News

The Bend City Council is moving forward with an ordinance that would ban all firearms in at least three city-owned buildings, removing an exemption for concealed carry license holders.   In June 2025, an Oregon state law, Senate Bill 243, was passed, banning gun modifications that allow rifles and handguns to be fired at a much […]

“The goal is really to help the larger community to become more aware and educated about what it means to be homeless, what’s being done to help with the problem of homelessness and so it’s primarily an educational goal,” says Barbara Belzer with Central Oregon Homelessness Alliance explaining why the nonprofit is hosting its second […]

Gov. Tina Kotek and state lawmakers have tried to solve Oregon’s affordable housing crisis with hundreds of millions of dollars in funding and new programs, including a bill moving through the Legislature that would expand mobile home communities for older residents. “Too many older Oregonians are one emergency away from losing their housing,” Kotek told […]

Most people agree that the restrictions during the Covid-19 pandemic were a drag. Wearing facial coverings, social distancing and not hanging indoors with others were disruptive necessities in curbing the spread of the virus, which ultimately killed about 1.2 million Americans. Like elsewhere in the state, some Central Oregon businesses were slow in adopting then-Gov. […]

“When I saw what happened to Alex Pretti… I knew that could’ve been me,” said Kurt Greenwood, a motorcyclist and independent mechanic in Bend. “If what went down in Minnesota was happening in my town, I would’ve been out there doing the exact same thing.”  Greenwood, a U.S. Army veteran who served in Afghanistan, feels […]

The City of Bend is reviewing a policy proposal that would add a scaled fee to the installation of natural gas equipment in residential homes, with the intent being to encourage electrification and reduce negative impacts of fossil fuel emissions.   The fee proposal has drawn some attention; on Feb. 11, a City Council work session […]

In a joint press release, Oregon Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden stated that they have secured “more than $92 million” for Oregon as part of funding legislation recently passed by congressional appropriations committees.   Over $7.1 million will go to projects in Deschutes and Jefferson counties, with the former receiving a majority of that sum.  […]

When Gov. Tina Kotek convened the first meeting of her newly named Prosperity Council on Jan. 22, she told the 16-member panel what she hoped to achieve. “The goals I’ve put forward—about growing our GDP, creating new jobs and supporting the workforce we need for the future—those are very simple goals,” Kotek said. “And they […]

Oregon lawmakers are currently wrestling in Salem with federal cuts for health care and food assistance programs. At the same time, some legislators are also trying to expand retirement benefits for some public employees. Senate Bill 1569 would significantly boost benefits for juvenile court counselors, police fingerprint technicians, deputy attorneys general doing criminal work, and […]

Central Oregon is no exception to the issue of folks without permanent housing at any given time throughout the year. On a single night in January each year, the Point-in-Time Count takes place nationwide to count sheltered and unsheltered people experiencing homelessness. In Central Oregon, this takes place in La Pine, Sisters, Bend, Redmond, Madras, […]