Category: In the News

Oregon City’s Tyrone Woods to receive Congressional Gold Medal

Oregon City High School graduate and state wrestling champion Tyrone Woods is receiving Congress’ highest honor for his actions to defend the U.S. consulate from a terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 12, 2012. With a successful Dec. 12 vote of Senate that followed a U.S. House vote in

Senators Emphasize Western Drought and Conservation

On Wednesday, U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley urged the United States Department of Agriculture to give parity to the priorities of growers and communities in Oregon and the west through existing authorities, new funding, and collaboration across government. In a letter to the USDA, the senators said, “The

Federal grant approved to restore Portland Fire and Rescue positions

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The Portland City Council unanimously voted to accept $2.1 million in federal grant money at Wednesday’s meeting to fund the hiring of six additional Portland Fire and Rescue firefighters for the next three years. The added firefighters, Portland Fire and Rescue Deputy Chief Ryan Gillespie told

Merkley Introduces Bill to Ban Private Equity Firms from Predatory Housing Practices

Sen. Jeff Merkley introduced a ban last week on arguably the largest driver of high rents across the country: Private equity hedge funds in residential real estate. Since the 2008 recession, Wall Street speculators have bought up foreclosed residential properties at unprecedented rates, effectively positioning hedge funds as landlords.  But

Klamath Tribes Regain Self-Governance of Tribal Funds

On December 21, 2022, the Klamath Tribes Judgment Fund Repeal Act, S. 314, was signed into law by President Biden. As a result, the Klamath Tribes will regain self-governance over money held in trust by the United States government for almost sixty years. In 1954, federal legislation terminated the existing government-to-government

Affordable Housing: New federal legislation designed to help Oregon, nation

As the nation continues to face a crisis of housing affordability, Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley has introduced the End Hedge Fund Control of American Homes Act. The legislation is aimed at ending Wall Street ownership of residential housing. While aspects of the housing crisis— including a supply shortage—will take

Oregon senator seeks to stop investors from amassing single-family homes

Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley is looking to stop investors from collecting massive portfolios of single-family homes, citing the national housing affordability crisis. Merkley, who used to head up Portland’s Habitat for Humanity, introduced a bill in the U.S. Senate to discourage taxpayers from owning more than 100 single-family homes by imposing a

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