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After years of discussion, Associated Oregon Industries and its younger, more progressive spinoff, the Oregon Business Association announced today they have voted to merge.
"This is the culmination of three years of intense discussion and outreach," said Pat Reiten, AOI Chairman of the Board and President of PacifiCorp Transmission said in a statement announcing the merger. "We wanted to make sure we did this right because it's not only about what is good for business, but, ultimately, what's good for Oregon."
Between them, the two groups represent just about every significant employer in the state, with many large companies belonging to both.
Associated Oregon Industries, formed in 1895, has lost some of its swagger over the past decade as Democrats have cemented their hold on the levers of power in this state. Portland-area businesses who wanted a more progressive and environmentally-friendly approach founded the Oregon Business Association in 1999.
The two groups agreed more often than they disagreed but still found significant areas of policy disagreement. Last year, for example, OBA supported Democrats' move to implement a low carbon fuel standard for Oregon, while AOI opposed it.
Related: AOI and OBA don't always agree, but their opposition to Our Oregon unites them.
Part of the impetus for merging the two groups was the consistent victories public employee unions won over business interests in Salem and at the ballot over the past decade.
The unions' long winning streak ended this month, when corporate interests poured $27 million into a campaign to defeat Measure 97, a proposed $3 billion-a-year corporate tax increase.
But the merger will not go into effect until July 1, 2017, which means AOI and OBA will continue as separate organizations through the 2017 legislative session and will not name a new leader for the combined entity for seven months.
As WW reported earlier, several of the founders of OBA and some big players, including Nike, initially opposed the merger and it would be no great surprise if another business association popped up to represent dissident viewpoints.
Willamette Week