State Library eClips
* Oregon’s tax system among fairest in country, survey claims
* Planned Parenthood: House Speaker Tina Kotek orders lawmaker to call off meeting
* Fear the deer? Ashland looks to solve problem of ‘aggressive’ animals
* Greater sage grouse protection rejected by federal government
* State police investigate inmate’s death at Coffee Creek prison
* Nestle critics expecting battle over anti-bottled water ballot initiative
* Oregon ranchers, environmentalists brace for sage grouse listing decision
* USDA, EPA want to cut food waste by 50 percent; some ask, ‘Where are the teeth?’
* Oregon tribes awarded nearly $3.3 million to fund police, crime victims, wellness programs
* Peter Courtney’s vanishing transportation credibility — Opinion
* Fetal tissue hearing canceled by House Democrats
* Bridge report highlights Oregon’s shaky infrastructure
* 3,000 trees to be cut down to save meadow on Marys Peak
* University of Oregon: A new campus sexual assault survey shows assault is as prevalent as previously reported
* U.S. rejects protections for greater sage grouse across West
* OSU gets $2.5 million grant to field test new solar technology
* DeFazio to host earthquake discussion Tuesday at UO
* Lane County home sales continue to rise rapidly
* Most Eugene-Springfield medical dispensaries plan to welcome recreational users when sales become legal Oct. 1
* Is Portland the next San Francisco?
* The way forward on homelessness — Guest Opinion
* Governors Brown, Inslee To Meet With Chinese Delegation
* Threemile Canyon general manager appointed to Oregon Ag Board
* PacifiCorp asks Oregon to ease green energy contract terms
* Between sessions, Hansell looks back, plans next bills
* Updated Pendleton transportation plan will consider walking, biking, riding
* Perennial Wind Chaser catches key permit
* ODOT: Interstate 5 exit 24’s link to downtown Phoenix to close this weekend
* Lost Creek dam failure would flood parts of Central Point, Gold Hill
* Income inequality and our community — Guest Opinion
* Green Peter Reservoir to dip under conservation level
* Prospects dim for transportation deal in 2016 — Opinion
* Brown seeks a narrow line on death penalty — Opinion
* State training rail inspectors in face of increased oil shipments
* Revenue Department aided in below-rate tax credit sales
* Oregon testing Medicaid enrollment system
* Brown resurrects transportation panel
* Children have right to protection — Guest Opinion
* Prescribed burn planned in Crook County
* Collaborate, don’t litigate, the problems on the Deschutes — Opinion
* Legal pot should not make all old pot crimes vanish — Opinion
* Troopers seek information on Panther Creek elk poaching
* 25 Oregon counties, cities ban marijuana businesses
* Half of Oregon’s 2,727 bridges need repair, but there isn’t money to pay for them
* Oregon picks up $450K to help companies find export markets– Blog
* How to build Portland without losing Portland– Blog
* Message From New ODOT Bridge Survey: Send Cash or World Will End– Blog
* Obesity Rate in Oregon Increases
* Feds still waging war on weed in Oregon
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OREGON’S TAX SYSTEM AMONG FAIREST IN COUNTRY, SURVEY CLAIMS (Portland Oregonian)
Oregon’s tax system is the subject of perennial grumbling among Oregonians, but a new national survey gives it high marks for fairness.
WalletHub, a personal finance site, found that only Montana had a fairer tax system as determined by a survey asking adult Americans to describe what level of taxation different income groups should have to pay.
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PLANNED PARENTHOOD: HOUSE SPEAKER TINA KOTEK ORDERS LAWMAKER TO CALL OFF MEETING (Portland Oregonian)
The controversy over Planned Parenthood and how it disposes of aborted fetuses landed in Oregon on Monday as a Democratic legislator abruptly canceled a hearing on the issue.
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FEAR THE DEER? ASHLAND LOOKS TO SOLVE PROBLEM OF ‘AGGRESSIVE’ ANIMALS (Portland Oregonian)
Ashland has a big, bad deer problem.
Boisterous bucks and disorderly does are reportedly picking fights with residents in this southern Oregon city of nearly 21,000, stalking the mayor, chasing a family down the sidewalk and in the rarest of instances stampeding a senior citizen in her carport.
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GREATER SAGE GROUSE PROTECTION REJECTED BY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT (Portland Oregonian)
The Interior Department said Tuesday that the greater sage grouse, a ground-dwelling bird whose vast range spans 11 Western states, does not need federal protections following a costly effort to reverse the species’ decline without reshaping the region’s economy.
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STATE POLICE INVESTIGATE INMATE’S DEATH AT COFFEE CREEK PRISON (Portland Oregonian)
A 46-year-old inmate was pronounced dead early Monday morning at the Coffee Creek Correctional Facility in Wilsonville.
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NESTLE CRITICS EXPECTING BATTLE OVER ANTI-BOTTLED WATER BALLOT INITIATIVE (Portland Oregonian)
A group of Hood River County residents want voters to decide whether the Nestle corporation should be allowed to bottle and sell water from the Columbia River Gorge.
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OREGON RANCHERS, ENVIRONMENTALISTS BRACE FOR SAGE GROUSE LISTING DECISION (Portland Oregonian)
The ranchers here gauge the status of Harney County’s greater sage grouse population by sight.
A family bobbing along on a hillside recently cleared of juniper trees.
A covey flushing to spook a horse and send its rider atumble.
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USDA, EPA WANT TO CUT FOOD WASTE BY 50 PERCENT; SOME ASK, ‘WHERE ARE THE TEETH?‘ (Portland Oregonian)
About 35 million pounds of food is wasted in the United States every year. Feds want to reduce that by 50 percent in 15 years.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture and Environmental Protection Agency announced the first national goal to reduce food waste.
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OREGON TRIBES AWARDED NEARLY $3.3 MILLION TO FUND POLICE, CRIME VICTIMS, WELLNESS PROGRAMS (Portland Oregonian)
The U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday that it has awarded nearly $3.3 million to improve public safety and help crime victims on five of Oregon’s Native American tribes.
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PETER COURTNEY’S VANISHING TRANSPORTATION CREDIBILITY — OPINION (Portland Oregonian)
How badly does Oregon need a funding package to maintain its transportation infrastructure? If the Legislature doesn’t get something done in 2017, Senate President Peter Courtney declared in a press release last week, “our bridges and our economy will collapse. … Our safety depends on it. Our economy depends on it. Our future depends on it.”
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FETAL TISSUE HEARING CANCELED BY HOUSE DEMOCRATS (Salem Statesman Journal)
he House Committee on Healthcare will not move forward with a request from House Republicans to hold a hearing to question Oregon Planned Parenthood officials in regard to allegations of illegal fetal-tissue sales.
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BRIDGE REPORT HIGHLIGHTS OREGON’S SHAKY INFRASTRUCTURE (Salem Statesman Journal)
Without more investment in Oregon’s bridges, they will suffer “significant deterioration” in the next two decades an Oregon Department of Transportation report released last week said.
Currently, 64 of Oregon’s bridges are structurally deficient, with 14 a year expected to be added to the list.
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3,000 TREES TO BE CUT DOWN TO SAVE MEADOW ON MARYS PEAK (Salem Statesman Journal)
In a state where lush forestlands are a source of pride, having too many trees is not often viewed as a problem.
Yet high on Marys Peak, the tallest mountain in the Coast Range, trees have become almost the enemy, viewed by preservationists and the U.S. Forest Service as an invading force worthy of death by axe.
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UNIVERSITY OF OREGON: A NEW CAMPUS SEXUAL ASSAULT SURVEY SHOWS ASSAULT IS AS PREVALENT AS PREVIOUSLY REPORTED (Eugene Register-Guard)
-24.2 percent of female students experienced sexual contact by physical force, threat of force or while incapacitated-
Results from a massive survey on campus rape and sexual misconduct undertaken at the University of Oregon and 26 other universities last spring confirmed that at least 1 in 5 women reported being assaulted during their university years.
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U.S. REJECTS PROTECTIONS FOR GREATER SAGE GROUSE ACROSS WEST (Eugene Register-Guard)
The Interior Department said Tuesday that the greater sage grouse, a ground-dwelling bird whose vast range spans 11 Western states, does not need federal protections following a costly effort to reverse the species decline without reshaping the regions economy.
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OSU GETS $2.5 MILLION GRANT TO FIELD TEST NEW SOLAR TECHNOLOGY (Eugene Register-Guard)
Oregon State University is getting national recognition and a grant for a pioneering technology aimed at bringing down the cost of producing electricity from sunlight and expanding the number of locations where it can be used.
OSU and its partners will receive $2.5 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to help them field test their microchannel technology.
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DEFAZIO TO HOST EARTHQUAKE DISCUSSION TUESDAY AT UO (Eugene Register-Guard)
U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio will host a roundtable policy discussion on Tuesday entitled Earthquake Early Warning in the Pacific Northwest: Preparing for the Big One.
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LANE COUNTY HOME SALES CONTINUE TO RISE RAPIDLY (Eugene Register-Guard)
Lane County home sales continued to climb at a double-digit rate in Lane County last month compared to August 2014, while prices crept up at a single-digit pace, according to figures from the Regional Multiple Listing Service.
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MOST EUGENE-SPRINGFIELD MEDICAL DISPENSARIES PLAN TO WELCOME RECREATIONAL USERS WHEN SALES BECOME LEGAL OCT. 1 (Eugene Register-Guard)
-But demand, supply, pricing and state regulations remain question marks-
Ronnie Schmidt is busy these days.
The general manager of Grateful Meds, a four-employee medical marijuana dispensary tucked inside Springfields Northgate Shopping Center, Schmidt has been traveling for months between Portland, Springfield and Southern Oregon as he and a group of investors race to help open a new chapter in a fledgling industry: recreational marijuana sales.
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IS PORTLAND THE NEXT SAN FRANCISCO? (Portland Tribune)
Three days after activists declared a state of emergency for Portland tenants, a panel of experts said increasing rents and no fault evictions are regional problems, but there are no quick or easy solutions.
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THE WAY FORWARD ON HOMELESSNESS — GUEST OPINION (Portland Tribune)
When it comes to homelessness, Portlanders are full of questions. Why are there so many people sleeping on our streets and in our parks? Have we unwittingly brought this upon ourselves? What can we do about it? The sense of urgency around these important questions as well as the political undertones that accompany them seems to be on the rise. So then, what to make of our homelessness crisis?
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GOVERNORS BROWN, INSLEE TO MEET WITH CHINESE DELEGATION (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
The governors of Oregon and Washington will be among a contingent in discussion with the president of China as he kicks off his state visit in the Pacific Northwest Tuesday.
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THREEMILE CANYON GENERAL MANAGER APPOINTED TO OREGON AG BOARD (Capital Press)
-Marty Myers, general manager of Threemile Canyon Farms, was appointed to the Oregon Board of Agriculture by Gov. Kate Brown.-
Marty Myers, the general manager of a diversified dairy and crop farm in Boardman, Ore., has been appointed to the Oregon Board of Agriculture.
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PACIFICORP ASKS OREGON TO EASE GREEN ENERGY CONTRACT TERMS (Capital Press)
-The company has asked the Oregon Public Utility Commission to lower contract terms for qualified renewable power generators from 15 years to three.-
The power company PacifiCorp is asking Oregon to change green power rules so as to reduce contract lengths and lower the amount of renewable power it is required to accept.
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BETWEEN SESSIONS, HANSELL LOOKS BACK, PLANS NEXT BILLS (East Oregonian)
-Sen. Bill Hansell R-Athena attended town hall meetings in Umatilla County Monday.-
As Sen. Bill Hansell R-Athena performs a final round of postmortems on the 2015 legislative session, he also has an eye on the future.
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UPDATED PENDLETON TRANSPORTATION PLAN WILL CONSIDER WALKING, BIKING, RIDING (East Oregonian)
Thousands of people drive Pendleton’s streets every day, but only a fraction of that number walk, bike or use mass transit around town.
The city aims to change that by updating its transportation system plan with a focus on those modes of transit.
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PERENNIAL WIND CHASER CATCHES KEY PERMIT (East Oregonian)
Oregon’s Energy Facility Siting Council has approved a natural gas-fired power plant in Hermiston designed to balance fickle wind power on the electrical grid.
The Perennial Wind Chaser Station received its site certificate from the council Friday in Boardman, though developers remain unsure when exactly they will be able to start construction.
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ODOT: INTERSTATE 5 EXIT 24’S LINK TO DOWNTOWN PHOENIX TO CLOSE THIS WEEKEND (Medford Mail Tribune)
Construction will close the the road linking Interstate 5’s exit 24 to downtown Phoenix this weekend.
The Oregon Department of Transportation reported the exit will remain open, but Luman Road which drivers can use to access Fern Valley Road, then Highway 99 will be closed from 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25, to 5 a.m. Monday, Sept. 28.
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LOST CREEK DAM FAILURE WOULD FLOOD PARTS OF CENTRAL POINT, GOLD HILL (Medford Mail Tribune)
Nicholas Broussard knows that living seven miles downstream of Lost Creek dam means that there is an ever-so-slight chance the dam could fail in an earthquake, inundating his home and most of Shady Cove.
Sure, the Rogue River would rise nearly 100 feet in three hours in Shady Cove, but at 10,000 to 1 that it could happen in any given year, the retired physician isn’t ready to head for the hills just yet.
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INCOME INEQUALITY AND OUR COMMUNITY — GUEST OPINION (Medford Mail Tribune)
The Mail Tribune article on the haves and have-nots Sept. 13 gives us an accurate description of increasing income inequality in Jackson County that reflects a trend in Oregon and the United States. What the article does not do is explain why as a community we should be concern about income inequality in Rogue Valley and what we can do about it.
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GREEN PETER RESERVOIR TO DIP UNDER CONSERVATION LEVEL (Albany Democrat Herald)
Green Peter Reservoir is likely to recede below its minimum conservation level as early as this week, putting the Thistle Creek low-water boat ramp out of service and making the body of water virtually unusable to boaters.
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PROSPECTS DIM FOR TRANSPORTATION DEAL IN 2016 — OPINION (Albany Democrat Herald)
When last we checked in with the Legislatures failure to reach agreement on a transportation funding plan, legislative leaders and Gov. Kate Brown were saying that this would be a big item for the 2016 session.
Now, though, a couple of months after the session adjourned, it seems very unlikely that transportation funding will get much traction in 2016. It may be that the earliest it could get approval from the Legislature could be 2017.
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BROWN SEEKS A NARROW LINE ON DEATH PENALTY — OPINION (Albany Democrat Herald)
Now that Gov. Kate Brown has made it official that shell be a candidate in 2016 for the states highest office, the pressure will be mounting on her to address a question that her predecessor, John Kitzhaber, managed to duck: Where will she stand if it comes time to enforce Oregon’s death penalty?
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STATE TRAINING RAIL INSPECTORS IN FACE OF INCREASED OIL SHIPMENTS (Daily Astorian)
-The state has hired and is training four new railroad inspectors in response to increased shipments of crude oil through the state.-
Oregon will have four new railroad inspectors by January to check tracks, hazardous materials shipments and railroad companies compliance with other federal regulations.
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REVENUE DEPARTMENT AIDED IN BELOW-RATE TAX CREDIT SALES (Daily Astorian)
An unwritten understanding with a few officials at the Department of Revenue gave Department of Energy officials justification for ignoring discount limits required by state law on the sale of energy tax credits.
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OREGON TESTING MEDICAID ENROLLMENT SYSTEM (Daily Astorian)
-Oregon health officials are testing a new Medicaid enrollment system. The state of Kentucky gave Oregon the source code for the system, which has been modified.-
Oregon is testing a modified version of Kentucky’s online Medicaid enrollment system and officials hope it will be ready for the public to use in early 2016.
That means Oregon might finally be able to automate its process to screen applicants for Medicaid eligibility and enroll them in the program, two of the functions that were supposed to be included in the Cover Oregon health insurance exchange portal.
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BROWN RESURRECTS TRANSPORTATION PANEL (Daily Astorian)
Gov. Kate Brown has reactivated a transportation advisory panel formed by former Gov. John Kitzhaber. Some worry it’s working at cross purposes with a group of legislators pushing a transportation funding plan.
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CHILDREN HAVE RIGHT TO PROTECTION — GUEST OPINION (Daily Astorian)
-Child sexual abuse is a community issue that dramatically impacts our schools, work environments, places of worship and, too frequently, our personal relationships.-
The topic of child sexual abuse is always disturbing, and often, more complex than can be imagined.
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PRESCRIBED BURN PLANNED IN CROOK COUNTY (Bend Bulletin)
-Officials want to conduct burn later in this week-
Ochoco National Forest officials plan to conduct a prescribed burn later this week on about 400 acres near the Mill Creek Wilderness in Crook County, if the weather cooperates.
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COLLABORATE, DONT LITIGATE, THE PROBLEMS ON THE DESCHUTES — OPINION (Bend Bulletin)
The courts may become a venue for a war over water in the Deschutes River Basin. Two environmental groups WaterWatch of Oregon and the Center for Biological Diversity have said they might sue over water management.
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LEGAL POT SHOULD NOT MAKE ALL OLD POT CRIMES VANISH — OPINION (Bend Bulletin)
In just 10 days, Oregonians will be able to buy recreational marijuana legally for the first time. The rollout will be slow, to be sure, but things are moving much more quickly on another front.
Already those convicted of a variety of crimes involving marijuana, from simple possession to manufacture and sale, can have the history of those crimes erased under certain circ*mstances. It should spark debate in the 2016 Legislature and beyond.
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TROOPERS SEEK INFORMATION ON PANTHER CREEK ELK POACHING (The World)
The Oregon State Police Fish and Wildlife Division continues to seek the public’s assistance with an ongoing investigation involving the illegal shooting of a bull elk.
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25 OREGON COUNTIES, CITIES BAN MARIJUANA BUSINESSES (Oregon Business Journal)
The use of recreational marijuana was legalized by Oregon voters in 2014, but not everyone was in favor of the move.
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HALF OF OREGON’S 2,727 BRIDGES NEED REPAIR, BUT THERE ISN’T MONEY TO PAY FOR THEM (Oregon Business Journal)
The Oregon Department of Transportation has some tough news to swallow for people that like to cross rivers: A study by the agency found that Oregon’s bridge inventory is in need of serious overhaul.
Nearly half the state’s 2,727 bridges were built in the same period following World War II and will require major maintenance or repair when their planned design lifetime expires in 2020.
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OREGON PICKS UP $450K TO HELP COMPANIES FIND EXPORT MARKETS — BLOG (Oregon Business Journal)
Business Oregon, the state’s economic development arm, has landed a $450,000 grant to help spur exports.
The agency will use the money to help local companies navigate international markets for locally made goods and services.
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HOW TO BUILD PORTLAND WITHOUT LOSING PORTLAND — BLOG (Oregon Business Journal)
Metropolitan regions all over the world are seeking to remake themselves as centers of technology and innovation.
The most competitive of these regions are those that can attract and retain the most high-quality talent.
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MESSAGE FROM NEW ODOT BRIDGE SURVEY: SEND CASH OR WORLD WILL END — BLOG (Willamette Week)
The Oregon Department of Transportation released its 2015 bridge survey last week.
It’s a document the agency releases every few years, and its 212 pages are chock full of charts, data and sometimes alarming information.
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OBESITY RATE IN OREGON INCREASES (kdrv.com Medford)
New government data shows that in most states, the rate of adult obesity is not moving.
In about 45 states last year, obesity rates stayed about the same.
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FEDS STILL WAGING WAR ON WEED IN OREGON (KGW)
Cannabis may be legal in Oregon, but police are still waging a war on weed.
A KGW investigation found the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency is sending more than $750,000 to police in Oregon this year to snuff out pot operations.
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