April 10, 2026, 11:01 a.m. PT
Gov. Tina Kotek signed a bill April 9 that makes changes to forthcoming campaign finance updates, angering advocacy groups who say they now have “no choice” but to put their own plan to voters in 2028.
Kotek said in a signing letter she was supporting House Bill 4018 because “despite its flaws, this legislation is necessary to ensure that Oregon’s overdue effort to have campaign contribution limits can begin effectively by next year.”
Supporters have portrayed the bill as making necessary technical changes to a 2024 bill overhauling Oregon’s campaign finance system. New contribution limits would still begin in 2027, but disclosure requirements and penalties would be pushed to 2031 to give the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office more time to implement the legislation.
A total of 28 Oregon senators and representatives voted against the bill, 20 of whom are Democrats.
Many legislators who supported the bill said they didn’t view it as perfect, but felt something had to be passed and further tweaks could be made later.
Good government groups have decried the bill, saying the legislation makes more than basic fixes and creates new loopholes.
They say Speaker of the House Julie Fahey, D-Eugene, excluded them from the process, despite their involvement in the 2024 bill, which emerged as a compromise to stop warring ballot measures.
Sen. Jeff Golden, D-Ashland, told legislators March 5 that House Bill 4018 “demonstrably violates in substantive ways the agreement that made” the 2024 bill possible.
“We are deeply disappointed that the Governor did not veto this gut-and-stuff bill,” Jason Kafoury of Honest Elections Oregon said in an April 9 statement. “The citizens are left with no choice but to run an initiative for the 2028 ballot for real campaign finance reform in a constitutional amendment that the Legislature cannot riddle with loopholes.”
Kotek appeared to echo legislators in her signing letter, saying the bill is needed to get contribution limits in place while giving time for the Secretary of State’s office to work out other requirements. She did, however, acknowledge concerns from advocacy groups.
“That said, the bill appears to go beyond sequencing changes and instead could weaken enforcement standards, narrow disclosure requirements, and introduce new ambiguities,” Kotek said in the signing letter.
A second campaign finance bill that was introduced and passed late in the legislative session should be used to fix those issues, Kotek said.
Senate Bill 1502 tells the Secretary of State’s Office to come up with a potential bill for the 2027 session to address any remaining improvements needed.
Kotek also signed that bill April 9.
Anastasia Mason covers state government for the Statesman Journal. Reach her at acmason@statesmanjournal.com or 971-208-5615.