News

Before adjourning last week, Oregon lawmakers passed a controversial bill aimed at finding solutions for the state’s financially challenged public universities, which chief sponsor Rep. Pam Marsh (D-Ashland) says face “fierce headwinds.” The universities have experienced declining enrollment and consistent budget deficits over the past decade. Members of the state’s Legislature hope they can improve […]

The City of Bend is preparing to begin work on a new stretch of Franklin Avenue which means closing a section of the street surrounding the railroad underpass for a total of six months. Crews recently finished work on Franklin between NE Fourth and Eighth streets. Now the focus shifts to a stretch of road between NE Fourth west to NW Harriman Street, which includes the underpass. The City says an average of 14,000 […]

An alleged road rage incident that happened on Bend’s west side between a driver and a cyclist shortly after Memorial Day has resulted in a settlement, the Source has learned. Driver and defendant Michael Adin Wild reached a settlement with plaintiff and elite youth cyclist Jack Billowitz, who was 16 at the time of the […]

Teens as young as 14 years old will be allowed to operate certain e-bikes under a recently changed law.  On March 5, an amendment to HB 4007 passed the Senate with 28 “ayes.” The amendment changed the age of class 1 e-bike operation from 16 to 14. The changes to the bill also introduced a definition to the term “micromobility device,” and outlined fines imposed in accordance with regulations to that definition.   The staff measure summary of HB 4007 states that the amendment, “modifies […]

Redmond High School senior Arianna Morris just returned from the state finals for the 2026 Poetry Out Loud contest. She’s the only student from Central Oregon to make it that far. Eleven high schoolers from around the state competed on Saturday, March 7. Morris read two poems: “To My Dear and Loving Husband” by Anne […]

Southern Deschutes County has a lot going for it: postage-stamp lots tucked into expanses of Lodgepole pine, lesser-glimpsed views of the Cascades and backroads to many lakes and access points along the Deschutes River. Its unincorporated areas, where about 18,000 people live, have also long suffered high levels of nitrate in the groundwater. The shallowness […]

Get smashed by a snowmobile driven by ski hill employee? That’s gross negligence — you’d have a liability lawsuit on your hands. Break your foot because a kettle bell slipped from your grip? That’s ordinary negligence — maybe the gym owner should have a glove policy — and you’re outta luck.  Outdoor recreation and fitness providers, along with volunteer organizations, will enjoy a heightened protection against liability lawsuits, once Gov. Tina Kotek signs Senate Bill 1517 into law.  Oregon lawmakers passed […]

A national report released Wednesday gives Oregon an F for how well it protects its residents from online gambling addiction. The nonprofit Center for Addiction Science, Policy, and Research, or CASPR, gave the state a score of 43 on a scale of 100, placing it in the bottom 10 of 50 states. OJP has previously […]

Officials from Mt. Bachelor and the Central Oregon Avalanche Center are giving insight on avalanche mitigation efforts at the resort and the backcountry.   Because of the inherent fatality risk present in snow sports, the last known local and fatal accident being Feb. 2025 near Broken Top Mountain, COAC and Mt. Bachelor take extensive measures to prevent avalanche accidents.   “Avalanches are pretty common, even in Central Oregon. It’s definitely something that’s going to be happening frequently,” Bryce Kellogg, president of COAC, says. The […]

The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries has reversed an earlier finding that the Port of Newport should pay prevailing wages for the removal and disposal of derelict boats from port waters. “On December 11, 2025, BOLI issued a determination that the prevailing wage rate (PWR) laws would apply to the project. The purpose of […]