Tim Knopp
Minority Leader of the Oregon State Senate
Assumed office
October 22, 2021
Preceded byFred Girod
Member of the Oregon State Senate
from the 27th district
Assumed office
January 14, 2013
Preceded byChris Telfer
Member of the Oregon House of Representatives
from the 54th district
In office
January 1999 – January 2005
Succeeded byChuck Burley
Personal details
Born (1965-09-30) September 30, 1965
Portland, Oregon, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseMelissa Knopp

Tim Knopp is an American Republican politician from Oregon. He is a member of the Oregon State Senate and has been the senate minority leader since 2021. He previously served as a member of the Oregon House of Representatives from 1999 to 2005.

Early life and education

Knopp attended York Community High School.[1]

Political career

Oregon House

Knopp served three terms in the Oregon House of Representatives.[2][3] He was first elected in 1998 and left the House in 2005.[2] Knopp was majority leader in 2003.[4] While in the House, Knopp was strongly opposed to abortion and allied to social conservatives.[5] In 1999, Knopp helped enshrine Oregon's unique "kicker" law, which returns excess tax revenue back to taxpayers, into the Constitution by sponsoring referral legislation that brought Measure 86 to the voters in 2000.[6] Measure 86 was approved by a 62% of voters.[7]

Oregon Senate

Knopp was first elected to the Oregon Senate in 2012. At the time, Knopp was executive vice president of the Central Oregon Home Builders and a past president of the Deschutes County Republican Central Committee.[5] He defeated incumbent Senator Chris Telfer in the Republican primary, winning 68% of the primary vote to Telfer's 32%.[8] Knopp then defeated Democratic nominee Geri Hauser in the general election.[9] In 2014, Knopp was named deputy caucus leader of the Oregon Senate Republicans.[4]

Knopp won reelection in 2016 with 60.9% of the vote, defeating Democratic nominee Greg Delgado.[10][11] He was re-elected in 2020 with 50.7% of the vote, defeating retired Daimler executive Eileen Kiely of Sunriver.[12]

Employment and pension legislation

Knopp voted for the Oregon Equal Pay Act, which unanimously passed the Senate in 2017.[13] In 2019, Knopp, along with Democratic senator Sara Gelser, introduced two bills on workplace sexual harassment,[14] The pieces of legislation, both signed into law by Governor Kate Brown, prohibited Oregon employers from requiring, as a condition of employment, nondisclosure agreements blocking employees from discussing allegations of employment discrimination or sexual assault, and requiring public employers to have written anti-harassment policies and procedures.[14]

Knopp introduced many bills to overhaul Oregon's pension system for public employees (Oregon PERS), by moving it from a defined benefit program to a 401(k)-style defined contribution plan.[15]

Climate change and 2019 walkout

Knopp rejects the scientific consensus on climate change.[16] Knopp opposed legislation to increase the production of renewable energy and limit greenhouse gas emissions.[16]

Knopp opposed the 2019 cap and trade bill. In 2019, Knopp and the other 11 state Senate Republicans walked out of the state Senate session, seeking to block the Democratic majority in the Senate from passing cap and trade legislation to combat climate change by lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Most of the Republicans fled to Idaho, and the absence deprived the chamber of a quorum.[17] Republicans insisted that the bill would increase fuel prices and hurt the economy.[18] In an interview with The Oregonian Knopp said, "I feel no constitutional obligation to stand around so they can pass their leftist progressive agenda ... I think that’s true for every other Senate district that's out there that's represented by Republicans."[19] At the time, there were 29 senators (the Senate has 30 seats, but 1 was vacant due to a death). Without the Republican senators, the remaining 18 Democratic state senators could not reach a quorum of 20 to hold a vote. Knopp said that he had left Oregon "in a cabin near a lake .... And that's about all I can tell you."[20][21] Knopp was the only Republican senator who did not take part in the 2020 walk-out by both the Senate and the House over a cap-and-trade bill. The Republican caucus chose Knopp as minority leader for the 2021 session.[22]

Anti-vaccination activities

Knopp was a leading opponent of legislation in 2015 and 2019 to eliminate non-medical exemptions to the requirement that Oregon schoolchildren be vaccinated.[23][24] Speaking at an anti-mandatory vaccination rally in 2019, Knopp said passage of the legislation would lead to "no freedom in America."[23]

January 6 attack on the Capitol

In January 2021, after a pro-Trump mob violently stormed the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., the Oregon Republican Party passed a resolution falsely claiming that the attack was a staged "false flag" attack. Knopp issued a statement disavowing the falsehood, as did all 23 state House Republicans.[25][26]

2023 Walkout and unexcused absences

While participating in a Republican-led walkout in May 2023 Knopp reached the 10 unexcused absence threshold set by measure 113, disqualifying him from running for reelection after his current term ends.[27] Knopp and 4 other Senators filed a lawsuit against Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade in response, arguing that the measure's wording allowed them to serve one additional term before being barred from reelection.[28] On October 24 the Oregon Supreme Court agreed to hear the case with arguments beginning December 14.[29]

Personal life

Knopp is married to his wife, Melissa and has four children.[1] During the 2017 legislative session, Knopp employed his wife and son Daniel as paid legislative staff.[30]

Electoral history

2012 Oregon State Senator, 27th district [31]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Tim Knopp 35,398 58.9
Democratic Geri Hauser 24,399 40.6
Write-in 270 0.4
Total votes 60,067 100%
2016 Oregon State Senator, 27th district [32]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Tim Knopp 44,691 60.6
Democratic Greg Delgado 28,933 39.2
Write-in 147 0.2
Total votes 73,771 100%
2020 Oregon State Senator, 27th district [33]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Tim Knopp 49,207 50.7
Democratic Eileen Kiely 47,621 49.1
Write-in 161 0.2
Total votes 96,989 100%

References

  1. 1 2 Voters' Pamphlet: Oregon Primary Election, May 17, 2016 Archived May 4, 2021, at the Wayback Machine, Oregon Secretary of State, p. 29.
  2. 1 2 James Sinks, Knopp leaves the Oregon Legislature Archived 2019-06-29 at the Wayback Machine, Bend Bulletin (January 8, 2005).
  3. ↑ Janie Har, Did Tim Knopp honor his pledge to eschew PERS? Archived 2019-06-29 at the Wayback Machine, Politifact Oregon (February 23, 2013).
  4. 1 2 Yuxing Zheng, Tim Knopp named as deputy leader of Senate Republicans Archived 2019-06-29 at the Wayback Machine, The Oregonian (July 16, 2014).
  5. 1 2 Jeff Mapes, Tim Knopp, former legislator, challenges Sen. Chris Telfer in GOP primary Archived 2019-06-29 at the Wayback Machine, The Oregonian/OregonLive (March 6, 2012).
  6. ↑ Editorial (2018-12-09). "Editorial: Stop the kicker heist". The Bulletin. Archived from the original on 2019-10-11. Retrieved 2019-10-11.
  7. ↑ "Oregon Taxpayer Refunds from General Fund, Measure 86 (2000)". Ballotpedia. Archived from the original on 2020-03-01. Retrieved 2019-10-11.
  8. ↑ Official Results: May 15, 2012 Primary Election Archived October 9, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, Oregon Secretary of State.
  9. ↑ Taylor W. Andersen, State Senate races set for Central Oregon districts Archived 2019-06-29 at the Wayback Machine, The Bulletin (March 9, 2016).
  10. ↑ Oregon 27th District State Senate Results: Tim Knopp Wins Archived 2019-06-29 at the Wayback Machine, The New York Times.
  11. ↑ Official Results: November 6, 2012 General Election Archived October 11, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, Oregon Secretary of State.
  12. ↑ "2020 Oregon Senate election", Wikipedia, 2023-05-07, archived from the original on 2023-11-01, retrieved 2023-08-02
  13. ↑ "Bipartisan Oregon Equal Pay Act passes in State Senate unanimously". KOBI-TV. May 17, 2017. Archived from the original on October 11, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  14. 1 2 "Editorial: State Sen. Tim Knopp fights workplace harassment". The Bulletin. June 29, 2019. Archived from the original on 2019-07-01.
  15. ↑ "A Bipartisan Plan to Revamp Oregon's Pension System". Chief Investment Officer. January 28, 2019. Archived from the original on October 11, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  16. 1 2 Taylor W. Anderson, Opponents seeking Bend's Senate seat agree to disagree Archived 2019-06-29 at the Wayback Machine, The Bulletin (September 24, 2019).
  17. ↑ Joe Parris, Oregon state senator explains why he and ten other senators fled Salem over climate change bill Archived 2019-06-29 at the Wayback Machine, June 21, 2019).
  18. ↑ "Timeline: Oregon GOP walkout over climate change bill". KGW/Associated Press. June 27, 2019. Archived from the original on October 7, 2019. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  19. ↑ What happens if Oregon Senate Republicans don't come back? Archived 2019-06-30 at the Wayback Machine, The Oregonian/OregonLive (June 20, 2019).
  20. ↑ "Oregon Republicans walk out on state Senate over climate change bill as governor threatens police roundup". CBS News. Archived from the original on 24 June 2019. Retrieved 24 June 2019.
  21. ↑ Osborne, Mark; Youn, Soo (June 23, 2019). "Oregon's Republican state senators go into hiding over climate change vote amid militia threat". ABC News. Archived from the original on June 23, 2019. Retrieved June 24, 2019.
  22. ↑ "Bend senator named leader of Oregon Senate GOP". Archived from the original on 2022-10-25. Retrieved 2022-10-25.
  23. 1 2 Connor Radnovich, Bill to remove vaccine exemptions returns to Oregon Capitol, sparks charged debate Archived 2023-11-01 at the Wayback Machine, Salem Statesman-Journal (April 23, 2019).
  24. ↑ Gary A. Warner, Vaccination bill is dead, but controversy lives on Archived 2019-06-29 at the Wayback Machine, The Bulletin (May 14, 2019).
  25. ↑ Ryan Haas and Dirk VanderHart, Oregon House Republicans Disavow Their Party's Position On Capitol Attack Archived 2021-01-28 at the Wayback Machine, Jefferson Public Radio (January 28, 2021).
  26. ↑ Oregon House Republicans, Sen. Knopp take issue with state GOP's 'false flag' claims Archived 2021-01-29 at the Wayback Machine, KTVZ (Salem, Oregon) (January 27, 2021).
  27. ↑ VanderHart, Dirk; Dake, Lauren (May 18, 2023). "Oregon Republican walkout: 6 more senators are potentially ineligible for reelection". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Archived from the original on October 23, 2023. Retrieved November 2, 2023.
  28. ↑ VanderHart, Dirk (August 29, 2023). "Challenge to anti-walkout law could go straight to Oregon Supreme Court". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Archived from the original on October 25, 2023. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
  29. ↑ VanderHart, Dirk (October 24, 2023). "GOP senators' challenge to walkout penalties lands before Oregon Supreme Court". Oregon Public Broadcasting. Archived from the original on October 31, 2023. Retrieved November 3, 2023.
  30. ↑ Gordon R. Friedman, Here are the Oregon lawmakers who pay a family member as staff Archived 2021-09-21 at the Wayback Machine, The Oregonian/OregonLive (September 2017).
  31. ↑ "Official Results | November 6, 2012". Oregon Secretary of State. Archived from the original on April 6, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  32. ↑ "November 8, 2016, General Election Abstract of Votes". Oregon Secretary of State. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  33. ↑ "November 3, 2020, General Election Abstract of Votes" (PDF). Oregon Secretary of State. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 12, 2022. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
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