The 2025 fire season is projected to be more intense than the 2024 season fire leaders said, but emergency response agencies have begun preparing early.
Alex Baumhardt - Oregon Capital Chronicle
Oregon schools to get another record payout from state lands revenue
The Banks School District will receive $159,874 from revenues generated from leases and industry permitted on state lands.
Legislators consider 4% tax on car tires to fund wildlife crossings, rail, public transit
A proposal to impose a 4% tax on the sale of new car tires could send $20 million a year to the Oregon Department of Transportation.
State regulators approve more electricity rate hikes for Oregonians in 2025
Most Oregonians in 2025 will see residential electricity rates nearly 50% higher than they were just five years ago.
Oregon Legislature approves $218 million in additional wildfire funding in emergency session
The state spent more than $350 million responding to more than 2,000 wildfires in 2024, far exceeding projected costs and leaving some contractors unpaid.
Sen. Wyden calls on Oregon’s largest electric utility to detail true drivers of massive rate hikes
Oregon’s U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, a Democrat, issued a public letter Monday to Portland General Electric CEO Maria Pope requesting she provide documentation within 30 days of customer use and load growth, as well as details about how the company has spent historic federal subsidies meant to reduce ratepayer burden
Oregon school attendance inches up and ninth graders on track to graduate, new data reveals
Following steep declines in school attendance in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic, Oregon students are slowly beginning to show up more regularly to class and a growing number of ninth graders are on track to graduate on time.
State struggles to recover more than $24 million from people responsible for wildfires
A partial list from the Oregon Department of Forestry shows it has collected $86,000 of $24 million it paid to fight several dozen wildfires that were maliciously or negligently ignited over the last two decades.
Utility watchdog asks state to intervene on proposed double-digit electricity rate hikes
If the state’s two largest electric utilities get what they’ve asked for, their 1.5 million customers in Oregon could pay 40% more for electricity next year than they did just three years ago.
Climate change a growing public health threat in Oregon, but state adapting, report finds
More Oregonians are suffering from respiratory, heart and mental health issues caused by extreme weather events linked to climate change, and rural, elderly and minority communities are being hit the hardest, a new state report found.
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