Bills to pay reparations for slavery stir tough feelings March 09 2021 I feel like this is truly the right thing for Oregon to do in order to right the wrongs of the past.
Should Oregonians pay thousands each year in reparations to descendants of enslaved people?
That s the question Oregon lawmakers take up Wednesday morning, March 10, as they discuss two senate bills requiring the state to study paying reparations to African American Oregonians who can trace their ancestry to slavery.
Former state Rep. Tiffiny K. Mitchell of Astoria says yes, we should. A handful of others who submitted early testimony on the two bills say absolutely not.
Good news for reopening schools March 07 2021
COVID-19 cases and deaths continue trending down after Oregon Gov. Kate Brown issues an executive order to reopen public schools.
Newly reported COVID-19 cases and deaths continued trending down two days after Oregon Gov. Kate Brown issued an executive order to reopen public schools in coming weeks.
Brown mandated on Friday, March 5, that public school students be back in classrooms before the weeks of March 29 for elementary students and April 19 for middle and high schoolers. Whether or not public schools should return kids to the classroom this spring is no longer up for discussion: the science and data is clear, schools can return to in-person instruction with a very low risk of COVID-19 transmission, particularly with a vaccinated workforce, Brown said in a letter to state health and education agencies.
March 05 2021
Elementary kids should be back by March 29 and middle and high schoolers by April 19.
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced yet another new set of school re-opening guidelines on Friday, March 5, that mandates public school students be back in classrooms before the weeks of March 29 for elementary students and April 19 for middle and high schoolers. Whether or not public schools should return kids to the classroom this spring is no longer up for discussion: the science and data is clear, schools can return to in-person instruction with a very low risk of COVID-19 transmission, particularly with a vaccinated workforce, Brown said in a letter to state health and education agencies.
913 landlords apply to $150M relief fund so far
Oregon Landlord Compensation Fund deluged with applicants, prompting official to extend the deadline.
Officials said they have received a tremendous response from landlords applying to a new state relief fund with the surfeit of enthusiasm now rapidly outpacing staff capacity.
After opening the gate to online applications Feb. 17, Oregon Housing & Community Services spokeswoman Kate Gonsalves told the Tribune that 913 applications, encompassing 3,216 properties, have been added into the system as of Feb. 26. Applications are still coming in, Gonsalves said.
In recognition of the deluge, the deadline to submit applications statewide has been extended to 4 p.m. Friday, March 5.