Category Government
Legislation introduced to advance deal between timber and environmental interests
Greg Miller (right), representative of the coalition of timber companies that signed the deal with conservation groups, presents HB 4168 to members of the House Rules Committee Thursday, Feb. 20. (Sam Stites/Oregon Capital Bureau) The fate of the landmark deal signed between a coalition of…
The Legislature’s greenhouse gas reduction bill has been the session’s most complex and contentious legislation. Here’s what it means
Senate Bill 1530 has been the most argued about legislation of the 2020 legislative session. Sen. Michael Dembrow, the bill’s chief architect, speaks during a hearing of the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural Resources while Sen. Alan Olsen, R-Canby, listens. (Sam Stites/Oregon Capital Bureau).…
A bill seeking to crack down on masked rioters draws concerns over free speech and privacy
An anti-fascist counterprotester at a Patriot Prayer rally. (Courtesy/Wikimedia Commons) Legislation targeting mask-wearing rioters has drawn criticism from a coalition of civil rights and community organizations that say it’ll have a chilling effect on protests while setting the state back on its efforts to halt…
Salem mayor pushes for ‘sit-lie’ in the face of increasing uproar over homeless problem downtown
Mayor Chuck Bennett responds to questions from the a crowd of neighbors at Pringle Community Hall. The city scrapped plans to turn the hall into an emergency homeless shelter last month. (Troy Brynelson/Salem Reporter) Each day Mayor Chuck Bennett opens his electronic inbox to a…
Improvements to helping Oregon’s mentally ill defendants advancing
Oregon State Hospital in Salem, Oregon. Oregon’s judges would have more options to help criminal defendants found unfit to stand trial should legislation approved 26-4 by the Senate earlier this week be passed in the House. Senate Bill 1575 makes fixes to legislation passed last…
Brown asks legislature to fund $7.5 million in earthquake early warning system build out
Prof. Doug Toomey is one of the foremost seismologists on the west coast and oversees the University of Oregon’s ShakeAlert program (Courtesy/University of Oregon) Oregon would prepare 250,000 households to become self-sufficient following a catastrophic earthquake under legislation advancing in Salem. The legislation, Senate Bill…
A House divided as Republicans take a walk, stalling legislative action
Republicans in the Oregon House stayed away during a Tuesday evening floor action, insisting the 35-day legislative session was moving too fast. (Sam Stites/Oregon Capital Bureau) SALEM — Republican legislators on Tuesday put the brakes on the Oregon Legislature, disrupting an evening session of the…
Salem library packed as new location opens
The Salem Public Library’s new location on Northeast Broadway St. was full two hours after it first opened on Tuesday, Feb. 18. (Saphara Harrell/Salem Reporter) After a brief hiatus, the Salem Public Library re-opened its doors at its temporary location on 1400 Broadway St. N.E.…
How local legislators are faring in the current legislative session
Oregon State Capitol (Caleb Wolf/Special to Salem Reporter) Efforts by local lawmakers to help laid-off agricultural workers, get student-athletes paid and regulate a plant from Southeast Asia are still alive in the 2020 Legislature. But their other bills that would help homeschooled kids get into…