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SNAP recipients sue over cuts on sugary products
CNN
A group of food stamp recipients is suing the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Five people filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the USDA over restrictions in their five states that ban recipients from buying sugary drinks, candy or prepared desserts.
Oregon News
Oregon gas prices climb 30 cents, among the most expensive in the US
The Oregonian | By Veronica Nocera
Gas prices in Oregon leaped 30 cents in the past week alone, and they don’t seem to be slowing anytime soon.
As of Wednesday, Oregon is the fifth most expensive gas market in the U.S. Washington was at No. 2 with a $4.72 average.
POLITICS
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek’s order requiring union work on state projects is ruled illegal
OPB | By Dirk VanderHart
A controversial order by Gov. Tina Kotek requiring union labor on many state construction projects is unconstitutional, a Marion County judge found Thursday.
Ruling from the bench, Marion County Judge Thomas Hart found that Kotek had overstepped her authority when issuing EO 24-31, which critics argued would hike the cost of state projects.
An attorney for plaintiffs in the case, a coalition of construction firms, told OPB a formal order would land in coming weeks. The Oregon Department of Justice, which represented the governor, said it was considering its options.
“I continue to believe that this was the right policy for the state at the right time,” Kotek said in a statement to OPB. “I am resolved to continue to find pathways to encourage fair, living wage jobs that meet the needs of Oregon families while our state grows.”
An iconic Oregon waterfall was put up for sale on Redfin. Lawmakers approved the money to buy it
Associated Press | By Claire Rush
The state of Oregon may soon have some new public property: A spectacular waterfall, beloved by generations, that was recently put up for sale on Redfin.
Abiqua Falls — known for its 92-foot (28-meter) vertical drop over a columnar basalt cliff — has been privately owned for over a century but open to the public. Its owner, a nonprofit that supports a community of Benedictine monks, put it on the market earlier this year.
The listing worried fans of the natural wonder. But at the tail end of the legislative session this month, a bipartisan group of lawmakers stepped in and approved $2.1 million to buy the falls and its surrounding land.
In a statement, Republican state Sen. Fred Girod, whose district includes the waterfall, said “Oregon is pledging that Abiqua Falls will continue to be protected and accessible for generations to come.”
The foundation put the property up for open auction in early February, meaning there was no minimum or maximum bid, she said. It accepted the offer the state made under the bill that passed.
ODOT's Abernethy Bridge project, already well behind schedule and over budget, is falling further behind
KGW | By Jamie Parfitt, Colton Weekley
The project's contractor is now offering a January 2028 completion date, ODOT officials told the Oregon Transportation Commission on Thursday.
Portland lawmakers want to raise wages for ride-hailing drivers; Uber says proposal could chase it out of town
The Oregonian | By Shane Dixon Kavanaugh, Mike Rogoway
Portland lawmakers are pursuing a measure they hope will boost wages for Uber and Lyft drivers by restricting how much the ride-hailing companies can collect on passenger trips. Those companies fiercely oppose the proposal and warn it could trigger a big increase in their prices; Uber says it might leave the city altogether.
The brewing fight is the latest chapter in years of bad blood between Portland officials and the ride-hailing giants, which date back to Uber’s contentious 2014 arrival in the city. Just last year, Portland slapped a $2-per-ride fee on such companies — one of the highest such fees anywhere.
Now, a pair of city councilors propose capping the companies’ portion of any fare to 20% after fees, down from what Councilor Steve Novick’s office says is an average of about 40% and often significantly higher.
Under a new oversight tool for Oregon laws, legislators will help score their own work
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Shaanth Nanguneri
It’s not uncommon for Oregon lawmakers to consider public input when reviewing past legislation during each year’s legislative session in hopes of offering an update or technical fix.
This year in Salem, legislators strengthened protections for providers of reproductive and gender-affirming care, fortified Oregon’s first-in-the-nation immigrant protections and incorporated a slew of technical fixes to a complicated campaign finance law set to roll out in the next few years.
But a new tool aimed at improving outcomes, community engagement and oversight announced by House Majority Leader Ben Bowman, D-Tigard, ahead of the session seeks to establish a separate process for reviewing the efficacy of laws. The caveat? Lawmakers, not the public or their fellow legislators, would choose to revisit their own bills, allowing them to potentially pick laws that let them deliver fast, public-facing wins, rather than tackle complex or politically divisive issues.
The model is based on an outcomes review process from legislative leadership in California that began this year.
Marion County opens grand jury inquiry into Oregon State Hospital
Statesman Journal | By Anastasia Mason
Marion County District Attorney Paige Clarkson on March 13 announced a grand jury inquiry of conditions and management at Oregon State Hospital.
"Over the last several years, I have become increasingly concerned that the Oregon State Hospital cannot meet the challenge of the moment: appropriately responding to the growing need for intensive, hospital level of care for individuals whose diagnoses require civil commitment, restoration services, or secure levels of treatment for the safety of themselves and the public," Clarkson said in a statement. "We have an obligation to inquire into what is being done with an eye toward what more is needed."
After Trump called Portland ‘war-ravaged,’ ICE apprehensions near the city spiked 600%
OPB | By Troy Brynelson
Multnomah, Washington and Marion counties saw significant upticks as the Trump administration launched a crackdown.
Champions of Oregon foster children cheer $1 million award
The Oregonian | By Betsy Hammond
Champions of Oregon foster children cheered the official announcement Thursday that $1 million in federal funding is headed to the state’s network of court-appointed special advocates programs.
HOMELESSNESS
Nonprofit Shelter Provider Accused of Imprudent Spending Will Close Up Shop
Willamette Week | By Anthony Effinger
Sunstone Way, the nonprofit shelter provider that was sued by a whistleblower last month, plans to close July 1, blaming reduced government funding and rising costs.
2026 ELECTION
Which Oregon gubernatorial candidate has most campaign contributions?
Statesman Journal | By Anastasia Mason
After Dudley's $1 million donation from Knight, Oregon's richest resident, Kotek is the gubernatorial candidate with the next largest donation in 2026 — $150,000 from Building a Stronger West, a PAC backed by the Western States Regional Council of Carpenters.
The four candidates have each received at least one $100,000 contribution this year. Among the donors is Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, who contributed to Kotek's campaign.
Dudley also took a $100,000 loan from his family trust.
In 2026, Dudley has topped Kotek and his Republican opponents in fundraising.
But his campaign's cash balance falls behind both Kotek and Drazan, who have had longer to build up their contributions. That balance is the combined total of contributions and expenditures.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
McMenamins reveals a new hotel in big bet on downtown Portland
The Oregonian | By Jonathan Bach
McMenamins is ready to talk about its new downtown Portland hotel.
The eclectic Northwest hospitality chain said Thursday it will repurpose the former Taft Home low-income residences into a new hotel. Taft Home had closed in 2021 after state officials ordered its operators to undertake a set of fixes, according to reporting in Willamette Week, and the operators chose to close the residence and sell instead.
CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY
Teenagers ran fentanyl ring out of suburban Portland home, federal agents allege
The Oregonian | By Maxine Bernstein
Federal agents investigating a suspected fentanyl distribution network in Portland were surprised when they tracked down the alleged local leaders: two teenagers working out of a Tualatin home.
The two men arrested, cousins from Honduras, were recently sentenced to federal prison for selling fentanyl in Portland.
EDUCATION
For Portland Community College students, the fallout from ongoing strike is ‘visible everywhere’
The Oregonian | By Julia Silverman
For the first time in its history, Portland Community College staff, after months of protracted negotiations over salary and health care benefits, went on strike Wednesday morning. The college said campuses will operate remotely through the end of the strike. Students say they support their teachers, and are struggling with the attendant uncertainty.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
A proposed Willamette Valley solar park is still in the mix. Neighbors want to nix it
OPB | By Alejandro Figueroa
It’s been almost three years since a proposed solar park in Linn County met fierce pushback from local residents and farmers.
Now, after a long lull, there are signs the plan to install solar panels across more than a thousand acres of prime farmland could take shape.
There’s still no application, but recent meetings with energy regulators suggest the developers intend to move forward before their May 19 deadline.
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