Sunday - September 14, 2025
Public Policy Tipoffs Involving Oregon Newsletter for Wednesday August 06, 2025 ( 20 items )  

Attorneys General Challenge Federal Agency's Changes to NEPA Regulations
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 -- The Attorneys General of Washington, California, New York, Massachusetts, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Michigan, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, D.C., and Harris County, Texas, have submitted a public comment letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, expressing their staunch opposition to the agency's recent Interim Final Rules, which rescind vital regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act   more

CBO Tells Merkley: When Including Interest and Assuming Temporary Tax Provisions Are Made Permanent, "One Big, Beautiful Bill" Adds $5 Trillion to Debt
WASHINGTON, Aug. 6 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, issued the following news release on Aug. 4, 2025: * * * CBO Tells Merkley: When Including Interest and Assuming Temporary Tax Provisions Are Made Permanent, "One Big, Beautiful Bill" Adds $5 Trillion to Debt Today, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) told U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Ranking Member of the Senate Budget Committee, that when accounting for interest costs and ass  more

Federal judge rules U.S Fish and Wildlife Service broke the law in denying protections for gray wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 [Category: Environment] -- The Sierra Club posted the following news release: * * * Federal judge rules U.S Fish and Wildlife Service broke the law in denying protections for gray wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains * MISSOULA, MT -- A federal judge in Montana ruled today that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service broke the law last year when it denied a petition to protect gray wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains under the Endangered Species Act. The agency must now re  more

Hoyle and Top Democrats Condemn Trump's Federal Workforce Purge, Back Bills to Block Mass Firings at Interior, Forest Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 -- Rep. Val Hoyle, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * Hoyle and Top Democrats Condemn Trump's Federal Workforce Purge, Back Bills to Block Mass Firings at Interior, Forest Service * : August 5, 2025 EUGENE, OR - Yesterday, Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries Subcommittee Ranking Member U.S. Representative Val Hoyle (D-Ore.) joined Natural Resources Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), Vice Ranking Member Sarah Elfreth (D-Md.), Federal Lands Subcommittee Ra  more

KPTV to Remain on Channel 12, FCC Decision Ensures Uninterrupted Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 6 -- The Federal Communications Commission has issued a Report and Order allowing KPTV, a Portland, Oregon television station, to remain on its current channel. The decision, part of a docket titled "Amendment of Section 73.622(j), Table of Allotments, Television Broadcast Stations (Portland, Oregon)" (MB Docket No. 25-132), resolves an issue regarding the station's facility plans. The station's licensee, Gray Television Licensee, LLC, had previously been granted a permit to mo  more

Merkley Statement on GAO Determination That Trump Administration Violated the Impoundment Control Act by Withholding NIH Grant Funding
WASHINGTON, Aug. 6 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, issued the following news release on Aug. 5, 2025: * * * Merkley Statement on GAO Determination That Trump Administration Violated the Impoundment Control Act by Withholding NIH Grant Funding Merkley Has Called on GAO to Investigate the Trump Administration's Violations of the Impoundment Control Act * Today, the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) published additional findings t  more

Merkley, Wyden Announce $22 Million to Support Working Forestland and Tribal Access in Eastern Oregon
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * Merkley, Wyden Announce $22 Million to Support Working Forestland and Tribal Access in Eastern Oregon * Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) is awarding $22 million to the Qapqapa Wildlife Area project in Northeast Oregon's Union County, which will be co-managed by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation   more

Merkley, Wyden Announce $22 Million to Support Working Forestland and Tribal Access in Eastern Oregon
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * Merkley, Wyden Announce $22 Million to Support Working Forestland and Tribal Access in Eastern Oregon * Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden announced today the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) is awarding $22 million to the Qapqapa Wildlife Area project in Northeast Oregon's Union County, which will be co-managed by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CT  more

Merkley, Wyden Announce Senate Passage of Critical Community-Initiated Projects
WASHINGTON, Aug. 4 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * Merkley, Wyden Announce Senate Passage of Critical Community-Initiated Projects * Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden today announced essential investments for Oregon families and rural and underserved communities passed the Senate, including five community-initiated projects for communities across the state championed by the Senators. These investments were included in  more

Merkley: Trump's Nuclear Posturing Aids Kremlin Playbook, Wasteful Weapons Spending Must Be Reined In
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * Merkley: Trump's Nuclear Posturing Aids Kremlin Playbook, Wasteful Weapons Spending Must Be Reined In * Washington, D.C. - Oregon's U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley--co-chair of the Congressional Nuclear Weapons and Arms Control Working Group and a senior member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee--released the following statement in response to public reports that President Trump ordered the repositio  more

Northern Rocky Mountain Wolves Get Another Shot at Protections
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 [Category: Biology] -- The Center for Biological Diversity posted the following news release: * * * Northern Rocky Mountain Wolves Get Another Shot at Protections * MISSOULA, Mont.-- A federal judge in Montana ruled today that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service broke the law last year when it denied a petition to protect gray wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains under the Endangered Species Act. The agency must now reconsider whether to grant protections to wolves living  more

Republican Budget Bill Puts Your Social Security At Risk
WASHINGTON, Aug. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news release on Aug. 5, 2025: * * * The Republican Budget Bill Puts Your Social Security At Risk New Analysis from Social Security Chief Actuary Confirms Republican Budget Bill Brings Social Security Trust Funds One Year Closer to Insolvency * Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today issued a statement after the Office of the Chief Actuary (OACT) at th  more

Tool Developed to Manage Water for Birds in Malheur National Wildlife Refuge
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 (TNSLrpt) -- The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), High Desert Partnership, and Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board, has published a report on a new tool designed to assist with water management at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. The report, "Managing Water for Birds--A Tool for the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, Southeastern Oregon," was written by Cassandra D. Smith and is Scientific Investigations Report 2025-5024.  more

Top Democrats Condemn Trump's Federal Workforce Purge, Back Bills to Block Mass Firings at Interior, Forest Service
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 -- Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * Top Democrats Condemn Trump's Federal Workforce Purge, Back Bills to Block Mass Firings at Interior, Forest Service * Washington, D.C. - Natural Resources Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), Vice Ranking Member Sarah Elfreth (D-Md.), Federal Lands Subcommittee Ranking Member Joe Neguse (D-Colo.), Water, Wildlife, and Fisheries Subcommittee Ranking Member Val Hoyle (D-Ore.), Oversight and Investi  more

University of Oregon Museum of Natural & Cultural History Completes Inventory, Prepares to Repatriate Items to Siletz, Coquille Tribes
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 (TNSFR) -- The University of Oregon Museum of Natural and Cultural History has finalized an inventory of human remains and funerary objects, a necessary step before their repatriation to the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians and the Coquille Indian Tribe. This determination, made under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), establishes a clear cultural affiliation between the items and these two tribes. The collection, which includes the rema  more

University of Oregon Museum of Natural & Cultural History Completes Inventory, Prepares to Repatriate Remains to 3 Native Tribes
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 (TNSFR) -- The University of Oregon Museum of Natural and Cultural History has finalized an inventory of human remains and burial items, a step required under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). The inventory identified the physical remains of five individuals and 13 funerary objects and established a cultural affiliation with the Burns Paiute Tribe; Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation; and the Klamath Tribes. This determination  more

Wyden, Cortez Masto Blast Billion Dollar Bailout for Big Pharma in Republican Budget Bill
WASHINGTON, Aug. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news release: * * * Wyden, Cortez Masto Blast Billion Dollar Bailout for Big Pharma in Republican Budget Bill As the Dust Settles from the Rushed and Reckless Passage of Republican Reconciliation Bill, Some of the Costliest Prescription Drugs, Including Cancer Treatments, Have Been Exempted from Medicare Negotiation for Years Trump and RFK Jr.'s Hypocrisy Is on Full Display as  more

Wyden, Merkley Announce $2.2 Million for Rural Broadband Technical Assistance in Oregon
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 -- Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * Wyden, Merkley Announce $2.2 Million for Rural Broadband Technical Assistance in Oregon * Washington D.C.-- U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, both D-Ore., today announced more than $2.2 million in funding to help expand high-speed internet in communities across rural Oregon. "It is more important now than ever to have reliable access to the internet, especially for rural Oregonians who depen  more

Wyden, Merkley Announce $2.2 Million for Rural Broadband Technical Assistance in Oregon
WASHINGTON, Aug. 5 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, issued the following news release: * * * Wyden, Merkley Announce $2.2 Million for Rural Broadband Technical Assistance in Oregon * Washington D.C.-- U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, both D-Ore., today announced more than $2.2 million in funding to help expand high-speed internet in communities across rural Oregon. "It is more important now than ever to have reliable access to the internet, especially for rural Oregonians who depend o  more

Wyden, Senate Democrats Introduce Legislation to Reverse Devastating Health Care Cuts in Trumpcare
WASHINGTON, Aug. 6 -- Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news release on Aug. 4, 2025: * * * Wyden, Senate Democrats Introduce Legislation to Reverse Devastating Health Care Cuts in Trumpcare After Republicans Passed the Largest Health Care Cut in History, and on the 60th Anniversary of Medicaid and Medicare, Democrats Propose Rolling Back Cuts and Extending Middle Class Tax Credits for Health Care * U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore.,  more