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Oregon State Sen. Mark Meek said that he is open to Gov. Tina Kotek recalling the Legislature for a special session on transportation funding 鈥� if the governor agrees to repeal a tolling law.

鈥淚’m open to that,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 told the governor, I committed that if the final package looks good, I’m happy to be there. But one of my requests is to repeal ORS 383.150.鈥�

The tolling statute, on the books since 2017, directs the Oregon Transportation Commission to establish a toll program and assess potential tolls on interstates 5 and 205. Plans by the Oregon Department of Transportation to pay for roads and bridges with tolling has foundered amid political opposition and planning obstacles.

Meek’s comments, in a brief interview on Sunday, come amid speculation that Kotek will reconvene the Legislature in a special session to tackle transportation funding. The regular session ended June 27 in acrimony after a major transportation bill ran out of gas.

Kotek’s office did not specifically respond to Meek’s comments. 鈥淭he governor is assessing next steps,鈥� a spokesperson said Monday.

Meek said he’s been in discussions with Kotek and other state leaders since the session ended without a transportation funding package.

鈥淚’ve had several communications with the governor and her staff, and we are working on a special session to try to keep our ODOT workers out in the field, maintain the roads for Oregonians and then also make sure that we can rebalance HCAS,鈥� Meek said, referring to the state Highway Cost Allocation Study.

The biannual study, conducted most recently by ECONorthwest for the state Office of Economic Analysis, helps lawmakers determine how to spend transportation funds. It has played a role in the heated debate in Salem about who benefits from and who pays for transportation levies, including the gas tax, weight-mile tax and vehicle registration fees, and how that should be divided between the trucking industry and regular commuters.

Meek, D-Gladstone, has fought tolls in the Legislature. Meek’s Clackamas County constituents have been in an uproar over potential tolls on the Abernethy Bridge, the I-205 span connecting West Linn and Oregon City.

Meek said his constituents should not bear the brunt of Oregon’s tolling program. He said the tolling law is 鈥渟o harmful and damaging to my community in Clackamas County.鈥�

Meek called for 鈥渁n honest discussion about what tolling looks like here in Oregon, or at least in my community.鈥�

The bridge is undergoing a major project to strengthen it in case of an earthquake, and to widen the roadway to increase capacity. The project is expected to be complete next year.

The Legislature adjourned without passing House Bill 2025, a wide-ranging transportation funding bill. Meek was removed from the Joint Transportation Reinvestment Committee by Senate leaders after he said he would not support the bill.

Republicans and some Democrats were leery of the numerous revenue-raising provisions in the bill, including raising the 40-cent gas tax by 15 cents, indexing it to inflation, and hiking vehicle registration fees.

Supporters argued that the state must complete a series of major transportation projects, including the Interstate 5 Rose Quarter expansion, which would also create highway covers to repair the street grid in Portland’s Albina neighborhood, and fund regular road maintenance.

After lawmakers went home, ODOT laid off at least 483 workers and began canceling minor road projects around the state.