Dirk VanderHart
JPR Oregon State Capitol CorrespondentDirk VanderHart is JPR's Salem correspondent reporting from the Oregon State Capitol. His reporting is funded through a collaboration among public radio stations in Oregon and Washington that includes JPR. Before barging onto the radio in 2018, Dirk spent more than a decade as a newspaper reporter—much of that time reporting on city government for the Portland Mercury.
-
One week after the University of Oregon announced it’s departure to the Big Ten, people are still grappling with the news and its unclear impacts on the state. -
Lawmakers have been waiting for weeks to learn how new Secretary of State LaVonne Griffin-Valade will enforce a new law enacted by voters last year.
-
Lawmakers approved major new spending on an ongoing Capitol renovation this year without once mentioning the cost escalations.
-
Gov. Tina Kotek has previously denied the claim that she fired former OLCC Director Steve Marks earlier this year at the behest of a controversial cannabis entrepreneur.
-
A bill to allow Oregonians to pump their own gas is not on Gov. Kotek's veto list. Money to study legalizing sex work is.
-
The recall effort against longtime Rep. Paul Holvey, D-Eugene, could pit some of the state's most potent political forces against each other.
-
A ballot measure passed last year was supposed to block 10 conservative lawmakers from running for reelection. They are planning to file anyway.
-
In the 2024 election, Oregonians will decide how leaders are elected, what they're paid and whether they can be removed from office.
-
Over the course of eight frantic days, the House and Senate rushed to pass hundreds of bills, most with little or no discussion. The tumult left some lawmakers with little positive to say when asked how they’d describe the session.
-
Lawmakers had high hopes of finishing their work Saturday, but top Democrats were having trouble finding agreement on one of Gov. Tina Kotek's priorities. State law requires them to conclude their business by Sunday.
-
Abortion access has declined dramatically nationwide, but many states have further protected abortion by enacting "shield laws," allocating funding, stockpiling medication and repealing old laws.
-
The state is one of just two that prevents many drivers from fueling up. That would end under a bill headed to Gov. Tina Kotek.
