Lobbyists try for influence, without as much access to Oregon lawmakers
Updated Mar 03, 2021;
Posted Mar 03, 2021
Visitors, lobbyists and lawmakers hold conversations outside the legislative chambers. The pandemic has closed the Capitol to the public and lobbyists. The OregonianLC- The Oregonian
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By Jake Thomas, Salem Reporter
SALEM An impromptu five-minute conversation can be politically effective in the halls of the Oregon Capitol.
Such encounters have long been crucial for the army of Oregon lobbyists hoping to get a moment with a state legislator.
Paloma Sparks, the vice president of Oregon Business and Industry who serves as the group’s lobbyist, described her practice of parking herself outside of a committee hearing or a legislator’s office. Once the legislator emerged, she could walk with them to their next appointment or committee hearing.
Grupos de agricultura y trabajadores agrícolas en Oregon chocan por las regulaciones de COVID oregonlive.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from oregonlive.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
As harvest season looms, agriculture and farmworker groups in Oregon clash over COVID regulations
Updated Feb 18, 2021;
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By Jake Thomas | Salem Reporter
As Willamette Valley farmers and agricultural workers prepare for the 2021 season, a regulatory battle is playing out over state rules intended to reduce the risk of COVID spreading in farmworker housing.
The Oregon Farm Bureau is seeking to overturn state regulations intended to protect agricultural workers from COVID, arguing the requirements are forcing farmhands into crowded and unsafe conditions. But in Marion County, a farmworkers’ group said that the regulations have made working conditions safer.
Last month, the Oregon Farm Bureau filed a petition with the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration targeting new requirements for agricultural workplace around social distancing, masking, cleaning, signage, reporting and others. The regulations apply to labor-intensive agricultural establishments
Oregon’s drug treatment system is not ready for Measure 110 aftermath, Salem Reporter finds
Updated Feb 06, 2021;
Posted Feb 06, 2021
“Oregon has one of the worst prevention systems in the country measured by dollars spent,” said Mike Marshall, executive director of Oregon Recovers, which advocates for improving addiction treatment. Courtesy of Oregon RecoversCourtesy of Oregon Recovers
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By Rachel Alexander and Saphara Harrell, Salem Reporter
Oregon is poised to dramatically expand an addiction treatment system that already consumes millions of dollars each year with no clear results.
Oregonians passed Measure 110 last fall to take drug users out of jails and put them into clinics. That could move thousands of people into a system already clogged and lacking evidence it’s effective, an investigation by Salem Reporter found.