Oregon Republican pulls support from bill restricting National Guard deployment
An Oregon Republican who backed a Democrat-led bill restricting the deployment of the state’s National Guard and other states’ troops to Oregon has revoked his support. Rep. Alek Skarlatos, R-Winston and a member of the House Emergency Management and Veterans Committee, was listed as a sponsor of House Bill 4091…
Oregon anti-hunger advocates push for food bank funding, school meals
After failing in recent years to convince the Oregon Legislature to extend food benefits to tens of thousands of immigrants, an anti-hunger coalition is narrowing its scope this year to addressing coming cuts to federal…
Parents, educators, workers ask Oregon lawmakers to separate from federal tax code
As Oregon lawmakers weigh how to balance the state’s budget, hundreds of Oregonians visited the Capitol to plead with them not to cut funding for public defense, career and technical education and kids with disabilities. …
Targeting debunked forensics, Oregon lawmakers propose narrowed wrongful conviction bill
Less than a year after a bipartisan bill to streamline the payout process for exonerated Oregonians stalled, Oregon lawmakers are trying their hand at a narrower piece of legislation. Senate Bill 1515, sponsored by the Senate Judiciary Committee, aims to…
Understanding the Oregon Legislature: How laws get passed — and how to participate
Whether you’re wondering when the state will finally fix that pothole, whether new restrictions on artificial intelligence are coming or if tips will be taxed despite new federal policies, what happens at the Oregon Capitol has impacts on all Oregonians. …
U.S. Rep. Maxine Dexter to travel to Texas to visit detained Oregon child and family
U.S. Rep. Maxine Dexter will travel to Texas to visit the family detained by federal immigration agents in January in Portland while seeking health care for their 7-year-old daughter. Yohendry de Jesús Crespo Álvarez, 40, and his wife Darianny Liseth…
Oregon lawmakers begin session as transportation, federal policy fights loom
Oregon lawmakers opened the 2026 legislative session Monday with a clear rift between Democrats and Republicans over how best to spend their time sprinting to the finish line of the 35-day short legislative session. That work began in the newly…
Leaving it up to the locals impedes Oregon’s much-needed reading recovery
When it comes to education, Oregonians cherish local control. Yet increasingly, experts say local control is one reason so many Oregon kids can’t read. Over the past decade, as the Oregon Journalism Project has previously reported, the state’s fourth grade…
Homeless Oregon youth got $1,000 a month for two years — most found housing after
Direct cash assistance from the state is helping homeless Oregon youth find housing, according to the results of a pilot program that concluded last year. In February 2023, the Youth Experiencing Homelessness Program at the Oregon Department of Human Services…
Vice chair of Oregon Senate Housing Committee seeks prevailing wage reforms
When the Oregon Legislature convenes for the 2026 session on Feb. 2, the Senate’s No. 2 leader on housing and development will introduce legislation to make small but significant changes to Oregon’s prevailing wage laws. Sen. Dick Anderson (R-Lincoln City)…
Should Oregon water down a bill to ban officers from wearing masks? Democrats are divided
Two powerful Oregon Democrats are cautioning against lawsuits the state could run into as lawmakers attempt to regulate the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, pitting them against activists eager to fight in court to prevent federal agents from covering their faces.…
Transportation, education and juvenile justice: Oregon SOS reveals new audits for the year
Oregon’s beleaguered Department of Transportation, education funding for local school districts, the Oregon State Capitol’s seismic rehabilitation project and parole for youth involved in the juvenile justice system are among the state agencies and programs slated for audits in the…
Oregon implements new rules for crab fishers to reduce whale deaths
The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is implementing temporary rule changes for Dungeness crab fishers in the 2025-26 season to restrict gear and areas where fishing can occur. Beginning April 1, crab fishers must comply with late-season whale entanglement…
Read says there’s enough time to put gas tax repeal measure on May ballot — barely
Secretary of State Tobias Read released a memo Wednesday outlining what Democrats must do to place a controversial gas tax repeal on the May 19 ballot. All the necessary elements of the measure, Read’s staff found, “must be received by…
Fewer immigrants are seeking Oregon health care benefits under Trump
Thousands fewer people are receiving health care through a Medicaid-like Oregon program that’s open to income-eligible people regardless of immigration status than were six months ago, state data shows. Two years after its launch, the Healthier Oregon program reached peak…
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