Rep. Mark Owens, R-Crane, encourages his colleagues on the House floor June 17, 2025, to vote for House Concurrent Resolution 13 to make the T-bone the state steak. Owens, who works in agriculture, is wearing a shirt covered in T-bone steaks. (Mia Maldonado/Oregon Capital Chronicle)

New state symbol honors Oregon ranchers after resolution passes both chambers

SAELM — The Beaver State has officially added a piece of meat to its list of state symbols.

The T-bone, a cut of beef taken from a cow’s short loin section near the spine, is officially the state steak after the Oregon House on Monday in a 50-2 vote passed Senate Concurrent Resolution 13. The Senate already passed the resolution, in a rare unanimous vote in March.

Rep. Bobby Levy, R-Echo, the bill’s chief sponsor, said the resolution represents Oregon’s rich agricultural heritage and cattle ranching that has been present in Oregon since 1824.

“We’re honoring the people behind the plate — the hard-working ranchers, processors and rural communities that make it possible,” she said. “Let’s take this moment to stand with rural Oregon. Let’s lift up an industry that’s fed us, employed us and shaped our state’s identity for generations.”

Sen. Todd Nash, R-Enterprise, was the bill’s chief sponsor in the Senate.

“All 36 counties in Oregon have cattle,” Nash said in a statement. “We raise some of the highest quality beef in the world right here in Oregon. And of those cuts, the T-bone rises to the top.”

But why the T-bone and not the ribeye, which tastes better to some lawmakers?

The Oregon CattleWomen chose the T-bone because the Cascade Mountains split Oregon in the shape of a T-bone. And cattle and calves were Oregon’s second-leading agricultural commodity in 2023, when Oregon had half a million beef cows and 1.2 million cattle and calves — totaling a value of production of nearly $985 million across all 36 of the state’s counties, according to the Oregon Department of Agriculture.

Beef and veal in 2023 were Oregon’s fourth largest agricultural export, with a value of $127 million. Seeds, oilseeds and other horticulture were the state’s top agricultural export, with a value of almost $1.2 billion.

The T-bone joins other state emblems, including the Chinook salmon as the state fish, the hazelnut as the state nut and milk as the state beverage. Most recently — and in a possible affront to Idaho — the potato beat out the onion to become Oregon’s official vegetable.

“Make no beef about it, today you do get to vote on the T-bone as the state steak, but in all sincerity, as you’re grilling this summer and enjoying time with family and friends, please remember ag, the cattle industry and what they do for the land and what they do for Oregon’s economy,” Rep. Mark Owens, R-Crane, told his House colleagues.

Lawmakers celebrated that 2023 designation by snacking on French fries provided by then-Rep. Janelle Bynum, now a member of Congress, who owned McDonald’s franchises at the time. On June 16, legislators chowed down on steaks grilled on a capitol patio for a “Meat and Greet.”

SCR 13 now moves to the Oregon secretary of state to be filed as law.

— East Oregonian regional editor Phil Wright contributed to this report.