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Oregon News
Kotek signs bill moving Oregon gas tax referendum vote to May
Statesman Journal | By Anastasia Mason
Gov. Tina Kotek signed Senate Bill 1599 March 2, moving the date of a gas tax referendum vote from November to May.
The governor signed the bill about three hours after it passed the House.
Oregon Legislature passes bill moving gas tax referendum from November to May, Gov. signs
KATU | By Vasili Varlamos
With Kotek signing the bill into law, Oregon voters will decide the fate of the transportation funding package in the May primary instead of in November.
Republicans have floated the idea of legal action if the bill is signed and the referendum is moved.
Bill to move up Oregon gas tax vote signed by Gov. Kotek
KPTV | By Mikhala Armstrong
Oregonians may be voting on tax increases for transportation funding sooner than later.
A controversial bill was passed in the Oregon House on Monday, which would move the tax referendum vote to the May primary instead of the November ballot.
Governor Kotek has already signed the bill into law, just hours after it passed by a 31-20 vote, with a handful of Democrats voting against it along with Republicans.
With Kotek’s approval, SB 1599 sets the referendum vote for May 19th, unless legal action is taken.
Oregon gas tax vote moving to May after House Democrats pass bill
Statesman Journal | By Anastasia Mason
Oregonians will vote on increases to the gas tax and other transportation costs in May, not November, after Oregon House Democrats passed a bill March 2 to change the date.
Oregon gas tax vote is moving to May, as Democrats OK election change
OPB | By Dirk VanderHart
Oregon’s gas-tax reckoning is about to arrive six months early — at least, if the courts don’t intervene.
The state House of Representatives gave final approval Monday to Senate Bill 1599, the most hotly-debated bill of this year’s session. By a 31-20 vote, the chamber approved speeding up a public decision on hikes to the state’s gas tax and some transportation related fees.
Oregon bill to move gas tax referendum heads to governor’s desk
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Mia Maldonado
Once signed into law, Senate Bill 1599 would move date Oregonians can vote on gas tax and transportation fee hikes.
Oregon would temporarily bar expanded tax benefits for data centers under changes to governor’s bill
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Alex Baumhardt
The governor’s economic stimulus bill expanding property tax exemptions in standard enterprise zones has been criticized as a boon for data centers.
Oregon Senate moves to penalize landlords divulging citizenship status, private information
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Shaanth Nanguneri
Oregon tenants whose landlords leak confidential information such as their immigration status or medical records could soon have a pathway to collect up to twice their monthly rent as a form of recourse.
Under House Bill 4123, passed by the Oregon Senate on Monday by a 24-3 vote, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle moved to strengthen existing protections for immigrants without permanent legal status that the Oregon Legislature enacted last year.
Legislature passes bill to protect immigrants at Oregon hospitals
Statesman Journal | By Dianne Lugo
A bill directing health care facilities to outline federal immigration agents’ access to their premises is heading to Gov. Tina Kotek's desk after the Oregon House passed Senate Bill 1570 on March 2.
Bill passes to require Oregon schools, colleges to send ICE alerts
Statesman Journal | By Tracy Loew
The Oregon Legislature has passed a bill strengthening protections for students and families at school.
House Bill 4079 requires public schools and colleges to adopt policies for providing notice when federal immigration authorities enter school property for enforcement purposes.
Oregon’s historic tribal-state wildlife area plans have fallen apart
The Oregonian | By Jamie Hale
A historic tribal-state collaboration in eastern Oregon has officially stalled out.
The proposed Qapqápa Wildlife Area (pronounced cop-COP-a), which would encompass 11,438 acres about 10 miles southwest of La Grande. Plans called for the wildlife area to be jointly managed by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, a collaboration that would have been the first of its kind in Oregon.
Labor Secretary Chavez-DeRemer’s staffers forced out amid misconduct investigation
KOIN 6 | By Andrew Foran
Two aides to Labor Secretary and former Oregon congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer were forced to resign amid an investigation into alleged misconduct, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.
Citing people familiar with the situation, the New York Times claimed that Chavez-DeRemer’s chief of staff, Jihun Han, and deputy chief of staff Rebecca Wright were both given 24 hours to resign after the White House told the Labor Department.
Portland quietly pays bureau director $115K to resign
The Oregonian | By Shane Dixon Kavanaugh
The head of Portland’s Bureau of Emergency Management accepted a six-figure severance to resign from his post last month, records obtained by The Oregonian/OregonLive show.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Downtown Portland Marriott sells at 63% discount
Portland Business Journal | By Sara Edwards
The Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront hotel sold for $30 million to a buyer linked to New York-based asset manager Sculptor.
The hotel’s distress was not in isolation. Following the pandemic, the Portland hotel market experienced a difficult and distressed period, particularly downtown.
A report from earlier this year revealed overall revenue for hotels in 2023 had yet to surpass pre-pandemic levels. Revenue had declined nearly 38% from 2018 to 2023.
HOUSING
Portland says new housing incentive program is working, yet data is inconclusive
OPB | By Alex Zielinski
Portland’s attempt to incentivize housing construction is beginning to pay off – maybe.
In a memo sent to Portland city councilors on Friday, city officials said the city “is seeing some promising results” in the first five months of a new program that temporarily waives certain fees developers are required to pay to build in city limits.
Portland Offers $1,000 to Homeowners Who Rent Spare Rooms for 12 Months
Willamette Week | By Sophie Peel
Mayor Wilson is asking homeowners to rent rooms on the cheap in the homes they currently occupy.
CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY
Docs: 'Cross dressing man' with blood stained beard gropes woman at Portland market
KATU | By Jeff Kirsch
A woman told police she had just exited a food cart on the property to enter the market when she noticed a man with a bloodied beard wearing a dress watching her. As she walked past him, he grabbed her buttocks with both hands and then ran away.
2026 ELECTION
Oregon’s largest teachers union will not endorse any current candidates for governor
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Alex Baumhardt
Members of Oregon’s largest teachers union will not endorse any of the current candidates for governor, including incumbent Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek.
Angela Bonilla, president of the Portland Association of Teachers, said in an email that she would wait to say more until the statewide union releases a statement.
“I can tell you anecdotally that I have not talked to a single educator who plans to vote for Kotek due to her poor record on education,” she added.
‘Continue the fight’: Oregon Congresswoman Janelle Bynum launches re-election campaign
KOIN 6 | By Michaela Bourgeois
First-term Democratic Congresswoman Janelle Bynum is running for re-election, citing her fight to address livability concerns for Oregonians and challenging the Republican majority in Congress.
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