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Oregon Remove Animal Cruelty Exceptions Initiative (2026)

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Oregon Remove Animal Cruelty Exceptions Initiative

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Election date

November 3, 2026

Topic
Animal treatment laws and Fisheries and fishing regulations
Status

Cleared for signature gathering

Type
Initiated state statute 		Origin

Citizens


The Oregon Remove Animal Cruelty Exceptions Initiative may appear on the ballot in Oregon as an initiated state statute on November 3, 2026.

The initiative, referred to by the sponsors as the People for the Elimination of Animal Cruelty Exemptions (PEACE) Act, would amend Chapter 167 of the Oregon Revised Statutes to remove certain exemptions to animal cruelty laws. The measure would criminalize cetain practices involved in breeding, hunting, fishing, pest control, and some farming methods. It would also establish the Humane Transition Fund to receive revenues from sources made obsolete under the initiative.[1][2]

Text of measure

Full text

  • The full text of the measure is available here.

Support

Ballotpedia has not located a campaign in support of the ballot measure. You can share campaign information or arguments, along with source links for this information, with us at editor@ballotpedia.org.

Arguments

  • David Michelson, the initiative's sponsor: "We really want to make Oregon the first state to vote on something like this. We are aware that it’s unlikely 50% of Oregonians are ready right now to move away from killing animals. But we want to get that conversation out there. So that we can hopefully move in that direction. Our goal is to introduce people — often, many people, for the first time — will hear about what alternatives to killing animals even exist right now."

Opposition

Ballotpedia has not located a campaign in opposition to the ballot measure. You can share campaign information or arguments, along with source links for this information, with us at editor@ballotpedia.org.

Arguments

  • Levi Barrera, Oregon Hunters Association Hoodview Chapter President: "There are a handful of predators that do make a huge impact on our herbivore species, like deer, throughout the state. If you take away hunting, there will be an out-of-control effect on the population. ... Even bigger towns that rely on the agricultural side of things, not just the economy and fishing side of things. It has great impacts through communities that rely on hunting and fishing and that really sustains their communities and their families throughout the year. The industries that rely on hunting and fishing, you know, coastal towns, rely heavily on the fishing and salmon fishing."


Path to the ballot

See also: Laws governing the initiative process in Oregon

The state process

In Oregon, the number of signatures required to qualify an initiated state statute for the ballot is equal to 6 percent of the votes cast for governor in the most recent gubernatorial election. Signatures for Oregon initiatives must be submitted four months prior to the next regular general election. State law also requires paid signature gatherers to submit any signatures they gather every month.

Moreover, Oregon is one of several states that require a certain number of signatures to accompany an initiative petition application. The signatures of at least 1,000 electors are required to trigger a review by state officials, a period of public commentary, and the drafting of a ballot title. Prior to gathering these initial 1,000 signatures, petitioners must submit the text of the measure, a form disclosing their planned use of paid circulators, and a form designating up to three chief petitioners. The 1,000 preliminary signatures count toward the final total required.

The requirements to get an initiated state statute certified for the 2026 ballot:

In Oregon, signatures are verified using a random sample method. If a first round of signatures is submitted at least 165 days before an election and contains raw, unverified signatures at least equal to the minimum requirement, but verification shows that not enough of the submitted signatures are valid, additional signatures can be submitted prior to the final deadline.

Details about this initiative

  • The initiative was filed on October 16, 2023.[2]
  • The initiative was approved to circulate on July 8, 2024.[2]

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Oregon Secretary of State, "Measure 2026-028 full text," accessed November 11, 2024
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Oregon Secretary of State, "2026 initiatives," accessed November 11, 2024
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