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Oregon News
2026 ELECTION
Petition to ban hunting and fishing in Oregon gains momentum with 125,000 signatures
KOIN 6 | By Amanda Rhoades
A petition to ban hunting in Oregon is starting to look like it could end up on the November ballot.
The People for the Elimination of Animal Cruelty Exemptions Act, or PEACE Act, currently has more than 125,000 signatures in support of the measure, exceeding the 117,173 required to be added to the ballot.
Proposal to ban hunting, fishing in Oregon met with backlash
Fox News
A controversial Oregon initiative seeking to ban hunting and fishing advances, drawing criticism from Democratic State Senator Anthony Broadman who highlights economic harm and conservation concerns. The proposal, part of a new animal cruelty law, has surpassed 120,000 signatures.
POLITICS
After Oregonians reject gas tax, governor’s transportation workgroup fixates on messaging, not math
Oregon Capital Chronicle | By Alex Baumhardt
In their first meeting since Oregon voters rejected a gas and payroll tax increase to pay for roads and transit services, Gov. Tina Kotek’s transportation workgroup seemed less focused on finding new funding mechanisms for the state’s beleaguered transportation agency than the agency’s perceived marketing failures.
Oregon Coastal Caucus asks DEQ to dial down regulatory pressures on Pacific Seafood
OPB | By Alejandro Figueroa
A bipartisan group of Oregon lawmakers is asking state environmental regulators to pump the brakes on enforcing a set of civil fines against Pacific Seafood while the company appeals.
Oregon governor halts undercover license plates for ICE
The Hill | By Tara Suter
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek (D) has halted Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) ability to acquire undercover license plates.
According to a release from her press office, the Oregon Driver and Motor Vehicles Service (DMV) was ordered by Kotek on Saturday to halt the issuance of undercover license plates for ICE.
“By denying undercover license plates to DHS components, including ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement], while issuing them to their own state agencies, these governors are pursuing discriminatory and obstructionist policies against federal law enforcement,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a prior statement.
“These actions undermine federal immigration enforcement, allow dangerous criminals to escape justice, and terrorize American communities,” he added.
Is migration into Oregon cooling again? Driver’s license data suggests a slowdown
The Oregonian | By Mike Rogoway
When people move to a new part of the country, one thing that binds them to their new home is when they give up their old driver’s licenses and exchange them for IDs in their new states.
About 88,000 people did that in Oregon last year. The numbers provide an important clue about the state’s future, since Oregon’s economy is dependent on in-migration to offset the effects of an aging workforce.
The latest numbers aren’t terribly encouraging. Though they’re generally in line with historical levels, the number of migrants receiving their first Oregon driver’s license has fallen in each of the last two years and hit a five-year low in 2025.
Oregon’s population growth stalled in the pandemic’s aftermath, generating great consternation among the state’s political leaders and economists. But declining migration into the state wasn’t the chief reason for the slowdown.
Instead, Oregon is coping with demographic challenges — more residents die each year than are born here. And the state is dealing with an uptick in exits as Oregonians move to other states.
'Illegal' and 'unnecessary': Oregon, Washington leaders decry USPS ballot proposal
KOIN 6 | By Michaela Bourgeois
Oregon and Washington election officials are speaking out against a proposed rule change from the United States Postal Service, which could impact how ballots are handled in the mail.
On Friday, USPS issued a proposed rule change, that would amend its Domestic Mail Manual and the agency’s guidelines for handling mail-in and absentee ballots for federal elections.
Oregon files appeal against FEMA for denied disaster mitigation funds after winter storms
KOIN 6 | By Michaela Bourgeois
After the Trump administration denied Oregon a grant to help recover from severe December storm damage, the state is appealing the decision in hopes of receiving the critical funds.
Vaccination rates for Oregon students hit record low, outbreak risk grows
Statesman Journal | By Tracy Loew
Vaccination rates for Oregon students hit a new low this school year, while nonmedical vaccine exemptions have reached a new high, the Oregon Health Authority has reported.
Oregon Leads in Democracy but Falls Behind in Mental Health, Report Finds
Willamette Week | By Ila Bell
Researchers analyzed more than three decades of data, evaluating all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Trans-identifying cyclist wins two Oregon women’s races by combined 48 minutes under OBRA rules
Fox News | By Dan Zaksheske
A trans-identifying biological male cyclist won two Oregon women’s mountain bike races in an eight-day span, including one by more than 36 minutes.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
PacificSource lays off 97 Oregon workers
Eugene Register-Guard | By Hannarose McGuinness
Ninety-seven Oregon employees will be permanently laid off, effective July 31, according to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification issued May 29. Workers from the Springfield headquarters, Salem, Portland and Bend are impacted.
Popular Portland ice cream company in talks to be acquired
KOIN 6 | By Amanda Rhoades
A local ice cream company may soon be changing hands.
Portland-based Salt & Straw is in talks to explore a sale of the company to investment bank Piper Sander, as first reported by Reuters.
PUBLIC SAFETY
Court order forces early release of mentally unstable individuals charged with rape and murder
Marion County News
On Monday afternoon, a federal judge granted a Disability Rights Oregon (DRO) motion to exclude many criminally-charged individuals from the Oregon State Hospital in the ongoing Mink/Bowman case, which will force early release of mentally unstable individuals charged with serious Measure 11 crimes like rape, murder, kidnapping, assault, and robbery.
“During the past few years, these federal judge decisions continue to erode public safety in our community and deny treatment to mental health patients,” said Commissioner Kevin Cameron. “Releasing these individuals before stabilization will not benefit them or our community.”
Judge places new limits on who can be admitted to Oregon State Hospital
The Oregonian | By Maxine Bernstein
A federal judge has ordered further restrictions on admissions to Oregon’s state-run psychiatric hospital.
U.S. District Judge Adrienne Nelson’s order Monday also places limits on extensions of a patient’s stay, except for those facing Measure 11 crimes.
3 victims identified in Sandy shooting
The Oregonian | By Mary Mooney
Court records have identified the three people who were killed Sunday in the shooting in Sandy.
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