The Food and Drug Administration approved the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for emergency use Saturday, adding a third vaccine to the U.S. effort to combat the novel coronavirus.

The bill now faces a split Senate after the U.S. House of Representatives passed early Saturday morning what many observers and lawmakers call the COVID-19 Economic Relief Act, a $1.9 trillion pandemic stimulus package that provides $1,400 direct payments to most American taxpayers, aid for businesses, cities, schools, and an extension of unemployment benefits.

Washington County Health and Human Services announced that 1,000 vaccine appointments are available for seniors age 70 and up, healthcare workers, and others who are currently eligible for a vaccine at a drive-through clinic in Beaverton on Saturday, February 27.

A video released by the Washington County Sheriff's Office taken on Saturday appears to show a man suspected of at least two thefts in Banks trying the door handle of a truck parked in a driveway on Groveshire Ave. in Banks, and deputies are hoping someone recognizes the suspect.

We caught up with House District 29 Rep. Susan McLain and covered how the legislature is different this year, and some of the bills the Forest Grove, Cornelius, and Hillsboro (and some surrounding rural areas between Banks and Forest Grove) legislator has introduced this session.

Banks, Timber, Buxton, Manning, Hayward and Roy residents will vote for a number of elected positions in the Banks School District and the Banks Fire District 13 board of directors or the Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue board of directors in May. The window to file to run for local office closes March 18 at 5 p.m.

Weeks of falling COVID-19 case rates have already seen Washington County moved from the "Extreme Risk" category to "High Risk." Governor Kate Brown announced that 16 counties, including Washington, will be moved further down in the list of categories on Friday.

A roundup of some of the bills in the Oregon Legislature right now, with an emphasis on local elected leaders' ideas and bills.

More than 18 months after being shot at close range with a shotgun in 2019 near a Hagg Lake-area home while attempting to apprehend an armed suspect, Washington County Sheriff's Office Sergeant Jeremy Braun, who grew up in Banks, has returned to full-time duty.

Rep. Diego Hernandez (D-Portland), the once-rising political star who pundits considered to be a coming household name in Oregon politics, announced on Sunday, February 21 that he would resign from office.

The Oregon Department of Forestry says the 2021 ice storm, which brought down many large-diameter Douglas-firs across the state created the potential for an outbreak of the native Douglas-fir beetle, and urged landowners to take immediate action.

District 30 Rep. Janeen Sollman (D-Hillsboro) is one of three chief sponsors of a new bill, House Bill 2417, that would create mobile mental health crisis intervention teams and help cities and counties throughout the state establish teams of their own.

To combat reported price gouging as families seek shelter at hotels during widespread power outages amid the fallout of the winter storm, Oregon Governor Kate Brown issued Executive Order 21-03, which declares an "abnormal market disruption" in nine Oregon counties as a result of the President's Day weekend winter storm.

A bill being considered by the Legislative Assembly proposes an amendment to the Oregon Constitution allowing state residents to register to vote the same day as a general election. If passed, the proposed amendment would appear as a state ballot measure in the next general election.

A funeral procession for Captain Mark Hornshuh, a Manning resident and longtime volunteer with the Banks Fire District will make its way from Forest Grove, through Banks, and on to Buxton on Feb. 20 before reaching Buxton’s Hornshuh Creek Fire Station for a private memorial service.

The winter storm continues, with the Greater Portland region in danger of seeing significant ice accumulation starting Sunday afternoon and continuing through early Monday morning, the Portland branch of the National Weather Service said.

Oregon Governor Kate Brown declared a state of emergency on Saturday due to the severe winter weather in the Willamette Valley that has left hundreds of thousands without power and closed highways , roads, and public transit across the region.

A layer of ice and snow blanketed the region overnight, and there's more coming in the forecast.

A number of bills in this year's legislative session pertain to various aspects of policing, crime, and the justice system. Here is an overview of just a few of them.

A summary of calls from January 2021 within the city of Banks, as written by contract deputies with the Washington County Sheriff's Office and presented to the Banks city council on February 9.

A running tally of what's closing because of this week's winter storm. So far: City of Banks (offices, public works, library) is closing at 2 p.m., and the Banks School District and St. Francis in Roy will have snow days.

In a year when fine dining indoors might not be the best idea, take your date fishing instead - it's free on Valentine's Day.

A slew of bills in committees at the Oregon Legislature could reverse tax cuts for harvested timber that have been on the books for scores of years, and that observers say has kept nine counties in Oregon's timber-heavy regions from receiving more than $3 billion since 1990.

The Portland branch of the National Weather Service issued a Winter Storm Watch for most of northwestern Oregon and southwest Washington on Wednesday, warning of weather conditions starting Thursday and extending through Saturday that could bring rain, snow, freezing rain, wind, and plunging temperatures.

Governor Kate Brown announced changes are coming to the Oregon Heath Authority's guidance prohibiting outdoor contact sports, and the news means that football is coming back to Banks.

The Washington County Sheriff's Office spent the weekend searching the Hagg Lake area with a Clackamas Co. dive team, drones, and boats in an attempt to locate a woman reportedly a danger to herself after her vehicle was found at Boat Ramp C.

On Friday, ten Oregon counties — Washington County among them — will move from the “extreme risk” category, nine to the high risk category and one to the moderate risk category as COVID-19 stats improve in most of the state, Governor Kate Brown announced Tuesday morning.

The Oregon School Activities Association (OSAA) Executive Board met Monday, February 8 to discuss the fate of a number of sports, approving soccer and cross-country for a Feb. 22 start, and punting more decisions on football and other sports to a Feb. 17 meeting.

The Oregon Legislature is in danger of being cut out of the process of drawing up new legislative and congressional voting districts, Rep. Weber sponsors education bills, and more from Salem's 2021 legislative session.

The Banks Public Library is expanding their seed saving program, and recently opened membership to a club to promote use of the library’s more than 300 varieties of seeds — and 3,000 seed packets — for gardening.

More than 2,000 have died in Oregon since COVID-19 began its course, and other vaccine news from the state.

Local students in high school and college who are pursuing an education in the fields of agriculture, education, nursing or vocational training are eligible for scholarships offered by the Washington County Farm Bureau this year.

Banks athletes, parents and students took to the streets in Banks twice in January to push for in-person learning and for a return to some form of school athletics, gathering in front of district offices on Monday, Jan. 11 and on Main Street on Friday, Jan. 22 to ask Gov. Brown to allow student athletes to resume sports. The Banks School District plans to return to some in-person instruction in March.

A Tillamook man died in a head-on collision between a log truck and a pickup truck about one mile west of the Timber Road junction on Highway 6, the Oregon State Police said.

The Oregon State Police are seeking information in a case involving a poached antlerless deer left in front of a gate on Stimson Lumber property north of Mountaindale

"It is with our deepest sadness that Banks Fire announces the loss of one of our own, Captain Mark Hornshuh," the district said in a statement. The 32-year volunteer with the district leaves behind a family legacy of service to the district and community.

Several vehicles are blocking Highway 26 near Highway 47 due to snowy conditions, according to the Washington County Sheriff's Office.

The Banks Public Library was one of 200 libraries awarded a $3,000 grant from the American Library Association and will be used for a virtual program with Banks-area parents with children ages zero to five covering parenting topics and raising a young family.

Remembering Terry Washburn, a Banks/Buxton area woman.

Weber also discussed the needs for reliable, high-speed internet to reach rural homes, businesses, communities.