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Bend shooting draws mixed response from Oregon officials
The mass shooting in Bend on Sunday drew a mixed response from Oregon’s U.S. congressional members, governor, state lawmakers and gubernatorial candidates, with calls for tighter gun controls and wider access to mental health care. A state lawmaker, state Rep. Jason Kropf, D-Bend, told the Capital Chronicle he plans to pursue legislative action, starting with […]
Environmental, public health groups want state to regulate air pollution from large dairies
Two dozen environmental, farming and public health groups are asking the state to regulate air pollution from large dairies. In an Aug. 17 petition, they asked the Oregon Environmental Quality Commission to create an air-emissions program to measure and regulate air pollution from farms with 700 or more cows. Starting at that threshold, owners must […]
Big win for endangered Klamath Basin fish in first round of federal funding
Endangered suckers and salmon in the Klamath Basin face a greater shot at survival thanks to federal funds awarded this week. On Wednesday, Oregon’s U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced the first 33 Klamath Basin restoration projects to receive funds totaling more than $26 million this year. The money is part of $162 […]
Oregon joins states offering free and reduced college tuition for Native Americans this year
Members of Oregon’s nine federally recognized tribes can attend the state’s public universities and community colleges practically free this school year, and members of federally recognized tribes from around the country will be eligible for in-state tuition at the school’s two largest universities. In May, the state’s Higher Education Coordinating Commission rolled out a grant […]
Oregon groups get $11 million boost from feds to protect threatened species, support reforestation
Oregon’s threatened fish, sage grouse and forests recovering from wildfires are among the beneficiaries of millions in federal dollars from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The agency announced Aug. 18 that four groups working on conservation projects across the state would receive $11 million to complete projects that will improve water quality, fish migration, grouse […]
Oregonians in dozens of counties, cities will vote on psilocybin bans in November
Oregonians in 57 cities and 26 of the state’s 36 counties will vote in November on banning or postponing psilocybin treatment centers and the production of psilocybin products in their areas. Psilocybin was first approved by state voters in 2020 with almost 56% of the vote supporting Measure 109. The vote made Oregon the first […]
Schools hope to overcome staff shortages with millions in wage, bonus incentives
Districts plan on spending millions of dollars in state and federal funds to pay teachers higher salaries and offer hiring and retention bonuses to fully staff schools by Sept. 1. Nearly all of Oregon’s 219 school districts and education service districts have applied for a portion of $100 million allocated by the state Legislature this […]
Beleaguered Oregon water pollution committee gains new leadership amid scrutiny
For 25 years, a volunteer committee of crop and livestock farmers, state and university scientists, local elected officials and business leaders has met to solve an intractable problem of nitrate pollution in the drinking water of hundreds of residents in Morrow and Umatilla counties. And for 25 years, the problem has grown worse. Since Morrow […]
Insurance rates will not rise due to new Oregon wildfire risk map, state regulators say
Concerns that a new map showing wildfire risks across Oregon will lead to property insurance hikes are unfounded, state financial regulators said Friday. Insurers have not filed the paperwork to raise rates for high-risk properties and have told officials at the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services, which regulates property insurance, they do not […]
Health care professionals call for federal help addressing Oregon’s youth mental health crisis
Oregon’s mental health professionals for young people are frustrated. At a roundtable discussion on Thursday, medical providers and representatives from a tribal health agency and Portland Public Schools expressed frustration that public and private health insurance plans have left many youth untreated. They called for an expansion of the mental health care workforce in schools, […]
Feds give Oregon cities, environmentalists $1.8 million to tackle toxic waste in Columbia River
The federal government is giving $1.8 million to Oregon to tackle toxic waste that is sickening fish in the Columbia River. The grant was announced Wednesday by Environmental Protection Agency officials as well as state, local and tribal leaders in Portland along the banks of the river. The money will go to environmentalists, researchers and […]
Oregon schools lean heavily on emergency teachers, including untrained ones
Struggling with staffing shortages exacerbated by the pandemic, Oregon schools leaned heavily last year on teachers who received emergency licenses from the state. During the 2021-22 school year, districts employed 438 emergency licensed teachers, up from 181 the year prior and a low of 134 five years ago, according to data from the Teacher Standards […]