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The Oregon-Columbia Chapter of the Associated General Contractors of America, more than a dozen of its members and two other business groups filed a lawsuit Feb. 21 against Gov. Tina Kotek over an executive order the governor issued Dec. 18.
That executive order requires that all large state infrastructure projects include project labor agreements, or PLAs, with trade unions who would do the work. In her executive order, Kotek defined PLAs as “pre-hire collective bargaining agreements negotiated between construction unions and construction contractors that establish the terms and conditions of employment for construction projects.”
Kotek said requiring union labor on state projects would “improve timeliness, lower costs, invest in high-skilled workers, and increase the quality of state construction projects.” An Oregon Department of Transportation report obtained by the Oregon Journalism Project contradicted Kotek’s claim about PLAs saving money and didn’t support other benefits.
Related: Kotek’s Gift to Trade Unions Contradicts Her Own Agency’s Analysis
Kotek has stuck to her guns. On Jan. 19, she penned an op-ed for The Oregonian pushing back on critics of her executive order. "Don’t buy the baloney," her headline read. “Oregon can both lift up workers and get big jobs done.”
“Having a consistent PLA policy for complex state construction projects will enhance how we grow as a state, while attracting and keeping a talented workforce to get the job done right for Oregonians,” Kotek wrote.
But in the lawsuit they filed late Friday in Marion County Circuit Court, AGC and its member contractors allege that Kotek issued her executive order without legal authority.
“The Governor does not have the power under Article III, Section 1 of the Oregon Constitution to require PLAs on public construction projects,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit goes on to say that Kotek’s order usurps a power reserved to the Legislature.
“Under the Oregon Constitution, the governor is not vested with the power to make law, regardless of the policy objective,” the lawsuit says. “The concept of separation of powers is fundamental to Oregon’s form of government.”
The lawsuit seeks a declaratory judgment by the court that Kotek’s executive order is unconstitutional and should not be implemented.
Kotek spokeswoman Elisabeth Shepard says the governor’s office does not comment on pending litigation, which is also the policy of the Oregon Department of Justice, which represents the governor in court.
This story was produced by the Oregon Journalism Project, a nonprofit newsroom covering rural Oregon. OJP seeks to inform, engage, and empower readers with investigative and watchdog reporting that makes an impact. Our stories appear in partner newspapers across the state.