DeRemer on Kotek’s stop tolling plan

By Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer
Press Release,

Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (OR-05), who led the federal charge against tolling along I-5 and I-205 in the Portland metro area, released the following statement after Governor Tina Kotek announced her decision to halt the plans.

“This is a long overdue but welcome announcement. The entire process has been riddled with flaws and missteps from the beginning – including an unacceptable failure to inform the public and listen to feedback from those who would be impacted most. As a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I’ve been working hard to bring Oregonians’ voices to the table and make their concerns understood loud and clear. From the hearing room to the House floor, I’ve brought this issue directly to Secretary Buttigieg, the Federal Highway Administrator, and I’ve introduced multiple bills to pump the brakes on tolling.

“With this decision, Oregonians were successful in making their voices heard, and our communities will be better off because of it. Stopping tolling will protect our neighborhoods from traffic congestion and save Oregonians from paying a regressive tax just to get to work. I hope this decision to halt tolling gives families some peace of mind, and now I urge the governor and state officials to kill these proposals permanently so Oregonians never have to go through this again,” Chavez-DeRemer said.

Chavez-DeRemer began speaking out against tolling last year with a letter to Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt. She quickly followed up with a meeting, where she made it clear that tolling should not move forward. Chavez-DeRemer introduced two anti-tolling pieces of legislation: the Tolling Transparency Act and the No Tolls on Oregon Roads Act. Last September, she questioned U.S. Department of Transporation (USDOT) Secretary Pete Buttigieg directly on the department’s ability to prevent state-led tolling proposals from moving forward on federal highways. She questioned Administrator Bhatt in a separate committee hearing at the end of last year and expressed frustration with the Oregon Department of Transportation’s (ODOT) failed process for implementing tolling.