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Which telecom companies are pulling the strings in your state government? Find out which telecommunications companies are spending the most on lobbying and campaign contributions. Learn about your public utility boards, where they are located and how to file a complaint. Also, view the personal financial disclosure statements of board members and learn how much they earn.

Oregon Public Utility Commission
Public Utility Commission of Oregon
550 Capitol Street N.E. Suite 215
Salem, OR 97301
(800) 522-2404

How to file a complaint
Online

Jurisdiction: investor-owned electric, natural gas and water companies, and certain telephone services
Funding: funded entirely by fees on utility bills
Commissioners: 3
  Appointed by: Governor
  Term: 4 years
  Annual Salary: $101,844
Chairperson: Appointed by Governor
  Term: undetermined
  Annual Salary: $106,932
Commissioners

Lee Beyer (Chair)
Term: 2001-2008
Financial Disclosure:  2002  2003  2004 

John Savage
Term: 2003-2009
Financial Disclosure:  2004 

Ray Baum
Term: 2003-2007
Financial Disclosure:  2004 

Oregon Receives D for Disclosure of Utility Commissioner Outside Ties
Oregon ranked 18th in the nation for making basic information on state legislators' income, assets and potential conflicts of interest available to the public. Oregon received 66.5 out of a possible 100 points.
See Report Card

Oregon Conflict-of-Interest Provision: "No member of the Public Utility Commission shall: … (c) Hold any pecuniary interest in any business entity conducting operations which if conducted in this state would be subject to the commission’s regulatory jurisdiction; or (d) Hold any pecuniary interest in, have any contract of employment with, or have any substantial voluntary transactions with any business or activity subject to the commission’s regulatory jurisdiction." (Oregon Revised Statutes § 756.026(1))


Telecommunications Industry

State Campaign Donations

Telecommunications industry donations, including legislative and statewide, throughout three election cycles, 1999-2000, 2001-2002 and 2003-2004. Click on total to see how this state stacks up:
Cycle Amount
2003-2004 $230,091
2001-2002 $323,275
1999-2000 $289,890
Total $843,256

Telecommunications interests donating $10,000 or more to state races, including legislative and statewide, throughout six years, from 1999 to 2004:
Name Total
Qwest Communications International Inc. $272,106
National Cable and Telecom. Assn. and state orgs. $126,064
AT&T Corp. $119,110
Verizon Communications Inc. $94,770
Sprint Corp. $58,950
US Telecom. Assn. and state orgs. $50,111
MCI (formerly WorldCom Inc.) $30,750
COPAC $28,310
Metro One Telecommunications, Inc. $25,000

Source: Institute on Money in State Politics, with analysis by Center for Public Integrity

State Lobby Spending

State-level lobbying by telecommunications companies in 2003 and 2004. Click on the total to see how the states stack up:
Year Amount
2003 $460,492
2004 $272,357
Total $732,848

Major telecommunications interests lobbying government in this state in 2003 and 2004:
Name Total
Qwest Communications International Inc. $186,131
Verizon Communications Inc. $181,693
Deutsche Telekom AG (T-Mobile USA) $92,419
National Cable and Telecom. Assn. and state orgs $80,750
Nextel Communications $51,200
AT&T Corp. $49,814
MCI (formerly WorldCom Inc.) $44,000
US Telecom. Assn. and state orgs. $29,961
The DIRECTV Group Inc $16,000
Sprint Corp. $881

Source: Source: Center for Public Integrity analysis of state records