Giving Malheur County children and their sruggling families a chance at a more normal life could happen with a state program not yet operating in eastern Oregon for lack of funding.
Around Oregon
Malheur County building official investigated over private contract
Malheur County’s top building official is under a state ethics investigation over her sideline private business.
PHOTO GALLERY: Oregon lawmakers take on Malheur County tour
Malheur County got attention from legislators who came from around the state for tours and meetings, focused largely on the local economy.
Governor declares statewide emergency in face of wildfire risks
SALEM – Gov. Kate Brown has declared a state of emergency for the entire state “due to the imminent and ongoing threat of wildfire.” Brown authorized the declaration Saturday night as a wildfire threatened homes in southern Oregon near the community of Galice. The declaration clears state agencies to suspend[Read More…]
Board fires head of Oregon’s public defense agency
A state board fired the head of Oregon’s state public defense agency Thursday, just eight months into his tenure and amid an ongoing public defender shortage that has left hundreds of Oregonians waiting for legal representation. It was the second time in the past week that the Public Defense Services[Read More…]
After a decade of work, Wyden seizes opening to advance climate change funding
The moment for U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden came after a decade of politics and patience, seasoned with science. The U.S. Senate on a Sunday afternoon in early August passed what has been described as the country’s largest investment in efficient energy. Wyden had nursed along his Clean Energy for America[Read More…]
Christine Drazan, Republican candidate for governor, pledges attention to rural Oregon
Christine Drazan, Republican nominee for Oregon governor, brought her campaign to Malheur County on Tuesday, Aug. 16, getting a warm welcome from local leaders.
Political center calls Oregon governor’s race a toss-up
The University of Virginia’s nonpartisan Center for Politics this week called the Oregon governor’s race a toss-up, despite the state’s leaning toward Democrats in recent decades.
Betsy Johnson hired petition circulators from Craigslist to qualify for Oregon governor race
Betsy Johnson has counted on her “Betsy Brigades,” groups of volunteers circulating petitions, to gather the nearly 24,000 signatures she needs as a nonaffiliated gubernatorial candidate to make it on the November ballot. But she also paid a Washington-based signature gathering firm more than $200,000 to collect signatures for her[Read More…]
Oregon schools lean heavily on emergency teachers, including untrained ones
Struggling with staffing shortages exacerbated by the pandemic, Oregon schools leaned heavily last year on teachers who received emergency licenses from the state. During the 2021-22 school year, districts employed 438 emergency licensed teachers, up from 181 the year prior and a low of 134 five years ago, according to[Read More…]
