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U.S. Rep. Chavez-DeRemer treads careful path in tough district
In 2022, Oregon’s 5th Congressional District race was the least predictable major contest in the state, and now it looks much the same for 2024. Both the national Cook Political Report and the Sabato Crystal Ball already label it a toss up – a rarity for a contest in which an incumbent is expected to […]
Oregon needs a land-use strategy to ensure a supply of development ready land
This year marks a half-century since Oregon Gov. Tom McCall signed into law Senate Bill 100 requiring comprehensive planning, which warned “uncoordinated use of lands in this state threaten the orderly development, the environment of this state and the health, safety, order, convenience, prosperity and welfare of the people of this state.” Back then, the […]
Although Oregon’s open records laws aim for transparency, they’re complicated
If you want people to recycle, make it as easy as possible. The same should be true of Oregon’s open records law, but it isn’t. With this being Sunshine Week, which focuses on easier access to public records, it’s important to remember that accessing public documents in Oregon gets more complicated all the time. The […]
State proposal would allow convictions to be overturned based on new science
Sometimes the job of legislating involves weighing not just one interest or two but a whole group of them, all competing against each other – even when the core issue seems simple. For example, Senate Bill 554. The background is that technology used in criminal forensics has been changing dramatically (think, for example, of advances […]
Oregon’s water problems are accumulating; Idaho may have an answer
The Jan. 25 report on Oregon’s water shortage, released by the Secretary of State’s office, prominently included a cautionary quote from the legendary western explorer John Wesley Powell, delivered in 1893 as the regional approach to water management started to take form: “I tell you gentlemen you are piling up a heritage of conflict and […]
Will Oregon legislators follow-through and enact campaign finance reform?
If Oregon legislators wind up their session this year without substantially addressing limits on campaign contributions, there will be no publicly acceptable excuses – not even that of their own self-interest. It’s not only the legislators who have pledged to move on the issue, but also the formerly most-influential legislator and now governor Tina Kotek. […]
Legislative session opens with dozens of proposed constitutional changes
Lawmakers face 38 proposed changes to the state constitution this session. Few will pass. Massive and drastic change is something to be wary of when it comes to altering the state’ core governing document, though the voters do approve changes from time to time. But the proposals do carry messages, including of Republican frustrations in […]
Meth, fentanyl big problems in Idaho, too, which didn’t decriminalize drugs
This makes for a simple and compelling storyline: Since Oregon has loosened its marijuana and other drug laws – through ballot measures in 2014 and 2020 – law enforcement agencies have been reporting massive seizures in the state of illegal pot and large-scale illegal operations in rural parts of the state. The implicit message is […]
Decisions made last year will play out in Oregon in 2023
This year, the state will learn what how the decisions made in 2022 will look like in practice. This is likely to be most obvious in the political and governmental sphere. Oregon elected a new governor and three new members of Congress in November, but that is the beginning of the story, not the end. […]
Kotek might consider a century-old example to unify Oregon
Nearly a century ago, one of Oregon’s smallest communities was declared “the capital of the United States all day long,” at least as an honorific. On that day, July 2, 1923, President Warren Harding, who was then on a transcontinental train ride (from which he wouldn’t return to Washington alive), stopped his train at the small […]
A few Oregon, Washington congressional seats likely to be competitive in 2024
It’s been a long time since Oregon and Washington were home to more than at most a single seriously up for grabs congressional seat. This year, the states had a small pile of them. Fewer are likely to be as seriously contested two years from now, but a couple probably will. Washington has 10 House […]
Betsy Johnson attracted voters in regions where she has strong ties
The core support for Betsy Johnson, the unaffiliated candidate for governor in the election, was almost surely a lot different six months ago than it was when the ballots were cast. Polling from last spring up into September put her in third place but not by much: She was pulling numbers just above and below […]