Small Victories with Much Left Unfinished

At a time when Donald Trump and his allies are gutting environmental protections, rolling back clean energy efforts, and putting polluters ahead of people, Oregon should have been a beacon of leadership. Instead, the legislature missed a pivotal opportunity to deliver bold, future-focused policy rooted in Oregon’s values of equity, resilience, and environmental stewardship.

The 2025 Legislative Session fell short in several critical areas, and the 2026 short session brought its own challenges. Across the two sessions, we had nine Major Threats, including proposals that would weaken water protections, rollback climate progress, expand logging on public lands, threaten Oregon's wolves and undermine long-standing land use agreements. Despite newly elected pro-environment supermajorities, many of our top policy goals stalled and essential budget priorities were left on the table.

Despite those challenges, we passed the POWER Act and the landmark 1.25% for Wildlife bill. While lawmakers failed to meet the moment on many other priorities, OLCV and our members did not sit back, we stepped up and led. From mobilizing grassroots actions to standing shoulder-to-shoulder with our environmental justice partners, we fought hard for meaningful climate progress and successfully defended against rollbacks. Hundreds of Oregonians joined us in demanding bold, equitable solutions for our communities and our planet.

Even with these efforts, both sessions were defined more by what didn’t pass than what did. Important bills that would have safeguarded streamflows, held utilities accountable and required major fossil fuel companies to help pay for the rising costs of climate-driven disasters did not reach the finish line. One of the most significant missed opportunities of the 2025 session was the failure to pass a transportation package centered on equity and climate. In 2026, lawmakers further compounded the problem by slashing key transportation programs to backfill ODOT’s budget shortfall, cutting funding for student safety, public transit, and community pathways.

The last two sessions have been challenging. As in past sessions, we were forced to spend far too much time defending against bad bills and rollbacks to our previous hard-fought victories. And, with devastating federal rollbacks, it’s unacceptable that Oregon failed to deliver real climate progress over the last two years. Now is when we must do more to address the climate crisis as wildfires, drought, and extreme weather are impacting our communities. Oregon can’t afford another year of inaction.

While we can’t sugarcoat the setbacks of 2025 and 2026, we can still recognize and celebrate the strength of our movement. The hundreds of members, volunteers, and partners who showed up session after session are a powerful reminder of what drives this work. Together, unwavering in our values, we will keep fighting for a healthier, more just, and more sustainable future.

More from the scorecard:

• Note from the Executive Director
• Session Highlights
• 2025's Notable Leaders
• Bill Graveyard
• Priorities for a Healthy Oregon
• Looking to the future

What next?

1. Tell your legislators you know the score.
2. Spread the word: #orleg #olcvscore
3. Donate.

Tell your legislators you know the score. It only takes a minute to say thanks — or no thanks — to your legislators. Then, share this scorecard with your friends, family, and neighbors so they can find out their elected officials’ results. Finally, because we could not accomplish our mission without the generous help of our members, please make a donation so that we can continue the fight to address climate change and protect Oregon’s natural beauty.

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