildfire, flood, or other tragedies can rebuild without unnecessary bureaucratic delays. Senate Bill 1561 reduces unnecessary red tape, helps protect our housing supply, and brings compassion and efficiency to families when they need it most. When families are trying to recover from tragedy, government should be part of the solution, not another obstacle.
The bill was inspired by a tragic 2023 incident in which a mother and her two children died in a house fire, leaving grieving grandparents to navigate a complicated rebuilding process due to incomplete county records. SB 1561A addresses this problem by allowing homes destroyed by disaster to be rebuilt through a straightforward administrative process rather than a full land use review, providing certainty and relief to families during difficult times.
SB 1561 builds on precedent established after the 2020 wildfires, when the Legislature temporarily allowed disaster-stricken homeowners to rebuild quickly. As natural disasters become more frequent, this commonsense measure ensures government serves as part of the solution rather than an obstacle for Oregonians recovering from tragedy.
If you would like to support this bill, please send your testimony to the House Committee On Housing and Homelessness this week. The public hearing is scheduled for Tuesday February 24th at 3PM.
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Tillamook High School students continue to inspire us all!
This year’s Charity Drive added to a remarkable legacy. Now more than $4.6 million raised over 73 years to support people and organizations in need.
I was honored to recognize these students on the Senate floor this week.
Their leadership, compassion, and commitment to community represent the very best of District 16.
Well done, Tillamook, your work is making a difference and inspiring the next generation!
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I had the honor of recognizing a true hero from District 16, Linda Christophersen, known to her students simply and affectionately as “Miss Linda.”
Last Friday, while transporting the Vernonia High School boys and girls basketball teams to a game at Nestucca, an oncoming vehicle crossed the center line on Highway 101. In a split second, Miss Linda saw the danger, moved the bus as far toward the shoulder as possible, shouted “Hold on,” and did everything she could to maintain control when impact occurred.
Because of her training, professionalism, and calm under pressure, students were protected in a moment that could have been far worse.
The Vernonia School District praised her steady handling of the situation and the way she kept the bus stable during a frightening crash. I couldn’t agree more.
School bus drivers carry our most precious cargo every single day. They are often the first smile in the morning and the last goodbye in the afternoon. And sometimes, they are heroes.
Please take a moment to watch the video and join me in thanking Miss Linda for her courage, composure, and unwavering dedication to the students and families of Vernonia.
I am incredibly proud to represent communities filled with people like her.
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14 Oregon legislators recently submitted a letter and provided testimony regarding a petition that could impact our state’s Dungeness crab fishery.
While protecting whales remains a shared priority, Oregon has already taken significant, science-based steps to reduce risk through collaboration between the industry and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Legislators weighed in to highlight the progress being made, the data guiding Oregon’s management, and the importance of this fishery to coastal families and communities.
While our letter spells out the reasons we think denying the petition is important, what really made the difference was the testimony from the crab fleet. You can watch the ODFW Commission meeting recording on Youtube.
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The letter below outlines our concerns and our support for Oregon’s collaborative, science-driven approach.
Dear Chair and Members of the Commission,
We respectfully urge the Commission to deny the petition filed in December 2025 requesting substantial amendments to OAR Chapter 635, Division 5 related to the Oregon commercial Dungeness crab fishery.
While we support continued, science-based efforts to reduce whale entanglement risk, we do not believe this petition meets the threshold necessary to justify rulemaking through the petition process. The proposed changes are premature, duplicative of ongoing work, and inconsistent with adaptive fisheries management that has long served Oregon and its coastal communities well.
Federal precedent is directly relevant
In April 2022, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), acting on behalf of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), denied a petition submitted by the Center for Biological Diversity that raised arguments substantially similar to those presented in the current petition. That petition asserted urgency under the Endangered Species Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act, cited conservative biological reference points, and sought mandatory regulatory triggers.
After review of the best available science, NOAA concluded that West Coast whale populations were stable or increasing, that existing management measures were not impeding recovery, and that the requested regulatory actions were not necessary or appropriate at that time. NOAA emphasized the importance of proportional, science-based decision-making and the use of adaptive management tools rather than rigid, petition-driven mandates.
We believe this federal precedent is instructive and should be carefully considered by the Commission.
The petition duplicates and undermines ongoing Oregon processes
ODFW and the Commission are already engaged in substantial work to address whale entanglement risk, including development of an experimental or exempted fishing permit framework for pop-up gear, scheduled Commission consideration of additional risk-reduction measures in 2026, and continued coordination with NMFS to finalize Oregon’s Conservation Plan and advance toward an Incidental Take Permit under ESA Section 10.
Accepting this petition would preempt these established processes, divert limited agency resources, and risk delaying completion of work that is already underway through transparent, public, and collaborative channels. From a legislative oversight perspective, bypassing these processes is neither efficient nor appropriate.
Coastal economic, safety, and enforcement impacts must be weighed
The Dungeness crab fishery is Oregon’s most valuable single-species commercial fishery and is foundational to coastal employment, port infrastructure, and year-round processing capacity. The petition does not include a credible economic or operational analysis commensurate with the scope of the proposed regulatory changes.
Concerns raised by processors and fishery participants include loss of fishing opportunity associated with proposed seasonal prohibitions, substantial unfunded capital costs related to mandatory gear conversion, safety risks associated with large-scale deployment of untested gear configurations, and unresolved enforcement and gear-conflict challenges.
From the perspective of coastal legislators, these impacts are significant. Conservation policy that destabilizes working waterfronts without demonstrated necessity is not sustainable for the communities we represent.
Adaptive management remains the appropriate framework
Oregon has already adopted a suite of risk-reduction measures through temporary and permanent rulemaking, including seasonal adjustments, pot reductions, depth restrictions, gear marking requirements, and derelict gear recovery programs. Recent actions for the 2025–26 season demonstrate that ODFW has the authority and flexibility to respond proactively to changing conditions.
We believe it is essential that the Commission retain this adaptive capacity rather than replace it with permanent, inflexible mandates imposed through petition.
Conclusion
For these reasons, including federal precedent, duplication of ongoing regulatory work, insufficient analysis of impacts, and the importance of preserving adaptive management, the undersigned Legislative Members respectfully urge the Commission to deny the December 2025 petition as submitted.
Should additional measures warrant consideration, they should proceed through established Commission rulemaking processes, informed by Oregon-specific data, experimental fisheries, and continued coordination with federal partners.
Thank you for your consideration and for your continued stewardship of Oregon’s marine resources and coastal communities.
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Our Capitol office phone officially tapped out this week.
After days of nonstop calls, the system overheated and went out of order, a first for our office! While the technology needed a break, we want you to know your voices are being heard.
Every call and email is logged and shared with Senator Weber, and the volume of outreach shows just how engaged District 16 is in the issues being debated in Salem.
If you tried to reach us and couldn’t get through, please try again or better yet, send us an email at my legislative email account. sen.suzanneweber@oregonlegislature.gov
We appreciate your patience, and even more, we appreciate your involvement.
Your engagement matters, and we’re grateful to serve a district that cares enough to keep our phones ringing.
As we head into Week 4, the pace of session has been so full that each week feels like many. We’re hopeful the momentum continues and that the finish line comes a little sooner than it feels right now.
Stay with us, stay engaged, and keep advocating for the issues that matter most to you and your community. Your involvement is what keeps us grounded in the work we do every day.
Listen in on SoundCloud or watch on YouTube as we discuss the legislative update.
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Capitol Phone: 503-986-1716 District Phone: 503-300-4493
Capitol Address: 900 Court St. NE, S-405, Salem, Oregon 97301
Email: Sen.SuzanneWeber@oregonlegislature.gov
Website: https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/weber/