Here are the facts about where we are as a state:  

• Oregon’s unemployment rate has grown to 5.2% in the past year – almost a full point above the national average.  

• Oregon lost 25,000 jobs between July 2024 to July 2025.   

• Oregon has the third-highest jobless rate of any state in the country.  

Our general fund, which provides many of our essential social services, relies heavily on income taxes for its funding (82% being personal income tax and 11% corporate tax). This means finding smart, responsible ways to support our struggling economy is CRITICAL.  

Senate Bill 1586, known as the Oregon JOBS Act, is one of the most important pieces of legislation being considered in Salem.   

The Oregon JOBS Act will help create and retain high-wage careers in Oregon, with a direct focus on bolstering our semiconductor, bioscience, and advanced manufacturing ecosystems. At a time when workers in our state are in desperate need of some help.  

But, right now, there are groups leading Oregonians – and our legislators – to believe that this bill is just a land grab for data centers, when the language in the bill explicitly prohibits standalone data centers, retail warehouses, and commercial recreation facilities.   

And today, they are the loudest voices in the room down in Salem. 

The time to act is NOW.  

Help us finish the important work we started with the Oregon’s CHIPS Act in 2024 – and make sure legislators hear from Oregonians who care about the role business and the workforce play in creating sustainable economic future for Oregon.  

Click below to send an email to members of the Westside Caucus in support of this bill.