Ernest Rudolph Fatland (August 20, 1896 – January 22, 1980) was an American businessman and politician who served as a state legislator for Oregon.

After leaving the state House of Representatives, Fatland was appointed to the Oregon Liquor Control Commission.

[1][2][3][4] Fatland attended Washington High School in Portland, where he was captain of the debate team and an active thespian.

[4] After finishing high school, Fatland worked as a salesman for a Portland-based wholesale paper company.

Fatland served as a military chauffeur/staff car driver in the Army Air Corps during World War I.

[2][4][9] After leaving the Army, Fatland operated a dairy farm in Arlington, Oregon, for a short time.

In 1919, Fatland moved to Condon, Oregon, where he purchased a tire repair business in partnership with Clair Hopper.

[4][12][13][14] While Fatland was a successful businessman, he was also active in politics and served in a number of local government positions.

He was president of the John Day Highway Improvement Association and was an active member of the Gilliam County Tax Reduction League.

[16] After winning the Democratic primary with write-in votes, Hughes dropped out of race before the general election, leaving only the two Republicans.

As a member of the legislature, Fatland became a strong advocate for increased highway construction in eastern Oregon.

No Democrats filed in the District, so Fatland and French were unopposed in both the Republican primary and the general election.

[29][30] After the general election in November, Fatland began consolidating his support for the House speaker position.

There were three other Republicans seeking the position, Walter Fuhrer of Salem, Earl Hill of Lane County, and Frank Lonergan of Portland.

[34][35] It proved to be a routine session until the final week when there was a push by several legislators to pass a bill that would have placed a sales tax referendum before voters.

The emergency board is a powerful legislative committee that acts on behalf of the entire legislature when that body is out of session.

[49][50] In 1944, Fatland decided to run for the state senate seat in District 18, representing Gilliam, Morrow, Sherman, and Wheeler counties.

He took his District 18 seat representing Gilliam, Morrow, Sherman, and Wheeler counties when the 1947 legislative session began on January 13.

[58][59] In the runup to the 1948 campaign season, the news media speculated that Fatland might be a good candidate to fill eastern Oregon’s congressional seat if Lowell Stockman decided to retire.

Before finishing his four-year senate term at the end of 1948, Fatland completed his work on the interim legislative committee on highways and roads.

While the report received praise from some newspapers, the proposed tax and fee increases were not popular with the general public.

[66] After leaving the state senate, Fatland was also able to spend more time overseeing his automobile supply business in Condon.

[11][67] In 1952, Governor Paul L. Patterson appointed Fatland to write the official non-partisan explanation of a state-wide ballot measure on a proposed constitutional amendment regarding legislative reapportionment for the 1952 Oregon voters pamphlet.

[68] Later that year, Fatland was the leading candidate for appointment as state tax commissioner until he announced he was not interested in the post.

[69][70] Fatland was a member of the Oregon Business and Tax Research organization for 20 years, including two terms as president of that group from 1955 through 1958.

[10][71][72] In addition, he served eight years on the Oregon State Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee beginning in 1962.