TOP STORIES
East Medford residents awaken to find KKK recruiting flier
Mail Tribune
The Jacobs and other Medford residents discovered the fliers and candy Sunday morning, left in the dark of night on their driveways or the sidewalk nearby. It is unknown how many fliers were distributed, but dozens could be seen scattered throughout northeast neighborhoods.
Trump decides to exit nuclear accord with Iran
Oregonian/OregonLive
Administration officials began informing congressional leaders about Trump’s plans Tuesday. One person briefed on the talks characterized the president’s position as similar to his stance on the Trans-Pacific Partnership — that he would pull out but remain open to the possibility of renegotiating a better deal.
GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
Libertarians propose special session ‘walkout’
Portland Tribune
“We are also calling on Republican legislators to walk out of the session, denying the Democrats a quorum, if an attempt is made to expand the scope of the session beyond tax relief.”
Oregon Supreme Court to get new chief justice
The Associated Press
Oregon will soon have a new chief justice of the state Supreme Court. Oregon law limits the term of a chief justice to six years, and Thomas Balmer was named chief in May 2012.
ELECTIONS
Turnout Light So Far for May 15 Primary Election
Willamette Week
With just a week to go before the May 15 primary election, voter turnout is tepid. Figures from the Oregon secretary of state elections division show that through May 7, just 8.6 percent of eligible voters have returned their ballots.
Bledsoe challenges incumbent Nearman in House District 23
Corvallis Gazette-Times
Bledsoe, who also has a background in agriculture, as a hospital chaplain and in the financial industry, describes herself as a “fiscally conservative, socially moderate candidate.” She has pledged not to accept special interest donations.
Primary races coming down to the wire
The Bend Bulletin
On climate change, Buehler and Wooldridge said they believed the human effect on climate was real but that Democrats have used it as an issue to reward special interests. Carpenter said there was “insufficient evidence” for a human effect and that regardless, environmental issues need to be balanced with economics.
EDUCATION
50 percent of Salem-Keizer special education students don’t graduate
Statesman Journal
Students who don’t earn a diploma are at greater risk of relying on social services, according to the Foundation of Educational Choice, also known as EdChoice. This costs taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars more every year in Medicaid, lost tax revenue and incarceration costs.
Coos Bay World Link
“There is substantial evidence to support the allegation that the district subjected LGBTQ students to separate or different rules of behavior, sanctions, or other treatment…,” the letter read. There was also substantial evidence that using the Bible as punishment had a “chilling effect on LGBTQ students’ use of the district’s complaint process.”
PUBLIC HEALTH
Public health departments combat STD, STI increases in Southern Oregon
Herald and News
Sexually transmitted infections and diseases have been on the rise not only in Klamath County but also throughout Oregon and the U.S., local health officials say. To prepare for this, the Oregon Health Authority awarded $3.9 million to several state and regional departments. But the grants are just one puzzle piece to what Vanbragt describes as an overall shift in culture, which includes how people talk about STDs and STIs.
BUSINESS
Small businesses employ the most workers in Central Oregon
The Bend Bulletin
The lion’s share of Central Oregonians, about 78 percent, work in companies that employ nine or fewer employees, according to the annual data collected by the nonprofit corporation. Companies averaged 11 employees in 2018.
Amazon data centers cause spat
The Associated Press
The local governments have a disagreement on how to allocate a yearly payment that’s part of the development deal, according to a report by the East Oregonian.
Nike purge continues — five more managers out
Oregonian/OregonLive
But this time, one of the executives is a woman, a sign that the vague executive misbehavior cited by the company through this wave of dismissals is more complicated than male-female sexual harassment.
AGRICULTURE & ENVIRONMENT
Jefferson County seeks feedback for updated farm and forest regulations
The Bend Bulletin
The Jefferson County Community Development Department is soliciting feedback from county residents regarding potential updates to zoning codes for exclusive farm use and forest management zones.
A year in, Coba focused on state technology, workforce
Portland Tribune
When she was appointed, Coba made a list of her priorities in the new post: recruit a younger and more diverse state workforce; advocate for accountability and transparency in state government; foster government leadership and restore trust in government.
Low snowpack signals more drought for parts of Oregon
Portland Tribune
Across the state, more than half of the agency’s snow monitoring sites had less than 70 percent of the normal peak snowpack. Only eight monitoring sites were normal, all of them on the west side of the Cascades and most located on the slopes around Mount Hood, the conservation service reported.
LOCAL
Council candidate slams mayor for opposition to Portland retail tax measure
Oregonian/OregonLive
Hardesty, in the email blasted out to supporters Sunday from her campaign account, wrote that Wheeler is “trying to kill three years of work by communities of color” by working against the tax with the Portland Business Alliance.
IMMIGRATION
Willamette Week
The jail’s policy to provide jail beds to the federal agency has drawn fire from critics who say the facility may be in violation of Oregon’s sanctuary law, which bars local agencies from using state resources to enforce federal immigration regulations.
NORCOR Jail Changes Immigration Policy
Oregon Public Broadcasting
The jail, known as NORCOR, officially changed its policy last month after settling a lawsuit with a Hood River man who said officials at NORCOR violated his constitutional rights.
NATIONAL NEWS
Russian hackers posed as IS to threaten military wives
The Associated Press
Ricketts was one of five military wives who received death threats from the self-styled CyberCaliphate on the morning of Feb. 10, 2015. The warnings led to days of anguished media coverage of Islamic State militants’ online reach. Except it wasn’t IS. The Associated Press has found evidence that the women were targeted not by jihadists but by the same Russian hacking group that intervened in the American election and exposed the emails of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign chairman, John Podesta.
OPINION
Editorial: Tax plan could lead to mischief
Albany Democrat-Herald
For fans of political posturing, this special session could well shape up as truly a special occasion, as legislators and other elected officials pivot toward November’s general election. For fans of tax reform that could benefit a range of Oregon small businesses, the session might not turn out to be all that special.
Portland Schools’ broken promises to provide equal education: Guest opinion
Oregonian/OregonLive
We teach our children to work together. We teach them if someone is harmed, you stand up and make it right. We teach them that you keep your promises. These are lessons for which Portland Public Schools needs a reminder. We are parents of students at Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary in Northeast Portland, and we are tired of the broken promises to our kids.
Editorial: Expand affordable housing pilot
The Bulletin Editorial Board
The state shouldn’t have to pick one winner because that means Oregonians lose. When the Legislature reconvenes next year, it should expand the program.