State Library eClips
* New flood plain regulations hurt Oregon communities and lack common sense — Guest Opinion
* As candidates weigh in, Gov. Brown stays mum on corporate tax hike — Opinion
* The Oregonian seeks order stopping Grant County sheriff from destroying emails
* Rents in Seattle $2k and Portland $1,764 are fastest growing in nation
* Can a medical and mental health database save lives?
* Lead tests in Salem, Portland schools may be skewed
* National Guard soldiers head to Romania for training
* School for the Deaf helps students pursue work, college
* Gun activists disagree with Gov. Brown’s gun safety agenda
* Black bear sighted in Veneta front yard
* State board punishes UO counseling center director for releasing students records
* Lane County housing market hits uncharted territory as low supply pushes prices to all-time highs
* Oregon bottle deposit to rise to 10 cents starting Spring 2017
* Unemployment in Oregon increases in June
* Scappoose traffic could be state’s worst by 2035
* NW housing market still hot hot hot
* Grants would benefit Portland train movements, auto exports
* Editorial: Earn tax-exempt status — Opinion
* New money available for mortgage help
* Marines sharpen skills while sprucing up Deschutes forest sites
* Data shows power of hospital monopolies
* Passed Smarter Balanced? Colleges say skip placement tests
* Editorial: Bill aimed at oil trains might help — Opinion
* Outdoor School Initiative Qualifies For Oregon Ballot
* Enthusiasts, Policymakers Weigh How To Juice Electric Car Sales
* State Accepting Art Glass Comments For One More Week
* Oregon Timber Harvest Slips For 2nd Consecutive Year
* The rest of the story of a county’s threat to farmland — Guest Opinion
* Wyden: Obama administration well aware of local opposition to national monument
* Dialysis unit at TRCI saves taxpayers money
* Wildfire threatens homes in Gilliam County
* EOCI reopens visiting hours following fight
* More liquor stores coming to mid-valley
* As $40M in funding looms for Oregon, feds close in on wave energy site — Blog
* State votes to double bottle redemption rate to 10 cents
* Reprimand, fine for UO psychologist over record release
* Outdoor Enthusiasts Reminded To Prevent Wildfire
* The Racist History of Portland, the Whitest City in America
* Protect Wolves or Hunt Them? Western States Are in the Crosshairs
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NEW FLOOD PLAIN REGULATIONS HURT OREGON COMMUNITIES AND LACK COMMON SENSE — GUEST OPINION (Portland Oregonian)
In their recent opinion piece “A common sense approach to reforming development in Oregon flood plains,” July 19, Bob Sallinger, Mike Houck, and Travis Williams inaccurately described my opposition to recent changes to the National Flood Insurance Program, or NFIP.
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AS CANDIDATES WEIGH IN, GOV. BROWN STAYS MUM ON CORPORATE TAX HIKE — OPINION (Portland Oregonian)
The corporate-tax hike proposal aimed at the November ballot has already generated plenty of attention from the public employee unions that are pushing it, the business community that opposes it, and the economists who are studying what the massive increase might mean for Oregonians.
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THE OREGONIAN SEEKS ORDER STOPPING GRANT COUNTY SHERIFF FROM DESTROYING EMAILS (Portland Oregonian)
Attorneys for The Oregonian/OregonLive on Friday asked a state judge for a temporary restraining order to keep Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer from deleting his government emails.
Palmer “systematically” destroys his official emails in a potentially criminal practice that should be stopped, the court filing says.
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RENTS IN SEATTLE $2K AND PORTLAND $1,764 ARE FASTEST GROWING IN NATION (Portland Oregonian)
A Seattle city councilmember has proposed severely curtailing the amount of cash new renters need to plunk down to move in, The Seattle Times reports.
The bold move is sure to hit on a hot-button issue for renters in the Emerald City as well as up and down the West Coast, where rents have continued to rapidly climb in recent years.
Over the past year, Seattle, Portland and San Francisco have led the nation in greatest percentage growth.
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CAN A MEDICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH DATABASE SAVE LIVES? (Salem Statesman Journal)
It’s been three years since Judy Wooldridge lost her son.
Ben Wooldridge was diagnosed with schizophrenia at age 25. He was a smart, caring father of three and successful business owner, but he struggled with medicating his illness.
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LEAD TESTS IN SALEM, PORTLAND SCHOOLS MAY BE SKEWED (Salem Statesman Journal)
The contractor hired to test water for lead in the Salem-Keizer and Portland school districts is not following the procedure recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
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NATIONAL GUARD SOLDIERS HEAD TO ROMANIA FOR TRAINING (Salem Statesman Journal)
More than 250 Oregon Army National Guard Soldiers with 3rd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment, are scheduled to mobilize to Romania this week with the 116th Cavalry Brigade Combat Team CBCT to participate in Saber Guardian 2016, a multinational military training exercise.
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SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF HELPS STUDENTS PURSUE WORK, COLLEGE (Salem Statesman Journal)
In art class, Cristian Flores likes to draw cars. No, correct that. He likes to draw one kind of car in particular, the Batmobile.
Flores, 18, is a student at the Oregon School for the Deaf. He is both deaf and legally blind, and, like many his age, is still exploring what he wants to do with his life.
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GUN ACTIVISTS DISAGREE WITH GOV. BROWN’S GUN SAFETY AGENDA (Salem Statesman Journal)
More than 100 gun activists and locals gathered Saturday on the steps of the Oregon Capitol to protest Gov. Kate Brown’s positions on gun safety.
Armed with AK-47 semi-automatic rifles and conceal carry handguns, many said they considered the governor’s recent gun-related executive order and proposed gun safety plan to be a violation of Second Amendment rights to keep and bear arms.
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BLACK BEAR SIGHTED IN VENETA FRONT YARD (Eugene Register-Guard)
A resident on Huston Road was startled Friday morning when she looked outside her Veneta home and saw something she had never seen before wandering through her front yard a black bear that appeared to be fully grown.
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STATE BOARD PUNISHES UO COUNSELING CENTER DIRECTOR FOR RELEASING STUDENTS RECORDS (Eugene Register-Guard)
-Shelly Kerr gave therapy records of victim of alleged sexual assault to UO legal offices without students consent-
The state psychology regulatory board voted Friday to punish Shelly Kerr, director of the University of Oregon counseling center, for giving a students therapy records to university lawyers without the students consent.
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LANE COUNTY HOUSING MARKET HITS UNCHARTED TERRITORY AS LOW SUPPLY PUSHES PRICES TO ALL-TIME HIGHS (Eugene Register-Guard)
After searching the super-spendy Seattle and Portland markets for a home in which to raise their two children, East Coast transplants Tessa and Orion Matthews this month settled instead on a house in the south Eugene hills, after Orion sold his interest in several software development companies in New York and Washington, D.C.
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OREGON BOTTLE DEPOSIT TO RISE TO 10 CENTS STARTING SPRING 2017 (Portland Tribune)
The refund Oregonians will get from returning used soda cans and water bottles is about to go up.
This week the Oregon Liquor Control Commission announced that it was doubling the redemption value of the Oregon Bottle Bill.
Starting in April, 2017, the redemption rate for bottles and cans will increase to 10 cents per container.
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UNEMPLOYMENT IN OREGON INCREASES IN JUNE (Portland Tribune)
Statewide unemployment increased to 4.8 percent in June from 4.5 percent in May, according to data released by the State of Oregon Employment Department.
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SCAPPOOSE TRAFFIC COULD BE STATE’S WORST BY 2035 (Portland Tribune)
-Three- to five-hour traffic congestion spurts possible on Highway 30, project manager says-
A transportation system plan for Scappoose proposes roughly $50 million in projects over the next 20 years to accommodate a surge in traffic and jobs.
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NW HOUSING MARKET STILL HOT HOT HOT (Portland Tribune)
The national housing market rocketed to the fastest, most competitive its been since 2009, with Denver, Seattle and Portland leading the way, according to Seattles online real estate brokerage Redfin.
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GRANTS WOULD BENEFIT PORTLAND TRAIN MOVEMENTS, AUTO EXPORTS (Portland Tribune)
I-405 overcrossing also on list pending before state commission.
Train movements through Portland will be eased and auto exports from Portland will be boosted by millions in pending state grants earmarked for transportation projects other than highways.
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EDITORIAL: EARN TAX-EXEMPT STATUS — OPINION (Bend Bulletin)
Oregon law has a fairly broad property tax exemption for nonprofits. But theres been a push in the Legislature and from the League of Oregon Cities to change that.
Its worth exploring as long as the Legislature doesn’t rush in and disrupt important charitable organizations without careful analysis.
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NEW MONEY AVAILABLE FOR MORTGAGE HELP (Bend Bulletin)
-Funding may help homeowners in Crook County –
A fresh infusion of money from the U.S. Treasury has breathed new life into two programs that helped Oregonians avoid foreclosure or get up-to-date on their mortgages in the wake of the Great Recession.
One of the programs began taking applications last week while the other is expected to start in September.
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MARINES SHARPEN SKILLS WHILE SPRUCING UP DESCHUTES FOREST SITES (Bend Bulletin)
The U.S. Forest Service has long complained of inadequate budgets, staffing and resources for national forests.
This month in Oregon, a couple of national forests got a little military intervention for some of those needs.
About 50 members of a U.S. Marine Corps Forces Reserve Engineer Services Company, part of Combat Logistics Battalion 23, came from Springfield earlier this month to camp out in the Deschutes National Forest and complete maintenance projects as part of their annual training.
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DATA SHOWS POWER OF HOSPITAL MONOPOLIES (Bend Bulletin)
-Hospitals with no competition negotiate higher payments from health plans-
For decades the prices hospitals negotiated with private insurance plans were treated as tightly guarded industry secrets. But the emergence of state-run databases on hospital payments is now shining light on the wide variation in prices and what factors might influence those amounts.
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PASSED SMARTER BALANCED? COLLEGES SAY SKIP PLACEMENT TESTS (Bend Bulletin)
-Deal with community colleges, public universities starts this fall-
Students entering Central Oregon Community College this fall can use high school test scores to prove they are ready for college-level courses, part of a larger effort to better gauge which students need remedial courses and which do not.
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EDITORIAL: BILL AIMED AT OIL TRAINS MIGHT HELP — OPINION (Bend Bulletin)
The last thing railroad companies, oil companies and Oregonians want for a line of oil cars is a rail derailment. It could threaten lives. It could damage the environment. It will cost money.
Three members of Oregon’s congressional delegation Reps. Peter DeFazio, Greg Walden and Earl Blumenauer have introduced a bill to try to better protect communities. We dont know if its the right answer, but its better than other suggestions, such as banning oil shipped by rail.
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OUTDOOR SCHOOL INITIATIVE QUALIFIES FOR OREGON BALLOT (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
Oregonians will vote this fall on whether to fully fund an outdoor education program for the states fifth and sixth graders. An initiative that would do that qualified for the Oregon ballot Friday.
Outdoor school is kind of like summer camp during the school year.
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ENTHUSIASTS, POLICYMAKERS WEIGH HOW TO JUICE ELECTRIC CAR SALES (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
California, Oregon and Washington state have lofty goals for increasing the number of non-polluting vehicles on the road. To achieve those goals, you and your neighbors will need to buy electric cars at a higher rate that were seeing now.
Hundreds of electric car enthusiasts and policymakers recently gathered in Portland this week to weigh how to spur consumer demand.
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STATE ACCEPTING ART GLASS COMMENTS FOR ONE MORE WEEK (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality will accept comments for one more week on permanent rules for the states colored art glass industry.
Two major players and three small companies are located in Portland. The two larger companies air emissions have been under scrutiny since large concentrations of heavy metals were found in moss near their operations.
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OREGON TIMBER HARVEST SLIPS FOR 2ND CONSECUTIVE YEAR (Oregon Public Broadcasting)
Oregon’s timber harvest has declined for the second year in a row.
The Oregon Department of Forestry said Monday the 3.79 billion board feet harvested in 2015 represents an 8 percent decline from the year before.
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THE REST OF THE STORY OF A COUNTY’S THREAT TO FARMLAND — GUEST OPINION (Capital Press)
As a long-time subscriber, I say kudos to the Capital Press for publishing Eric Mortensons article on farmland development in Clackamas County Conservation district fights farmland development, July 8.
One county within Metro Portland, Ore., is a small part of the Capital Press publishing coverage, but this a story that merits consideration. Eric captured the essence of the matter: A local Soil & Water Conservation District is asking, What is going on? And their concern is loss of irreplaceable farmland.
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WYDEN: OBAMA ADMINISTRATION WELL AWARE OF LOCAL OPPOSITION TO NATIONAL MONUMENT (Capital Press)
The Obama administration is well aware of the strong local opposition to a proposed national monument in Malheur County, U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden told Eastern Oregon residents on July 21.
Malheur County residents who asked Wyden during an annual town hall meeting whether he supports the proposed national monument said they didn’t receive a definite answer.
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DIALYSIS UNIT AT TRCI SAVES TAXPAYERS MONEY (East Oregonian)
The city of Umatilla’s only dialysis center is different than most such operations in America.
The life-saving machines, locked behind heavy metal doors and fences topped with razor wire, run under the watchful eye of a correctional officer. The patients who sit quietly in the chairs all men come in wearing standard-issue T-shirts and blue jeans marked with the Department of Corrections logo.
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WILDFIRE THREATENS HOMES IN GILLIAM COUNTY (East Oregonian)
A wind-driven wildfire continues to burn in rural Gilliam County as firefighters from across Eastern Oregon race to get it under control.
The Scott Canyon Fire erupted Thursday afternoon along the banks of the John Day River and spread quickly toward the small unincorporated community of Mikkalo, located halfway between Arlington and Condon. Local volunteers worked through the night to protect farms and homes, though 30 mph wind gusts made for difficult conditions again on Friday.
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EOCI REOPENS VISITING HOURS FOLLOWING FIGHT (East Oregonian)
Following a fight inside the walls of Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution Thursday, the facility remains on partial lockdown.
Although the west side of the prison is still on lockdown, EOCI spokeswoman Jackie Peck said visiting hours will reopen at 8 a.m. Saturday.
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MORE LIQUOR STORES COMING TO MID-VALLEY (Corvallis Gazette-Times)
Citing an expanding customer base, the Oregon Liquor Control Commission announced Friday it hopes to add about 10 new liquor stores in Linn, Benton and Lane counties.
Looking at the data, the state of Oregon has had a lot of population increases, said Christie Scott, a spokeswoman for the commission. We just haven’t kept up with adding liquor outlets to match population growth.
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AS $40M IN FUNDING LOOMS FOR OREGON, FEDS CLOSE IN ON WAVE ENERGY SITE — BLOG (Oregon Business Journal)
The federal government moved closer to selecting where to build a long-planned wave energy test center the facility that Oregon wave energy backers see as vital to the future of the industry in the state.
The U.S. Department of Energy on Thursday said it would soon issue a funding opportunity announcement that would offer up to $40 million in federal funding for the test center.
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STATE VOTES TO DOUBLE BOTTLE REDEMPTION RATE TO 10 CENTS (Oregon Business Journal)
The Oregon Liquor Control Commission on Friday voted to double the value of redeemable beverage containers from 5 cents per bottle to 10 cents. The new rate takes effect April 1, 2017.
The ruling comes at the direction of House Bill 3145, which requires the OLCC to increase the value if redemption rates dip below 80 percent for two straight years. Data from the OLCC shows redemption rates dropped to 68.26 percent in 2014 and 64.45 percent in 2015.
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REPRIMAND, FINE FOR UO PSYCHOLOGIST OVER RECORD RELEASE (KOIN)
-The head of the counseling office was fined $2,500-
A state licensing board has imposed a fine of $2,500 for the head of the University of Oregon’s counseling office for allegedly releasing a students counseling records to the university’s lawyers without the students permission.
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OUTDOOR ENTHUSIASTS REMINDED TO PREVENT WILDFIRE (mycentraloregon.com)
Summer is finally heating up. And while this is great news for outdoor enthusiasts, fire officials want to remind everyone that the summer heat could lead to careless wildfires.
Preventing wildfires and wildfire safety is everyone’s responsibility, said Oregon State Fire Marshal Jim Walker. I encourage citizens to join their neighbors in reducing the wildfire risk to their communities.
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THE RACIST HISTORY OF PORTLAND, THE WHITEST CITY IN AMERICA (The Atlantic)
-Its known as a modern-day hub of progressivism, but its past is one of exclusion.-
Victor Pierce has worked on the assembly line of a Daimler Trucks North America plant here since 1994. But he says that in recent years hes experienced things that seem straight out of another time.
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PROTECT WOLVES OR HUNT THEM? WESTERN STATES ARE IN THE CROSSHAIRS (Stateline)
Sheep rancher Dave Dashiell got to his feet and wiped the blood from his hands. A newborn lamb he had just delivered from a struggling ewe took one breath, then another. He laid the lamb down gently in front of its mother. I hope he lives, Dashiell said.
In extreme northeastern Washington state, the hope is not only that the lamb will avoid sickness and injury so its mother will raise it, but that an increasing number of gray wolves wont make it their prey.
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