Oregon tax opponents turn in ‘nearly 200,000′ signatures

Hikes to Oregon’s gas tax, vehicle registration fees and a transit-oriented payroll tax will not go into effect as scheduled next month, after opponents of those changes submitted a massive number of voter signatures Friday.

The Republican-led No Tax Oregon campaign said it turned in nearly 200,000 signatures to state elections officials in Salem, more than double the roughly 78,000 needed to refer the tax hikes to the November 2026 ballot. While some signatures will be ruled ineligible as officials analyze the petition, few doubt the referral will succeed.

The submission amounts to a dramatic rebuke of new taxes passed by legislative Democrats in late September.

With a shoestring budget and an army of volunteers, No Tax Oregon collected signatures with incredible speed. State electio