TOP STORIES
Gov. Brown calls special session for small-business tax breaks
The Associated Press
Republican leaders in the state Legislature reacted swiftly, reiterating earlier statements that the move amounted to political theater.
Special session for small biz tax break set for May 21
Portland Tribune
“The political theater session now has a date,” McLane said. “Let’s hope Gov. Brown and legislative Democrats will limit the scope of the session to the stated purpose instead of allowing for the introduction of unrelated policy bills. In the end, the tone and tenor of the session will be defined by whether Democrats are able to stick to their word.”
Gov. Brown calls special session for small business tax cut
The Bend Bulletin
“The political theater session now has a date,” McLane said in a statement. “Let’s hope Governor Brown and legislative Democrats will limit the scope of the session to the stated purpose instead of allowing for the introduction of unrelated policy bills. In the end, the tone and tenor of the session will be defined by whether Democrats are able to stick to their word.”
OREGON’S LARGEST GOVERNOR STRAW POLL RESULTS
Oregon Catalyst
Nearly 400 Oregonians participated making it Oregon’s largest governor straw poll.
ELECTIONS
2018 PRIMARY House District 6: Blum Atkinson, Schreffler, Wallan
Mail Tribune
Here are the responses of Oregon House District 6 candidates to a Mail Tribune questionnaire about their leadership styles and priorities if elected.
In Oregon Labor Race, Competing Philosophies And Rising Tensions
Oregon Public Broadcasting
The candidates were crossing paths for the first time on the campaign trail and itching to talk about the finer points of labor apprenticeships and technical education in Oregon high schools. The audience, meanwhile, wanted to talk about the current head of BOLI.
GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
Sentencing reform case heads to Supreme Court
Portland Tribune
The Oregon Supreme Court has agreed to hear the state’s appeal of a Clackamas County Circuit Court decision to block sentencing reforms the state Legislature passed in 2017. The hearing is set for Sept. 13.
Oregon hires Portland law firm to investigate agency
The Associated Press
The letter claimed there were hostile working conditions and it accused leadership of gender bias and misusing taxpayer funds. The justice department will be overseeing the investigation and will provide a maximum cost of $50,000 to the firm.
New justice head named amid strife
Portland Tribune
Now, who will take on the challenge of angry staffers and complaints of a toxic work environment at a department in chaos? A brand-new director, Truls Neal, who was named to the job last week by the Board of Commissioners. “It feels challenging,” Neal said Friday. “I’m very proud to do it at the same time.”
NATIONAL GOVERNMENT & POLITICS
GOP unsettled by narrow win in US House race in Arizona
The Associated Press
It took a big money push from the Republican Party, tweets by the president and the support of the state’s current and former governors, but the GOP held onto an Arizona U.S. House seat they would have never considered endangered in any other year.
The Supreme Court’s Grand Finale: Trump’s Travel Ban
Oregon Public Broadcasting
The court itself will be under extreme pressure. There are only about two months left in the term and an unusually large number of cases yet to be decided.
Lawmaker apologizes for ‘dummy’ remark
Portland Business Journal
Rhode Island State Rep. Mike Chippendale, a Republican, said he was sorry he called Emma Gonzalez, a survivor of the Feb. 14 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, a “dummy” after she tweeted her opinion about arming teachers in schools, Boston magazine reports.
PUBLIC HEALTH & SAFETY
For Farmworkers’ Kids, Country Air Means Dust, Pesticides And Asthma
Oregon Public Broadcasting
Most people think of asthma as a city kid problem — but it turns out rural kids are just as likely to have asthma. And the children of the people who grow our food are especially vulnerable.
Oregon failed to protect public from killer found ‘guilty except for insanity’
Oregonian/OregonLive
For reasons that have much to do with the limits of Oregon law, the three board members present that day decided to release Longjaw, regardless of the danger. A little more than a year later, Longjaw was in handcuffs facing new murder charges.
ENVIRONMENT
Oregon Wave Energy Testing Project Looks To Feds For Approval
Oregon Public Broadcasting
The Pacific Northwest could soon become a hub of ocean energy technology. An Oregon State University project to set up a wave energy test site is now applying for the federal permits needed to move ahead.
EDUCATION
Oregon teacher salaries average $62K, above U.S. average
Oregonian/OregonLive
With teachers in West Virginia, Oklahoma, and Arizona having threatened to strike over low pay, a new report on the most up-to-date state-by-state estimates of teacher salaries makes clear that Oregon teachers are by no means in the same boat.
ENDORSEMENTS & OPINION
Portland’s Political Culture Is Morbidly Complacent. Shake It Up, Using WW’s May 2018 Endorsements.
Willamette Week
Incremental reform might have been fine 15 years ago, when housing was cheap and plentiful and nobody had collected the hard data to show how unequally black and poor Portlanders are treated. But the time for standing pat has passed.
WW’s May 2018 Endorsements for the Oregon Legislature
Willamette Week
Vial is thoughtful about the challenges facing his district, especially highway gridlock. But what matters this year: He took a stand for the victims of domestic violence. That alone is reason enough to give him your vote. Rich Vial is courageous.
WW’s May 2018 Endorsements for Oregon Statewide Office
Willamette Week
We’re endorsing her (Brown). But we’re also hoping she demonstrates a leadership during the general election campaign that has been missing for much of her tenure.
WW’s May 2018 Endorsements for U.S. Congress
Willamette Week
Griffith gets the nod here. He’s been active in crafting the party platform at the county and state level. He’s a Trump supporter but not a doctrinaire conservative—he opposes capital punishment, for instance.
Jo Ann Hardesty Says She’s the Angry Black Woman Portland City Council Needs. We Agree.
Willamette Week
As a state lawmaker from 1995 to 2001, she was a Democrat when they were the minority party in Salem. In the late ’90s, she brought the House to silence in a floor speech pointing out that the death of white kids had focused politicians on gun violence while efforts to help black kids had drawn no attention.
WW’s May 2018 Endorsements for Metro and Multnomah County
Willamette Week
Susheela Jayapal is by far the most qualified candidate for county commissioner.
Editorial: Vote Buehler in Republican primary
The Bend Bulletin Editorial Board
Buehler, 53, is an orthopedic surgeon who lives in Bend. Even in a Legislature controlled by Democrats, he has proved he could get things done.
Editorial: Ogden’s best for BOLI head
The Bend Bulletin Editorial Board
While he would no doubt continue to enforce wage and hour rules and rules about discrimination, his attention to industrial health could bring economic improvements across the state. Ogden deserves your vote in May.
The Register-Guard
The role of BOLI commissioner is an important one in Oregon, affecting economic development, business growth, employment conditions, education, poverty and civil rights. It requires a person who sees and understand this, and who can work across party lines for the good of all Oregonians. Val Hoyle has the best qualifications for this daunting task.
Senator Beyer
It’s rare to find a political leader who can bridge the gap between business and labor, progressives and conservatives, and gain broad-based support. Val Hoyle is such a leader.
A vote for Fagan: Letter to the editor
Oregonian/OregonLive
This clash between two opposing sides makes Shemia Fagan the only candidate for Senate District 24. I know Fagan’s story and how her experiences, compassion, knowledge and insight make her the right choice.