In 1978, Throop was elected State Representative for District 54 of Oregon, which included much of Deschutes and Klamath Counties.[1] He served as Majority Whip and Chair of the Revenue and School Finance Committee for the House of Representatives for three of his four terms.[2][3] He unsuccessfully coordinated efforts to institute a progressive sales tax in Oregon during a prolonged statewide recession, arguing that such a revision to the tax system would provide stability to Oregon's public sector.[4] He also served on the Environment and Energy Committee and launched several measures relating to Oregon's forests, fisheries, and air quality.[5] He is regarded[by whom?] as an ardent conservationist.
In 1986, Throop was elected as one of three commissioners in Deschutes County, at that time Oregon's fastest-growing county.[6][7] He concurrently served as a member of the statewide Land Conservation and Development Commission (LCDC). Throop left Oregon in 1994 to become executive director of the Wyoming Outdoor Council, an environmental education and advocacy non-profit organization.[8] During the fall of 1998, Throop was hired as the executive director of the Equality State Policy Center, a Wyoming good governance watchdog.[9] He recently[when?] chaired the Wyoming Conservation Voters Education Fund,[citation needed] a grassroots voter education organization benefiting conservation and wildlife.[10]
