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The Excellent
Rep. Dacia Grayber (D-Southwest Portland)
Overall Rating: 8.27
8.64 Integrity
8.25 Brains
7.91 Effectiveness
A firefighter for Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue in her day job, Grayber, 48, rocketed to the top of this year’s rankings. “Smart, tough and a quick learner” was a typical assessment. People say the experience of helping her husband, also a firefighter, battle for insurance coverage for what the couple believes was workplace-induced cancer shaped her. Grayber led passage of a bill that extends retired public employees’ ability to come back to work for unlimited hours without losing pension benefits. She also shepherded a bill aimed at curbing violent extremism.
Grayber chaired the House Committee on Emergency Management, General Government, and Veterans. She (along with Sen. Kathleen Taylor) led passage of Senate Bill 592 to step up state inspection of dangerous workplaces. “She does a very good job of retail politics,” says another lobbyist. “Not surprised people like her.”
Rep. Ben Bowman (D-Tigard)
Overall Rating: 8.23
8.35 Integrity
8.74 Brains
7.58 Effectiveness
Bowman, 31, our rookie of the year in the House, is a rookie in name only. A lanky former legislative staffer, he won election to the Tigard-Tualatin School Board before capturing his House seat. He works in school administration and hosts a political podcast with Reagan Knopp, the son and chief of staff of Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp (R-Bend). He’s a seventh-generation Oregonian in Salem to do things rather than make a name for himself. “He’s smart, hardworking and a team player,” says a progressive lobbyist. “He hired good staff and knows what he’s doing.”
Bowman worked on a bill that ensures treatment for people possibly exposed to HIV, and is on track to win passage of a bill that would transfer Southwest Hall Boulevard from state to local control. “Best new legislator,” says a health care lobbyist. “Does his homework, thoughtful, willing to move, and accessible.”
The Good
Rep. Rob Nosse (D-Southeast Portland)
Overall Rating: 7.72
7.69 Integrity
7.81 Brains
7.65 Effectiveness
A former union organizer now in his fifth term, Nosse, 55, chaired the busy House Committee on Behavioral Health and Health Care, which handled big bills on hospital staffing, expansion of mental health and addiction treatment, and Measure 110, the controversial 2020 drug decriminalization bill. His biggest win, passage of a hospital staffing bill, came 20 years after workers first proposed it.
An everyman who uses the Hawthorne Boulevard coffee house Oui Presse as his district office, Nosse has a lot of fans, in part, one lobbyist says, because he’s an open book and, unlike most lawmakers, he carefully reads the bills that come before him. “The legislator easiest to relate to, puts the work in every day to stay educated on issues and listen to others,” says a health care lobbyist. The knock on him: He’s not always firm in his beliefs. “Can be swayed by the last person he talks to,” says a health care lobbyist.
Rep. Maxine Dexter (D-Northwest Portland)
Overall Rating: 7.57
7.85 Integrity
8.24 Brains
6.61 Effectiveness
A Kaiser pulmonologist in her day job, the second-term lawmaker moved away from health care this session to focus on arguably the state’s most pressing issue as chair of the Housing and Homelessness Committee. In that role, she pressed for passage of House Bill 2001, which would set goals for speeding development, and House Bill 3414, which would chop away many state and land use protections and rules that advocates and developers say impede housing production. “Wants to roll up her sleeves and solve problems through collaboration,” says one lobbyist.
Dexter, 50, also led the charge on House Bill 2395, aimed at reducing opioid overdose deaths. “Her focus on fentanyl poisoning will literally help save lives,” says a lobbyist. The knock on Dexter: “Still suffers from smart-doctor syndrome.”
Rep. Tawna D. Sanchez (D-Northeast Portland)
Overall Rating: 7.53
7.77 Integrity
7.28 Brains
7.55 Effectiveness
Sanchez, 61, took a major step up this session, trading her gavel as chair of the House Judiciary Committee for co-chair of the budget-writing Joint Ways and Means Committee. She’s handled the jump with the calm assurance that has marked her four terms. A longtime leader at the Native American Youth and Family Center, she helped raise 18 foster children.
A person in recovery, Sanchez has pushed for greater access to mental health and addiction services and, unsuccessfully, higher beer and wine taxes. “Sanchez has called an all-out war on alcohol and believes that taxation is the key to making us all stop drinking,” says one critic. She killed a bill on the House floor that would have expanded home delivery of beer and cider. It’s unusual for a bill to die after it’s sent to the floor and even rarer for the beer and wine industry to suffer a setback. “Just because she’s quiet,” says a progressive lobbyist, “doesn’t mean she’s not tracking.”
Rep. Lisa Reynolds (D-Beaverton)
Overall Rating: 7.49
7.62 Integrity
8.09 Brains
6.75 Effectiveness
Reynolds, 59, is sometimes overshadowed by the other members of the westside medical corps—Sen. Elizabeth Steiner and Rep. Maxine Dexter. The low-key pediatrician chairs the House Committee on Early Childhood and Human Services. “Smart and savvy,” says a lobbyist who is much more critical of the other two doctors. She worked with Republicans to pass a bill requiring insurers to pay out 70% of the value of a home’s contents even if the homeowner has no inventory of possessions—a win for people in the rural fire belt. She came up just short on a bill that would have banned flavored tobacco statewide. Not everybody loves Reynolds. One staffer says she smacks of “elitist entitlement,” but the consensus is, she’s growing into her job. “Has really stepped up her game for the ‘23 session,” says a public sector lobbyist. “Most improved sophomore.”
Rep. Hai Pham (D-Hillsboro)
Overall Rating: 7.44
7.84 Integrity
7.96 Brains
6.52 Effectiveness
One of the four rookie Vietnamese American candidates who won a House seat in 2022, Pham, 43, a pediatric dentist, earned high marks for being a quick study and for working with Rep. Cyrus Javadi (R-Tillamook) on two bills that expand the dental workforce and improve Oregonians’ dental health. “He reached across the aisle and included his Republican counterparts in health care legislation,” says a lobbyist. Pham also won a lot of friends by installing a commercial grade espresso machine outside his office.
Rep. Ken Helm (D-Southwest Portland)
Overall Rating: 7.2
7.5 Integrity
7.69 Brains
6.42 Effectiveness
A strait-laced land use lawyer—he’s made the vest a fashion item—Helm, 58, now in his fifth term, chairs the House Committee on Agriculture, Land Use, Natural Resources, and Water. Visitors to his office often linger over the photographic entries to Helm’s “big fish contest” meant to highlight angling skills. That puts him at the intersection of the battle over Oregon’s resources between environmentalists and loggers, farmers and anglers. And the comments about him show a sharp divide. “Rep. Helm has worked hard to meet the needs and concerns of Eastern Oregon communities that are facing serious and significant challenges with drought and water management,” says a business lobbyist. “‘If Helm were a Marvel hero he’d be Captain Disappointment,” says an environmental lobbyist. “Thinks he can work across the aisle, while those across the aisle just know they can take advantage of him.”
Rep. Daniel Nguyen (D-Lake Oswego)
Overall Rating
7.06
7.61 Integrity
7.5 Brains
6.07 Effectiveness
Nguyen, 44, came to Salem with business and political experience: He’s an owner of the Bambuza restaurant chain and served on the Lake Oswego City Council. He was vice chair of the House Committee on Economic Development and Small Business and a vocal member of the Joint Committee on Semiconductors. Progressives don’t trust him. “He’s a Republican wrapped in a Democratic voter registration card,” says one. “I think he’s smart enough to hide it, but that doesn’t make him trustworthy; it just makes him dangerous.”
But business lobbyists are happy to have somebody who speaks their language. “Pro-business Democrat, which was a great addition to the caucus,” says one of them. “Wish he would have spoken up more in committees to have a better sense of what he was thinking.”
The Average
Rep. Annessa Hartman (D-Gladstone)
Overall Rating: 6.98
7.81 Integrity
7.13 Brains
6 Effectiveness
A member of the Haudenosaunee, Cayuga Nation, Snipe Clan, Hartman, 35, is just the third Native American elected to the Oregon House. (Rep. Tawna Sanchez and the late Rep. Jackie Taylor [D-Astoria] preceded her.) As a first-termer, Hartman got in the middle of a battle over how the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife Commission should be constituted. Environmentalists want to preserve the status quo, which favors the Willamette Valley, while agricultural, timber and sporting interests want a greater share of representation. She argued the current system shuts out the tribes and advocated for changing it so members are appointed from the state’s large river drainages rather than by congressional district.
She also showed sharp elbows, on and off the court. “Very aggressive in the charity basketball game,” noted one lobbyist, in reference to the House vs. Senate contest. “Stood up to [the Oregon Department of Transportation] on tolling,” says a staffer. “Smart move in Clackamas County.”
Rep. Janelle Bynum (D-Happy Valley)
Overall Rating: 6.97
7.11 Integrity
6.98 Brains
6.82 Effectiveness
Now in her fourth and probably final term, Bynum, 48, has carved out a position in the middle of her caucus. The co-owner of McDonald’s franchises, she’s too moderate for the left and, as a leader on police reform, too liberal for many Republicans. Outside her office: life-sized cutouts of the Obamas, Ruth Bader Ginsberg and one of her sons in his Ducks football uniform.
Bynum’s fearless, as evidenced by her willingness to publicly challenge then-House Speaker Tina Kotek (D-Portland) to turn over power to a person of color. And although that effort failed, Bynum wields considerable clout as chair of the House Committee on Economic Development and Small Business. “Excellent committee management skills,” says one lobbyist. “If all chairs ran their committees like hers, we would have been out of here by Memorial Day!” (She was a chief sponsor of Senate Bill 4, the semiconductor bill that passed.) Bynum is mulling a challenge to U.S. Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Ore.), whom she twice defeated in legislative races.
Rep. Thuy Tran (D-Portland)
Overall Rating: 6.96
8.12 Integrity
7.14 Brains
5.6 Effectiveness
An optometrist, Tran took over the seat long held by House Majority Leader Barbara Smith-Warner. She brought more political experience than many rookies, with previous service on the Parkrose School Board. This session, Tran, 56, served as vice chair of the House Committee on Emergency Management, General Government, and Veterans, a nod to her career in the Oregon Air National Guard. Tran worked on bills that would beef up the workforce for early childhood education and create an incentive for state agencies to contract with companies that have “benefit company” status. “An overachiever and will patiently work with others to get her colleagues on board with her policy ideas,” says a business lobbyist. “Nice person, but it’s hard to tell if much sinks in. Seems to get conflicted between her ideological inclinations and what she sees in the real world.”
Rep. Nathan Sosa (D-Hillsboro)
Overall Rating: 6.94
7.31 Integrity
7.64 Brains
5.89 Effectiveness
A personal injury lawyer who formerly served on the Oregon Government Ethics Commission, Sosa, 39, got off to a reasonable start in his first session. He challenged some of the most entrenched financial interests in Salem, sponsoring bills that would increase regulation and oversight of the insurance and debt collection industries. “A rare (and welcome) voice for consumer protection,” says one lobbyist. Not everybody appreciated his zeal. “The trial lawyers’ new call girl,” sneered one staffer.
Like a lot of rookies, Sosa found there’s more to legislating than good ideas. “Hasn’t mastered the art of negotiating with those opposed to him yet, and seems prone to letting the perfect be the enemy of the good—but come back in five years and I have no doubt he will have risen in the ranks.”
Rep. Susan McLain (D-Forest Grove)
Overall Rating: 6.8
7.72 Integrity
6.61 Brains
6.06 Effectiveness
A former schoolteacher and Metro councilor who first won election to the House in 2014, McLain, 74, co-chaired the Joint Committee on Transportation, Joint Committee on the Interstate 5 Bridge, and the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Education. Views on her diverge wildly. “The ninja of transportation. Nothing happens or gets by her. She’s quick to pick up and pull things together,” says a lobbyist. “The only thing holding her back are the other dimwits on the committee.”
Others blame her. “A good soldier, but no original thinking,” says an observer. Opposition to tolling and the scope of the bridge project complicated her work, as did the absence of Transportation co-chair Sen. Chris Gorsek. “She’s slipping, but still bulldogs her way through,” says a public sector lobbyist, who notes: “Couldn’t get the IBR bill, her top priority, out of her own committee.”
Rep. Hoa Nguyen (D-Southeast Portland)
Overall Rating: 6.79
7.75 Integrity
6.75 Brains
5.88 Effectiveness
Nguyen, 39, an attendance officer for the Clackamas Education Service District, jumped into her rookie session with enthusiasm, even coming up with a Woody Guthrie-esque description of the contours of her district: “From Kelly Butte to Powell Butte, Barton to Carver.” Nguyen served as vice chair of the House Committee on Early Childhood and Human Services.
Respondents had little to say about Nguyen, who worked on bills on alternative transportation for students and improving educational outcomes for Pacific islanders. “Friendly, personable and, once she finds her voice, could be an effective legislator long term,” offered one GOP staffer. In testimony on a bill that would create a task force on campus sexual assault, Nguyen gave a searing account of her own experience while a student. “Her testimony was extraordinary,” says a veteran lobbyist.
Rep. Jeff Helfrich (R-Hood River)
Overall Rating: 6.76
7.25 Integrity
6.83 Brains
6.19 Effectiveness
For Helfrich, the third time was the charm. A retired Portland cop and former Multnomah County sheriff’s deputy, Helfrich achieved a rare comeback in 2022, retaking a House seat to which he was appointed in 2017 but lost in 2018 and failed to retake in 2020. Most respondents think that Helfrich, 55, who now works for an aviation company, came back a better lawmaker. Along with Dexter and Jama, he was chief sponsor of House Bill 2001, which passed early and established aggressive housing production goals. “Unlike his previous tenure in the House, Rep. Helfrich showed up and worked on a lot of bipartisan legislation,” says a lobbyist. “This guy is a lot smarter than you think he is, and your underestimating—that is what he counts on.”
Rep. Jules Walters (D-West Linn)
Overall Rating: 6.74
8 Integrity
6.58 Brains
5.64 Effectiveness
Walters, 52, entered the Legislature after serving as mayor of West Linn, where fractious politics belie the bucolic suburb’s placid appearance. She served as co-vice chair of the House Committee on Revenue and the Joint Committee on Tax Expenditures. Lobbyists struggled to get a read on her. “Hello, is anybody in there?” wrote one. “Best poker face ever or is she a Stepford wife?”
Like many of the representatives whose districts are adjacent to Interstate 205, Walters got engaged around a bill that forced a delay in the Oregon Department of Transportation’s plan to toll that highway. She also brought personal experience to bear on one of the most contentious issues of the session: “Walters describing what it’s like to be the parent of a trans teenager was a moment of humanity in the political process I won’t soon forget,” says one lobbyist.
Rep. Ricki Ruiz (D-Gresham)
Overall Rating: 6.7
7.56 Integrity
6.76 Brains
5.78 Effectiveness
Now in his second term, Ruiz, 29, is the youngest member of the House. He first won elected office at 22, joining the board of the Reynolds School District from which he graduated. A first-generation American, he’s also the first in his family to graduate from college. This term, he served as vice chair of the House Committee on Higher Education.
There may be nobody in this survey who is better liked by lobbyists and staff on both sides of the aisle. “If I had to pick a legislator to go to a comedy show with and laugh, it would be Ricki,” says a no-nonsense business lobbyist. “Nice guy,” says a GOP staffer. “Gets hung out to dry by his leadership way more than a guy who had a close election should.”
Rep. Khanh Pham (D-Southeast Portland)
Overall Rating: 6.63
7.72 Integrity
6.56 Brains
5.6 Effectiveness
Pham, 44, came to the Legislature from a series of advocacy positions. Observers say she hasn’t wavered from that mindset. Pham aimed big, pushing a controversial $25 million guaranteed income program to give people $1,000 a month; divesting fossil fuels from state pension funds; and downsizing the Interstate Bridge replacement. None succeeded. “Doesn’t realize she’s no longer an advocate and was sent to govern,” says a lobbyist. But she also co-led the charge to refer a ranked-choice voting measure and another to end walkouts. The latter bill proposed late in the session, defines a quorum as a majority of members rather than the current two-thirds.
Many cheer her zeal. “The only person who really cares to dig deep on natural resource budgets rather than rubber stamping whatever agency leaders tell them,” says a lobbyist.
Rep. Courtney Neron (D-Wilsonville)
Overall Rating: 6.61
7.76 Integrity
6.28 Brains
5.9 Effectiveness
Now in her third term, Neron, 44, a former teacher, chairs the House Education Committee. “Definition of ‘average legislator,’” says one respondent. “She just wants you to tell her what she wants to hear,” says a business lobbyist. The ed committee used to be a plum post, but K-12 education has taken a back seat to more pressing issues, particularly after passage of the Student Success Act in 2019. Neron worked on House Bill 3043, which would require greater disclosure of toxins in products used by children. Detractors noted that Neron scurried to join the opposition to tolling I-205 this session despite having voted for tolling in 2021 (along with all other House Democrats): “The bell ‘tolled’ for this one when she realized she was on the wrong side of tolling during her campaign, biggest flip-flop ever.”
Rep. Andrea Valderrama (D-Southeast Portland)
Overall Rating: 6.55
6.67 Integrity
6.9 Brains
6.07 Effectiveness
Valderrama, 34, who works for the Aclu of Oregon, got appointed when Rep. Diego Hernandez resigned in 2021. (She was one of the people who accused him of misconduct.) Some progressives love her: “Absolutely a rising star in the Democratic caucus. She works hard [and] has the right values.” But others noted the turnover in her office. “I’ve never seen a full legislative office quit during session before,” says a progressive lobbyist.
As the caucus whip, Valderrama’s job was to count votes. Respondents panned her performance. “Definitely doesn’t know how or doesn’t count votes properly—your job!” says one. The prediction of more than one lobbyist: She’s a short-timer: “I assume she’ll be running for City Council next year—that may be a better fit.”
Rep. Travis Nelson (D-North Portland)
Overall Rating: 6.42
7.05 Integrity
6.7 Brains
5.55 Effectiveness
Nelson, a registered nurse and nurses union official, won appointment to this seat of the longtime incumbent, Tina Kotek, when she resigned in 2022 to run for governor. Perhaps the first lawmaker to show up in a sleeveless shirt-and-tie ensemble, he won notice for his sense of fashion. “Best dressed in the building,” says one lobbyist. Nelson also generated ink for an early session complaint that Oregon State Police targeted him for driving while Black—a complaint that police video did not appear to support, although his contention that the stops marked a remarkable coincidence never experienced by white lawmakers is also true.
Nelson, 44, served as vice chair of the House Committee on Behavioral Health and Health Care, where he helped pass the hospital staffing bill. Some people found him scattered. “For someone who is a health care worker by profession, Rep. Nelson doesn’t seem to know how health care works,” says a health care lobbyist. “He could spend more time reading bills and less time on Twitter.”
Rep. Zach Hudson (D-Troutdale)
Overall Rating: 6.01
7.14 Integrity
5.76 Brains
5.14 Effectiveness
A special education teacher at Reynolds High School, Hudson, 43, is one of the leading advocates for changing the way Oregon votes—but rather than the ranked-choice voting lawmakers referred to the ballot, he’s an advocate for STAR voting, a more obscure variation. To some respondents, that captures Hudson’s quirkiness. “He’s just a goodhearted, weird dude,” says a progressive lobbyist. “Nice guy, but five-minute meetings feel like a whole hour,” says a public sector lobbyist. Hudson put in a lot of work on Senate Bill 819, which would require schools to provide more and better instruction to students with disabilities.
One of the Capitol’s longest-serving lobbyists has run out of patience with the second-termer. “A terrible legislator,” the lobbyist says. “Just a complete dolt and robot; thank god he has decent staff to prop him up.”
The Bad
Rep. Mark Gamba (D-Milwaukie)
Overall Rating: 5.78
6.7 Integrity
5.86 Brains
4.78 Effectiveness
A former professional photographer, Gamba, 64, turned to politics later in life, winning election to the Milwaukie City Council in 2012 and moving up to mayor in 2015. He mounted an unsuccessful 2020 primary challenge to former U.S. Rep. Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.) before winning this seat, formerly held by Rep. Karin Power. Observers noted he struggled being one of 60 members rather than mayor. “He’s got a lot of thoughts about a lot of things, and he really wants to share them with you,” says a Democratic lobbyist.
Gamba, who served as vice chair of the Committee on Housing and Homelessness, staked out a position on the left of his caucus and pushed for a smaller I-5 bridge and aggressive divestment of fossil fuel holdings by state pension funds. “Brought big ideas that went nowhere—needs to recognize what’s doable and what’s not,” says a progressive lobbyist. One idea still alive: a bill creating a task force to study a state bank.
Rep. Farrah Chaichi (D-Beaverton)
Overall Rating: 5.76
7.59 Integrity
5.55 Brains
4.15 Effectiveness
Chaichi, 37, who works at a Portland law firm, struggled in her first session. She served as co-chair of the House Committee on Gambling Regulation. She also sponsored the controversial Oregon Right to Rest Act, which would grant people who are homeless equal access to public spaces. It generated a lot of ink but went nowhere. “Chaichi is the legislative equivalent of a toddler,” says a longtime Capitol veteran. “Lucky for Oregon she appears to be about as skilled at passing legislation as a 2-year-old would be.”
GOP lawmakers might decorate their offices with a photo of Ronald Reagan; Democrats, John F. Kennedy. Chaichi has a photo of Karl Marx in hers. “Likes to present policy ideas that are best reserved for a theoretical dissertation that only Marx would appreciate,” says a business lobbyist. “Totally ineffective, unrealistic and impracticable.”
The Awful
Rep. James Hieb (R-Canby)
Overall Rating: 3.48
4.4 Integrity
3.2 Brains
2.84 Effectiveness
Constituents in this Clackamas County district traded down when Hieb got appointed in 2022 to replace House Minority Leader Christine Drazan (R-Canby), who quit to run for governor. A veteran who works in his family’s child care business, a visibly intoxicated Hieb, 37, got arrested last summer for refusing to put out his cigarette at the Clackamas County Fair.
“One of the oddest people I’ve ever encountered in the Legislature, and he’s had, charitably, a rough start,” says a lobbyist. “His [traumatic brain injury] history unfortunately shows, but after learning early in session from him about some of his hard personal history, I admire his effort to try to make a positive difference.” He was the only GOP chief sponsor of House Bill 2395, the opioid harm reduction bill, and gave an impassioned floor speech on its behalf. But mostly, people wondered why he was there. “Clackistan, you’ve done it again,” says a lobbyist who hails from Clackamas County. “Another village idiot.”
Rep. Brian Stout (R-Columbia City)
Overall Rating: 2.17
1.71 Integrity
3.08 Brains
1.7 Effectiveness
Republicans celebrated the redrawing of the district that Democrat Brad Witt served from 2005 to 2023. But their victory was an empty one—a Columbia County judge issued a sexual assault prevention order against the Republican, Stout, 55, a printing company owner, after he won in November. House Speaker Dan Rayfield (D-Corvallis) refused to give Stout any committee assignments, so he haunts Capitol hallways and hearing rooms like a ghost (a hearing subsequently upheld the order against him).
“Dude should resign,” says one progressive, echoing a common sentiment. “Legislative career blew up on the launch pad due to a blow job he claims he didn’t even want,” says one lobbyist. “The kid nobody wants to sit with at lunchtime.”