Fines not deterring absent Republican senators as walkout persists in 2023 Oregon Legislature

June 5, 2023

Senate President Rob Wagner, D-Lake Oswego, presides over the Senate on May 31 as the GOP-led walkout entered its 19th day. Fines did not encourage senators to end the walkout on Monday. By BEN BOTKIN/Oregon Capital Chronicle SALEM — So far, $325 daily fines are not swaying Republican senators to return to floor sessions and end their walkout. Last Thursday,

Federal trial on lawsuit seeking to overturn Oregon gun control Measure 114 begins Monday

June 5, 2023

A federal judge will start hearing arguments on Monday in a case that seeks to overturn Measure 114, which puts more gun ownership requirements in place for Oregon. Tick Licker Firearms in Salem sells semiautomatic firearms, high-capacity magazines and other weapons. (Connor Radnovich/Oregon Capital Chronicle) By BEN BOTKIN/Oregon Capital Chronicle A federal judge will start hearing arguments Monday in a

Siuslaw National Forest names new leader from BLM

June 5, 2023

CORVALLIS – A U.S. Bureau of Land Management official from Springfield has been named supervisor of the Siuslaw National Forest. Rebecca Brooke, who has served as the BLM’s upper Willamette field manager the past five years, replaces Robert Sanchez who led held the Siuslaw’s supervisor job since 2018. Sanchez recently accepted a position as deputy regional forester for the Pacific

PacifiCorps rests its case in trial over September 2020 wildfires, defending precautions around Otis

June 4, 2023

By TED SICKINGER/The Oregonian, OregonLive PacifiCorp doesn’t dispute that its equipment ignited some of the fires that burned in Oregon on Labor Day 2020, but it has denied responsibility for most of the catastrophic destruction claimed by victims in a $1.6 billion class action lawsuit currently playing out in Multnomah County Circuit Court. In more than two weeks of testimony by experts,

ODFW fined $16,980 for improper North Fork Alsea stream bank work

June 4, 2023

One Oregon agency is fining another for what it says are violations of the federal Clean Water Act for failing to follow best management practices while doing bank stabilization work on the North Fork of the Alsea River. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has proposed fining the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife $16,980 for the violations. ODFW is

OSU board of trustees approves $16.5 million apartment project for Hatfield Marine Science Center students, faculty

June 4, 2023

By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews NEWPORT — When students, faculty or visiting researchers show up in 18 months to take or teach classes at the Hatfield Marine Science Center there should be 77 more apartments available for them to use. Oregon State University’s board of trustees Friday approved construction of a $16.5 million apartment building on five acres of land near

Debt vote splits Oregon’s congressional delegation — and not just on party lines

June 3, 2023

By GARY A. WARNER/Oregon Capital Bureau Oregon’s delegation to Congress has split its vote on the House-passed bill to lift the debt ceiling beyond $32 trillion. The House voted 314-117 for House Resolution 3746, dubbed the “Fiscal Responsibility Act” by House Republican leaders. Oregon’s four Democratic House members evenly split their votes – two for and two against. The two

Unofficial GOP-run oversight committee told by audience to end Republican senate walkout

June 2, 2023

Members of an unofficial Republican-led committee on government oversight spent Thursday listening to Oregonians tell them to end a walkout. By JULIA SHUMWAY/Oregon Capital Chronicle SALEM — A handful of Senate Republicans, in the fifth week of their walkout and facing the looming threat of hundreds of dollars in fines, found their way back to a cramped hearing room in

Nonprofit YachatsNews launches local, monthlong fundraising campaign with a goal of $50,000 from readers

June 2, 2023

By QUINTON SMITH/YachatsNews Another year of turmoil in Yachats city government, burgeoning municipal projects in Waldport, fights over vacation rentals in Lincoln County, stories from the ever-changing beaches and ocean just to our west, abandoned RVs, important elections, and features on groups, events and people that help stitch together our communities. Those were among the topics of more than 1,000

Nathan C. Woodruff, Yachats

June 1, 2023

Nathan C. Woodruff, Yachats March 27, 1976 – May 24, 2023 Nathan Christopher Woodruff, 47, of Yachats passed away at his home on May 24, 2023, following a valiant battle with colon cancer. Nate was born in Manteca, Calif. on March 27, 1976, to Kathryn Rogers and Rick Woodruff. He was a sweet and affectionate son who, from an early