Oregon Headlines
House Speaker Joins Congresswoman Herrera Beutler For Fundraiser
House Speaker John Boehner appeared Friday at a $50-per-plate lunch fundraiser for southwest Washington's Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler.
At 69, Northwest Swimmer Says You’re Never Too Old For Gold
Sometimes life hands you disappointment and humiliation. That happened to Suzie Aldrich in a swim meet in college. The Walla Walla-native didn’t swim again for nearly 50 years. But in retirement the pool called her back for a re-do. And the results were astonishing.
UW Grad Is Latest Washington-Based Soldier Killed In Afghanistan
The cemetery at Joint Base Lewis-McChord will be the site of a Memorial Day ceremony to honor fallen service members. A University of Washington graduate is the latest Washington-based soldier to die in Afghanistan. Army records indicate 25-year old Lt. Travis Morgado is the sixth soldier from the Army post near Tacoma killed in action so far this year.
State Audit Finds Unexplained Gaps In Children's Mental Health Care
Oregon needs to do a better job at making sure that low-income children are getting the mental health services they’re eligible for. That's the finding of a new audit by the Oregon Secretary of State's office.
Police: Mother Of Abandoned Children Located
Portland police say they have located the mother of three young children, who were found in a shed.
Residents Of Remote Oregon Town Build A Gathering Place
Nearly every Northwest city and town has a center of gravity -- a place with a heartbeat. You know: Portland’s Pioneer Courthouse Square or Seattle’s Pike Place Market. But in the remote town of Arock, in southeast Oregon, that kind of spot has been missing for a long, long time. That’s about to change.
Cemetery Clean Up Yields Family Surprise
Joyce Yam recently found her pioneer kin buried in an overgrown cemetery near Sandy. When she organized a cleanup, she discovered something else. Cousins she had never met who are very much alive.
Strike Makes For Emotional Time For Students, Teachers In Reynolds Distrct
Reynolds High School seniors returned to school Thursday, even though schools in the district have been closed due to a strike. The seniors going through a check-out process as the school year ends. Veteran high school teacher Tom Beaman says it was an emotional day for teachers on the picket lines.
Frustration Grows As Reynolds Strike Negotiations Break Down
Striking teachers in the Reynolds School District are back on picket lines after negotiations broke down Wednesday night. Teachers are frustrated that talks won’t resume until next Tuesday.
Kitzhaber Appoints Adviser To Work On O&C Issues
Governor Kitzhaber has appointed Tom Tuchmann as the new Forestry and Conservation Finance Advisor.
West Coast Gas Prices Higher Than Other Regions
Gas prices nationwide have been dropping but not in the Northwest. In fact, this Memorial Day weekend, the region's gas prices are among the highest in the nation.
State Librarian Hopeful Pleads Guilty To Padding Resume
A man who nearly became Oregon's State Librarian will now spend the next two years on probation for forgery. He pled guilty Thursday to going beyond just padding his resume. He forged documents showing that he had a degree from the University of Washington.
Northwest's Only Nuclear Plant Celebrates Relicensing
Hundreds of employees of the Northwest’s only power plant celebrated Thursday. The Columbia Generating Station now is licenced to run for another 20 years.
Classes Canceled After Explosion At Salem High School
Officials with the Salem-Keizer School District have canceled classes at Sprague High.
Affordable Care Act Should Simplify Insurance Paperwork
A new report on the Affordable Care Act finds that 67 percent of working Oregonians should see simplified paperwork from their health insurers in the near future.
Reynolds District Cancels School For Fourth Day
The Reynolds School District teachers' strike have closed schools for a fourth day. Reynolds administrators made that announcement late Wednesday afternoon.
Portland Company Recalls Lettuce That Could Be Contaminated
Pacific Coast Fruit Company in Portland has voluntarily recalled bagged lettuce that could be contaminated by Listeria bacteria. River Ranch Fresh Foods in California sold the lettuce to the Portland company.
Low Price Of Natural Gas Means Credits For Ratepayers
The low price of natural gas is putting more money in Oregon wallets. The Oregon Public Utility Commission approved Northwest Natural’s request for two rate credits totaling $44 million.
Portland Increases Trash And Recycling Rates, But Tables Water
Portland City Commissioners passed a proposal to increase trash and recycling rates today. But they tabled a decision on whether water rates should go up.
WSU Researchers Patent Longer Battery Life Technology
Researchers at Washington State University say they've found a way to keep lithium batteries charged three times longer. These are the batteries used in laptops, cell phones and electric vehicles. The key ingredient in the new battery design is tin, as a replacement for carbon, which is more common.
State Medical Examiner Releases Causes Of Death In Salem Case
The state medical examiner says a mother and two children recovered from a Salem home Tuesday, were killed by gunshots.
Oregon Lawmakers Scale Back Corrections Layoffs
Oregon lawmakers have been pressing state agencies to cut back the ranks of middle managers. A legislative panel voted Wednesday to do that. But they scaled back a proposed round of layoffs at prisons because of safety concerns.
How A Lobbyist And His iPad Helped Stop A Telephone Tax
It’s no secret that interest groups influence state lawmakers. But it’s not often clear how that actually happens. Much of the action occurs behind-the-scenes. So we’re going to give you a rare glimpse inside the influence game -- to see how lobbyists help shape public policies that affect our everyday lives. Austin Jenkins reconstructs how a lobbyist and his iPad changed the course of a $1 billion piece of legislation.
Sir Francis Drake Landmark Designation Sparks Debate
Oregon and California are locked in a dispute over something that happened 433 years ago. That’s when Sir Francis Drake became the first British explorer to make contact with Native Americans. It happened on what is now the American West Coast. The question is where. Oregon or California? The National Park Service is poised to officially recognize one state’s claim and not the other’s.
Wyden Asks Pentagon To Investigate KBR's 'Excessive Expenses'
Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden is calling on the Pentagon to investigate military contractor KBR, for what he's calling 'excessive expenses' in its legal battle with members of the Oregon National Guard.
Reynolds District Administrators, Teachers Back At The Bargaining Table
Reynolds administrators are hoping they’re close to a deal with the teachers’ union, after upping their offer Wednesday afternoon.
Recovery Will Be Slow But Oregon Business Is Picking Up
The revenue forecast says the state isn't likely to recover all the jobs lost during the recession, until 2014.
The unemployment rate stands at 8.5 percent, so times are expected to remain tough for a while.
But, there are signs Oregon's economy is picking up.
Portland Parks Rank Sixth Among Large Cities
A national study of urban parks ranks Portland’s system sixth among large cities. The Trust for Public Land report out Wednesday finds shortcomings, as well.
Still No Deal In Reynolds Teachers' Strike
Schools were closed for a second day in the Reynolds School District in East Multnomah County Tuesday.
Vancouver Council Considers Parks Funding Plan
Vancouver city council members discussed a plan Monday night that would ask voters to create and fund a new parks district this November.
Salem Police Investigating Possible Domestic Murder-Suicide
Salem police say they are investigating what they believe to be a domestic murder-suicide, in the deaths of three children and their mother.
Oregon's Recovery Uneven Around The State
Oregon's economy is recovering slowly but steadily according to the latest forecast from state economists. But not all parts of the state are along for the ride.
Low Fares Won't Lure Some Train Riders To New Bus Service
A new bus service in the Northwest makes some eye-catching promises: Extra legroom, non-stop service between major cities, and fares starting at just a dollar. Boltbus could change the way people travel between Portland, Seattle and Vancouver, BC. But which is better: Boltbus or an Amtrak train?
Feds Give $745M For Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail Project
The Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail can move into full construction, following the Federal Transit Administrator's announcement Tuesday that 50 percent of the funding will come from the feds.
Hearing Focuses On Progress Of Hanford's Safety Culture
The Hanford Nuclear Reservation’s waste treatment plant is making progress on improving its safety culture. That’s the upshot of a hearing Tuesday in Washington, D.C. before a federal nuclear watchdog agency. But not everyone familiar with the nuclear site agreed with that positive assessment.
Commentary: A School Year Comes Down To Snapshots
Every school year brings indelible moments. Bob Balmer, a teacher and OPB commentator, calls them “snapshots.” Here are are a few of the things he’ll remember from this year.
Learning With Less: A Family Struggles With Cutbacks And Finances
All this school year, OPB has been tracking a few teachers, families, and administrators in a series we’re called “Learning With Less.” As the end of the school year approaches, districts and parents alike are looking at budget cuts for next fall.
Northwest Author Focuses New Book On The Northern Reaches Of Missoula Floods
A new book details how a dramatic series of Ice Age Floods transformed the landscape of the inland Northwest.
Kitzhaber Signs Series Of Bills…Again
Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber has been busy signing a series of bills dealing with everything from marine reserves to tax incentives. But the deadline to sign bills from this year's legislative session was actually more than a month ago.
Key Wash. Lawmaker Calls For K-12 Pay Raises Next Year
Washington teachers are woefully underpaid. That’s the conclusion of a draft legislative task force report. Now a key Washington state lawmaker says teachers and other school employees deserve at least a cost-of-living pay raise next year.
Woodburn Seniors Return To Classes
Seniors at Woodburn High School returned to the classroom Monday for the first time since a fire broke out in the building earlier this month.
Reynolds School District Cancels Classes As Teachers Take To Picket Lines
Oregon's third school strike of the spring has canceled all classes in the Reynolds School District through Wednesday. Talks broke off Monday, hours after teachers took to picket lines.
State Worker Dies After Stabbing By Mental Health Patient
A mental health worker has died after being stabbed while visiting a patient at a community home. A 30-year-old man is in custody.
Independent Party Of Oregon Sets Primary Dates
The nominating process opened Monday for the Independent Party of Oregon. The party will hold its Primary Election June 19 to July 17. During that period, registered members of the party will be able to obtain an official ballot at the Independent Party website.
Solar Eclipse Like 'Pac-Man' Skywatchers Say
Mark Dalton spent Sunday evening with a welder's helmet on his head in a fire lookout, peering at the sky and talking about vintage video games.
Birders and Burgers: An Unlikely High Desert Partnership
In the remote valleys of southeast Oregon both birds and cattle flourish. This is where mountain streams feed an oasis of lakes and marshes in the high desert. Cattle ranchers and wildlife advocates have been fighting over that valuable grassland for decades. Now, they’ve struck a delicate truce that keeps both birds and burgers in mind.
200 Hold Vigil For Cyclist Killed In Downtown Portland
About two hundred people turned out for a vigil this weekend in Portland. They remembered a young woman who was struck and killed while riding a bike about a block from Portland City Hall.
Pacific NW Tsunami Buoys Out Of Service
One quarter, or 12 of 39, of U.S.-operated tsunami warning buoys in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans are out of service. That includes the two tsunami detection buoys directly off the Pacific Northwest coast. The warning system has some redundancy built in.
Reynolds School District Cancels Monday Classes
The Reynolds School District has canceled Monday classes because its teachers could be on strike by then.
Governor Signs Data Center Bill Into Law
Gov. John Kitzhaber got his first look at Facebook’s Prineville data center Friday. He was in town to sign a bill many hope will bring more tech companies to Central Oregon.
