Oregon’s Legislature Receives an Even Lower Conservative Rating

Oregon Legislature's average conservative rating is one of the lowest in the U.S. according to East Coast conservative group

BlogNews by Henry HoustonPosted on

It’s just about the end of the year, so everyone is handing out grades as if it’s school. The American Conservative Union Foundation (ACUF), a nonprofit that organizes the Conservative Political Action Conference, just announced its ratings for the Oregon Legislature. Oregon’s average “conservative score” fell from its 2017 rating of 40.6 percent to 28.08 percent.

Although reports on other states like California have not been released yet, Oregon sucks at being conservative and is on its way to having one of the lowest conservative scores in the U.S.

ACUF’s scores are based on President Ronald Reagan’s “three-legged stool.” The stool consists of fiscal and economic policies, social and cultural issues, and government integrity.

ACUF says it reviewed each piece of legislation from the legislative session with the stool in mind.

In the report, ACUF highlighted mostly bills it opposed that the Oregon Legislature supported. This included a bill that would ensure undocumented immigrants could receive in-state tuition if Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals was repealed, a net neutrality bill and expanding state-run electric vehicle charging stations.

In fact, ACUF only supported one bill passed by the Legislature: HB 4036, which would ensure charter and homeschool students are eligible for all extra-curricular and interscholastic activities just like public school students.

The Oregon Senate received an average conservative rating of 25 percent. Only one Republican state senator received accolades from the organization, Herman Baertschiger, Jr. of Grants Pass.

Oregon’s House of Representatives earned an average rating of 31 percent. In addition, the group commended a greater number of state representatives than it did in the state senate. Four state representatives were recognized for their conservatism: Cedric Hayden of Roseburg, Mike Nearman of Independence, Bill Post of Keizer, Werner Reschke of Klamath Falls.

Hayden does represent portions of Lane County. Hayden’s score actually increased from last year’s report; he now has an 80 percent conservative score. So, Lane County might not be as liberal as Eugene residents think it is.

With a Democratic Party supermajority in Salem getting sworn in next month, it doesn’t take much to imagine Oregon becoming one of the least conservative states according to ACUF.