The Oregon Climate Action Plan (Executive Order 20-04)
Summary:
Oregon’s Climate Action Plan, initiated by Executive Order 20-04 in March 2020, was Governor Kate Brown’s direct response to the legislative gridlock that derailed cap-and-invest climate legislation earlier that year. When the Oregon Senate’s Republican members staged a walkout to prevent a quorum on SB1530—a bill that would have created a market-based emissions reduction program—the governor exercised her executive authority. EO 20-04 directed state agencies to take immediate and coordinated action to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, aiming for a minimum 80% reduction below 1990 levels by 2050. This order also mandated that agencies integrate climate equity into their planning and implementation processes, ensuring that communities most impacted by climate change receive priority in solutions.
The order outlined clear directives to over a dozen state agencies, including the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Department of Transportation (ODOT), and Department of Energy (ODOE). Each agency was tasked with updating rules and programs to align with Oregon’s updated climate goals. The most notable result was DEQ’s Climate Protection Program (CPP), adopted in late 2021, which established declining emissions limits on fossil fuel suppliers—covering around 70% of the state’s regulated emissions. The Oregon Global Warming Commission was also charged with refining the state’s climate roadmap, including strategies for enhancing carbon sequestration in natural and working lands.
Implementation has been complex and ongoing. While some programs advanced—like EV incentives, clean fuels expansion, and natural climate solutions planning—others have faced delays, pushback, or underfunding. Nonetheless, EO 20-04 reshaped Oregon’s approach to climate governance by embedding emissions reductions into agency mandates and elevating cross-sector accountability. Importantly, it also empowered non-legislative actors, including advocacy groups and local governments, to align their efforts with a statewide framework even in the absence of new legislative mandates. The order continues to be a cornerstone of Oregon’s climate policy architecture.
Natural & Working Lands
Oregon Global Warming Commission established goals for carbon sequestration in our natural and working lands (forest, wetland, agricultural lands) @ 5 MMTCO2e by 2030, 9.5 MMT CO2e by 2050 separate from other GHG targets. Advanced in the legislature as SB1534 – which failed,
Board of Forestry approved a Climate Change & Carbon Plan,
ODF incorporated carbon and climate goals into the Western Oregon State Forest Management Plan
SOCAN was engaged with and testified to OGWC and ODF throughout.
Transportation
- Environmental Quality Commission adopted Clean Truck Rule promoting electric trucks.
- ODOT completed Transportation Electrification Needs Analysis (TEINA) designed to promote electrification infrastructure (e.g., charging stations).
- SOCAN engaged on these issues.
Clean Energy
- Prioritized decarbonization of the utility (electricity generation) sector.
- Improved the Oregon Community Solar Program to serve low-income Oregonians better by increasing the discount for such subscribers from 20% to 40%,
- Adopted policies to keep power available to vulnerable Oregonians facing pandemic hardships,
- Distribution System Proposals, historically the purview of utilities, have been opened to allow public community engagement,
- Initiated “Natural Gas Fact Finding” to explore how decarbonization will affect customers
Cap & Reduce
Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and Environmental Quality Commission (EQC)
Established a Climate Protection Program (CPP)
- Mandatory, science-based emission limits on oil companies and fossil gas utilities
- 50% by 2035
- 90% by 2050
Established science-based targets for industrial facilities to reduce emissions
- Invest in clean energy projects
- Focused on EJ communities
SOCAN & ROCPAC testified, initiated action and joined efforts to strengthen CPP
- 70% of 7,000+ comments in favor of strengthening CPP
- 309 MILLION metric tons of climate pollution reduced by 2050
Up to $500 million invested ANNUALLY in EJ and vulnerable communities through Community Climate Investment
SOCAN testified on many of these issues
Clean Buildings
Oregon Department of Energy (ODOE), Public Utility Commission (PUC), Building Codes Division (BCD)
- ODOE new energy efficiency standards
- Legislature approved heat pumps
- SOCAN & ROCPAC joined coalition partners to work on this
- Saves up to $100 million and 100,000 metric tons per year by 2035
Public Health
Oregon Health Authority (OHA), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
- COVID made it very difficult for OHA and OSHA from taking climate action
- $40 billion lost annually by 2050 from excessive heat issues
- $5,359 average cost of heat related hospitalization
Climate Friendly and Equitable Communities
Focused on significantly strengthening Oregon’s administrative rules about transportation and housing planning in Oregon’s eight urban areas with populations over 50,000 people. Albany, Bend, Corvallis, Eugene/Springfield, Grants Pass, Medford/Ashland, Portland Metro, Salem/Keizer.
- Reducing pollution while also increasing housing choices and creating more equitable outcomes for all Oregonians.
- Reducing driving is one of the most important ways to reduce pollution
- Most new development will be in neighborhoods where shopping, employment, parks and housing are in closer proximity.
- Increasing transportation options – making walking, cycling, and transit safer and more convenient.
- Less focus on ensuring motor vehicle mobility, and more on providing people with access to services and destinations.
The full status report from the coalition leadership on the two year anniversary of the Executive Order is available here.
Medford
The City of Medford has evaluated potential Climate Friendly Areas within the city’s Urban Growth Boundary. Early on, staff met to discuss the administrative rule governing CFA designation and identify potential areas for further analysis. Three areas were chosen for further consideration and study. Learn More
Ashland
Ashland Climate Friendly Areas Project (2024-2025)
The Climate Friendly & Equitable Communities (CFEC) rules adopted by the state in 2022 require cities to identify and re-zone Climate Friendly Areas (CFAs) sized to accommodate 30 percent of future population in mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly areas. Learn More
Oregon Resources:
Oregon Climate Action Plan Two-Year Progress Report (Mar 2022)
Fifth Oregon Climate Assessment Report (Jan 2021)
Fourth Oregon Climate Assessment Report: State of climate science (2019) Oregon Climate Research Institute
Oregon Third Climate Assessment Report (2017)
SOCAN Legislative District Summaries A summary of climate trends, projections, and impacts for each of Oregon’s 30 Senate Districts, and thus the 60 House Districts.
Planning for Climate Change – Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development
Washington Resources:
Climate Change, Migration, and the Puget Sound Region: What we know and how we could learn more By Alison Saperstein Prepared for the University of Washington Climate Impacts Group June 1, 2015