Oregonians who haven’t left the state will be surprised to see that they are now allowed to pump their gas, a privilege not granted to them since 1951
On August 4, the ban on pumping your own gas in Oregon was ended by House Bill 2426.
There were many reasons why self-serve gas was prohibited for so long, as laid out in Oregon Statue ORS 480.315. Reasons given by the Oregon State Legislature include self-serving gas contributing to unemployment, higher liability insurance rates from the gas station, and the risk that drivers could slip on a rainy day.
This doesn’t mean that you have to pump your own gas. In counties such as Benton County, only 50% of pumps at gas stations need to be self-serve, meaning attendants will still be operating the other 50%.
Here’s what people around Oregon State University think about it:
Hannah Prouty (she/her)
Psychology and BioHealth Sciences Major
I actually prefer it. I’m from out of state. So it was actually a huge adjustment to come down to Oregon and not be able to pump my own gas.
Miranda Schmitz (she/her)
Internship and Employment Developer at the Career Development Center
For convenience sake, I think it’s really a great option, as far as the amount of jobs that may be impacted, it’s probably more of a negative effect of a new law
Paula Coto (she/her)
Educational Program Assistant at KidSpirit
I think it’s helpful. It’d be nice every so often to not have to wait for an attendant.
Gregory Pitts (he/him)
Mechanical Engineering Major
I mean it’s a little inconvenient for us right now however, I think the only reason we had it right now was labor laws to give people who worked at gas stations gas when it’s literally a simple task that we can do ourselves. So, I mean, I can see why we had it, but also kind of see like, we can do it ourselves. I’m a bit indifferent to it.
Nathan Hastings (he/him)
Physics Major
I love it. I am from Washington. So I pump my own gas my entire life. Like before I can drive, my mom was making me pump before. I got yelled at once in Newport trying to pump my own gas.
Camilla Teigen (she/her)
College Student Services Administration Graduate Student
I don’t love it. I am really lazy and I like to stay in my car while it gets pumped for me. But also it’s fine.
