Oregon Capital Chronicle

The Oregon Capital Chronicle is a nonprofit news organization that started in 2021. Our mission is to provide thorough and informative reporting on the state government, politics, and policy in Oregon. With a team of skilled journalists, we aim to help our readers grasp how government officials are using their power, what is happening with taxpayer money, and how citizens can become more involved in important decisions.

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Welcome to the first fire-resistant neighborhood. Now what about the rest of California?

1 week ago | oregoncapitalchronicle.com | Ben Christopher

This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. The homes in the half-built subdivision look a lot like all the others nestled up against the parched, shrubby hills of Escondido, north San Diego County. But look a little closer. The gutters and vents are enclosed in a thin, wire mesh. Each window is double-paned, the glass tempered to withstand the heat of a wildfire, the stucco around the shutters resistant to flame.
Oregon Sen. Lisa Reynolds mulls conflict of interest declaration after ethics report

1 week ago | oregoncapitalchronicle.com | Shaanth Nanguneri

Oregon’s statewide ethics watchdog on Thursday referred a Portland-area lawmaker to the Legislature for clarity over whether a bill she authored that could benefit her medical practice raises a substantial conflict of interest. The Oregon Government Ethics Commission said Sen. Lisa Reynolds’ decisions regarding votes and bill introductions were within the purview of the Legislature and its legal counsel, according to a Thursday letter written by Susan Myers, the commission’s executive director.
Republicans intensify opposition to capping bills per session in Oregon

1 week ago | oregoncapitalchronicle.com | Shaanth Nanguneri

Despite bipartisan support for an Oregon bill limiting the amount of legislation a lawmaker can introduce every session, the measure has angered some prominent Republican lawmakers, who called it a partisan power grab during its first committee hearing. Three of the bill’s leading supporters — Sen.
Oregon sees a rise in eviction filings, but rent assistance programs are working

1 week ago | oregoncapitalchronicle.com | Mia Maldonado

Oregon saw a record number of eviction filings in 2024, with most cases related to a tenant struggling to afford rent. There were nearly 27,300 evictions filed in 2024, and middle class families that previously were not considered rent-burdened are increasingly at risk of eviction, Sybil Hebb, the Oregon Law Center director of legislative and policy advocacy, told the House Committee on Housing and Homelessness on Wednesday.
Oregon hatred and beyond

1 week ago | oregoncapitalchronicle.com | Randy Stapilus |Julia Shumway

The 2000 report on hate groups by the Southern Poverty Law Center showed five hate groups active in Oregon. Its 2024 counterpart report just released this month found 24. The difference is a matter of apples and oranges between these reports, which reflects a changing landscape in the area of extremism and hate groups.
Oregon bill streamlining payout process for wrongfully convicted draws support

1 week ago | oregoncapitalchronicle.com | Shaanth Nanguneri

Oregonians who have been wrongfully imprisoned can petition the state for tens of thousands of dollars in compensation and an official finding of innocence, a process that criminal justice reform advocates have long complained drags on and shortchanges exonerees. But a new bill introduced in February, Senate Bill 1007, aims to solve that problem by making it easier and faster to obtain compensation and findings of innocence from the state.
Meet the men who cleaned 240,000 pounds of trash off Oregon’s highways

1 week ago | oregoncapitalchronicle.com | Mia Maldonado

May 31 marks one year since Fernando Rodriguez was released from prison. Now 25, he spent seven years in an Idaho prison for a drug possession conviction from when he was a teenager. After his release, he moved to Oregon and secured a full-time job cleaning litter from Oregon’s highways — a job that gives him financial stability and helps provide for his family. However, it’s unclear whether he’ll still have this job after June 2025.
Ending hunger is more than just providing food – it’s about communities and a better economic future • Oregon Capital Chronicle

1 week ago | oregoncapitalchronicle.com | Andrea Williams |Andréa Williams

In recent conversations with Oregonians across the state, we heard from a mom — like me, a mother of two young kids — who always packs extra food for her child to take to school, just in case a classmate doesn’t have enough to eat. That’s who we are as Oregonians. We look out for each other. But no family should have to rely on the kindness of another parent to keep their child happy and well-fed. Too many Oregon families are feeling the squeeze.
After reaching historic lows, hydropower generation in the Northwest expected to rise in 2025

1 week ago | oregoncapitalchronicle.com | Alex Baumhardt

After dropping to historic levels last year due to ongoing drought and high temperatures, hydropower generated in the Northwest is expected to rise slightly this year from much needed precipitation. Hydropower in the region is expected to increase about 17% compared to last year, a welcome boost to growing energy demand, but will still be below the 10-year average, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
State Rep. Bobby Levy weighs in on bills close to family business while lawmakers weigh regulations

1 week ago | oregoncapitalchronicle.com | Alex Baumhardt

On Feb. 5, state Rep. Bobby Levy, R-Echo, urged legislators at a hearing in the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Wildfire to oppose a bill that would have required large farm owners to report their fertilizer use to the Oregon Department of Agriculture. The goal of the bill, which died in the committee after the hearing, was to help curb groundwater pollution that’s become a growing issue in Levy’s district in northeast Oregon.