The Oregon Senate on Monday in a party-line 18-11 vote passed a long-awaited transportation bill that would update the state’s funding sources for road maintenance and operations.

House Bill 3991 would raise about $4.3 billion over the next 10 years to fund road maintenance and operations by raising the gas tax by six cents, nearly doubling most vehicle registration fees and doubling the payroll tax used to support public transit from 0.1% to 0.2% of a paycheck — among other fee hikes for electric vehicles. Gov. Tina Kotek is expected to sign it.

Within the first 25 minutes of floor debate, Senate Republican Leader Bruce Starr, R-Dundee, attempted to block the bill from moving forward by offering two amendments, one which would have freed up existing funds within the Oregon Depart

See Full Page