Category Government
Legislature week 3: Here’s what’s moving. Here’s what’s been spiked
Oregon State Capitol, rotunda (Salem Reporter/file) As the 2020 Legislature enters its third week, a second hurdle for bills to keep moving ahead came and went. Thursday, Feb. 13, was the last day for a bill to be scheduled for a vote in the legislative…
Wildfire bills moving forward, but will budgetary constraints extinguish their momentum?
Two bills being considered by Oregon lawmakers this session are expected to be the one-two punch the state needs to considerably reduce the impact of wildfire on its landscape and citizens. In recent years, the onslaught of smoke from major wildfires has choked many parts…
Old wounds of Oregon’s timber wars take first step toward healing
Sen. Jeff Golden and Sen. Herman Baertschiger, chair and vice chair of the Senate Committee on Wildfire Response, have differing views of a new state timber deal. (Sam Stites/Oregon Capital Bureau) SALEM – The deal announced last week was intended to end the war in…
Facing reluctant lawmakers, legislation granting tax credits to Oregon’s waste-to-energy facility is uncertain
Covanta Marion, a trash incinerator in Brooks, burns roughly 170,000 tons of garbage every year. (Troy Brynelson/Salem Reporter) Special legislation Marion County says it needs to keep the Brooks waste-incineration facility operating and garbage rates from rising has stalled. House Bill 4049 would have made…
A key bill would give cities a lifeline on homelessness. But one provision has some worried
People camp downtown, along the former home of Nordstrom. (Troy Brynelson/Salem Reporter) Oregon cities struggling with homelessness are expected to be one of the biggest beneficiaries under legislation sponsored by House Speaker Tina Kotek. But not every city official fully supports the idea, some worrying…
Apartment development to become easier under city code changes
Salem wants to make it easier to build apartments and other multifamily homes. Changes aimed at accomplishing that were announced last year, and the Salem City Council is expected to vote on them later this month. “The main goal is to help Salem meet its…
Legislature week 2: What’s still moving, what’s been spiked
The Oregon State Capitol. (Saphara Harrell/Salem Reporter) SALEM —The first major deadline of this year’s legislative session hit the Capitol on Friday, Feb. 7. Legislation that hadn’t been scheduled by that day for a committee vote was headed for the political dustbin. These proposals may…
Wanting more input, lawmakers drop legislation concerning threats to churches and schools
Students at memorial fence following the 1998 shooting at Thurston High School in Springfield, Oregon. (Courtesy/Wikimedia Commons) The Oregon Legislature has abandoned a bill that would create the new crime of threatening a school or house of worship. In response to concerns from community organizations,…
Audit: State tourism agency should be more transparent about managers’ pay, strengthen contracting controls
Oregon Caves Cascade, one of Oregon’s many tourist destinations. (Courtesy/Wikimedia Commons) SALEM — The semi-independent Oregon agency overseeing tourism initiatives should be more transparent about managers’ pay and strengthen controls on contracting, Secretary of State Bev Clarno said in an audit report released Thursday. The…