Economy
Brown calls for $200 million in workforce spending, offers few details
PORTLAND – Gov. Kate Brown used an annual gathering of Oregon politicians and business leaders to push for a new $200 million package she plans to seek during the 2022 legislative session. During a brief speech responding to the Oregon Business Council’s plan for the next decade, Brown urged a crowd at the Oregon Convention […]
Brown calls special session on eviction protections
Gov. Kate Brown will call the Legislature into a special session on eviction protections on Dec. 13, nearly two weeks after the deadline for Oregon tenants affected by the Covid pandemic to seek aid paying rent. Brown’s announcement includes a request for $190 million in additional state funding. The first $90 million would provide additional […]
Hundreds still languish in Oregon hospitals, waiting a place to go for continued care
UPDATED: Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021 at 9:562 a.m. Throughout the pandemic, hundreds of people at any one time have languished for weeks and even months in hospital beds they didn’t need. They should have been in a lower level of care. But nursing homes, rehabilitation facilities, long-term care and other treatment centers in Oregon have […]
Bend real estate group sues over Oregon ‘love letter’ ban
The Oregon Legislature violated free speech rights when banned Realtors from passing so-called “love letters” from potential homebuyers to sellers, a federal lawsuit filed by a Bend real estate group contends. The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court in Portland late last week, asks the court to block the new law from taking effect […]
Amazon sites, Salem Hospital have longest lasting Covid-19 outbreaks in Oregon – 20 months
Coronavirus cases have dipped recently in Oregon, and widespread outbreaks in long-term care facilities across the state appear to be in the past, at least for now. But outbreaks continue to dog three workplaces in Oregon: Amazon’s warehouse in Troutdale, another Amazon facility in Salem and Salem Hospital. All three appeared in the health authority’s […]
In D.C.: Biden opens oil reserve to relieve high gas prices – but it won’t be immediate
WASHINGTON – As gasoline prices spiral ahead of the big holiday travel season, President Joe Biden authorized the release of a record 50 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve Tuesday – complicating his administration’s goal to transition to cleaner energy sources. In prepared remarks, Biden said he coordinated the release from the reserve, […]
One key to making good use of new federal money in Oregon is public-private partnerships
The scope of the recently passed federal infrastructure bill and its myriad investments is unlike anything we have seen for generations. The funding levels are high, the areas of investment many, and the timelines unknown. What is clear is that the bipartisan infrastructure bill is good for Oregon. Very good. Robust infrastructure investments in Oregon […]
$31 million earmarked for transportation upgrades in Lane, Washington counties
Lane and Washington counties have snagged $31 million for transportation upgrades from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The money, announced Thursday by four Democrats in Oregon’s congressional delegation, is part of $1 billion being distributed nationwide through a grant program dedicated to road, rail, transit and port improvements. The money is highly competitive: The government […]
Oregon economic forecast: Higher wages drive state revenue, workers feel inflation
Higher wages are driving up Oregon’s projected tax revenue, but most middle-class workers won’t feel the benefits of larger paychecks over the next year because of inflation, state economists said Wednesday. A quarterly economic forecast from the state Department of Administrative Services predicted that Oregon will recover from a pandemic-induced recession much more quickly than […]
Baker City feedlot hopes to expand operation to 15,000 cows
A Baker City feedlot that currently manages fewer than 3,000 head of cattle is seeking permission from the state to expand to 15,000. The expansion would require approval of a new Confined Animal Feeding Operation permit through the Oregon Department of Agriculture. CAFO permits specify the number of animals a company can have in one […]
In D.C.: Biden signs $1.2T infrastructure bill: ‘America is moving again’
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Monday signed into law his $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill during a ceremony at the White House packed with some 800 supporters, heralding what he said was a “truly consequential” spending bill that will improve Americans’ day-to-day lives. But Democrats also emphasized that there is more to come—a $1.85 trillion […]
‘Sense of urgency’ in Oregon should follow passage of infrastructure bill, DeFazio says
Oregonians should see work start next year on transportation projects funded by the massive infrastructure bill, according to U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Oregon. DeFazio said Oregon will get better highways, repaired bridges and ports dredged to ease commerce. He said in a press briefing last week that passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act […]