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Merkley, Wyden, Senate Democrats Press USDA to Justify Critical Honeybee Data Gaps

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Oregon’s Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden joined 21 Senate Democrats in writing to Sonny Perdue, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), expressing concerns over this summer’s move by USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) to suspend the collection of honeybee data across the nation. While

Commissioners lobby for PILT, SRS funding in Washington, D.C.

Grant County commissioners Jim Hamsher and Sam Palmer arrived in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 9 for a four-day stay that included a visit to Capitol Hill on Sept. 11 to advocate for more permanent solutions for Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) and Secure Rural Schools (SRS) funding. The two

How Jeff Merkley Is Helping to Keep the Nation’s Eyes on the Border Crisis

Sitting in his Portland office with Mount Hood glittering behind him, Jeff Merkley thumbs through his iPhone photos. Images shot through chain-link fences show people huddled together. Here’s a family lying side by side on a green floor mat, arms touching; here’s a father, cradling his infant. These pictures are from detention

Climate strike hits Enterprise

On Friday, Sept. 20, an estimated 4 million people worldwide walked out of classes and off their jobs to demand that governments and corporations take action to limit climate change. Many were students in high school and college. (Portland public schools and many other educational institutions provided excused absences to

Downtown march backs nurses at Columbia Memorial

Hundreds of union members and other supporters, including U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, marched through downtown Astoria on Saturday during a rally for Columbia Memorial Hospital nurses, who are in a protracted labor dispute with hospital administrators. The Oregon Nurses Association, a union representing more than 120 nurses at the Astoria

Communities eligible for relief

Oregon’s U.S. Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden have announced that $150 million is now available to help rural communities recover from substantial damages and losses caused by severe winter storms earlier this year. The storms, in nine Oregon counties, including Jefferson, closed roads and left countless families without power

U.S. senators urge FDA to remove pod, cartridge-based e-cigarettes from market

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A bipartisan group of U.S. senators on Friday urged federal regulators to immediately remove all pod and cartridge-based e-cigarettes from the market until it can be proven the products are safe. In a letter to Ned Sharpless, acting commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA),

Overnight Health Care

Welcome to Friday’s Overnight Health Care. More vaping fallout: Walmart is taking a stance and will not longer sell e-cigarettes. And on Capitol Hill, senators want FDA to enact a near total ban immediately. Also on drug pricing, at least one House Democrat wants changes to Speaker Pelosi’s bill. We’ll

Merkley fields questions on CBD oil

SALEM — As appropriations bills get ready to hit the Senate floor, a $2 million appropriation for research on cannabidiol could guide Oregon farmers growing the crop. Cannabidiol, known more commonly as CBD, is a main component of hemp, which is on track to be a billion dollar crop for

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