OPB Politics Now

Bills on vaccines and guns are out. Landmark school funding is in, and this year’s Legislative session shows no sign of slowing down. On this week’s OPB Politics Now, we hash out a hectic week in Salem, and why you might, or might not, have some money coming your way.

Republican members of the Oregon Senate walked off the job this week to prevent a vote on a $2-billion tax plan for public schools. In the latest edition of the OPB Politics Now podcast, political reporters Jeff Mapes, Dirk VanderHart and Lauren Dake explain what’s behind their walkout and what they hope to accomplish.

The Oregon House this week approved billions of dollars in new business taxes that would help fund education in the state. We explain how it would work in this week’s episode.

On this week’s “OPB Politics Now,” OPB News Editor Anna Griffin talks to OPB healthcare reporter Kristian Foden-Vencil and OPB political reporter Dirk VanderHart about the politics of vaccines and a bill in the legislature that would eliminate mon-medical exemptions to vaccines.

On this week’s episode of OPB Politics Now, we’re talking about the intersection of politics and criminal justice — including how Oregon should treat young offenders who are convicted of committing the most extreme crimes.

The 2019 Legislative session is already halfway through, and Oregon lawmakers still have an insane amount of work to do. On this week’s OPB Politics Now, we take the temperature of this very ambitious session. And we run down the Governor’s brand new plan for tackling Oregon’s pension problems.

Security in the state Capitol was extra tight this week as lawmakers considered whether to expand the state’s gun control laws. And we have a new Secretary of State. Now four of five statewide offices in Oregon are held by women for the first time in the state’s history. We’ll bring you all the details on this week’s episode of OPB Politics Now.

Oregon lawmakers were busy in Salem again this week. We’ll talk cap and trade and the Columbia River Crossing. Plus, we’ll discuss how lawmakers are trying to address the use of so-called dark money.

OPB has spent months digging deep on how Oregon handles its most vulnerable children. In this episode, we take a closer look at what’s plaguing the state’s child welfare system.

Portland is changing—and it’s fighting about how it changes every step of the way. We look at the debates over new housing and congested highways that are sweeping over the Rose City. And we’ll talk about why they might be coming to other parts of Oregon.