Lawmakers have moved forward with a highly controversial logging bill that would allow counties and the timber industry to sue the state forester if Oregon logs less than what the Department of Forestry forecasts in its estimates that occur once a decade.
Thousands of Oregonians submitted letters opposing a Republican senator’s attempt to ask voters whether to repeal the state’s decades-old mail voting law. The bill would ask voters to approve switching from mail voting to in-person voting on Election Day beginning in 2028.
Two Oregon lawmakers are calling on major insurance companies to stop using their own internal wildfire risk maps to drop homeowners’ policies — at least until next year. In a Friday press release, Sens. Anthony Broadman, D-Bend, and Mike McLane, R-Powell Butte, said they sent a joint letter to major insurance providers — including State Farm, All State and Liberty Mutual — calling them to pause this practice until January 2026.
A coalition of businesses and environmental groups interested in the Bottle Bill today urged lawmakers to abandon a proposal that would add a 5-cent surcharge to the existing 10-cent deposit collected on beverage containers. HB 3940 is scheduled for a hearing at 8 .m. Tuesday, April 1, in front of the House Committee on Climate, Energy and Environment.
If passed, Senate Joint Resolution 28 would refer a ballot measure to Oregon voters in November to amend the state constitution so that it guarantees the “inherent, fundamental right to a clean, safe and healthy environment, including but not limited to clean air, clean water, thriving ecosystems and a stable climate system.”
Citing plans to move out of the school district area for family reasons in the future, incumbent Ashland School Board member Jill Franko withdrew Friday from the race for her seat in the upcoming special election on May 20. Ann M. Gaffney also withdrew from the race for position No. 3 school board race, but filed the same day for Position 1 — Franko’s current seat — and will face Jordan Rooklyn in the upcoming election.
Rep. Pam Marsh: The legislation “would give Oregonians buying tickets for concerts, sporting events and other entertainment events protections in an industry that has seen increasing unfair and unscrupulous activities that drive up the cost of tickets and/or falsely sell tickets that are unavailable.”
Striking workers in Oregon are a step closer to being eligible for weekly unemployment checks, after a tight vote in the state Senate on Thursday. Senate Bill 916 passed by the bare minimum 16 votes in the 30-member chamber, with two Democrats bucking the rest of their party over concerns the policy could harm cash-strapped cities and counties
Oregon lawmakers on Tuesday tweaked a bill intended to increase fire mitigation to ensure it does not also offer utilities immunity from liability in lawsuits for wildfires ignited by power lines. The change to a single sentence in House Bill 3666 comes as a relief to some critics, who feared that giving utilities wildfire safety certificates that establish they’ve “acted reasonably” by state standards would in effect offer them absolute immunity from liability in lawsuits if their equipment causes a wildfire.
Oregon is in a better financial position than other states but could see its budget devastated by federal spending cuts, a framework released Wednesday by the Legislature’s top budget writers shows. The framework, an early step toward adopting the state’s next two-year budget, comes against a backdrop of federal uncertainty.
This year’s Ashland Mystery Festival is scheduled to run Oct. 16 through 19, and will be headquartered at the Historic Ashland Armory.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office is warning people about a phishing scam involving fake emails that appear to come from the official Jackson Alerts system.
Throughout October, 12 female professionals from across the country and Australia — organized by Ashland-based nonprofit Keeping All Women Safe (KAWS) — will offer “valuable information” to help women and men cultivate safer, healthier and more empowering lives and relationships.
The Oregon Senate on Monday passed the long-awaited transportation bill to update the state’s funding sources for road maintenance and operations. The bill would raise taxes and fees, including a gas tax increase from $0.40 to $0.46, effective Jan. 1, 2026.
Once a vibrant hub for local produce and community gathering, the Ashland Growers Market is now, some say, struggling with shrinking sales and dwindling attendance. Longtime vendors report drops of up to two-thirds in revenue, while people voice frustrations over pricing, location and atmosphere.
A former civil rights attorney said that the Trump administration’s lawsuit demanding that Oregon turn over voter information to investigate unsubstantiated claims of widespread voter fraud is unprecedented.
(It’s free)
