Whether Oregon's budget problem is a shortage of revenue or a disorder of priorities.
Needs an assetHer documented position
“Oregon does not have a money problem. We have a priority problem. We can bring balance back to our budget without raising taxes.”
Published by Rep. Elmer
Oregon households and small businesses adjust when money is tight. The state's default response to the same pressure has been to look for new revenue rather than to re-examine what it already funds.
Revenue forecasts have swung substantially inside single sessions, which complicates the case that any given shortfall is structural. Specific figures used in interviews, including forecast movements and the effect of federal tax changes, are being confirmed with the Legislative Revenue Office before publication.
Rep. Elmer's test is whether a program produces the result it was funded to produce. That is a standard that can be applied to any agency under any party, which is why she states it as a governing principle rather than a partisan position.
A volatile forecast cuts both ways. If a swing proves there was never a crisis, the same volatility makes it harder to argue the state can plan reliably around a lower revenue base. Reprioritising inside a fixed budget also means naming the programs that lose, which is the part of the argument that is usually left unspoken.
Every measure below is checked against the Oregon Legislative Information System. Chief sponsor means she led it. Regular sponsor means she signed on to it. The ones that died are listed beside the ones that passed.
Chief sponsor
Requires the Department of Administrative Services and ODOT to meet new procurement requirements.
Signed into law. Chapter 541, Oregon Laws 2023
Regular sponsor
Repeals corporate activity tax.
Died in House committee
Regular sponsor
Increases the exempt amount and filing threshold for the estate tax.
Died in House committee
Regular sponsor
Appropriates General Fund money to the Department of Education.
Died in House committee
Chief sponsor
Appropriates General Fund money to the Department of Transportation for the Newberg-Dundee Bypass.
Died in House committee
Sources
Related conversations
A joint town hall with Rep. Scharf and Sen. Starr, hosted with the McMinnville and Chehalem Valley chambers, covering district infrastructure, the state budget and Oregon's business climate.
Episode 27 · April 9, 2026 · Town hall, Business climate
Ty Visner returns to explain a revenue forecast that moved sharply inside a single session, and what a swing of that size means for budget writing.
Episode 24 · February 6, 2026 · State budget, Revenue forecast