The Oregon Capitol building in Salem. Photo: Chas Hundley
Oregon’s legislators will head back to Salem following Governor Kate Brown’s call to convene a special legislative session to tackle congressional and legislative redistricting. Following the decennial census, held last in 2020, the Oregon Constitution requires the legislature to draw new districts to split the state into local legislative and congressional districts. Oregon gained a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives thanks to a growing population in the state following last year’s census. In a press release, the governor’s office said that the special session will begin Monday, September 20 at 8 a.m.“In Oregon, we believe your vote is your voice, and every voice matters,” Brown said in a statement. “This special session is an opportunity for legislators to set aside their differences and ensure Oregon voters have their voices heard at the ballot box. Based on my conversations with legislative leaders, and the ongoing public testimony we are hearing from Oregonians across the state this week, I believe the Legislature is ready to begin the next step of the redistricting process.”The press release also noted a recent decision by the Oregon Supreme Court in
State ex rel Kotek v. Fagan
that sets the deadline to draw new maps by September 27, 2021. If legislators cannot come to an agreement by the deadline—or if Brown vetoes the results of the special session—drawing maps for legislative districts will fall to Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan, a Democrat, while a judicial panel will draw maps for congressional districts.
A recent rulemaking process from the Department of Land and Conservation Development could have limited what can be sold at farm stands, but an outsized public response to the potential rules put the process on an indefinite pause.
The Oregon Department of Emergency Management is urging Oregonians to be vigilant in the face of a National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) Bulletin warning of a heightened threat environment amid the Israel-Iran war and U.S. airstrikes on Iran.
While most of the changes are only for Portland, some of the changes are statewide: Retailers will now only have to accept returns between the hours of 8 am and 8 pm, instead of all hours they are open, for instance. And as of July 1, canned wine, cider over 8.5% alcohol by volume, sake and mead con
More than a hundred teachers and staff from Banks' three public schools gathered in the Banks Elementary School cafeteria Aug. 19 for a breakfast with their peers and school officials as another school year began. With construction, new security, and a cell phone ban looming, many changes await staf
A crash in Glenwood snarled Labor Day weekend traffic for up to three miles and resulted in minor injuries to at least four people, Forest Grove Fire & Rescue said Saturday.
