Dirk VanderHart
JPR Oregon State Capitol CorrespondentDirk VanderHart covers Oregon politics and government for Oregon Public Broadcasting, a JPR news partner. His reporting comes to JPR through the Northwest News Network, a collaboration between public media organizations in Oregon and Washington. Before barging onto the radio in 2018, Dirk spent more than a decade as a newspaper reporter鈥攎uch of that time reporting on city government for the Portland Mercury.
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The state has wrestled for years with ordering civil commitments for people with severe mental illness. Here鈥檚 what you need to know. -
Senate Bill 1038 would tie Oregon鈥檚 temporal fate to Washington and California. -
A coalition of contractors has argued the move is an unconstitutional power grab. -
The pioneering bill squeaked through one chamber of the Legislature in Salem, but there were some Democratic dissenters. -
The state might have enough money to fund core priorities. Or it might be scrambling to fill holes left by federal cuts. -
They鈥檙e hoping state lawmakers will be moved to act by a Friday deadline, but opponents say existing law is adequate. -
Critics of the state鈥檚 initiative petition system say it gives too much say to the Portland region. -
Senate Bill 916 has been one of the most hotly debated bills of this year鈥檚 legislative session. -
A bill that would end the practice of allowing 17-year-olds to marry is moving forward in Salem. -
Republicans lawmakers still have a lot of questions. -
The state's latest economic and revenue forecast includes some heartening news but plenty of caution. -
Oregon construction firms say an order by Gov. Tina Kotek last year mandating union labor in many state projects amounts to an illegal power grab. Now they鈥檙e asking a judge to step in.
