Bend awarded $5 million federal grant to fuel affordable housing production
Bend Bulletin The city of Bend has received a $5 million grant intended to kickstart affordable housing supply, the federal government announced Wednesday. Awarded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the grant set the course for the city to identify and address policies that slow affordable housing
Wyden, Merkley announce $30.1 million in ‘Payments in Lieu of Taxes’ to Oregon counties; $6 million to C. Oregon
KTVZ WASHINGTON (KTVZ) — Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley announced Thursday that counties throughout Oregon will receive more than $30.1 million in Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) funding for 2024, including over $6 million for Deschutes, Crook and Jefferson counties. Because local governments cannot tax federal lands, annual PILT
Wyden, Merkley, colleagues call on Postal Service to prepare for November election
KTVZ WASHINGTON (KTVZ) — Senator Ron Wyden said Thursday he is leading Senate colleagues including fellow Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley in calling on Postmaster General DeJoy and the U.S. Postal Service to share their plans to accommodate high volumes of mail expected in the upcoming 2024 general election in Oregon and nationwide.
Senators introduce Klamath Basin agreement bill
WASHINGTON — Lawmakers from Oregon and California introduced legislation in the Senate on Wednesday that formalizes the Upper Klamath Basin Comprehensive Agreement struck last month. Under the deal, users above Upper Klamath Lake agree to reduce their water consumption, allowing an extra 30,000 acre-feet to flow into the lake. In
American families deserve a fair shot at an affordable college education
The following guest commentary was written by Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley. The promise that the next generation will be able to go further and do better than the last one is the heart of the American Dream. I was fortunate enough to have that chance. I grew up in a
Bill might ease student loan squeeze
Financial counselors at a Springfield home-buying program are increasingly running into a monumental roadblock when they try to help first-time home buyers qualify for a mortgage: student loans. “In counseling, we actually get down and pull their credit reports for them and look at individual line items with them individually,”
Oregon senators join call for increased research into Gulf War illnesses
Peter Greene, 54, says the ailments he suffers from his military service during the First Gulf War make it hard for him to walk the bus stop near his Northeast Portland home. But he and nine other Gulf War veterans recently returned from a trip to Washington, D.C., where they
Sen. Jeff Merkley: Ending student debt with “Pay It Forward”
The U.S. Department of Education reports that the average total cost of going to a public, 4-year college for one year was $21,000 for in-state students in 2011-2012. And while college costs are spiraling upward, so is student debt. The Institute for College Access and Success finds that 7 in
Merkley seeks Dem nomination
WASHINGTON — When Jeff Merkley arrived in the nation’s capital in 2009 as a newly elected senator, it was not his first stint in Washington. But it quickly became obvious to the Portland Democrat that the Congress of which he was now a member was very different from the ones
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