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Oregon News
2026 ELECTION
Editorial endorsement May 2026: Vote ‘no’ on Measure 120 and set the stage for a new transportation funding deal
The Oregonian Editorial Board
Voters should vote “no” on Measure 120 and drive a stake through the heart of this cursed transportation package. Once this goes down, leaders must immediately get to work fashioning a true compromise that addresses the increasingly urgent road and infrastructure hazards threatening people’s safety and damaging our economy.
What Republican candidates for Oregon governor say they would prioritize if elected
The Oregonian | By Carlos Fuentes
As primary ballots are mailed out to Oregonians this week, the leading Republican candidates for governor have continued campaigning in the hopes of upsetting Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek this fall.
Danielle Bethell knows she’s the long shot candidate for Oregon governor
OPB | By Lauren Dake
But Bethell is certain she could run the state better than the other GOP candidates and square off with Democrat Gov. Tina Kotek.
No new fees without citizen input, Oregon town's residents say
Statesman Journal | By Bill Poehler
A group from Dallas has filed a ballot measure to prevent the city council from enacting fees unless voters approve them.
Data center politics could sway some Oregon elections
The Oregonian | By Mike Rogoway
The mammoth data halls rising out of the ground all across Oregon are intruding into this spring’s election cycle as candidates decry tech companies’ prodigious consumption of water, power and land.
Salem mayor, city council races on track to smash fundraising records
Statesman Journal | By Whitney Woodworth
The 2026 races for mayor and Salem City Council are on track to smash previous fundraising records in the May 19 primary election with hundreds of thousands of dollars funding campaigns for the unpaid, nonpartisan volunteer positions.
POLITICS
Oregon group tasked with creating new transportation solution meets for first time
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Mia Maldonado
It’s been almost a year since state lawmakers met in Salem for a six-month legislative session and failed to update the Oregon Department of Transportation’s revenue streams.
That legislative session resulted in two failed attempts to pass transportation funding bills, followed by a special session months later, when Democrats finally had the votes needed to pass a transportation package. But that package was so unpopular that nearly 250,000 Oregonians signed a petition to block several tax and fee hikes included in the law until a statewide vote. That vote is scheduled for the May 19 primary election.
That’s the situation state transportation leaders outlined Friday to a panel of experts tasked with finding a solution to Oregon’s transportation funding crisis.
Gov. Tina Kotek said she has a lot of confidence in the 12-member workgroup she convened, which includes longtime-transportation and business experts.
“We all depend on a reliable transportation system, and frankly, our system here in Oregon is showing its age and we have work to do,” Kotek told the group at its first Friday meeting at transportation department headquarters in Salem.”I believe we’re losing out on economic development in our state because we don’t have the consistency and certainty that we need.”
The workgroup set goals to find a sustainable solution to fund the state’s transportation needs while also keeping drivers safe, supporting transportation systems that strengthen the state’s economy, investing in transportation for all Oregonians and recognizing the unique transportation needs of rural and urban Oregonians.
He asked for help with chronic camps outside his home. Portland cracked down on his hedge instead
The Oregonian | By Shane Dixon Kavanaugh
Chris Bolton had spent months bugging the city of Portland about the latest batch of tents and trailers set up along the sides of his giant laurel hedge on the corner of Southeast Clinton Street and 89th Avenue. Over time, he said, the leafy green shrubs had grown to shield his home from the area’s persistent problems.
So Bolton was utterly baffled when an employee with the Portland Bureau of Transportation showed up in early December with no intention to remove the RVs he had repeatedly reported. Instead, the worker warned Bolton that his hedge had inched too far into the public right of way — which had no sidewalk or buffer — and would impede a planned stop sign at the intersection.
Oregon AG Rayfield, Gov. Kotek open to updating sanctuary laws after Marion County courthouse arrest
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Shaanth Nanguneri
Other states have considered or given their attorneys general more power to enforce bans on courthouse arrests by immigration agents.
Sanctuary plan for OHSU’s controversial primate research center faces uphill battle
The Oregonian | By Kristine de Leon
OHSU has begun formal talks about turning the nation’s largest publicly funded primate research center into a sanctuary for its experimental subjects but it’s not clear if that leading idea for the controversial facility’s future can make the cut.
Portland Mayor Keith Wilson lays out his budget priorities
OPB | By Rolando Hernandez
The City of Portland is facing a $172 million budget shortfall for various reasons, including declining tax revenue, inflation, expiration of pandemic-era funds and increased healthcare costs. Mayor Keith Wilson shared a proposal last week that would cut nearly 150 jobs and make cuts to public safety, parks, transportation and resources for people experiencing homelessness. Mayor Wilson has said this has been one of the hardest things he’s done in his career. He joins us now to share more on his budget proposal and the financial future of the city.
A shooting in Oregon could reshape social media privacy
OPB | By Troy Brynelson
Defense attorneys are pressing the parent company of Instagram and Facebook to turn over social media messages that could prove their client acted in self-defense.
CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY
Person found dead in vehicle with evidence of explosive device after crash into Oregon health club, police say
Associated Press
One person is dead following a fiery crash at a health club early Saturday in Portland, Oregon, and evidence of an explosive device was found in the vehicle, police said.
MAC attack suspect lost guns under Oregon 'red flag' law
The Oregonian | By Noelle Crombie, Austin De Dios
Oregon’s extreme risk protection order law, also known as the “red flag” gun law, is one of the least-used protective orders in the state, according to a 2023 state report.
Salem man charged in running stash house to distribute meth, fentanyl
Statesman Journal | By Bill Poehler
A man living in Salem was one of eight people charged with transporting methamphetamine and fentanyl into the United States from Mexico and distributing it from stash houses to customers in Oregon.
District attorney warns proposed budget cuts could undermine recent declines in violent crime
KGW | By Tim Gordon
Multnomah County DA Nathan Vasquez said the proposed reductions to his office would be historic and could carry significant consequences for the community.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Is Oregon’s layoff binge over?
The Oregonian | By Mike Rogoway
Oregon’s jobless rate surged over the past two years as big layoffs at many of the state’s biggest employers — Intel, Nike and OHSU, among others — eliminated more than 14,000 positions. The pace of job cuts topped the worst days of the Great Recession.
Over the past several months, though, the number of layoffs has slowed considerably. And Oregon’s unemployment rate has stabilized, holding steady for nearly a year.
EDUCATION
What We Learned After Obtaining the Latest School Attendance Numbers
Willamette Week | By Khushboo Rathore, James Neff
After years in the lowest ranks of school attendance in the nation, Oregon schools have shown a bit of progress. An Oregon Journalism Project analysis of recent data shows regular statewide attendance in the first half of the school year rose to 70.6%, an increase of 3 percentage points over the previous year.
Even so, nearly a third of Oregon students were still chronically absent, meaning they missed at least 10% of school days, or about two days a month.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT
24 new EV charging stations planned across Oregon
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Mia Maldonado
Oregon is adding 24 more fast-charging electric vehicle stations across its major highways, with some expected to come online as soon as next year.
National News
Supreme Court restores temporary access to Mifepristone, blocking appeals court ruling
KATU National Desk
The Supreme Court ruled to restore broad access to the abortion pill Mifepristone on Monday. The ruling blocks a previous one that threatened to upend a major avenue for abortion that is provided across the country.
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